英语听力精选进阶版 7951

This week’s question comes from Justina in China who wants to know more about French words in English.

We spoke¹ to Erica Gatland, who works² for a translation company. She said that over 30% of the English language is made up of French words.

Some of these words are the same as in French and are still used in the French language today. Others came from French but have become anglicised as time has passed.

So why are there so many French words in the English language? Well, in the year 1066 in England, the Battle of Hastings (a town on the south coast) took place.

The English king, Harold, was defeated by William of Normandy in France. So a French man became the King of England. He brought his language and his people over to England at that time.

Once English people took power again though, the English language changed but it was influenced by this period when the King of England was French.

Lots of words used in English came from French and have evolved³ over the years and become more English. Examples are treasure (in French tresor), cup (in French coupe), letter (lettre), beef (beouf), abolish⁴ (abolir) and claim (clamer).

These are just a few examples of thousands. There are also thousands of examples of French words that are exactly the same as French words used in French still today. Here are just a few for you below.

En suite⁵ 带洗手间的卧室 - a bathroom attached to a bedroom.

RSVP (repondez s'il vous plait) （邀请函上）请回复 - please reply (usually found on invitations).

Fiancé/Fiancée 未婚夫 - when you get engaged your husband or wife-to-be becomes your fiancé (man) or fiancée (woman).

Souvenir 纪念品 - something you buy to remind you of a holiday or special event (in French souvenir is a verb - to remember).

Aubergine 茄子 - the British word for eggplant.

Cul-de-sac 死胡同 - a street which is blocked off at one end.

Hors d'oeuvre 餐前小吃 - a starter at a meal.

Thanks for your question Justina. We hope we could give you enough examples.

Glossary 词汇

translation 翻译

anglicised 英国化

battle 战役

defeated 被击败

period 时期

evolved 进化了的

treasure 财富

abolish 废除

attached 附带的

invitations 邀请函

get engaged 订婚

eggplant 茄子

blocked off 堵死的

starter 开胃菜，头盘

1 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

2 works   

n.作品，著作；工厂，活动部件，机件

参考例句：

• We expect writers to produce more and better works.我们期望作家们写出更多更好的作品。
• The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。

3 evolved   

动词evolve的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The idea evolved from a drawing I discovered in the attic. 这种想法是从我在阁楼里发现的一幅画得到启发的。
• Man was evolved from an ancestor that was probably arboreal. 人大概是从住在树上的祖先进化而来的。

4 abolish   

vt.废除（法律、习惯等），取消

参考例句：

• Do abolish this kind of bad evil.一定要废除这种恶劣习俗。
• The weapons of war must be abolished before they abolish us.在作战武器消灭我们以前，我们应先把它消灭。

5 suite   

n.一套(家具)；套房；随从人员

参考例句：

• She has a suite of rooms in the hotel.她在那家旅馆有一套房间。
• That is a nice suite of furniture.那套家具很不错。