提到图表作文，我们习惯性根据图表的类型，将其分为两大类：

1. 动态图(线性趋势，柱状变化，增减波动等)

2. 静态图(占比，构成，表格等)

图表作文相较于议论文，写作难度较低，可以更多的套用句式模板，今天我们就来全面盘点一下英文图表作文的写作技巧。

1. 图表类型

  • 线形图 line graph/curve graph
  • 柱状图 bar chart/column chart
  • 饼状图 pie chart
  • 表格 table


2. 写作时态

不同的图表，或同一图表的不同部分，会使用到不同的时态，一般不会超出这5种:

  • 一般过去时：

描述过去时间点的状态

※ There was a dramatic fall in the figure of …

  • 一般现在时：

描述当前时间点

※ Petrol and oil are the dominant fuel sources throughout this period.

  • 一般将来时：

描述未来预估或计划

※ The proportion of those aged over 60 will see a slight rise from 10% to 11%.

  • 现在完成时：

过去的动作到现在已完成

※ The unemployment rate has risen to 15%.

  • 过去完成时：

过去的动作到过去某事已完成

※ By 2004 it had soared to almost 250 grams per person per week.


3. 对象词

此类作文的对象词（往往做主语或宾语）是图表本身或所需描述的数字，故遣词造句时对象词的指代和替换变得尤为重要，常用的对象词： number, figure, proportion / percentage, amount / quantity, rate


4. 趋势表达

由于不同趋势的表达很丰富，有上升，下降，缓慢爬升，激增，逐渐减少，暴跌，波动，最高点，最低点，触底反弹，上升后稳定，下降后稳定，保持等等，且动词过去式，过去分词的变形，以及不同的词性，是否及物，能否用被动语态表达，用一张表格汇总整理更清楚一些，建议收藏保存。

5. 程度表达

幅度大：

  • substantial
  • considerable / considerably
  • sharp(ly)
  • dramatic
  • significantly
  • marked(ly)
  • wildly

幅度小：

  • marginal
  • slight(ly)
  • moderate(ly)

速度快:

  • quick(ly)
  • rapid(ly)
  • sudden(ly)
  • abrupt(ly)
  • steep(ly)

速度慢：

  • gradual(ly)
  • gentle
  • steady / steadily


6. 时间的表达

直到 by / until …

从A到B from A to B

在AB之间 between A and B

在开始的时候 at the beginning of …

在中期之间 by the middle of …

在某一时间之前 by the end of …

整个时期之内 during / over the period

在…期间 throughout

…时间之前 earlier

※ The divorce rate was 5% three decades earlier.

3年内的第一次 for the first time in 3 years

从…开始 from … onwards

※ From the 1970 onwards

至少持续…时间 for at least …

在随后的 in the following …

连续 in a row

※ For five years in a row

连续几年 for … consecutive years


7. 搭配句型—动态图

研究对象 + 趋势v. + by幅度 + 时间

※The price of Brent crude plunged by 24%, to $34 a barrel, on March 9th—its steepest one-day drop in nearly 30 years. 3月9日布伦特原油价格暴跌24％至每桶34美元，这是近30年来的最高单日下跌。(TE 2020314)

~had its 程度adj. +趋势n +时间 (拟人化表达)

※The profit had its rapidest decline by 20% in the course of price war. 价格战期间利润下跌最迅速，高达20%。

~see/witness + 研究对象 +程度v. (拟人化表达)

~see/witness + 程度adj + 趋势n + in+研究对象

※The market saw/witnessed (that) the profit slumped by 20%

※We saw/witnessed an abrupt decrease trend in profit by 20%

研究对象 be featured by +程度adj. +趋势n

※The turnover was featured by an increase trend, climbed from 63m in 2018 to 85m in 2020.

There be +程度adj. +趋势n + in+研究对象

※There was a marked drop in profit by 20%

※There was a marked increase in the number of turnover for supermarkets.

原因+ (lead to/result in) +趋势n +of~

※Price war led to a collapse of profit by 20%

What is clearly presented in the above 图表 is that + 程度adj. + 趋势n + took place +时间段

图表 shows / illustrates / outlines that …

As shown in the 图表 …

As can be seen from the 图表 …

From the 图表, we can see …

※What is clearly presented in the above curve graph is that a dramatic growth has taken place in profit of global trade for five years in a row. 上面的线形图清晰表明了国际贸易行业的利润连续飙升5年了。


搭配句型—静态图

相似：

  • Both A and B rose sharply in 2020.
  • Neither A nor B has made a profit yet.
  • There is a similar pattern …
  • A is on a par with / similar to / at the same level as / the same as B.
  • Like A, B fell in June.
  • A rose just as sharply as B

差异：

  • A fell sharply whereas / while B remained steady.
  • A fell more quickly compared to B.
  • There is a huge gap / a substantial difference …
  • Unlike B, A rose by 10%.
  • A rose far more dramatically than B.

倍数：

  • Compared with B, A doubled / tripled in +时间.
  • A is 3 times more than B.

