写论文中对use和utilize的用法很不解，于是查找了一下辞典。
引用自金山词霸2005之美国传统辞典（双解）
A number of critics have remarked that utilize is an unnecessary substitute for use. It is true that many occurrences of utilize could be replaced by use with no loss to anything but pretentiousness, for example, in sentences such as Barbara utilized (prefer used ) questionable methods in her analysis or We hope that many commuters will continue to utilize (prefer use ) mass transit after the bridge has reopened. But utilize can mean “to find a profitable or practical use for.” Thus the sentence The teachers were unable to use the new computers might mean only that the teachers were unable to turn the computers on, whereas The teachers were unable to utilize the new computers suggests that the teachers could not find ways to employ the computers in instruction.
一些批评家认为utilize 只是 use 的一个不必要的替换词。 在许多情况下utilize 可以被 use 替代，除了矫饰的风格被去掉之外意思上没有任何减损， 例如：Barbara utilized ( used 更可取） questionable methods in her analysis（芭芭拉在她的分析中用了一些有争议的方法） 或者 We hope that many commuters will continue to utilize ( use 更可取） mass transit after the bridge has reopened（我们希望许多乘公共汽车上下班者在桥重新开通之后仍旧使用公共交通）。 但是utilize 可指“为…找到一种有益的或实用的用途”。 因而下面这句话The teachers were unable to use the new computers（老师们不会使用新电脑） ，有可能指只有这些老师不会打开计算机， 而The teachers were unable to utilize the new computers（老师不会运用新计算机） 暗示了那些老师在指导时不知道如何利用电脑
(END)