Sir: Miles Kington's forays into the intricacies of English as a foreign language reminds me of the anecdote of a Swedish friend.
A Swede staying with an English family had difficulties in understanding English cooking terminology. What exactly was a tart, a pie or a trifle?
He had finally grasped the meaning of all three when his hostess served a pie at dinner. "My dear," said her husband, "this pie is a trifle tart!"
Not to mention the other pitfalls the poor Swede could have fallen into with "tarts" and "unconsider'd trifles" and even a pie made of swedes!
Mrs TANIA CHISLETT
London SW7
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments