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Tea Through Time-空中英語教室
2025/01/11 15:34
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Tea Through Time 茶的歷史(上)
空中英語教室 20250110

"Tea Through Time" 的繁體中文意思是「茶的歷史」。
這個短語描述了茶的歷史或茶在不同時代的演變過程。

修正英文文法，保留中文部分，同時將簡體中文修改為繁體中文
Hi friends, welcome back!
I’m John. Today is a great day to learn something new, so let’s do that together.
My name is Ann Marie.
Ann Marie, do you know what time it is today?
What time is it?
It’s tea time, friends!
Tea is one of the most widely drunk beverages or drinks around the world. Tea time is a special time of day when people get together and drink tea.
That’s right, people love tea. Ann Marie, do you love tea?
I do like tea.
I wouldn’t say that tea is necessarily my go-to beverage. It’s not the thing that I drink if I had a choice of drinking anything I wanted, but I do enjoy a nice cup of tea once in a while.
I see. Well friends, that is our “Talk About It” question: Is tea your go-to beverage?
Ann Marie, you said tea wasn’t your go-to beverage. Is it yours?
I think coffee is mine, but I do love tea, and I love learning about the history of this amazing drink. So let’s read about it together!
Tea Through Time
A Global Journey from Ancient Roots to Modern Brews.
What is the world’s most widely consumed beverage after water?
If you guessed tea, you’d be correct! The brew boasts a rich history that spans more than four thousand years and encompasses a wide range of cultures and traditions.
Its journey from a simple herbal remedy to a global staple is as fascinating as it is complex.
Welcome to Language Lab!
I’m Jack.
我們先來看 "encompass" 這個動詞。意思是涵蓋或包圍。
譬如：
This course encompasses everything you need to know to pass the driving test.
本課程涵蓋通過駕照考試所需的所有知識。
或是：
The fog encompassed me as I walked down the darkened alley.
我走在漆黑的小巷子時，濃霧籠罩了我。
"Encompass" 的名詞是 "encompassment"，是包含的意思。
譬如：
The encompassment of both languages during the program allowed everyone in the audience to enjoy the program.
節目中包含的兩種語言讓在場所有的觀眾都享受其中。
Alright friends, our lesson today is called Tea Through Time.
We’re learning about the history of this drink, and we read together:
"A global journey from ancient roots to modern brews."
"Brews" 是一個獨特的英文單字，什麼意思呢？
So, when we use the word "brew," it means that we are making, usually, a beverage by soaking, boiling, or fermenting it.
This is a word that we use specifically for beer, tea, or coffee.
I see, it can be a noun, a brew, or a verb—to brew something. You can brew, like you said, coffee, but here we’re brewing tea leaves.
And we get a question right at the beginning of our reading: What is the world’s most widely consumed beverage after water?
“Consume” means to eat or drink something when it’s used in this way.
That’s right, and we can use it in other ways as well.
If you’re consumed with something, it means that you are very invested in it or that you can’t think about anything else.
When we use the word "consumed" in this way, here’s an example:
He was consumed with the sports game and couldn’t think about anything else.
That’s right! To be consumed with something means to be obsessed with it. But here, “consume” means to eat and drink.
We consume a lot of different things.
Ann Marie, do you consume some tea?
I do consume some tea, usually when other people make it for me or buy it for me. Otherwise, I’m like you, John—I usually consume coffee as my go-to beverage. But a lot of people really love tea.
We read here:
"The brew boasts a rich history that spans more than 4000 years and encompasses a wide range of cultures and traditions."
That’s right! We’ll learn more about those different cultures and traditions later in our reading, but here we’ve got a useful word:
"Its journey from a simple herbal remedy to a global staple is as fascinating as it is complex."
The word is herbal.
What does it mean?
If something is herbal, okay, so an herb is a plant or a plant part, and it’s valued for its medicinal or flavoring properties.
So when you see this word herbal, it means that something is related to herbs. It’s a natural thing.
So, there are lots of herbal medicines that you can take if you’re sick, right?
That’s right!
We also see a great word in this sentence, and that is the word staple.
What is a staple, John?
