你知道State, Nation, and Country的区别吗？

state,nation and country，在我们的英语学习日常中，经常会混用误用这三个词。那么，寻找出词与词之间的细微差别，方可正确用词。本文详细解读了各词的作用与应用的领域，希望对读者有所帮助。

What is the Difference Between a State, Nation, and Country?

The terms "state," "nation," and "country" are often used interchangeably by those who are unfamiliar with the proper use of these terms.

术语“State，”“Nation,”和“Country”经常被不熟悉它们之间区别的人混为一谈。

To further muddy the waters, phrases such as independent State and nation-state are frequently thrown in as well.

在更糟糕的情况下，例如独立国家和单一民族国家这些短语也经常被误用。

While these terms are similar and easily confused, some distinguishable differences set them apart.

尽管这些词是非常容易使人感到困惑，但还是有一些不同可将它们区别开来。

In some cases, "State" and "country" may be used to describe the same area, a "nation" is a somewhat less well-defined term.

在某些情况下，“State”和“Country”用于描述同一区域，而“Nation”是一个定义不太明确的术语。

When used with an initial capital letter, State has a very different meaning than the one commonly known among US citizens.

当将“State”的第一个字母大写时，它就完全不再是美国公民们都熟知的那个意义了。

An independent State is the same as an independent country — it's an area that has internationally recognized boundaries and its own government.

“An independent State”和“an independent country”有着相同的意思，那就是一个有着国际上公认的国界线并且有自己的政府的地区。

It must also be recognized by other countries and have sovereignty, meaning that it is not under the power of any other country.

这个地区是被其他国家承认，并且有自己的国家主权，这也就是意味着它不被任何其他国家力量所控制。

Other requirements include permanent residents, a transportation system, an education system, and an organized economic system.

在其他方面，它拥有永久国民、交通运输系统、教育体制和有组织的经济体制。

It issues its own money and is able to regulate both domestic andforeign trade.

它发行自己的货币，并能够监管国内和对外贸易。

Without the initial capital, the term has a very different meaning, and it's usually used to describe a smaller division of a larger country.

在首字母不大写时，“State”该词就有了截然不同的意义——经常被描述为大国中更小的行政区域划分。

Using the United States of America as an example, America is the governing country while each of the 50 states is a smaller defined territory within the larger government.

拿美国举例，美国是一个有治理权的国家，它的50个州都是较高一级政府中较小的定义范围。

The term "province" may also be used in some countries, such as Canada.

“state”就和术语“province”一样，也可适用于例如加拿大和其他某些国家。

Many countries also have territories. Australia, for example, has six states and two major territories.

在许多国家也有一些不属于州或省的地方。例如澳大利亚，它有六个州和两个这样的地区。

While a territory is under the government of a larger nation, it usually lacks the same governmental powers that a state or province will have.

虽然这种地区是在一个更大的国家政府管理之下，但它通常缺乏一个州或省拥有的政府权力。

The term "nation" is a bit more difficult to define.

而“Nation”这个词就比较难定义了。

A nation is a group of people who share a language, culture, institutions, history, and religion.

一个民族是由一群共用一种语言、文化、体制、历史和宗教的人组成的。

These groups are larger than a single tribe or small community, and often encompass an entire country.

这些团体比一个部落或小社区更大，而且通常包括整个国家。

When a nation of people has its own distinct country, this is referred to as a nation-state. Examples include Japan, Germany, and France.

当一个民族的人有了属于它们的一个明确的国家，这就被称为一个单一民族国家。例如，日本、德国和法国。

Some countries can have multiple nations, as in the case of Canada, and not all nations posses their own State.

和加拿大一样，有些国家拥有很多民族，但并不是所有的民族都有自己的单一民族国家。