He was the faithful companion of Aeneas, so faithful that his name has become a term or trope for a devoted friend and follower.

 [解說]

1.      “faithful companion”：「忠實的夥伴」。對長官、上司很「忠心」則用“loyal”來代替“faithful”。做事的「夥伴」是“partner”而非“companion”。至於「同事」則是“colleague”，而「同志」為“comrade”。

2.      “so faithful that…”：「那麼忠實以至於…」。英文“…so…that…”是一固定語型，用以表示「…如此…以至於…」之意。他例：“He ran so fast that no one could catch up with him”(他跑得那麼快，以至於無人能追上他)。

3.      “a term or trope for a devoted friend and follower”：「一個詞語或比喻，代表誠摯的朋友或追隨者」。“trope”(比喻)不要跟“troupe”(班、隊、團)混淆。“devoted”特指「專心誠摯」的忠實。英文常說“… be devoted to …”，例如：“We must be devoted to our country”(我們必須獻身於國家)。“follower”是信仰或人格的「追隨者」，並非階級上的「跟班」(valet) 或「僕從」(slave)。

4.      全句說 Achates 是 Aeneas 的忠實同伴，他是那麼忠實以至於他的名字已經變成代表忠誠友朋或追隨者的詞語或比喻。的確，稱讚人家忠實，可以說 “He is the faithful Achates.”或“He is as faithful as Achates.”

 [複習填充]

Achates was the f       companion of Aeneas.  He was    faithful that his name has become a term or t     for a d       friend and f        .