■ barely

barely 本来同 hardly, scarcely 等都是带有否定倾向的副词。

• I barely heard any noise in the house.我听不到房子里面有多大的声音。

Barely 也同 hardly 和 scarcely 一样，可以表示“刚刚”。

• Barely had we taken our seats when（或 before）the detective entered.我们刚刚就座，那位侦探就走进来了。

但是 barely 的否定作用较弱，有时候只是表示“勉强”。

• He barely survived doing odd jobs.他干点零活勉强度日。
• I had barely enough food to sustain myself.我的粮食只勉强够我自己吃。
• He barely escaped disaster.他幸免于难。
• I barely struggled through calculus.我勉强学了点微积分。