rather

副词 rather:

1. on the contrary
   同义词：instead
2. to some (great or small) extent
   同义词：kind of, kinda, sort of
3. more readily or willingly
   同义词：preferably, sooner
4. to a degree (not used with a negative)
   同义词：quite

1. Poultry is rather cheap now.
   现在的禽肉相当便宜。
2. I would rather fail than cheat in the examination.
   我宁愿考不及格，也不愿意考试作弊。
3. I'd rather walk than take a bus.
   我愿意走路而不愿意坐公共汽车。
4. I would rather stay at home.
   我宁可呆在家里。
5. These shoes are rather too big.
   这双鞋有点太大了。

rath.er

adv.（副词）
More readily; preferably:
宁可：更愿意地；较合意地：
例句：
I`d rather go to the movies.
我宁愿去看电影

With more reason, logic, wisdom, or other justification.
较合理地：有更多原因、学识、逻辑或其他证明地
More exactly; more accurately:
更确切地；更精确地：
例句：
He`s my friend, or rather he was my friend.
他是我的朋友，不过更确切地说，他曾经是我的朋友

To a certain extent; somewhat:
相当地：达到一定程度地：
例句：
rather cold.
相当寒冷

On the contrary.
相反地
[r2.Yôr., rô.-] Chiefly British Most certainly. Used as an emphatic affirmative reply.
[r2.Yôr., rô.-] 【多用于英国】 当然：最肯定地。做为对肯定性回答的加强语气

来源：
Middle English
中古英语
from Old English hrathor [comparative of] hrôthe [quickly, soon]
源自 古英语 hrathor [] hrôthe的比较级 [快地，很快地]
from hrôth [quick]
源自 hrôth [快的]

In expressions of preferencerather is commonly preceded by would or in formal style should :
在表达选择的意思时rather 一词往往跟在 would 或更正式的形式 should 之后：
例句：
We would rather rent the house than buy it outright.
我们宁可租这幢房子，也不愿直接买下它。

例句：
I should rather my daughter attended a public school.
我希望我的女儿能上公立学校。

The use ofhad in these constructions may now be more infrequent than it once was but is still encountered in reputable writing:
在上述结构中使用had 现在没有过去常用， 但即使在十分著名的文章中，还能发现这种用法：
例句：
I had rather be dead than be a slave.
我宁可死去，也不愿意当奴隶。

This use ofhad was once widely criticized as a mistake, the result of a misanalysis of the contraction in sentences such asI`d rather stay. But it is in fact a survival of the subjunctive formhad that appears in constructions like had better and had best, as in
这种对had 的使用曾经招致广泛的批评， 人们认为这是由于对I`d rather stay 这句话简略形式的误解所致。 但实际上这是对例如在had better 或 had best 中 had 虚拟用法的延用，我们能说：
例句：
We had better leave her alone. (Notice that in these constructions would and should cannot be used.)
我们最好由她去（注意在这种句子中不可使用 would 或 should )。

This use ofhad shows an unbroken line of usage running back to Middle English, and traditional criticisms of these constructions are unfounded. ·Before an unmodified noun onlyrather a is used: It was rather a disaster. When the noun is preceded by an adjective, however, bothrather a and a rather are found: It was rather a boring party. It was a rather boring party. Whena rather is used in this construction, rather can be construed as qualifying only the adjective, whereas withrather a it can be construed as qualifying either the adjective or the entire noun phrase. Thusa rather long ordeal can mean only .an ordeal that is rather long,. whereasrather a long ordeal can also mean roughly .a long process that is something of an ordeal.. Rather a is the only possible choice when the adjective itself does not permit modification: The horse was rather a long shot (not The horse was a rather long shot ). See Usage Note at better should
Had 的这种使用方法可以一直追溯到中古英语， 但历史上并没有对此方法批评的记载。在一个没有修饰词的名词前，一般只使用rather a ： 真是一场灾难。 但当名词前有形容词时，rather a 和 a rather 就都能使用了： It was rather a boring party 。It was a rather a boring party 。 在这种搭配中，如果使用a rather ， rather 只是用来修饰这个形容词； 如果使用rather a， 那么同时修饰形容词和名词，即可认为修饰形容词也可以为修饰名词词组。 因此a rather long ordeal 的意思仅指布道很长， 而rather a long ordeal 则可概略地指一个.像布道似的漫长过程。. 如果形容词本身没有引申义，那么就只能使用rather a ： The horse was rather a long shot （而不是 The horse was a rather long shot ) 参见 bettershould