《朗文当代高级英语词典》(LONGMAN DICTIONARY OF CONTEMPORARY ENGLISH)对area的前两项释义分别为：1) a particular part of a country, town etc 地区；区域；2) a part of a house, office, garden etc that is used for a particular purpose 场所，地方。

　　该词典举例如下：

　　1) Many areas of Africa have suffered severe drought this year. 今年，非洲的许多地方都遭遇了严重的旱灾。

　　2) The police have searched the farm and the surrounding area. 警察已搜遍了农场及其附近地区。

　　《柯林斯 COBUILD英语词典》(Collins COBUILD English Dictionary)对area的解释是：An area is a particular part of a town, a country, a region, or the world; A particular area is a piece of land or part of a building that is used for a particular activity。

　　举例如下：Sixty years ago half the French population still lived in rural areas.

　　由上述词义、解释及例子可以看出，area所指的地区范围可大可小，大到可以是地球上的大面积的区域范围，小到城市甚至是某一建筑物的一部分，它强调面积上的覆盖，是笼统的、没有严格区分条件或没有固定划分的区域。它不像zone，region，district有政府介入规划或划分，而只是泛指占有一定面积的地方或空间。换言之，area是一个与行政区划概念没有任何联系的单词，这是其最根本的一个概念意义，译者只要牢记这一点，翻译的时候就不至于造成误译。

　　请看下面的例句：

　　Within urban areas there were vast "grey area" which could not be classified as slums, but were in need of rebuilding.

　　在市区有大片“灰色地区”：这块地区不能算作贫民窟，但需重建。

　　在了解了上述特点之后，我们在翻译以下带有“区”的词语的时候就可以做到有的放矢。比如：

　　海啸灾区 tsunami-hit areas

　　非典疫区 SARS-affected area

　　受灾地区 disaster-affected area

　　洪水灾区 the flood-affected area

　　革命老区 old revolutionary base areas

　　边远地区 remote and border areas

　　边远贫困地区 outlying poverty-stricken areas

　　老少边穷地区 former revolutionary base areas, areas inhabited by ethnic groups, remote and border areas and poverty-stricken areas

　　欠发达地区 less developed areas

　　特困地区 destitute areas

　　中西部地区 central and western areas of the country

　　近海地区 offshore area

（来源：中国英语网）