人们在观看电视纪录片《舌尖上的中国》时，自然会想到“吃货”这个词。“吃货”指“喜欢吃各类美食的人”。英语可以译为 foodie或 foody，人们用不同表述来定义 foodie，例如：

1. A foodie/foody refers to someone who has an ardent and enthusiastic interest in the preparation and consumption of good food.“吃货”指对烹调和品尝美食有浓烈兴趣的人。

2. A foodie/foody is a person who has a refined interest in good food and drink. A foodie seeks new food experiences as a hobby.“吃货”是对美食和美酒有雅趣的人。“吃货”把寻求新的美食经历作为嗜好。

被称为“吃货”的人爱吃，会吃，甚至会做，对美食有一种独特的追求和向往，例如：

3. Numerous restaurants in this area offer foodies a choice of Chinese food, Indian food and Korean food.这个区域的众多餐馆为吃货们提供了中国菜、印度菜和韩国料理等多种选择。

“吃货”是个通俗词，汉语另有高雅的同义词，例如“美食爱好者”“美食客”“美食家”“美食达人”等。英语的 foodie或 foody也是通俗词，另有不少高雅的同义词，像 gourmet, gastronome, gastronomist, bon vivant, connoisseur, epicure, epicurean等，例如：

4. A gourmet is someone who not only enjoys good food, but also knows a lot about food and wine.美食家是不仅享受美食，而且非常精通美食美酒的人。

5. The fish dish my mother cooks is so delicacies that beguiles even the mostdiscerning gourmet.我妈妈烧的鱼非常美味，甚至最识货的美食家都会着迷。

gourmet还可以用作定语，修饰 food，wine，cuisine，cooking，dinner等与饮食有关的名词，例如：

6. John is a committed party-goer, and loves gourmet food and wine.约翰热衷于参加派对，酷爱美食美酒。

7. This restaurant serves authentic gourmet Sichuan-style cuisine for lunch and dinner.这家餐馆的午餐与晚餐提供正宗美味川菜。

gastronome和 gastronomist都是“美食家”，但有细微区别，前者注重烹调术，而后者更关心饮食文化，例如：

8. A gastronome looks at how fresh the food is, how it is prepared, which flavours are used, and how it is presented.美食家注重食物新鲜程度，如何烹制，使用什么调味品，以及如何呈现。

9. A gastronome is well versed in gastronomy, while a gastronomist unites theory and practice in the study of gastronomy. gastronome精通烹调术，而 gastronomist在研究烹调术时将理论与实践结合。

bon vivant源自法语，直译为 good liver，即“快乐生活的人”，相当于“锦衣玉食者”。法国人也是以食为天，讲究饮食，故 bon vivant具有“美食家”的内涵，例如：

10. A bon vivant is a person with cultivated, refined, and sociable tastes, especially with respect to food and drink.美食家是有教养、雅致而爱交际的人，尤其在美食美酒方面很有品位。

connoisseur也源自法语，是鉴赏艺术的行家。法国人将享受美食美酒作为饮食文化。如果 connoisseur解释为“美食家”，则强调鉴赏美食美酒的能力，例如：

11. A connoisseur is an expert in a particular subject, knowing a lot about art, or food and wine.鉴赏家是某一特定领域的专家，熟知艺术或美食美酒。

epicure尤指喜欢吃稀奇食物的美食家，例如：

12. An epicure cultivates a refined taste, especially in food and wine.美食家养成了雅致的品位，尤其在美食美酒方面。

epicurean尤指追求奢侈和舒适的美食家，例如：

13. An epicurean is devoted to the pursuit of sensual pleasure, especially to the enjoyment of good food and comfort.美食家一门心思追求感官愉悦，特别是享受美食和舒适生活。

上述表示“美食家”意思的英语词汇，着重点不同。 gourmet强调喜爱美食； gastronome强调美食烹饪过程； gastronomist强调美食烹饪知识； bon vivant强调享受生活，享受美食； connoisseur强调美食鉴赏； epicure强调享受稀奇美食； epicurean强调享受奢侈美食。

下面是一个意大利美食家的故事：

I have had great interest in culinary art since I was a little boy. I liked making experiments in the kitchen when I was young. I studied chemistry at school, and I found that both chemistry and cooking were to put things together and create surprise. Cooking makes me younger. I’ve been working as an Italian chef in countries like Italy and Netherlands. And I won’t give up my research on Italian food，which has already lasted for 15 years, because it’s a job that you will never say “I know it all”. I also wish that cooking can be my lifelong career, because it makes me keep on studying new things every day and helps me cultivate my culinary skills. Among various Western foods, I favour Italian food. As the originator of Western-style food, Italian food is famous for its exquisitely made dishes. It’s elegant, noble, and rich in flavour. Let’s compare it with French food. We all know French food has many different steps in cooking and takes a lot of time for preparation. Conversely, Italian food is quick, simple and tasty. The well-known pizza, pasta, seafood and dessert are worldwide famous.

我从小就对烹饪非常感兴趣，年轻时喜欢在厨房里实验做饭。我在学校学过化学，发现化学和烹饪都是把不同的东西搅合在一起，制造出令人惊讶的效果。烹饪使我年轻。我曾在意大利与荷兰等国家当意大利菜主厨。我不会放弃对意大利菜已延续了 15年的研究，因为这是件你永远都不会说“我什么都懂”的事。我还希望一辈子都能以烹饪为业，因为它使我每天都坚持学习新东西，帮助我在厨艺上精益求精。在各式各样的西餐中，我对意大利菜情有独钟。作为西餐之源，意大利菜以精制菜肴著称。它典雅、高贵且味道浓重。让我们将它与法国菜进行比较。我们都知道法国菜烹调时要分许多不同的步骤，准备时要花很多时间。相反，意大利菜快捷、简单而味美。大家耳熟能详的比萨饼、意大利面、海鲜和甜品都驰名世界。

（选自《英语世界》2014年第8期）

（作者 王逢鑫，编辑 Helen）