20190519 capitalize on

1. 这是个什么词？

词：capitalize on

英英释义：to use a situation or something good that you have, in order to get an advantage for yourself

例句：Bali has capitalized on its natural beauty to attract tourism.

2. 为什么选这个词？

“capitalize”是及物动词，意思是“将......大写”、“变现”，但它后面加 on 变成 capitalize on 之后就成了“利用某物”的意思了。这个表达很常见，《经济学人》几乎每一两期里面就会至少出现一次。当我们想表达 take advantage of something 的时候就可以用 capitalize on something。下面通过几个例子来掌握这个词。

巴厘岛利用自然美景来吸引游人，就可以说：

Bali has capitalized on its natural beauty to attract tourism.

比如体育竞技中，利用对手的防守失误击败对手，就可以用 capitalize on：

The Los Angeles Lakers were smart to capitalize on their opponent's mistakes to defeat it.

她利用自己在西班牙做交换生的机会，掌握了西班牙语，可以说：

She capitalized on her stay in Spain as an exchange student to master the Spanish language.

来看《经济学人》中出现 capitalize on 的几个句子：

a) Critics accuse the [Australian] government, which faces an election next month, of attempting to capitalize on public horror at the atrocity in New Zealand.

b) He has courted radical Islamists, doubtless hoping to capitalize on false rumours spread by social media that the president is a closet Christian or communist, a dangerous ploy in the world’s biggest Muslim country.（句中的 he 指的是一名印尼政客）

c) Consolidation would allow costs to be cut while increasing negotiating power. More investment in storage, ports and transport would help them take greater advantage of arbitrage opportunities across the globe. That should position them well to meet Asia’s growing thirst for instant coffee. Another strategy would be to capitalize on the trend for pricey gourmet brews that boast traceability and sustainability.（这几句里面正好同时出现了 take advantage of 和 capitalize on 这两个表达，明显是同义替换）

3. 怎样学会使用这个词？

1）翻译下面的句子：

深圳利用政策优势吸引全国各地的优秀人才。

Shenzhen has capitalized on its friendly policies to attract the best talent in the country.

（参考翻译：Shenzhen has capitalized on its friendly policies to attract the best talent in the country.）

2）结合自己的生活、学习、工作、兴趣等，想象在什么语境下会用到这个表达。先简要描述这个场景，再造句。

例子： 我们应该利用太阳能来发电。

场景： We should capitalize on solar energy to produce electricity.