在上学的时候你一定听过“Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner”这机构词，那么它们实际上的用法是怎么样的呢？

英语中的一日三餐如何表达？（单选）


1.Breakfast, DInner, Supper


2.Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner


3.Breakfast, Lunch, Supper


相信不少人都会选择第二个“Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner”。


但是，可能让你想不到的是，第一个和第三个选项其实也是对的。


一、Dinner

通过检索下面三个英语词典网站：

柯林斯英语词典：www.collinsdictionary.com
牛津英语词典：www.en.oxforddictionaries.com
英语词源词典：www.etymonline.com


我们发现对于Dinner的定义主要是：

1. The main meal of the day, taken either around midday or in the evening.
2. A formal evening meal, typically one in honour of a person or event.


也就是说，Dinner主要有两个意思：


1、正餐（可以是中餐，也可以是晚餐）
2、晚宴（主要是宴请某人或举办活动）


而词源词典（www.etymonline.com）对于Dinner一词的演化是这样解释的：


Always used in English for the main meal of the day, but the time of that has gradually shifted later. 


In medieval and modern Europe the common practice, down to the middle of the eighteenth century, was to take this meal about midday, or in more primitive times even as early as 9 or 10 A.M. In France, under the old régime, the dinner-hour was at 2 or 3 in the afternoon; but when the Constituent Assembly moved to Paris, since it sat until 4 or 5 o'clock, the hour for dining was postponed. The custom of dining at 6 o'clock or later has since become common, except in the country, where early dinner is still the general practice. [Century Dictionary, 1897]


也就是说，从十八世纪一开始，Dinner主要是指午餐，其用餐时间可早至上午九点或十点。在法国，Dinner的时间从下午两三点慢慢推迟到六点或更晚。


所以，当你中午在某地吃着丰盛的午餐的时候，其实你是在吃Dinner。



二、Supper

接下来我们来看看柯林斯和牛津英语词典对Supper的定义：


牛津英语词典：An evening meal, typically a light or informal one.
柯林斯英语词典：Some people refer to the main meal eaten in the early part of the evening as supper.


由此可以看出，Supper才是“晚饭”的正解。


需要注意的是，柯林斯英语词典对Supper还给出了这样的解释：


Supper is a simple meal eaten just before you go to bed at night.


这就相当于我们睡觉前吃的“夜宵”，睡前小食。


然而，Dinner与Supper的区别不仅仅是在其所食不同，它们也存在地域使用差异。比如，在美国，更为常用的是Dinner，而在加拿大，更为常用的却是Supper。