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秋天,美国和加拿大英语用fall,英国、澳大利亚英语用autumn,本文使用美式英语。
北半球的秋天在9至11月,南半球为3至5月。
天文学中,北半球的秋天指秋分(autumnal equinox)到冬至(winter solstice)的这段时间。
之前发表的关于秋天的文章--“拔根”和“中秋节”见文章末尾。
Fall 秋天
1. Four Seasons 四季
Child: Mommy, it's cold outside, and there are lots of leaves on the ground.
宝宝:妈妈,外面好冷啊,地上还有好多叶子。
Mom: Yes, that's because it's fall now.
妈妈:是的,因为现在是秋天了。
Summer is over, and it's almost winter.
夏天过去了,冬天就要到了。
Do you remember the four seasons? They are spring, summer, fall, and winter.
你还记得四季吗?它们是春季、夏季、秋季和冬季。
2. Season of Harvest 收获的季节
Mom: Fall is the time of year we harvest the crops.
妈妈:秋天是一年中收获庄稼的季节。
Child: What does harvest mean?
宝宝:收获是什么意思?
Mom: Harvest means we pick the food from the farmers' fields.
妈妈:收获就是把食物从农田里摘下来。
Child: What kind of food?
宝宝:什么样的食物呢?
Mom: Fruits like apples and pears, and vegetables like squash and pumpkins.
妈妈:水果像苹果和梨啊,蔬菜像各种瓜和南瓜啊。
Squash指南瓜属蔬菜,包括pumpkin-南瓜、zucchini-绿皮密生西葫芦、winter squash-冬南瓜等。由于pumpkin历史悠久,且与万圣节相关,人们通常把它单独拿出来,与squash并列开来。注意,squash的单复数一样。
其他秋天收获的水果和蔬菜列表见文章结尾。
3. Leaves Changing Colors 树叶变颜色
Child: I really like red leaves. Why do the leaves turn colors?
宝宝:我喜欢红色的叶子。为什么叶子会变色呢?
变色,change colors和turn colors两种说法可以互换。
Mom: Because in spring and summer, the red, orange, and yellow colors are covered up by the dominant green.
因为春天和夏天的时候,红色、橙色和黄色被大量的绿色挡住了。
In fall, as the weather cools and shorter days settle in, the green fades away and reveals the other colors.
到了秋天,天气变冷,白天变短,绿色褪去,就显现出了别的颜色。
4. Falling Leaves 落叶
Mom: Then, the leaves fall off the tree.
妈妈:然后树叶就从树上掉下来了。
Child: I like to jump in the leaves!
宝宝:我喜欢在叶子上跳!
中文说在叶子“上”,但是英文用in,不用on。
Mom: Yes, that's lots of fun. I liked it when I was your age too.
妈妈:嗯,特别好玩。我像你这么大的时候也喜欢玩。
The street cleaners have to rake the leaves and make big piles to put into bags for the garbage truck to take away.
清洁工们需要把叶子耙到一起,堆成堆儿,放进垃圾袋里,等待垃圾车把它们运走。
5. Hibernation 冬眠
Mom: Another thing that starts to happen in fall is hibernation.
妈妈:另外一件在秋天开始发生的事情是冬眠。
Child: What does hibernation mean?
宝宝:冬眠是什么意思?
Mom: Hibernation is when some animals find a nice warm place to sleep through the winter.
妈妈:冬眠就是动物找一个暖和的地方,然后睡上一个冬天。
6. Change of Wardrobe 换季的衣柜
Child: I like fall, but I like summer better. It's warmer!
宝宝:我喜欢秋天,但是我更喜欢夏天。夏天暖和!
Mom: Yes, now that it's getting cold outside we have to dress warmer.
嗯,因为现在外面变冷了,我们得穿得暖和点。
We can't wear shorts and dresses and sandals anymore.
我们不能再穿短裤、裙子和凉鞋了。
We have to wear our sweaters, pants and shoes with socks.
我们得穿毛衣和长裤,穿鞋的时候要穿袜子。
When we go outside to play, remember to wear your coat and scarf.
我们出去玩的时候,记得穿大衣、戴围巾。
Next season will be winter then spring and then it will be summer again.
下一个季节是冬天,然后是春天,然后就又是夏天了。
But let's go have fun in the leaves!
不过咱们还是去玩树叶吧!
Appendix 附录
Other Fruits and Vegetables Harvested in Fall
其他秋天收获的水果和蔬菜
Beets 甜菜
Brussel sprouts 球芽甘蓝
Cabbage 卷心菜
Cranberries 蔓越莓
Persimmons 柿子
Pomegranates 石榴
Rutabagas and turnips 芜菁甘蓝
Sweet potatoes 甘薯
资料来源:The Best Fruits and Veggies to Eat This Fall by Kelly Fitzpatrick
往期关于秋天的文章:
用英文教宝宝玩“拔根儿”
中秋节,你会和宝宝说的英文:月饼、螃蟹、赏月、灯笼