Donna might be able to come tomorrow, but it’s very unlikely.
唐娜明天也许能来,不过这可能性很小。
unlikely to do something
The weather is unlikely to improve over the next few days.
接下来的几天天气不大可能好转。
it is unlikely (that)
It’s unlikely that the thieves will be caught.
这伙窃贼被抓住的可能性不大。
in the unlikely event of something (=if something which is unlikely happens) 万一
In the unlikely event of a fire, passengers should move to the top deck.
万一发生火警,乘客应转移到顶层甲板上。
2RELATIONSHIPan unlikely place, person, or thing is strange and not what you would expect 〔地点、人或事〕非想象中的
The birds had nested in some unlikely places.
这种鸟在让人意想不到的地方筑了巢。
The quiet village of Brockhampton was an unlikely setting for such a crime.
很难相信宁静的布罗克汉普顿村会发生这样的犯罪。
3BELIEVE#not likely to be true 不大可能是真的,靠不住的
an unlikely story
不大可信的说法
nCOLLOCATIONS
adverbs
highly/most/very unlikely
It’s highly unlikely that he’ll survive.
extremely unlikely
The government is extremely unlikely to change its policy.
rather/pretty/quite/fairly unlikely
I may have thrown it away by mistake, but that’s pretty unlikely.
increasingly unlikely (=more and more unlikely as time passes)
It looks increasingly unlikely that the Bank of England will cut interest rates.
nouns
an unlikely possibility/prospect
The most unlikely possibility was that she might resign.
an unlikely scenario/occurrence
They should build a new road, but that’s an unlikely scenario.
an unlikely alliance/coalition
Once he resigned as president, the unlikely coalition of former enemies fell apart.
phrases
in the unlikely event of something (=if something which is unlikely happens)
In the unlikely event of an accident, the system will automatically shut down.
Examples from the Corpus
unlikely• She might come with us, but it's fairly unlikely.• Anthony eventually tracks him down and the unlikelychumsshare a drink or two too many.• Students invent all sorts of unlikelyexplanations as to why they can't do their homework.• Ex-journo turned editor, his recenttomeGothicRockenjoyed the unlikelypublishingcoup of having no competition.• That sounds a prettyunlikely story to me!• Waterstone's was an unlikelysuccess story of the 80s Thatcheriteboom.• It is unlikely that anyone saw the attack.• It's highly unlikely that Burton will be the party's nominee.• I think it's unlikely that the police had anything to do with it.• But they are unlikely to be able to save more than a dozen or so seats.• A small amount of the drug is unlikely to have any harmful effects.• A large proportion of our researchers are therefore unlikely to make majorcontributions to the literature of their research area.• It is unlikely to put them out.• It will be gearing up this year, but is unlikely to repeat the 1991 rights issue.
it is unlikely (that)• And yet, for all the sound and fury, it is unlikely Mr Ashcroft will be rejected by the Senate.• Zeffiro cautions that it is unlikely that all dyslexics have exactly the same underlyingbrain problems.• With an established, respectedmanagement company it is unlikely that any band would secure an agreement for less than five years.• For it is unlikely that many Koi on the market today are without some Doitsu genes.• Therefore, it is unlikely that reflux of acid or gas had occurred just before the onset of the contractile activity.• Indeed, as a general problem, it is unlikely that two divisions will arrive amicably at a suitabletransfer price.• But where there is energy there is life, so it is unlikely that you will be jobless or unsuccessful for long.• If such machinations are seldom heard of in this period it is unlikely to be because they were rare.