Herb and Basil are men’s names. Herb is also the name of a herbaceous plant; basil is a kind of herb. In British English, the men’s names and the herb are pronounced identically. In American English, “herb” for the plant drops the “h”; “basil” as an herb has a long “a,” so it is pronounced differently from the name.
The word “herb” comes from the Old French erbe, which became herbe in Modern French, gaining the “h” from the Latin original (herba) but not the “h” sound. British English followed suit until the 19th century, when the “h” sound started to be pronounced; American English inherited the French pronunciation and stuck with it.
Sticking with words inherited from the French, courgette (meaning “small gourd” in French), aubergine and coriander are the British English alternatives for zucchini (from Italian), eggplant (from its appearance) and cilantro (from Spanish), respectively, used in American English. In the US, cilantro is the name for the leaves and stem of the plant; coriander the name for its dried seeds. In British English, the latter are called coriander seeds, to differentiate them from the leaves.
In addition to the different pronunciation of the herb basil between British and American English, the two have different stress for the word “oregano.” In British English, “oregano” has the stress on the third vowel; in US English, the stress is on the second.
(Paul Cooper, Taipei Times)
Herb(賀柏)和Basil(巴佐)是男性的名字,herb(藥草)亦泛指某一類草本植物,Basil(羅勒)則是其中一種。在英式英文中,herb這個字當人名和藥草時的發音相同。在美式英文中,herb當藥草時字母「h」的音會省略;basil這個字當羅勒時字母「a」的音會拉長,跟名字唸法有所差異。
英文字「herb」源自於古代法文的「erbe」,這個字已演變為現代法文的「herbe」,雖然拼字上受其拉丁字源(herba)影響多了一個「h」,不過並不發音。英式英文便依循此規,直到十九世紀才開始發出「h」音;美式英文承繼原來的法式唸法,並堅持到今日。
在英式英文中堅持法式傳統的字還有︰courgette(法文的小葫蘆)、aubergine(茄子)、coriander(香菜、芫荽)。這些字在美式英文中分別稱為︰zucchini(美洲南瓜,源自義大利文)、eggplant(茄子,源自外形)、cilantro(香菜、芫荽,源自西班牙文)。在美國,cilantro是指香菜的葉與莖,coriander是指其乾燥的種子。在英國,香菜種子叫coriander seeds以和香菜葉有所區隔。
除了藥草/羅勒在英式和美式英文中發音不同,另一種草本植物oregano(牛至)在兩者中重音亦不同︰「oregano」一字以英式英文發音,重音是在第三個母音;若以美式英文發音,其重音則是在第二個母音。
(台北時報張聖恩譯)
A: Wow, three Taiwanese restaurants just won the 2024 “Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants” awards. B: Awesome! Which three restaurants? A: Taipei’s Logy at No. 22 and MUME at No. 34, and Taichung’s JL Studio at No. 33. B: Actually, there are many more great establishments in Taipei. How about other Asian cities? A: Singapore claimed nine spots this year, making it Asia’s new “food capital.” A: 2024「亞洲50最佳餐廳」名單揭曉了,台灣有3家餐廳上榜。 B: 好厲害,哪3家? A: 台北的Logy和MUME分獲第22和34名,台中的JL Studio獲第33名! B: 其實台北還有很多好餐廳,那其他的亞洲城市呢? A: 新加坡今年入選9家,可說是亞洲美食之都。 (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張聖恩)
Let’s explore another delicacy primarily known to Tainan locals: floating milkfish in thick soup. Despite its peculiar name, this dish is another Tainan specialty that showcases the popularity of milkfish, which is made into fish paste and served in thick soup. Unlike the version with tutuo fish, which also adds other ingredients to its thick soup, the floating milkfish version primarily features the “floating fish” itself in its thick soup, ensuring that the fish paste remains the star of the dish. 讓我們來探索另一道台南人熟悉的美食:浮水魚羹。這道菜名奇特的美食,再再展現了台南虱目魚料理的多樣。浮水魚羹是用虱目魚漿做成的羹品,雖然和𩵚魠魚羹一樣是羹湯,但不像𩵚魠魚羹會在湯中加入其他食材,而是讓虱目魚漿成為這道料理的主角。 peculiar (adj.) 獨特的;古怪的 The belly of a milkfish is considered the most
The practice of freezing embryos as part of in vitro fertilization (IVF) was thrown into chaos in Alabama this year, when the state supreme court ruled that such embryos should be considered children, exposing clinics to wrongful death claims in the event they are destroyed in the thawing process. In 2021, more than 80 percent of US IVF procedures involved the transfer of frozen embryos, according to a recent report by the US Department of Health and Human Services. HOW IS EMBRYO FREEZING USED IN IVF? IVF uses high doses of hormones to stimulate ovaries to produce as many eggs as possible. Once
A situation puzzle is a game in which one person describes a scenario and asks the players to explain it. The situation is deliberately lacking in details, but the players may acquire more information by asking questions — however, these can only be answered with “yes” or “no.” A player wins by describing the approximate events that led up to the situation. To do so, they must use a blend of logical and lateral thinking. A famous example of this is sometimes known as “Turtle Soup.” Here’s the riddle: “A man in a restaurant orders turtle soup, tastes it