pudding

pudding — noun

1. A sweet food that is usually served warm and prepared by baking or steaming a bl

1.名詞B1
釋義

A sweet food that is usually served warm and prepared by baking or steaming a blend of ingredients, such as wheat flour, bread pieces, or cooked rice, together with dried fruit, sugar, and seasonings.

例句

Gita made a traditional Christmas pudding with dried fruit and brandy for the holiday dinner.

collocation: Christmas pudding

The café's sticky toffee pudding comes with a warm caramel sauce on top.

collocation: sticky toffee pudding

同義詞
  • dessert

    generic term for the sweet course; pudding is one specific type of dessert

  • sweet

    British informal term for any dessert course

  • sponge

    a light, cake-like baked pudding, common in British English

用法筆記

Can be countable (a pudding, two puddings) or uncountable (some pudding). Many specific names exist: Christmas pudding, sticky toffee pudding, rice pudding, bread and butter pudding.

常見錯誤

❌She ate pudding for dessert' (in US English, implying cold creamy type).
✅She ate a baked pudding for dessert
💡specify the type to avoid ambiguity between sense 1 (baked) and sense 2 (cold creamy).

2. A cold sweet dish with a creamy, smooth consistency, prepared by heating and set

2.名詞B1
釋義

A cold sweet dish with a creamy, smooth consistency, prepared by heating and setting a liquid base of dairy milk together with sweetener, egg yolks, and flavourings such as cocoa or vanilla extract.

例句

Mira served bowls of cold chocolate pudding topped with whipped cream for the children.

collocation: chocolate pudding

On a hot day, Wei-Lun scooped vanilla pudding from a glass cup on the porch.

concrete scene: homemade vanilla pudding

同義詞
  • custard

    similar but typically thinner and eaten hot or cold; custard is a sauce, pudding is a set dessert

  • cream dessert

    generic term for any creamy chilled dessert; less specific than pudding

  • flan

    egg-based baked custard with caramel; firmer texture than pudding

  • mousse

    light and airy from whipped egg whites or cream; pudding is denser

用法筆記

This is the dominant meaning of 'pudding' in American English and many Asian contexts. In Britain, 'pudding' more broadly means any dessert course (sense 3), but this cold creamy type is still understood.

常見錯誤

❌I made a Yorkshire pudding for dessert.
✅I made Yorkshire pudding to eat with roast beef.
💡Yorkshire pudding is a savoury dish (sense 4), not a sweet dessert.
❌This pudding is too watery because I didn't cook it long enough' (when referring to instant pudding).
✅This pudding hasn't set because I didn't let it chill for long enough.
💡Cold pudding needs time to thicken in the fridge.

3. The last sweet portion of a lunch or dinner; this is the British English word fo

3.名詞B1
釋義

The last sweet portion of a lunch or dinner; this is the British English word for what American speakers call 'dessert'. Can refer to any sweet dish served at that point, not only pudding in the narrow sense.

例句

After the roast chicken, the waiter asked, 'Would anyone like pudding or cheese?'

question form: 'would anyone like pudding'

The school canteen serves pudding every Friday — usually cake, ice cream, or fruit crumble.

同義詞
  • dessert

    the standard term worldwide; 'pudding' is the British equivalent

  • sweet

    British informal; 'What's for sweet?' is common in casual speech

  • afters

    British informal, especially among older speakers

  • dessert course

    more formal term for the final course of a meal

文法句型

What's for + noun

用法筆記

Uncountable in this sense: 'What's for pudding?' not 'What's for a pudding?'. In American English, this usage does not exist — Americans use 'dessert' instead. A British person might say 'I don't want a starter, but I'll have pudding' — here 'pudding' refers to the course, not a specific dish.

常見錯誤

❌What's for a pudding tonight?
✅What's for pudding tonight?
💡In this sense, pudding is uncountable (the course name).
❌I'd like pudding for dessert' (redundant).
✅I'd like pudding' or 'I'd like dessert.
💡In British English, pudding already means the dessert course.

4. A hot savoury dish made from a flour batter or pastry case, which either contain

4.名詞B2
釋義

A hot savoury dish made from a flour batter or pastry case, which either contains meat and vegetables or is served on the side of a meat main course.

例句

Yorkshire pudding is a classic British side dish made from batter for roast beef.

collocation: Yorkshire pudding

The pub's steak and kidney pudding is wrapped in suet pastry and steamed for hours.

collocation: steak and kidney pudding

同義詞
  • suet pudding

    a specific type of savoury pudding made with suet pastry, often containing meat

  • batter pudding

    a pudding made from a thin flour-and-egg batter, like Yorkshire pudding

  • savoury pudding

    descriptive term; less common as a standalone name

用法筆記

Often requires a modifier to clarify the savoury nature (Yorkshire pudding, steak and kidney pudding, black pudding). Yorkshire pudding is a batter pudding that puffs up in the oven and is NOT sweet — a common point of confusion for learners expecting a dessert.

常見錯誤

❌Yorkshire pudding is a sweet dessert eaten after the main meal.
✅Yorkshire pudding is a savoury side dish made from batter, served with roast beef.
💡The name 'pudding' misleads many learners into expecting a sweet dish.
❌Black pudding is a type of chocolate pudding.
✅Black pudding is a savoury blood sausage, common in British and Irish breakfasts.
💡Black pudding contains no chocolate.