不如先給大家一道練習吧：
Examination is around the corner. The girls are all busy 1. (practising / practicing), while the boys are still playing. They don't think they need any 2. (practice / practise) because they have done all the assignments. The girls sometimes 3. (advice / advise) the boys to study at once, but they just don't listen. "We don't even care our teacher's 4. (advice / advise)!" they say.
先不提答案。(心急者可以直接到頁尾)
Part I: Practice和Practise
在英式英文裡，c字尾的practice是名詞，而s字尾的practise則是動詞。在美式英文裡，我們可以將practice當作名詞及動詞。
名詞practice的基本用法是不需要有眾數，亦即是不需要加s，因為它是不可數的。不過，如果它是解作練習的時段，就會變成可數名詞：
practice + to-infinitive
Example One: You need more practice to speak English fluently.
此字可以與其他名詞寫在一起，合組複合名詞(compound noun)：
Example Two: I will have my daily choir practices tomorrow afternoon. Let's watch movie earlier.
Example Three: I'm not going to attend tomorrow's choir practice. I'm developing a cold!
如果長時間不練習，技術生疏了，可以用out of practice：
OUT + OF + practice + (AT + sth)
Example Four: He is now out of practice at fencing. You can beat him quickly.
以上的practice都解作練習，但原來這個字有更多意思，如：
1. 習俗；行事
Example Five: Burning incense is a common practice in China.
It's common practice + TO-infinitive
Example Six: It's common practice to burn incense in China.
2. 法律或醫療行業的工作
Example Seven: He has a busy legal practice in Boston.
Example Eight: He has a busy dental practice in Paris.
3. 應用；實情
in practice (= in fact)
Example Nine: Drivers say we need speed limits but, in practice, they don't respect them. (adapted from Macmillan Dictionary)
put into practice
Example Ten: The recommendations proved too expensive to put into practice. (adapted from Oxford Dictionary)
動詞practise有以下的幾個常見用法：
practise + gerund
Example Eleven: She practises singing everyday.
practise + FOR + sth
Example Twelve: She is practising for tomorrow's competition.
同樣，practise也可以有其他解釋：
1. 長時間做某事 (習俗等事情)
Example Fourteen: The earliest colonists of the Amazon seem to have practised farming. (adapted from Macmillan Dictionary) 最早殖民於亞馬遜的人似乎依賴耕作維生。
2. 盡其義務 (工作或宗教上的事情)
Example Fifteen: The Emperor gave Christians the right to practise their religion openly. (adapted from Macmillan Dictionary)
Part II: Advise和Advice
不論美式或英式英文，c字尾的advice是名詞，而s字尾的advise則是動詞。
名詞advice是不可數的，所以一定不能加s。
Example One: My
teacher has given me invaluable advice.
留意invaluable解作無價的、珍費的，與valuable、priceless的意思大致上相同。
如果想強調建議數目之多或少，可以用piece of來表示：
Example Two: My
teacher has given me many pieces of invaluable advice.
動詞advise可以是及物與不及物動詞，有以下用法：
Advise + (not) TO-infinitive
Example Three: My
teacher advises me to read the whole textbook twice.
Example Four: My
teacher has advised me not to include this table in my essay.
Advise + AGAINST
+ gerund
Example Five: My
supervisor advises me against saying anything during the conference.
Advise + that +
S.V.O.
Example Six: Dentists
advise that we should brush our teeth twice a day.
動詞加上ed可以變成形容詞：
ill-advised / well-advised
Example Seven: Being ill-advised, he fell into the trap. 事先沒有收到更好的建議，令他落入陷阱。
Example Eight: Being well-advised, he avoided being trapped.
其實動、名詞之間的分別並不難記：英文有不少動詞都是以-ise或-ize作為結尾的，如：
Organise / Organize
Terrorise / Terrorize
所以，advise和practise都是動詞。
最後補充：around the corner除了可以解作「在拐角處」外，也可以用來表示某事情快將發生。Examination is around the corner，即是考試臨近。
答案：
1. practising / practicing
2. practice
3. advise
4. advice
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