再论OG176

哇，还真没有看到这一点

那么merely是不是不能修饰3%呢？

这道题的考点OG解释的很清楚: 副词修饰形容词, 形容词修饰名词.

后面3 percent是一个名词, 所以不能用merely副词修饰.

薰衣紫草JJ,这点偶不敢苟同。

http://forum.chasedream.com/dispbbs.asp?boardid=23&replyid=8951&id=8951&page=1&skin=0&Star=2

from longman

a mere
[adverb] use this to talk about something that is only a small amount or figure, or is lower than you would expect
a mere £50/three days/16% etc
You can now buy computers from a mere £300.
The crossword took him a mere six and a half minutes.

Merely
1
used to emphasize how small or unimportant something or someone is
ￚsynonym only
He's merely a boy - you can't expect him to understand.
2
used to emphasize that nothing more than what you say is involved
ￚsynonym just
We're merely good friends.He merely shrugged and walked away.
3
not merely/rather than merely
used before the less important of two ideas in a sentence to emphasize the more important idea
It's not merely a matter of cost, but whether she's old enough to go on holiday alone.
It's important to write these goals down, rather than merely think about them.

从字典的解释可以看出，merely 和a mere 都是副词，因此不能从词性上排除。但在形容 amount or figure 时，英文习惯用 a mere.  
just remember it.