A staple, when we’re talking about foods or drinks—things you can consume—a staple is something that is a regular part of someone’s diet. Sometimes we talk about the staple of a country’s diet. For example, you could say hamburgers are a staple of the American diet.
I don’t know if that’s true.
It could be true for some people. I know that for me, growing up, potatoes were a big staple in my diet, so yes.
We also see that tea is fascinating as well, and we are going to learn about how fascinating tea actually is.
That’s right! It’s fascinating, and it is complex. You might know the word complicated already. If something has a lot of parts, it’s complicated.
And here complex means complicated or having a lot of different layers.
Well friends, let’s learn about the complex world of tea in the next section of today’s reading:
Tea Through Time
The story of tea begins in ancient China, where legend attributes its discovery to Emperor Shen Nong in 2737 BC.
According to legend, while the emperor was boiling water, some leaves from a nearby wild tree blew into his pot, resulting in a refreshing drink and leading to the widespread use of tea leaves in China.
It was initially consumed for its healing properties, but quickly became a daily beverage.
By the Tang Dynasty (AD 618 to 907), tea drinking was well-established in Chinese society, becoming an art form and a social activity.
接著來看 refreshing 這個形容詞，意思是清爽的、提神的。
譬如：
You can make a refreshing drink by adding lemon or cucumber to your water.
你可以在水中加檸檬或黃瓜來製作清爽的飲料。
動詞 refresh 則是指恢復精力。
我們來學一個常用片語：refresh someones memory，意思就是喚起某人的記憶。
譬如：
I’ll need to review all my course materials before the test to refresh my memory.
我需要在考試前復習所有的課程資料來喚起我的記憶。
refresh 的名詞是 refreshment，是指點心。
譬如：
Can I offer you any type of refreshment?
你需要任何種類的茶點嗎？
Alright, thank you, Jack! Well, now we get to the root of our story.
We read:
"The story of tea begins in ancient China, where legend attributes its discovery to Emperor Shen Nong in 2737 BC."
I see. If you attribute something to someone, what does that mean?
It means to regard something as being caused by that thing or person.
For example, you could say:
I attribute my success in college to my early education.
And as we read here together, there is this legend:
"According to legend, while the emperor was boiling water, some leaves from a nearby wild tree blew into his pot."
Here, the verb phrase blew into means that, because of the wind, typically, something arrived somewhere suddenly.
Yeah, so for example, the wind might pull a plastic bag out of your hand and blow it into a tree.
Sometimes, we separate blew and into with a phrase in between it as well.
So, what did this result in, John?
Well, it resulted in a refreshing drink and it led to the widespread use of tea leaves in China.
I don’t know if this is the actual way people started drinking tea, but it’s a cool legend.
Widespread means what, Ann Marie?
Well, if something is widespread, it means it is found or distributed over a large area or a large number.
I see! So you could say the use of cell phones is widespread now, but it wasn’t 30 years ago.
That’s right!
Now, we continue on with our lesson, friends, by reading:
"It was initially consumed for its healing properties治癒特性."
This is a great phrase for you to know, friends: What are healing properties?
Well, simply, healing properties are the ability to make something better that something has, normally.
We talk about the healing properties of some sort of activity, like a spa, or some kind of food, like the healing properties of ginger that we studied about in a few lessons ago.
That’s right! We also use this when talking about certain plants, such as ginger, as John just mentioned. Aloe is another plant that has healing properties.
We see here, though, that quickly tea became a daily beverage.
People who enjoy drinking tea often drink it every day.
That’s right, it’s their daily beverage now. Again, beverage is a word you should know.
It means something that you drink.
But we read more about the history here.
We learned that by the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD), tea drinking was well established in Chinese society, becoming an art form and social activity.
If something is an art form, it means that people take a lot of care and really try to do it beautifully and well.
That’s right!
There are different things that can become art forms over time. Originally, maybe they were just done in a way to complete a daily task, but later they become an art form.
It makes me think of hospitality, for example—having people over to your house for a meal.
It seems like a simple thing, but for some people, it’s an art form.
Alright, well, there’s a lot more to learn about tea and its amazing history.
How did tea spread to other parts of the world?
But first, it’s time for today’s Infocloud!
Hello friends, welcome to Infocloud!
Hey, Garrett, did you see Sarah get really upset at the party last weekend?
