Have Your Cake and Eat It Too
2022-10-30
LRC
TXT
大字
小字
滚动
全页
1And now, Words and Their Stories, from VOA Learning English.
2On this program, we explore words and expressions in the English language.
3We give examples, notes on usage, and sometimes we use them in short stories.
4Today we talk about a popular dessert -- cake.
5Cakes are made by baking a mixture of flour, sugar, eggs, and butter.
6They come in just about any flavor you can imagine - from chocolate, vanilla, and lemon to unusual flavors like cherry, coconut, and pumpkin.
7And do not forget about the icing.
8This sweet topping also comes in just about any flavor imaginable.
9We often eat cakes to celebrate birthdays, weddings, and other important events.
10All this talk about cake has brought my attention to a common expression: to have your cake and eat it too.
11This expression, or idiom, can be used to describe a couple different situations.
12One is where two good things happen at the same time.
13For example, a friend of mine loves to read so she got a job at a library.
14Now, she reads all day long and gets paid! Talk about having your cake and eating it too!
15We also use the idiom to describe a situation in which two good things happen at the same time, but they don't usually exist together in the same situation.
16Here's an example: My friend just had a baby.
17She has a good job that pays well.
18And now she spends more time with her new baby by working from home.
19We can say that she is having her cake and eating it too!
20In both of these examples, we could also use this expression: to have the best of both worlds.
21Now, here is another form of our cake idiom.
22We also commonly use it in the negative form: You can't have your cake and eat it too.
23In the negative, it means you cannot have or do two things at the same time that are impossible to have or do at the same time.
24You must decide which one you want because you can't have both.
25In other words, you cannot have two conflicting things.
26For example, let's say your friend is complaining about the amount of taxes he pays.
27But at the same time, he complains about the lack of services the city provides.
28You could say to him, "Look, you can't have your cake and eat it too. Better services cost money."
29You could also say, you can't have the best of both worlds.
30Another similar expression is: you can't have it both ways.
31You can't have your cake and eat it too also means we should not try to have more than is reasonable.
32In other words, you can't possess the cake and eat it at the same time.
33Once the cake is eaten, it is gone.
34And that's the end of this Words and Their Stories.
35If you want to get caught up on world events and practice your English, you can come to VOA Learning English.
36Here, you have the best of both worlds.
37You can have your cake and eat it too!
38Until next time. I'm Anna Matteo.
1And now, Words and Their Stories, from VOA Learning English. 2On this program, we explore words and expressions in the English language. We give examples, notes on usage, and sometimes we use them in short stories. 3Today we talk about a popular dessert -- cake. 4Cakes are made by baking a mixture of flour, sugar, eggs, and butter. They come in just about any flavor you can imagine - from chocolate, vanilla, and lemon to unusual flavors like cherry, coconut, and pumpkin. And do not forget about the icing. This sweet topping also comes in just about any flavor imaginable. 5We often eat cakes to celebrate birthdays, weddings, and other important events. All this talk about cake has brought my attention to a common expression: to have your cake and eat it too. 6This expression, or idiom, can be used to describe a couple different situations. 7One is where two good things happen at the same time. For example, a friend of mine loves to read so she got a job at a library. Now, she reads all day long and gets paid! Talk about having your cake and eating it too! 8We also use the idiom to describe a situation in which two good things happen at the same time, but they don't usually exist together in the same situation. 9Here's an example: My friend just had a baby. She has a good job that pays well. And now she spends more time with her new baby by working from home. We can say that she is having her cake and eating it too! 10In both of these examples, we could also use this expression: to have the best of both worlds. 11Now, here is another form of our cake idiom. We also commonly use it in the negative form: You can't have your cake and eat it too. 12In the negative, it means you cannot have or do two things at the same time that are impossible to have or do at the same time. You must decide which one you want because you can't have both. In other words, you cannot have two conflicting things. 13For example, let's say your friend is complaining about the amount of taxes he pays. But at the same time, he complains about the lack of services the city provides. You could say to him, "Look, you can't have your cake and eat it too. Better services cost money." 14You could also say, you can't have the best of both worlds. Another similar expression is: you can't have it both ways. 15You can't have your cake and eat it too also means we should not try to have more than is reasonable. In other words, you can't possess the cake and eat it at the same time. Once the cake is eaten, it is gone. 16And that's the end of this Words and Their Stories. 17If you want to get caught up on world events and practice your English, you can come to VOA Learning English. Here, you have the best of both worlds. You can have your cake and eat it too! 18Until next time. I'm Anna Matteo. 19Anna Matteo wrote this story for VOA Learning English. 20__________________________________________________________________ 21Words in This Story 22dessert - n. a usually sweet course or dish (as of pastry or ice cream) usually served at the end of a meal 23bake - v. to cook by dry heat especially in an oven 24flavor - n. the quality of something that affects the sense of taste 25We want to hear from you. Do you have a similar expression in your language? In the Comments section, you can also practice using any of the expressions from the story. 26We have a new comment system. Here is how it works: 27Write your comment in the box. 28Under the box, you can see four images for social media accounts. They are for Disqus, Facebook. Twitter, and Google. 29Click on one image and a box appears. Enter the login for your social media account. Or you may create one on the Disqus system. It is the blue circle with "D" on it. It is free. 30Each time you return to comment on the Learning English site, you can use your account and see your comments and replies to them. Our comment policy is here.