举例说明任何事物是最常用，也是最有效的方法之一。它的功用在于把抽象、难懂的观念用具体、容易了解的方式表达出来，让读者一看就明白作者的意思。除此之外，好的举例还可以使文章更生动、更有力。

　　举例的范围包括很广，弹性也很大。除了一般常用的简单实例以外，一个类此(analogy)，一个短故事或轶事(anecdote)，甚至于寓言(parable)都可以用来帮助说明。

　　举例时最重要的一点是：注意例子是否恰当，是否和它所要说明的道理相吻合，读者是否能立刻看出它和道理之间的关系。

　　<范文> Union Is Strength.(1)

　　The best illustration of this saying is the familiar fable of Esop (2). An old man, being distressed by the constant(3) quarrelling going on between his sons. One day he called them to him and showed them a bundle of sticks tied together, and asked if any of them was strong enough to break them. First one, and then another tried; but, although they were all strong young men, they all failed, He then untied the bundle, and told them to break each stick separately. This they did easily, and all the sticks were soon broken in pieces. Thus he taught them that united they would be strong, but disunited they would always be weak.

　　The same lesson can be learned from the organization of an army, or a football team. The strength of a regiment consists in all the soldiers acting together as one man. This is the secret of the constant drilling on the parade ground, and army discipline. If a thousand men gosintosbattle who have never learnt to act together each man fighting as and when he likes, they will be defeated with ease by a disciplined and united company of only a hundred strong. One of Napoleon's favorite maxims was, "Divide and conquer". If he could divide the enemy's army up, and take one part at a time, he could conquer it piecemeal; or he could subdue a whole nation by fomenting discord among its different classes, and breaking it upsintoswarring factions. In the same way, the success of a football team in a match depends very much on their "team work(4)"; that is, the way the members work together and cooperate with each other. A team composed of comparatively weak individual players, but well organized and playing heartily together, has often defeated an ill-organized team composed of much better players.

　　In all departments of life, union, or cooperation, is strength; disunion is weakness. A united nation, a united community, a united family, a united society of any sort, is strong; but disunited, quarrelling, split up(s)sintosfactions, they are all weak. United they stand; disunited they fall. Their motto must be, "One heart, one way".

　　语汇说明

　　本文分三部分加以说明：(A)以伊索寓言中的故事做例说：(B)说明团队精神在于团结：(C)团结适用于各种生存环境。

　　(1)union：团结、一致、—体、联合；strength：力量。

　　(2)Esop's Fable或The Fable Of Esop：伊索寓言

　　(3)constant：恒长的：长期的

　　(4)team work：此处捐团队精神而言。

　　(5)split up：分裂