What happened?
Someone made a joke about her curly hair, and she lost her temper.
I think it was just a storm in a teacup.
Well, you never know if a person is going to be sensitive about certain things, so it’s better to not make fun of people.
But I think you should share more about the expression a storm in a teacup or a storm in a teapot.
When someone gets angry over something that’s not really serious, we can say it’s a storm in a teacup or a storm in a teapot.
That really paints a picture of someone making a big deal out of something small, since it is impossible to have a big storm in a little teacup.
Unfortunately, I think many people do get angry over little things that are not very important. I think part of that is because people are getting more impatient in this digital age.
Well friends, next time you are feeling upset or even angry, make sure it’s not just a storm in a teacup.

a storm in a teacup (a teapot) 茶杯或茶壺裡的風暴
在數位科技相當進步的今天，人們的耐性也越來越少了。
很多時候，我們會看到 a storm in a teacup 或 a teapot，字面上是茶杯或茶壺裡的風暴。
這是用來形容有人為了微不足道的小事情而生氣。
我們都知道，茶壺或者茶杯裡是不可能引起風暴的。
因此，storm in a teacup 也是一個非常耐人尋味的經典用語。
The customer’s complaint was a storm in a teapot.
那位客人的抱怨只不過是小題大做。
這就是今天的 Infocloud，我們下次雲端見！

Tea Through Time
Carried by travelers from China, tea made its way to Japan in the early 9th century.
There, it was embraced by the upper class and was woven into the culture, eventually giving rise to the Japanese tea ceremony, or chanoyu.
This ceremony highlights the aesthetic aspects of tea, emphasizing harmony, respect, purity, and tranquility.
今天的 Usage Tip 是過去分詞片語的用法。
在主要句子之前加上過去分詞引導的片語來補充主詞的相關細節，像是說明主要句子事件的發生原因或背景等。
在文章裡面：
Carried by travelers from China, tea made its way to Japan in the early ninth century.
句子的主詞 tea 就是被運送的，carried 用被動語態就說明了茶能傳到日本的原因。
我們來看個例句：
Translated into many languages, the book reached a lot of readers around the world.
這本書被翻譯成多種語言，在世界各地擁有許多讀者。
Alright, Emory, tea is leaving China, and we read:
Carried by travelers from China, tea made its way to Japan in the early 9th century.
So now, we are seeing that tea might have started in China, but now it is spreading all over the world, and people of all different cultures are starting to enjoy it.
That’s right!
And they really do enjoy it.
We read that in Japan, it was embraced by the upper class and was woven into the culture.
If something is embraced here, it means accepted willingly and enthusiastically.
So, you could say, "Oh, I really embraced trying new things."
That’s right! Here’s another example of how you could use embraced in a sentence:
Their company always embraces the latest technology.
They welcome the latest technology and totally accept it.
That’s right! And actually, embrace means to hug normally.
So typically, you would say, "Oh, I embraced my kids when I saw them after work."
But when we use it as a metaphor or an idea, it means that you’re accepting something, kind of as if you were just hugging it and keeping it.
So Japan embraces tea, and it becomes woven into the culture.
What does that mean?
Yeah, this is a really interesting way to say that the culture has united different elements to make a coherent whole.
It’s combining different elements to make something else.
Culture is something that’s kind of hard to pinpoint—it’s kind of hard to discuss, right?
There are a lot of different elements in culture, but here we’re saying that tea has been put into the culture, and now it’s part of that whole.
The verb you see in that phrase is to weave (W-E-A-V-E), and to weave means to put different threads together to make cloth.
So if something is woven into the culture, like you say, it becomes part of the whole.
I do think of Japan when I think of tea sometimes.
That’s right!
And we see something else here:
In the second part of that sentence, eventually giving rise to the Japanese tea ceremony.
Now, if something gives rise to something else, what does that mean?
It basically means it causes it to happen or to start.
You could use that in all kinds of sentences. For example:
His hard work gave rise to his success.
So tea was woven into Japanese culture, and it eventually gave rise to the Japanese tea ceremony, or chanoyu.
This ceremony is in our reading. What does it highlight?
Well, according to our article, this ceremony highlights the aesthetic aspects of tea.
