赖世雄高级美国英语 lesson 24

　　Lesson 24

　　Coffee or tea break？

　　Do you prefer a coffee break or a tea break？ Are you getting off the lift at the ground floor， or are you going to get off the elevator on the first floor？ Travelers to English-speaking countries have to adjust to differences between British and American English. There are also cultural traditions to understand， ways of life which differ between London and New york， Auckland and Toronto， and Sydney and San Francisco. Learning these differences is fun， and， when you travel to different English-speaking countries， it's very useful.

　　So， what is a coffee or a tea break？ Americans and Canadians prefer coffee drinking to tea drinking. Tea lovers need not worry， though； millions of North Americans drink tea and only tea every day. Though teahouses are rare there， every supermarket has a wide variety of Far Eastern， South Asian， and herbal teas to choose from. Still， coffee is the preferred drink in the Americas； after all， South America is one of the world's greatest coffee-producing areas. One social custom is the US and Canada is the mid-morning and mid-afternoon coffee break. This is very informal； it may be spontaneous （Hey！ Let's break for coffee） or institutionalized （The coffee break in our office is from 3：30-3：50 daily）。 Coffee （or tea） may be drunk only， or， more likely， a selection of baked goods such as doughnuts， cookies， slices of cake， or crackers¹ will be available， too. These breaks are not only for eating and drinking but also for chatting.

　　In Great Britain， New Zealand， and Australia， people prefer a spot of tea during their tea break in the mid-morning or mid-afternoon， and later on at home， they have high tea in the early evening. High tea consists of a light， cold meal or baked goods， followed by a more substantial meal later in the evening. Tea breaks may be formal in homes， witha silver tray filled with tea cups on saucers， a silver bowl with sugar， and a silver pitcher² with cream brought into a living room， dining room， or drawing room. Baked goods are also served at tea breaks. In both the UK and the US as well as in other English-speaking countries， most people eat three full meals daily， but stopping for coffee or tea breaks has also become customary.

　　Another useful difference to understand between the British and American ways of life concerns traffic， which is of the utmost importance to travelers or visitors. In London， one takes the underground， whereas in New York it's the subway （whether or not traveling below the ground）。 Streetcars are taken in American cities， but trams are found in Britain. Make sure you fill up with gas at the gas station in Miami， but in Manchester you should top up the tank with petrol at the petrol station. Not sure whether you need oil？ Check under the bonnet³ in Bristol but the hood⁴ in Houston. Check your wing mirror in Wales but your side mirror in Rochester. And watch out for those traffic circles in Tampa but those roundabouts in Reading.

　　It should not surprise anyone that British and American English are a little different grammatically （Americans say， “I don't have” and “I have a lot” but the British say “I haven't” and “I have much”）。 Their pronunciation and vocabulary also differ. These should not be sources of consternation⁵ when you visit different Anglo countries； instead， they should be occasions for adventure and enjoyment⁶. Just as Mandarin⁷-speaking foreigners can manage their way through the various dialects of Mandarin spoken in mainland China， so， too， should anyone versed⁸ in conversational⁹ English——of any stripe——succeed in having fun witht he different worlds of English.

 

1 crackers   

adj.精神错乱的，癫狂的n.爆竹( cracker的名词复数 )；薄脆饼干；（认为）十分愉快的事；迷人的姑娘

参考例句：

• That noise is driving me crackers. 那噪声闹得我简直要疯了。
• We served some crackers and cheese as an appetiser. 我们上了些饼干和奶酪作为开胃品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 pitcher   

n.(有嘴和柄的)大水罐；(棒球)投手

参考例句：

• He poured the milk out of the pitcher.他从大罐中倒出牛奶。
• Any pitcher is liable to crack during a tight game.任何投手在紧张的比赛中都可能会失常。

3 bonnet   

n.无边女帽；童帽

参考例句：

• The baby's bonnet keeps the sun out of her eyes.婴孩的帽子遮住阳光，使之不刺眼。
• She wore a faded black bonnet garnished with faded artificial flowers.她戴着一顶褪了色的黑色无边帽，帽上缀着褪了色的假花。

4 hood   

n.头巾，兜帽，覆盖；v.罩上，以头巾覆盖

参考例句：

• She is wearing a red cloak with a hood.她穿着一件红色带兜帽的披风。
• The car hood was dented in.汽车的发动机罩已凹了进去。

5 consternation   

n.大为吃惊，惊骇

参考例句：

• He was filled with consternation to hear that his friend was so ill.他听说朋友病得那么厉害，感到非常震惊。
• Sam stared at him in consternation.萨姆惊恐不安地注视着他。

6 enjoyment   

n.乐趣；享有；享用

参考例句：

• Your company adds to the enjoyment of our visit. 有您的陪同，我们这次访问更加愉快了。
• After each joke the old man cackled his enjoyment.每逢讲完一个笑话，这老人就呵呵笑着表示他的高兴。

7 Mandarin   

n.中国官话，国语，满清官吏；adj.华丽辞藻的

参考例句：

• Just over one billion people speak Mandarin as their native tongue.大约有十亿以上的人口以华语为母语。
• Mandarin will be the new official language of the European Union.普通话会变成欧盟新的官方语言。

8 versed   

adj. 精通，熟练

参考例句：

• He is well versed in history.他精通历史。
• He versed himself in European literature. 他精通欧洲文学。

9 conversational   

adj.对话的，会话的

参考例句：

• The article is written in a conversational style.该文是以对话的形式写成的。
• She values herself on her conversational powers.她常夸耀自己的能言善辩。