Traditional Methods of Food Preservation

Practice

The Use of Articles with Material Nouns

Unit 6

1. With nouns of material (substances) used in a general sense, when a certain material as such is meant, no article is used. The absence of the article has the nominating meaning:

These sleeping pills should be dissolved in water.

She had nothing in the medicine chest but toothpaste and mouthwash and shampoo.

2. Nouns of substances modified by a descriptive attribute are used with the zero article as well. A descriptive attribute only narrows the notion denoted by a noun without specifying it:

There was not a single thing made of real wood in the room: everything was metal and plastic.

3. When a definite part of the substance is meant (when the noun is modified by a particularizing attribute or is made definite by the situation), the definite article is used. The meaning of the definite article is called restricting:

The boss took up a pen and picked a fly out of the ink.

Themeat was good and White Fang was hungry.

4. When an indefinite part of the substance is meant, some is used:

We took some bread and cheese with us, and got some goat's milk.

5. Nouns of material denoting different sorts of material are countable and the articles are used according to the general use of articles with class nouns.

Names of materials become countable nouns in the following cases:

· when various sorts of food products are meant:

They are now giving you bad teas in the club.

· when a portion of food or drink is meant:

If you want to please the boy, buy him an ice.

We went into the pub and I ordered two whiskies.

"A salad and two coffees will do," she said smiling.

· sometimes the change of meaning is quite considerable — the noun comes to indicate an object made of a certain material:

A full glass of orange juice stood beside him.

There was a tin of sardines on the table.

6. Some collective nouns denoting a group of objects thought of as a whole, behave like names of substances. Among them are furniture, equipment, machinery, crockery, hardware, silverware, china, luggage, baggage, etc. Such nouns follow the rules of the use of articles for names of substances:

I need furniture.

The furniture which I bought a few days ago was very expensive.

Exercise 1. Read the text and explain the use of articles with names of substances. Translate the text paying attention to the use of articles with names of substances.

Though some foods, such as rice, wheat and other cereals, can be ripened and then stored for years before they deteriorate, other foods, such as meat and fish, normally deteriorate quickly. But no single method of preservation is suitable for all types of food.

The traditional methods of drying, smoking, salting, or pickling foods were widely used long before it was known why these methods were effective. It is now known that the processes of decay are accelerated by enzymes already present in the food cells and by bacteria or oth­er microorganisms which may be already present or may come from external sources. To preserve food from decay, it is necessary either to destroy the bacteria or to create an environment in which bacteria cannot mul­tiply and enzymes are inactivated. Bacteria can be de­stroyed by heat and be inactivated by depriving them of moisture. Enzymes can be inactivated by cold or by reducing their moisture content.

The moisture content of food can be reduced by drying it in the sun or by other means. Meat or fish suspended over a smoking fire is partly dried and the smoke also has bactericidal properties. Salt and vinegar can also be used effectively to preserve food products.

Exercise 2. Insert articles or “some” where necessary.

1. We sipped _____ tea so weak that it tasted like _____ metal against the teeth. 2. You will be wishing to have _____ tea after your journey, I think. 3. George said that we must take _____ rug, _____ lamp, _____ soap, _____ brush and _____ comb, _____ tooth-brush, _____ tooth-powder and _____ couple of big towels for bathing. 4. _____ children of his age seldom have natural pleasure in _____ soap and water. 5. He bought _____ cold beef, and _____ ham, and _____ French bread and butter, and came back with his pockets pretty heavily laden. 6. There were two bottles of _____ wine, _____ plate of _____ oranges… with _____ powdered sugar. 7. Here, have _____ champagne, I quite forgot to offer you any, or would you rather have _____ tea? 8. _____ coffee without _____ bread could never honestly serve as supper. 9. She did not answer, but her face was hard and pale as _____ stone. 10. She hurried in again and found _____ water almost boiled away.

Exercise 3. Insert articles where necessary.

1. _____ blood is thicker than _____ water. 2. Rosa tasted _____ wine. It was harsh but refreshing. 3. You drank _____ wine with breakfast, dinner and supper, and fifty people always drank it with you. 4. She looked with _____ eager, hungry eyes at _____ bread and _____ meat and _____ beer that _____ landlady brought her. 5. _____ coffee was better than Dinny had hoped and very hot. 6. She wears _____ little sailor hat of _____ black straw that has long been exposed to _____ dust and soot of London. 7. The mother was yellow in colour and her skin resembled _____ leather. 8. The maid brought in _____ pears, _____ cold chicken, _____ tongue, _____ cheese. 9. Every meal was _____ bread and coffee and cigarettes, and now he had no more bread. 10. She went about looking into _____ dining room, which … had been transformed into _____ kind of jewel box glowing with _____ flowers, _____ silver, _____ gold, _____ tinted glass.