Now, what are aesthetics?
These are things that are concerned with beauty or the appreciation of beauty.
You might hear people talk about this when referencing a social media account or a cafe:
What kind of aesthetics do they have?
I see!
So you could even say something has nice aesthetics as a noun.
And here, the aesthetic aspects of tea are harmony, respect, purity, and tranquility.
Tranquility means peacefulness.
Purity means freedom from bad behavior, but when we’re talking about food, purity means high quality—there’s nothing bad in the tea.
A lot of times, we use the word purity when it’s related to food to talk about being free from additives.
An additive in food is something that is added in to enhance the flavor, change the flavor, or make the product cheaper in some way.
That’s right! Well, pure food can be delicious food, and it’s nice to have a good cup of tea wherever in the world you are.
But for now, friends, at the end of today’s lesson, it’s time for today’s Fun Fact!
Mmm, a sandwich...
Oh hello, fact friends!
I’m Detective Ernest Finder, and I have a fun tea fact for you today.
Did you know that sweet iced tea is very popular in the southern USA?
It’s true!
Who would have thought that?
But this sweet iced tea is a little different.
This tea is sugary and cold and perfect for hot summer afternoons.
So, if you’re hosting someone in the southern USA, make them a cup of sweet iced tea!
Ha ha!
And that is today’s fun tea fact!
Time for Tea!
Friends, as we end our lesson today, I want to ask John:
John, what is a tea-related memory that you have?
Well, I love going to areas that grow tea. I believe in Alishan, there are lots of tea-growing areas up in the mountains.
It’s a very tranquil experience.
Very nice use of one of our words from our lesson today!
I always think about the time when I went out with some of the ladies here at Studio Classroom to try matcha for the first time.
That was a really great experience, and we talked about matcha in our lesson just a few weeks ago.
Well, friends, that’s all the time we have for today.
I’m John,
My name is Ann Marie,
and we’ll see you next time right here on Studio Classroom!


Tea Through Time 茶的歷史(下)
空中英語教室 20250111
修正英文文法，保留中文部分，同時將簡體中文修改為繁體中文
Hi friends,
Welcome back!
I’m John. Today is a great day to learn something new, so let’s do that together!
My name is Ann Marie, and I’ve been talking with you about that famous beverage, tea.
Marie, you said you’re not a tea drinker all the time, but you do enjoy tea.
I do enjoy tea, and it seems like most people in the world do enjoy tea.
Our article yesterday said that it is the most widely consumed beverage after water.
That’s right! Widely consumed means eaten or drank a lot.
We learned a little bit about the legend behind tea, right?
There was an emperor who was boiling water when leaves blew into his pot and made tea.
At least, that’s the legend, and it is a very interesting one.
But since then, in ancient China, tea has started to travel all over the world, and it’s now in every corner of the world. Slowly, it’s becoming woven into different cultures, including the Japanese culture.
Well, tea’s journey is not over. There’s a lot more history to learn, so let’s read it together.
Tea Through Time
Tea traveled along trade routes to the Middle East and Europe, primarily through the efforts of Portuguese and Dutch traders in the 16th century.
By the 17th century, tea had become fashionable among European nobility, particularly in Britain, where it evolved into a symbol of sophistication and status.
Hi, I’m Jack. 今天的 usage tip 是名詞加上逗號，後面接 when 或是 where 字句，因為 when 跟 where 屬於關係副詞，用於引導關係子句或是形容詞子句。
它可以為前面的名詞補充更多的資訊。如果前面名詞是時間點，就使用 when；如果是地方，就用 where。
所以基本上這個名詞是特定且唯一的時間或地點，必須要先加上逗號，然後再加上 when 或 where 字句的補充資訊。
我們來看個例句：
Italian painter Raphael thrived in the early sixteenth century when artistic innovation was highly prized.
意大利畫家拉斐爾在16世紀初期非常成功，當時藝術創新備受推崇。
Alright, tea is on the move!
We learned that tea traveled through trade routes, and trade routes are what?
Well, a trade route is a network of roads or pathways, often covering a long distance, that people selling goods used in the past.
We don’t usually use this phrase anymore to talk about trade routes, but this is a way that goods would travel from one place to another in the past.
