American and British English are largely the same, although differences certainly exist, evolved over two and a half centuries of separation of Britain and its former colony. In some cases, words have been borrowed from different sources: British English, for example, uses the word coriander, derived from French; American English uses cilantro, derived from Spanish (both originate from the Latin coriandrum); differences in spelling are in part due to choices made by Noah Webster, creator of the American Dictionary of the English Language, which established certain spelling conventions used in the US, and which forms the basis of the Merriam-Webster dictionary.
Over the next six months we will be looking at differences in spelling, grammar, word choice and linguistic convention between American and British English. In the above table are some examples of differences in word choice for professions.
(Paul Cooper, Taipei Times)
美式英文和英式英文基本上是相同的,但是美國已脫離英國殖民兩個半世紀,因此美式和英式英文之間的確存在著差異。有些字是借自其他語言,例如「香菜」一詞,英式英文是用「coriander」這個字,源自法文;美式英文則是說「cilantro」,源自西班牙文(二者皆源自拉丁文「coriandrum」)。 英式與美式英文拼寫上的差異,部分是由於《美國英語詞典》的編纂者諾亞‧韋伯斯特的決定。《美國英語詞典》是韋式字典的基礎,建立了美國拼寫某些字的慣例。
接下來的六個月,我們將介紹美式和英式英文之間在拼寫、語法、用字和語言慣例方面的差異。上方的表格所列舉的,是一些職業名稱在兩者間的差異。
(台北時報林俐凱譯)
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
照片:維基共享資源
A: Wow, singer Bruno Mars will be visiting Kaohsiung for the first time. B: Really? Where will he be performing? A: He’s going to hold a concert at the National Stadium on Sunday. B: Why do the Taiwanese like to call him the “Martian” in Chinese? A: Because his last name “Mars” is the same word as the planet Mars. A: 哇!火星人布魯諾將首度唱進高雄。 B: 真的嗎?在哪裡? A: 他將於本週日,在國家體育場開唱唷。 B: 但是為什麼台灣人喜歡叫他火星人呢? A: 因為他的姓氏「Mars」這個字剛好是「火星」的意思啊。 (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張聖恩)
A: Bruno Mars is definitely one of today’s most popular singers. B: He has even won 14 Grammy Awards. A: I love all his megahits, like “Just the Way You Are.” B: And his new song with Lady Gaga “Die with a Smile” has a caused worldwide sensation. A: I wonder if we’ll hear the new song at his Kaohsiung concert? A: 火星人布魯諾是近年來最受歡迎的流行歌手。 B: 對啊他還曾榮獲14座葛萊美獎。 A: 他所有的金曲我都愛,像《Just the Way You Are》。 B: 最近他和女神卡卡合唱《Die with a Smile》更造成大轟動! A: 不知道在高雄有沒有機會聽他演唱這首新歌呢? (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張聖恩)
You can’t help but notice the woman’s blonde hair, blue eyes, and bizarre outfit. She’s in a white dress that reaches below the knee and a Prussian blue jacket highlighted by a brooch on a ribbon at the collar. Together with her leather boots and the brown suitcase in hand, her overall look gives her an air of mystery. This distinctive appearance isn’t merely for style; it’s her way of embracing cosplay. Combining the words “costume” and “play,” cosplay is an art form in which participants dress up as specific characters, usually at anime conventions. It not only involves
Foxes are known for being cunning and resourceful, but a study suggests another surprising talent. Research from the Czech Republic indicates these creatures may use the Earth’s magnetic field when hunting. The study, led by Jaroslav ?erveny, tracked wild red foxes for over two years, recording nearly 600 hunting leaps by 84 foxes. Researchers found the animals predominantly jumped in a northeasterly direction, regardless of the time of day, season, or weather conditions. This preferred leaping direction resulted in a much higher kill rate, with foxes finding success on 73 percent of their northeasterly pounces on their prey. The results prompted