gimcrack

grammar · medium

易错句子They lived in a gimcrack villa with marble floors and gold taps.

正确表达They lived in a luxurious villa with marble floors and gold taps.

gimcrack 带贬义，指“华而不实、看着气派但质量低劣”，不能用来夸赞豪华气派。要表达“豪华”，应用 luxurious 这类褒义词；本句语境是称赞，因此用 gimcrack 会造成褒贬颠倒。

grammar · medium

易错句子The advertisement used a clever gimcrack to catch people's attention.

正确表达The advertisement used a clever gimmick to catch people's attention.

表示“吸引眼球的噱头、花招”的名词是 gimmick；gimcrack 作名词指华而不实的廉价玩意儿，不表示“营销花招”，二者形近义不同，不可混用。

grammar · medium

易错句子He wore a gimcrack old coat that was torn and dirty.

正确表达He wore a shabby old coat that was torn and dirty.

gimcrack 强调“外表花哨而实质低劣”，含炫耀意味；只表示“破旧、寒酸”而无花哨义时应用 shabby。本句描述破烂旧衣，没有“华而不实”的成分，故不能用 gimcrack。