That’s right! By the way, there are two different ways to say it: route is often the way you go, and root is more specific sometimes. But you can use route or root as you like.
These routes were made primarily through the efforts of Portuguese and Dutch traders in the 16th century.
Efforts means vigorous or determined attempts to do something. Normally, an effort is something very physical or very mental.
That’s right! It’s something that you’re doing, and you’re trying really hard to accomplish. Here’s an example of how you could use it in a sentence:
I appreciate your efforts, but we’re still cancelling the project.
The idea here is that people worked really hard, but in the end, it’s just not going to work.
Sometimes, that word effort can be used kind of in a funny way.
If your friend tries and fails to do something, you can encourage them and say Nice effort or A for effort. That’s like a grade you give your friend—a grade for effort! It didn’t work, but you did good. You tried, okay?
We read on here to see more of tea’s history.
By the 17th century, tea had become fashionable among European nobility. Now, who is the nobility we are talking about here?
Well, nobility is a group of people who are part of the highest social class in a country.
I see! You could say the nobility had a lot of money, while the poor farmers were hungry.
Sometimes, nobility is also used as a noun to describe someone’s character.
You could say, "Oh, she had a lot of nobility. She would never get angry and always do the right thing."
That’s right!
Okay, so the nobility is enjoying tea now, particularly in Britain, where it evolved into a symbol of sophistication and status.
Now, you just saw that sentence in your usage tip for today.
Thank you for that, Jack!
But we want to talk a little bit more about this word sophistication.
Okay, if you have sophistication, it means you know a lot about culture and you are comfortable in different social situations. Normally, someone who is sophisticated is fine going to places that are very fancy.
And how can you tell if someone is sophisticated?
You can’t always know until you see the way they act in different situations, as John just said. But sometimes, someone’s sophistication is evident by the way that they dress.
They could dress in a sophisticated way.
You could even say, "My cat had a lot of sophistication. She would only eat the best canned or fresh food."
My cats are not sophisticated at all. One of them likes table scraps, and the other one likes dry food. So, I do not have sophisticated cats at my house!
You know, I don’t know if I’m very sophisticated either, but I do know that sophistication is a useful word for you to add to your English vocabulary.
Well, friends, let’s get more sophisticated together as we read more about that amazing drink, tea, in the next section of our reading.
Tea Through Time
In Britain, tea was at first a luxury item due to its high cost, but it gained popularity as trade expanded.
The British East India Company played a crucial role in the tea trade, establishing plantations in India and Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) to meet the growing demand.
By the 19th century, tea had become an essential part of British culture, giving rise to its famous afternoon tea tradition.
Tea continues to evolve with contemporary twists to tempt modern tastes.
Specialty tea shops offer a variety of flavors and blends, from traditional black and green teas to herbal mixtures and exotic combinations, such as matcha and chai.
Welcome to Language Lab!
我們先來看看 plantation 這個名詞，意思是種植地或農園。
例如：
We toured a sugar cane plantation in Hawaii last year and learned all about the Japanese farmers who worked its fields.
去年，我們參觀了夏威夷的甘蔗種植園，了解了在田裡工作的日本農民的一切。
與 plantation 相關的另一個名詞就是 plant，也就是植物。
例如：
The little plant on my desk makes me happy every time I see it.
我每次看到桌上的小植物，都會很快樂。
Plant 也可以當動詞，意思是種植。
例如：
I remember eating the delicious vegetables from the garden my grandmother planted.
我還記得吃奶奶菜園裡種植的那些美味蔬菜的情景。
Alright, Anne Marie, when I think about tea, I often think about England or Britain.
So let’s read about the history of tea coming to Britain together.
Okay, we read here in our article:
In Britain, tea was at first a luxury item due to its high cost. Friends, we’ve learned about this term luxury item before. Let’s define it and review it together.
Something that is not necessary, but is seen as something that is highly valuable.
We often use this term luxury item when we’re talking about a designer handbag or really expensive shoes.
That’s right! You could say expensive perfumes are a luxury item.
Something you don’t necessarily need can also be called a luxury.
So first, tea is a luxury item because of the price, but it gained popularity as the trade expanded.
Expanded means it grew bigger here.
