Thu, Nov 14, 2019 page15

• American & British English 美式英文&英式英文

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  The word “chips” means different things in American and British English. Chips in British English are usually thick-cut potato wedges, baked or fried, often served as a side dish with a main meal. In the US, these are usually cut thinner, in long, narrow pieces, and are called “(French) fries,” a term also used in British English to refer to this particular style of chip, often served with fast food. In American English, “chips” refers to wafer-thin slices of potato, deep fried or baked until crunchy: in British English, these are called “crisps.”

  There are other foods given different names: cookies, referring to crunchy, baked snacks, are generally called “biscuits” in British English; biscuits in the US, however, are quick breads with a firm crust and soft, crumbly interior. Candies are “sweets” in British English; cotton candy is “candy floss”; cupcakes are “fairy cakes”; frosting is “icing”; popsicles are “ice lollies”; and jello is “jelly.”

  The sweet course usually eaten at the end of a meal, called “dessert” in both American and British English, is also often referred to as “pudding” in British English. The word “pudding” can also be used for savory dishes in British English, and in fact originally referred exclusively to savory, not sweet, dishes, often in which meat or other ingredients were encased and then steamed or boiled: it is still used in this way with dishes such as “black pudding.” In American English, by comparison, “pudding” is used specifically for a milk-based dessert with a consistency similar to egg-based custards.

  

  (Paul Cooper, Taipei Times)

  「chips」這個字在美式和英式英文中的意思並不相同。英式英文中的「chips」（薯條）通常是烤的或油炸的厚切薯角，一般是做為搭配主餐的配菜。美國的薯條通常是切成細長條，稱為「（French）fries」。「（French）fries」在英式英文中也是指這種薯條形式，通常是搭配速食。在美式英文中的「chips」（薯片∕洋芋片），指的是油炸或烘烤至酥脆的馬鈴薯薄片，這在英式英文則是叫做「crisps」。

  英、美式英文中食物的不同說法還有：美式英文的「cookies」（餅乾），指的是鬆脆的烘焙點心，在英式英文中通常稱為「biscuits」（餅乾）；而美國的「biscuits」，則是外表硬、內部軟而易成碎屑的「quick bread」（速發麵包）。美國的「candies」（糖果）在英式英文叫做「sweets」；美國的「cotton candy」（棉花糖）是英國的「candy floss」；美國叫「cupcakes」（杯子蛋糕）的，在英國叫「fairy cakes」；美國的「frosting」（糖霜）是英國的「icing」；美國的「popicles」（冰棒）即為英國「ice lollies」；美國的「jello」（果凍）則是英國的「jelly」。

  

  A plate of fish and chips sits on a table at a seafront restaurant in Bournemouth, UK, on Sept. 10, 2018. 餐桌上的一盤英式炸魚薯條，二○一八年九月十日攝於英國伯恩茅斯一家濱海餐廳。

  Photo: Bloomberg
  照片：彭博社

  一般在飯後吃的甜食，在美式英文和英式英文中都稱做「dessert」（甜點），在英式英文中也常稱為「pudding」（布丁）。「pudding」一詞在英式英文中也可指鹹味的菜餚──其實它原本僅指鹹味而非甜味的菜餚，通常是以肉或其他食材為內餡，然後蒸或煮熟──現今仍有此用法，例如「black pudding」（黑布丁∕英式豬血香腸）。美式英文的「pudding」（布丁）則是專指牛奶製的甜點，其軟硬度類似雞蛋做的卡士達。

  （台北時報林俐凱譯）
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