Word · Frequency #15666
gingerly
小心翼翼地；慎重地
with extreme care or delicacy; in a cautious, careful way
- 1.
In a cautious and delicate manner; (very) carefully or cautiously.
谨慎而轻柔地；非常小心或谨慎地。
谨慎而轻柔地；非常小心或谨慎地。；小心翼翼地；慎重地
In use
She gingerly opened the old letter, afraid it might tear.
He gingerly stepped over the sleeping cat, trying not to wake it.
They gingerly tested the ice before walking across the frozen lake.
gingerly + verb
副词gingerly常放在动词前，表示动作小心谨慎。
She gingerly stepped onto the rickety bridge.
她小心翼翼地踏上那座摇晃的桥。
verb + gingerly
gingerly也可放在动词后，强调动作方式。
He handled the ancient manuscript gingerly.
他小心翼翼地处理那份古老的手稿。
gingerly + noun
形容词用法修饰名词，表示“谨慎的、小心的”，常见于a gingerly manner/step等搭配。
She made a gingerly attempt to open the lid.
她小心翼翼地试着打开盖子。
Common mistakes
This soup tastes gingerly.This soup tastes gingery.
gingerly 意为“小心翼翼地、谨慎的”，与姜（ginger）无关；表示“有姜味的”应用 gingery，这里是词义和词形混淆。
He gingerlied the antique vase.He handled the antique vase gingerly.
gingerly 是副词（也可作形容词），不是动词，不能加 -ed；要表达“小心翼翼地把弄”需用实义动词 handle，并将 gingerly 用作方式副词。
Connections
Collocations
- move gingerly
- 小心翼翼地移动
- She moved gingerly over the icy path.她在结冰的小路上小心翼翼地移动。
- handle gingerly
- 小心翼翼地拿；谨慎处理
- He handled the fragile glassware gingerly.他小心翼翼地拿那套易碎的玻璃器皿。
- pick up gingerly
- 小心翼翼地拿起
- She picked up the ancient manuscript gingerly.她小心翼翼地拿起那份古代手稿。
- touch gingerly
- 轻轻地触摸；小心翼翼地碰
- He touched the orchid gingerly.他小心翼翼地触摸那朵兰花。
- tread gingerly
- 小心翼翼地行走；谨慎行事
- They trod gingerly through the tense negotiations.他们在紧张的谈判中谨小慎微地行事。
- approach gingerly
Learner notes
Memory Tip
把 gingerly 拆成 ginger（姜）+ ly：像捏一小撮姜末那样小心翼翼、轻手轻脚。
Context & Register
语域：neutral 常见场景：书面叙事、日常对话 gingerly 通常作副词，表示动作非常小心、轻柔，多用于描述为避免疼痛或损坏而试探着触摸、移动、走路等场合；作形容词较少见，意为‘慎重的、谨慎的’。整体语域中性，口语和书面语中都自然，与 carefully 相比更强调小心得带点迟疑或紧张。
Pronunciation & Spelling
Gingerly ends in unstressed /əli/. Family (/ˈfæməli/), elderly (/ˈeldəli/), and eagerly (/ˈiːɡəli/) share this /əli/ ending, but because their stressed vowels differ from gingerly's /ɪ/, they are not true rhymes. Generally (/ˈdʒenərəli/) also has a similar /ərəli/ tail. Be careful with the -erly spelling: in British English the r is silent in elderly and eagerly, but in American English it is pronounced (elderly /ˈeldərli/, eagerly /ˈiːɡərli/). Ginger (/ˈdʒɪndʒə/) shares the initial spelling but changes the ending, and dangerously (/ˈdeɪndʒərəsli/) adds unrelated syllables.
Usage priority
Collins 词频等级为 1，建议结合例句记忆，而不是只背中文释义。
Dictionary facts from ECDICT, WIKTIONARY.