And then we learn about a special and pretty famous company.
That’s right!
The British East India Company played a crucial role in the tea trade, establishing plantations in India and Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) to meet the growing demand.
Let’s talk about the idea of demand here.
John, demand, when we’re talking about markets, is the want and need for products or services.
We talk about supply and demand. A demand is a word you need to know.
Here’s an example of how we might use that in this context:
There is a huge demand for teachers in that city.
That means that city really needs teachers.
If you go to that city to be a teacher, you will probably be very welcomed and paid very well.
But we read on here:
By the 19th century, tea had become an essential part of British culture, giving rise to its famous afternoon tea tradition, or as we learned yesterday, tea time.
That’s right! This tea tradition has become a big part of British culture, even to the present day.
As we read, tea continues to evolve with contemporary twists to tempt modern tastes.
Contemporary means modern, right?
That’s right, or it means that someone is following modern ideas when it comes to style or design.
We sometimes talk about buildings or different forms of art being contemporary, and that’s just the idea that they’re keeping up with the times.
That’s right!
You could go to a contemporary exhibit and see what people are making in modern times.
We also have this word to tempt, and to tempt means to try to attract.
Basically, here, when we’re talking about something tempting your taste, it means it makes you want to eat or drink it.
For example, someone might tempt you with some sweets at work. That happens to me all the time, and I have to say no.
I’m trying to cut back on my sugar intake.
Don’t tempt me with those sweets, you know?
We often are tempted with tea here in the studio.
It’s actually one of the things we like to do together as a film crew—drink tea as we work.
And as we read here, specialty tea shops do offer a variety of flavors and blends, from traditional black and green teas to herbal mixtures and exotic combinations, such as Matcha and Chai.
We talked all about Matcha in a previous lesson, friends.
We do have to give a note about this word exotic; we’ve talked about it before.
It means that it originates in a foreign country.
So you do need to be careful when you’re using this word, because if you call someone exotic, it means you’re not from here, you are different—same with different foods and things like that.
That’s right! You see the ex and that means out of something, something that’s from another place—it’s out of your country.
Well, there’s a lot more to talk about with tea, but now let’s go to our Info Cloud.
Hello, everyone!
Welcome to Info Cloud. Garrett, I don’t know what to do. I have a bill that was due yesterday, and I forgot to pay it.
Oh no!
I hate it when that happens.
It sounds like you are in hot water.
You can say that again!
But before I go on complaining about my problems, let’s explain that phrase you just used.
Well, when you’re in hot water, you’re in a difficult or troublesome situation, usually because you’ve done something wrong or made a mistake.
I get it! It’s like if you climb into a bathtub, but the water is too hot—it’s an uncomfortable situation, and you probably could have avoided it.
That’s right! If you get a bad grade on a test, you’re in hot water, and you might fail the class.
Or if your wife asks you to buy some milk on the way home from work and you forget, you’ll definitely be in hot water.
Woo!
Yeah, I know what that’s like. Friends, if you find yourself in hot water, don’t forget that there’s almost always a way out of the situation.

in hot water 水深火熱，困境中
當一個人陷入某方面的困難，你可以用今天分享的用語 in hot water 來形容。
In hot water 就是處於很烫的熱水裡，很不舒服或是很痛苦。
In hot water 就可以形容身處在困境當中。
Tom got a bad grade on the test, and he’s in hot water.
Tom 考試成績很差，他現在水深火熱。
in hot water 可以形容生活中的一些小插曲，比如忘記付帳單、忘記買重要的東西等等。
只要是讓一個人很不舒服的事情，就可以用 in hot water 來形容這種狀況。
這就是今天的 Info Cloud，我們下次云端見！

Tea Through Time
Bubble tea, also known as Boba tea, is a modern phenomenon that originated in the city of Taizhong in the 1980s. It combines tea with milk, chewy tapioca balls, and sometimes fruit flavors.
The drink is beloved around the world, especially among younger generations.
Whether sipped in a traditional ceremony, hot or iced tea remains a symbol of comfort, connection, and creativity.
What’s your cup of tea?
接下來看 beloved 這個字。
它可以當形容詞和名詞。當形容詞是心愛的意思。
You, this is my beloved wife Linda, who I’ve been married to for fifty years.
