taffy

/'tɔfi/ Cách viết khác : (toffy) /'tɔfi/ (taffy) /'tæfi/

Thân thiện

A child pulls a piece of taffy with both hands.

Definition

Noun: 1. A soft, chewy candy made by boiling sugar, butter, and other ingredients (like molasses or corn syrup) until thick, and then pulling it repeatedly until it becomes light, glossy, and aerated. It is often flavored, such as with vanilla, saltwater (saltwater taffy), or fruit.

Usage

• Countable/Uncountable: "Taffy" is generally used as an uncountable noun when referring to the substance or type of candy. It can be countable when referring to individual pieces.
  • Uncountable: "The shop sells homemade taffy."
  • Countable: "She bought three pieces of saltwater taffy."

Examples

• "We watched the candy maker pull the hot taffy to give it its signature chewy texture."
• "My favorite souvenir from the boardwalk was a box of assorted fruit-flavored taffy."
• "The recipe for this taffy calls for molasses and butter."

Advanced Usage

• "Not for toffee/taffy" (UK informal idiom): Used to emphasize that someone is very bad at doing something. Note: The British English idiom typically uses "toffee," but "taffy" is sometimes seen in variations.
  • Example: "He can't dance for taffy." (Meaning: He is a very bad dancer.)

Variants and Related Words

• Toffee (noun): A similar but distinct hard, brittle candy made by caramelizing sugar or molasses with butter. While "taffy" is soft and chewy, "toffee" is hard and crunchy.
• Saltwater taffy (noun phrase): A popular variety of taffy associated with American seaside resorts, originally from Atlantic City. Despite the name, it does not contain seawater.
• Taffy pull (noun phrase): A social event or the process of pulling the cooked candy to aerate it.

Synonyms

• Chewy candy
• Caramel candy (Note: Caramel is similar but typically richer due to a higher butter and cream content and is not pulled like taffy.)

Idioms

• "Like pulling taffy": Used metaphorically to describe a process that is slow, difficult, or requires great effort.
  • Example: "Getting a straight answer from him was like pulling taffy."

Học thuật

Noun

1. chewy candy of sugar or syrup boiled until thick and pulled until glossy