请看下面一道高考题:

　　After________seemed a very long time, I opened my eyes and found myself in bed!

　　A. what B. when C. that D. which

　　答案是A。大家知道,what引导名词性从句,意为"所……的事",相当于"the thing that...; all that...; everything that...."等。如:

　　1.What he wanted to see was an end to all the armies of the world .他所希望看到的是世界上一切军队的消亡。

　　2.What we can't get seems better than what we have.我们不能得到的看来比我们拥有的要更好。

　　3.What was once regarded as impossible has now become a reality.过去认为不可能的事现已成为现实。

　　上面所提到的是what引导名词性从句所表达的常见意义,下面对它所引导的名词性从句的特殊含义略作归纳。

　　一、表示"……的人",相当于"the person that..."。如:

　　1.He is not what he was a few years ago. 他不是几年前的他了。

　　2.Who is it that has made Fred what he is now?是谁把弗雷德培养成现在这样一个人的?

　　二、表示"……的地方",相当于"the place that..."。如:

　　1.This is what they call Salt Lake City.这就是他们称作盐湖城的地方。

　　2.What is now the North Sahara Desert was once a civilized world.现在是北部撒哈拉沙漠的地方曾是一个文明世界。

　　三、表示"……的数目",相当于"the amount / number that..."。 如:

　　1.Our income is now double what it was ten years ago.我们现在的收入是十年前的两倍。

　　2.The number of the students in our school has reached as many as 20,000, ten times what it was before liberation.现在我校学生多达2万人,是解放前的十倍。

　　what的这种特殊含义可以根据句子的意思在翻译时灵活处理,不可千篇一律。再如:

　　1. Shenzhen is no longer what it was in the past.深圳不再是过去那样子了。(what=the city that)

　　2. The color of the flower is different from what it was in the morning.花朵的颜色与早晨的不同。(what=the color that)

　　很明显,文章开头那道高考题的答案what相当于"the time that",表示"……的时间"。另外,what前面的after为介词,并非连词。

　　巩固练习:

　　1. She has changed a lot. She's no longer ________she used to be.

　　A. that B. what C. which D. 不填

　　2. The tobacco which is used to make cigarettes was first grown in________is now part of the United States.

　　A. which B. that C. all D. what

　　3. No longer______Tom the man______he used to be.

　　A. will; what B. was; what C. will; that D. is; that

　　4. What has made China________she is today?

　　A. that B. what C. as D. which

　　5. The number of the students of the college has reached 8,000,twice ______ it was when the college was opened ten years ago.

　　A. what B. as much C. which D. that

　　Key: 1-5 BDDBA

　　(文/刘良求；英语辅导报高三版2003-2004学年第42期；版权归英语辅导报社所有，独家网络合作伙伴新浪教育，未经许可，不得以任何形式进行转载。)