這是我深愛的妻子琳達，我們已經結婚50年了。
或者是
One of my most beloved possessions is the emerald ring my mother gave me.
我最珍愛的物品之一是母親送給我的翡翠戒指。
Beloved 當作名詞則是指心愛的人，譬如：
The last words he said to his beloved were, “I’ll never forget you.”
他對心愛的人說的最後一句話是：「我永遠不會忘記你。」
Alright, now it’s time to talk about my personal favorite tea—bubble tea.
Bubble tea, also known as Boba tea, is a modern phenomenon.
And what is a modern phenomenon?
Well, the idea of something being modern means that it’s occurring in the present time or in recent history.
And a phenomenon is a fact or an event that is unusual or difficult to understand.
So, a modern phenomenon means it’s something that’s going on that maybe people don’t know why it’s happening, and it’s happening right now.
I see! So you could say people live streaming the news on their phone is a modern phenomenon, something that happens that could not have happened in the past.
That’s right!
Now, bubble tea combines tea with milk, chewy tapioca balls, and sometimes fruit flavors.
And we talked a little bit before in another lesson about what tapioca balls are, didn’t we?
Yeah! Tapioca balls are edible, clear balls made from the starch of the cassava root.
And it turns out there are different ways to make Boba from taro and other substances.
But originally, it was made from this cassava root.
That’s right! But if you are asking an English speaker if they want to have tapioca balls in their tea, you may just ask them:
Do you want some Boba in your tea?
Or Do you want to add pearls into your tea?
We don’t really say tapioca balls in this way.
That’s right! Yeah, again, Boba is how we describe this whole kind of tea in the US.
What I found is that here in Asia, there are so many different kinds of Boba, and it seems like they all taste so good!
Finally, we have a closing to our lesson:
Whether sipped in a traditional ceremony, hot or iced tea remains a symbol of comfort, connection, and creativity.
What’s your cup of tea?
Now, a symbol, Anne Marie, means…
Well, a symbol is something that’s used as a representation of something else. Different organizations will have a symbol that represents what their company stands for.
And here, tea is a symbol of comfort, connection, and creativity, because we do connect over tea, oftentimes.
When I’m drinking tea, it’s because I’m with someone else.
I see!
And I would say the color green is like a symbol for tea, right?
It’s probably the… what color do you think of when I say tea?
It depends on what kind of tea we’re drinking. If we’re drinking bubble tea or Boba, I would say like a light brown is a symbol of tea.
Interesting! Yeah, well, I want to get some tea, but I do see this phrase here at the end:
What’s your cup of tea?
When we use it in this kind of sentence pattern, What’s your cup of tea?, that means what is something that you like?
Someone’s cup of tea can also be something that they’re good at, though.
That’s true.
And sometimes we say something is not our cup of tea if it’s something that we don’t like.
So for example, I could say, Go ahead and see the movie without me. It’s not my cup of tea. I know I won’t like it.
That’s right! What is your preference?
What’s your cup of tea?
I believe that’s a very British expression.
Well, friends, it’s been fun learning a lot about the history of tea.
Maybe it’s time for you to drink some tea while you keep studying your English. But first, let’s go to our Fun Fact for today.

Hello, Fact Friends!
I’m Detective Ernest Finder, and I have a fun fact for you today!
Did you know that sometimes the British time for tea is called tea time?
It’s true! I know, that’s surprising, but tea time is very important for British culture.
Also, having a tea party is a classic game that little girls in the West have played.
Time for my tee off time(高爾夫球) 發球、開始(高爾夫球賽)! That’s a golf term too.

Well, Ann Marie, it has been a fun tea time here on set for Studio Classroom.
Thank you for joining us as we talk about tea!
I have a question, though, Ann Marie, and this is our Talk About It question:
How do you think tea drinking will change in the future?
I think we will start to have more and more different ingredients that we put in our tea.
I think it’s going to get really, really interesting as time goes on.
Interesting! Well, I bet you’re right. I know in America, we’re just starting to get used to Boba tea or bubble tea.
Well, friends, that’s all the time we have for today.
I’m John.
My name is Ann Marie, and we’ll see you next time right here on Studio Classroom!

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