名词

1. 功用;效用;实用
The utility of something is its usefulness.

2. 公用事业
A utility is an important service such as water, electricity, or gas that is provided for everyone, and that everyone pays for.

1. the service (electric power or water or transportation) provided by a public utility

e.g. the cost of utilities never decreases
all the utilities were lost after the hurricane

2. a facility composed of one or more pieces of equipment connected to or part of a structure and designed to provide a service such as heat or electricity or water or sewage disposal

e.g. the price of the house included all utilities

3. the quality of being of practical use

Synonym: usefulness

4. (computer science) a program designed for general support of the processes of a computer

e.g. a computer system provides utility programs to perform the tasks needed by most users

Synonym: utility programservice program

5. a company that performs a public service
subject to government regulation

Synonym: public utilitypublic utility companypublic-service corporation

6. (economics) a measure that is to be maximized in any situation involving choice