Exercise 4. Insert an article where necessary.

1. _____ water is precious in this area and must be paid for. 2. Don’t drink from this pond, _____ water is stale. 3. _____ coal of Newcastle is rich in carbon. 4. _____ coal gas is formed by burning _____ coal; it is _____ gas used for heating and illuminating. 5. _____ hot coal fell from _____ fire and burned _____ hole in the carpet. 6. According to the Greek myth Prometheus stole _____ fire from Olympus to give it to men. 7. They built _____ fire to mark _____ place for the plane to land. 8. _____ air was filled with _____ of flowers. 9. _____ fresh air was circulating through all rooms to my uncle’s great discontent. 10. There was _____ air of importance about him. 11. The tide was out and the children were digging in _____ wet sand. 12. This is _____ tea I am particularly fond of. I don’t think there is _____ better tea than this. 13. _____ tea is cultivated in the south of our country. 14. “_____ two teas and _____ coffee, please, _____ milk, too” 15. “What will you have for breakfast?” “_____ egg and _____ cup of _____ coffee.”

Exercise 5. Translate into English.

1. Вода дуже холодна. 2. Додай води до супу. Він занадто густий. 3. Він попросив склянку води. 4. Сніг був дуже глибокий. 5. Він став білий, наче сніг. 6. Дуже важко ходити по глибокому снігу. 7. Чай гарячий. 8. Я люблю чай. 9. Підігрій мені каву, будь ласка. 10. Додай лимон до чаю. 11. Лимон дуже корисний. 12. Наріжте лимон. 13. Купи лимон до чаю. 14. Цукерки не можуть замінити цукор. 15. Вино кисле. 16. Я надаю перевагу сухому вину. 17. Приходь. Я пригощу тебе вином, якого ти ніколи не коштувала. 18. Деякі люди люблять їсти морозиво на вулиці навіть взимку. 19. Купи дитині морозиво. 20. Поки ми розмовляли, морозиво розтануло. 21. Портфель замалий, але шкіра гарна. 22. Я люблю зелений бархат. 23. Він не любив кави. 24. Йому не сподобалась кава. 25. Чай занадто міцний, я не люблю міцний чай.

Exercise 6. Translate into English.

1. Сидячи на веранді Барт міг добре чути дзвін порцеляни та стукіт срібла. 2. Жоден з них не їв хліба протягом десяти років. 3. Холодна вода освіжила його після довгого сну. 4. Вона завжди носила коралове намисто у срібній оправі. 5. Ви хоча б раз отримували чай, який я вам надсилав? 6. Джейн та Джон йшли по багнюці, взявшись за руки. 7. Чудовий аромат курча, що смажився, заповнив усю кімнату. 8. Коли суп вже був з’їдений, він повернувся до вогнища та запалив сигару. 9. Я наповнив ванну холодною водою. 10. На поверхні води лежало опале листя. 11. Вона приготувала собі каву. 12. Мейбл в’язала щось із товстої червоної вовни. 13. Коли мені буде шістдесят років, я буду їсти стільки хліба та масла, скільки мені захочеться. 14. Перед Беатрисою стояла тарілка з маслом, горщечок з полуничним джемом, кава та глечик з вершками. 15. Вони пили міцну каву, намазуючи масло на черствий хліб.

Exercise 7. Translate into English.

1. Не забудьте дати кішці молока, в неї зараз кошенята! 2. Ці тендітні рослини спочатку необхідно тримати під склом. 3. Я надаю перевагу приготуванню їжі з олією, тому що вона корисніша за масло. 4. Відразу поклади їжу, яку ти купив, в холодильник. 5. Подивись на мою нову сукню. Вона зроблена з тонкого шовку. 6. В нього скінчилися продукти тому він їв лише рибу та кокосові горіхи. 7. Земля та дахи на будинках були вкриті снігом. 8. „Чи не бажаєте гарячого шоколаду?” – запитала місіс Пейдж. 9. Подивися на бруд під диваном! Ти маєш все витерти негайно! 10. Джон ставився до своєї нареченої, як до дуже коштовної тонкої порцеляни. 11. Устаткування з розбитого корабля має бути ретельно досліджено. 12. До оселі зайшли ще декілька чоловік і повітря стало таке важке ще й з домішками диму. 13. Ми замовили морозиво для доньки і дві кави для себе. 14. Це легке французьке вино. Воно вам сподобається. – Я люблю легкі французькі вина. 15. Будьте ласкаві, передайте мені сіль. Суп зовсім несолоний.

Дата добавления: 2014-12-24