1 (used for emphasizing how small or unimportant sth is) nothing more than (用于强调小得可怜或微不足道)只不过,仅仅:
90% of the country's land is owned by a mere 2% of the population.该国90%的土地掌握在仅仅2%的人口手里。
2 used to say that just the fact that sb/sth is present in a situation is enough to have an influence (用于表示某人或某事物仅仅存在就足以产生影响):
The mere thought of giving a speech in public makes me feel sick.一想到公开发表演说,我就觉得厌恶。
the merest even a very small amount of sth 甚至是极小量的;连一点点的:
The merest smell of the fish market made her feel ill.一点点鱼市场的气味也使她感到不适。
mere/mIr; mIə/adj [only before noun 仅用于名词前] used to emphasize how small or unimportant something is 仅仅﹐只不过〔用于强调小或不重要〕: She won by a mere two points. 她仅仅以两分获胜。The mere thought made her furious. 她一想起来就火冒三丈。The merest noise makes him nervous. 一点点声音就让他很紧张。