比较：

  • A is more … in contrast to B.
  • A outnumber / outweigh / surpass / eclipse / dwarf its counterparts. 远超其对手
  • Of all the …, A is the +最高级.
  • rank first=rank next to none 排第一
  • By contrast …
  • In contrast …
  • In stark contrast to … 鲜明对比


9. 易犯错误

  • 百分比除了直接用数字来表示，如50%，也可以花式表达

25% one quarter of

55% over half of

90% the vast majority of

  • increase, decrease, decline等这些常用单词是不及物动词，不能用被动语态。
  • double也是不及物动词，没有被动语态。
  • ascent 和 descent 这两个词不要用在图表作文中
  • reach直接加数字，中间不要用to 或at
  • 图表类型说法是固定的，可以替换成diagram，但不要用image, picture
  • the amount 和 the number 不要互换， the number of 必须加可数名词复数，强调个体不同。
  • 倍数的adj. adv. 表达用“数字+fold”不要用 times 比如三倍的threefold, 而非three times
  • 图表作文表对比，不要用on the contrary, 要用By contrast … / In contrast …
  • same 和最高级前面一般都要加the
  • outnumber的主语一般是可数名词的复数，不要用不可数名词


10. 外刊范文

下面我们来泛读一篇典型的《经济学人》图表文章，主题是：在疫情肆虐居家隔离期间，不同关键词的谷歌搜索量的数据分析。

Life in the time of corona

90% economy, 120% gastronomy

Some lockdown-inspired fads seem to have become full-fledged hobbies

新冠病毒下的生活

90%经济复苏，120%烹饪火爆

一些在隔离期间萌芽的风尚似乎已经成为了真正的爱好

Covid-19 has altered life as we know it. When governments imposed lockdowns in March, people transformed their homes into makeshift offices, gyms and pubs. For many, crammed commutes and bustling nightlife became a distant memory. Now that countries have eased restrictions, residents are venturing outside again—but not as much as before. Globally, they made perhaps 25% fewer trips per day in July than they did in early March, according to The Economist’s analysis of Google’s phone-tracking data. 正如我们所知新冠肺炎改变了我们的生活。当政府3月份实施了封锁，人们把家变成了临时办公室、健身房和酒吧。对许多人来说，拥挤的通勤交通和熙熙攘攘的夜生活已经成为遥远的记忆。现在各国都放松了限制，居民们又开始冒险外出了，但不像以前那么多。根据《经济学人》对谷歌电话跟踪数据的分析，在全球范围内，7月的每日旅行次数可能比3月初减少了25％。

Consumer caution has hit some industries harder than others. By training a statistical model on Google’s global search data since 2016, we find that traffic for“restaurant”(or similar words in other languages) is currently 17% lower than we would usually expect for this time of year. Booze stores may be doing better, since searches for “hangover” have rebounded to a normal level for raucous July, after dwindling by 40% in March. But enquiries for“tickets” are still down by 58%. This newspaper has called the result of such an uneven recovery “the 90% economy”. 消费者的谨慎心态对某些行业的打击比其他行业更大。通过对谷歌的自2016年的全球搜索数据的统计模型的研究，我们发现，对 “饭店”（或其他类似的词汇）的搜索量比我们通常预计的每年这个时候的搜索量低17%。酒类店铺可能会好一些，因为搜索“宿醉”的次数在三月份下降了40%之后，现在已经反弹到热闹的7月份应该有的正常水平。但“购票”查询仍然下降了58%。我们称这种不平衡的复苏现状为“90%的经济”


Even as people are less comfortable going out and about, Google’s data show that they are persisting with home activities they picked up months ago. Take baking, for example. “Yeast” quickly became a fad, with searches rising by 280% in April—and by 1,300% in peckish Italy. Other gastronomic words show a similar pattern. The increase for “takeout”, however, has been even greater. Kneading and proofing is not for everybody. 当人们在户外四处走动时仍感到不自在，谷歌的数据显示，大家仍在坚持几个月前开始的家庭活动。以烘焙为例，“酵母”迅速成为一种时尚，4月份的搜索量上升了280%—在饥饿的意大利则上升了1300%。其他有关美食的词汇也表现出类似的趋势。然而“外卖”的增长幅度更大。毕竟，并不是每个人都适合揉面和发酵。

Though people are feasting at home, fitness has also become a priority during quarantine. Searches for “dumbbell” and“Strava”, a workout app, remain more than 60% above the usual level, despite gyms reopening. The continued interest in “electric bicycles” and “standing desks” (especially in America) shows that workers are making their transport and home offices healthier too. 虽然人们在家吃饭，但在隔离期间，健身也成了首要任务。尽管健身房已经重新开业，但对“哑铃”和“Strava”（一个健身app）的搜索量仍比平时高出60%以上。对“电动单车”和“站立式办公桌”（尤其在美国）的持续搜索兴趣表明，员工们也希望他们的交通方式和在家办公变得更健康。

Likewise, arts and crafts adopted in April have made a lasting mark. Aspiring Picassos have kept searches for “painting by numbers” at more than double their normal rate. “Hair clippers” remain fashionable among amateur barbers, as does“tie-dye” with people willing to spatter their clothes. As with cooking, however, there are plenty of slouches who lack inspiration for such artistry. Netflix can thank them for a rate of searches that was 23% higher than usual in late July, long after March’s mania for “Tiger King” wore off. 同样，4月流行起来的手工艺也有深远影响。有追求的毕加索们对“数字油画”的持续搜索量比平时高出2倍还多。“理发器”在一帮业余理发师中持续流行，对那些愿意溅洒自己衣服的人，“扎染”也很火。然而，就想烹饪一样，也有很多懒散之人缺乏对艺术的灵感。Netflix应该感谢这些人，在对3月份的“养虎为患”的热情消退很久之后，7月末的搜索率仍比往常高出23%。

The Google trends for many of these home entertainments suggest that their new popularity may outlast the pandemic. If so, the world could end up poorer in earnings—but richer in experiences. 对于这些家庭娱乐项目的谷歌动向表明，人们的新爱好可能在疫情结束之后还会持续。如果这样，那么结果可能是大家挣得少了，但生活更丰富了。

想要获取本篇笔记PDF版本，如上图，请关注我并私信“图表趋势”即可发送百度网盘下载链接。

原创整理不易，请点赞并关注，英语学习的路上，有任何问题，欢迎随时来撩焦糖君~嘤嘤~