买菜说成buy vegetable不能说错,只是不地道,因为native English speaker不这么说。
我们买菜当然是去菜市场,地摊,要么超市。As far as I know, 老外买菜要么去supermarket,要么去grocery store。grocery store给我第一反应是杂货店,小超市的感觉。来看看牛津词典对grocery的解释:
(especially British English) (North American English usually grocery store) [可数名词] a shop/store that sells food and other things used in the home. In American English ‘grocery store ’ is often used to mean ‘supermarket ’. 食品杂货店(在美国英语中grocery store常用以指supermarket)
再听听Englishpod主播对groceries的解读:
Groceries are all of the food items you need to buy at the supermarket, so like your bread and milk and meat and vegetables...
Examples:
There's no milk. Can you go to the grocery store?
Here's the grocery list. I need all of these things, so that I can cook dinner tonight. Don't forget anything.
I hate grocery shopping. I can never find what I'm looking for.
另外,grocery美国英语和加拿大英语还有一点点区别,看对话:
A(加拿大人): You know, grocery store, I think this is quite a common word in Canada.
B(美国人): Probably in north America.
A: Yeah, do you say gorcery store in America?
B: Well, if it's a small one.
A: Really, so...
B: Like a small store.
A: In Canada, I say grocery store for even like a super market.
B: Really?
A: Yeah.
B: I guess, mm, I would say supermarket for a large one and grocery store for a little corner shop.
A: All of these little differences in American and Canadian English.
B: Hehe.
”今天谁买菜?“这是我经常对老婆说的一个高频句,看Englishpod原文中的两句:
I'll do the dishes and get all the groceries for tonight.
I'll go to the supermarket and get all the groceries.
”买“是get,不是buy;”菜“是 groceries而非vegetable。还有第一句中的”洗碗“的洗不是wash而是do,这是英汉思维(习惯)的区别,很多时候,汉语用具体的下意词,而英语用抽象的上意词。字面上,英语更合逻辑些,groceries涵盖各种吃的,汉语用一个"菜"代表了做饭所需的各种,如果按字面只翻译vegetable,"菜"所代表的约定俗成的含义就译不出,万一你还要买豆腐和肉类呢。
"今天谁买菜?"是不是可以这样说:
Who's gonna get all the groceries for tonight?
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