average

将“average”与“aver-”部分联想，想象“aver-”代表平均，就像“aver-age”就是平均分组，每个人都在中间位置，形成了一个“average”的形象。这种方法通过视觉联想帮助记忆单词的含义。

average 平均

来自阿拉伯语，指海损货品，在古时没有保险机构的情况下，各货主按各自货品价值共同承担损失，后词义转为平均，原义见保险行业术语general average, 共同海损。

average

average: [15] The word average has a devious history. It began in Arabic, as ‘awārīya, the plural of ‘awār, a noun derived from the verb ‘āra ‘mutilate’; this was used as a commercial term, denoting ‘damaged merchandise’. The first European language to adopt it was Italian, as avaria, and it passed via Old French avarie into English (where in the 16th century it acquired its -age ending, probably by association with the then semantically similar damage).

Already by this time it had come to signify the ‘financial loss incurred through damage to goods in transit’, and this passed in the 17th century to the ‘equal sharing of such loss by those with a financial interest in the goods’, and eventually, in the 18th century, to the current (mathematical and general) sense of ‘mean’.

average (n.)

late 15c., "financial loss incurred through damage to goods in transit," from French avarie "damage to ship," and Italian avaria; a word from 12c. Mediterranean maritime trade (compare Spanish averia; other Germanic forms, Dutch avarij, German haferei, etc., also are from Romanic languages), which is of uncertain origin. Sometimes traced to Arabic 'arwariya "damaged merchandise." Meaning shifted to "equal sharing of such loss by the interested parties." Transferred sense of "statement of a medial estimate" is first recorded 1735. The mathematical extension is from 1755.

average (adj.)

1770; see average (n.).

average (v.)

1769, from average (n.). Related: Averaged; averaging.

1. The average commuter journey there is five hours long.

那里的通勤一族平均上下班要花5个小时。

2. In 1970 the average size of a French farm was 19 hectares.

1970年，法国农场的平均规模为19公顷。

3. Its profits are rising four times faster than the average company.

它的利润增长速度比一般公司快4倍。

4. The train's average speed was no better than that of our bicycles.

火车的平均速度比我们骑自行车的速度快不了多少。

5. My fish average 2 lb 8 oz and I've had two eight-pounders.

我的鱼平均每条重2磅8盎司，还有过两条重8磅的。

【mean, average】
mean: 中间，中数
average: 平均数，一般水平

【usual, common, universal, general, average】
这组词都有“普通”的意思，其区别是：
usual: a.通常的，惯常的，强调"习惯性的，符合规章制度的"，是个一般用语。
common: a.常见的，普通的，不足为奇的，有时引申为"平凡的"，强调事物的共同性。另外，它还有"公共的，共同的"之意。
• Car accidents are a common occurrence. 交通事故是很普通的事件。
universal: a.普遍的，比general语气更强，有"全然没有例外"的意思。
• Poverty is a universal problem all over the world. 贫困是世界各地普遍存在的问题。
general: a.普通的，一般的，表示涉及到各方面，强调整体性而非个别和例外，该词的反义词为particular。
• In general, the economy is doing well now. 总的来说，现在的经济形式还不错。
average: a.普通的，一般的，它强调的是一般水准或普通水准；通常在有数字出现的情况下，表示"平均的"。
• The average runner can run 2 miles in fifteen minutes. 跑步者15分钟内平均跑两英里。

【medium, median, average】
这些形容词均含“中等的，平均的，适中的”之意。
medium: 指按照某种标准来说是适中或中等的。这种标准可以是通过仪器测量而来，也可能是凭经验而得出。
mediam: 指中间位置的，统计学上指处于中间位置的一个数的。
average: 通常用来形容优劣难分的平庸或折衷情况，也指理论上的平均标准。

【mediam, average, medium】
这组词都有“中等的，平均的，适中的”的意思，其区别是：
mediam: 指中间位置的，统计学上指处于中间位置的一个数的。
average: 通常用来形容优劣难分的平庸或折衷情况，也指理论上的平均标准。
medium: 指按照某种标准来说是适中或中等的。这种标准可以是通过仪器测量而来，也可能是凭经验而得出。