本周我们来回复秘鲁的朱利奥所提出的问题。他写道：
Question:
问题：
I would like to know the difference between BUY and PURCHASE and when to use each of them. -- Julio, Lima, Peru.
我想知道BUY 和 PURCHASE这两个单词之间的区别，以及它们在什么情况下使用 -- 秘鲁利马市的朱利奥。
Answer:
回复：
Dear Julio,
亲爱的朱利奥，
Thanks for asking about these words. As you know, "buy" and "purchase" can be used in similar sentences. They can both be used either as a noun or a verb.
感谢您问到了这些单词。如你所知，buy和purchase可用于类似的语句中。它们都可以用作名词和动词。
One difference between them is how formal they sound. Compare the following sentences. Put "buy" or "purchase" in the space.
它们之间的区别之一是发音听起来有多正式。比较以下句子。在空格中填入buy或purchase。
I would like to ______ a new home.
我想要 ______一套新房子。
She wants to _____ a hamburger.
她想要 _____一个汉堡包。
Like most English speakers, I would say "purchase" for the home and "buy" for the hamburger. You probably wonder, why does English have two words with exactly the same meaning?
跟大多数讲英语的人士一样，我会说purchase一套新房，buy一个汉堡包。你可能想知道，为什么英语中会有两个含义完全相同的单词？
History of the words
单词历史
We can understand this better with a little history. English developed from the languages of Germanic tribes of Northern Europe. Words from that time are what we call Anglo-Saxon. In the year 1066, William the Conqueror and his forces began to take over England. William was from Normandy, in France. For the next 300 years, everyone in English courts and in government spoke French. English was a language for everyday use.
我们可以通过一小段历史来更好地理解这点。英语是从北欧日耳曼部落的语言发展而来的。那时候的言语就是我们所说的盎格鲁 — 撒克逊语。在1066年，征服者威廉一世和他的军队开始占领英格兰。威廉一世来自于法国诺曼底。在接下来的300年里，英国法庭和政府中的每个人都说法语。英语是日常使用的语言。
As a result, French had a great effect on the English language: about 10,000 French words were added to English. We still use many of them today. As you might suspect, English speakers use the French words for more formal situations and the Anglo-Saxon words for common ideas and things.
因此，法语对英语产生了巨大影响：英语中增加了大约1万个法语单词。我们今天仍在使用其中许多的单词。正如你所猜想的，说英语的人士在较正式的情况下使用法语，而在相同的看法和事物上使用盎格鲁-撒克逊语。
One way you can tell the difference between the French words and the Anglo-Saxon words is their length. Anglo-Saxon words, like "buy," are often short, while "purchase" and other French words are longer.
区分法语单词和盎格鲁-撒克逊语单词的办法之一是看它们的长度。盎格鲁-撒克逊语单词通常较短，例如buy，而purchase和其它法语单词通常更长。
Buy
购买
Julio asked how to use "buy" and "purchase." We usually use "buy" as a verb. For example,
朱利奥问如何使用buy和purchase。我们通常将buy用作动词。例如：
I will buy food for the party.
我将为这次聚会采购食物。
It is not so common to see "buy" as a noun, but you do find it in cases like this:
将buy用作名词并不常见，但是在以下情况下确实可以看到：
The police stopped a drug buy on the street.
警察阻止了一次街头贩毒。
Purchase
购买
We often use the verb "purchase" for when legal documents are involved, such as in:
当涉及法律文件时，我们通常使用purchase，例如：
The government purchased a new contract for 1,000 airplanes.
政府采购了1000架新飞机。
And you should use "purchase" when you need a noun form, as in:
当你需要使用名词形式时，应使用purchase，例如：
You made a smart purchase when you bought gas before the price went up.
你在油价上涨前买了汽油，做了一笔好买卖。
In summary, try to use "buy" for simple actions, and "purchase" for more formal exchanges of money for goods.
总之，请尝试在简单行为中使用buy，而在更加正式的买入交易中使用purchase。
And now, I will ask you to do something. Please send your questions about English to us by email: learningenglish@voanews.com.
现在，我将给你提出点要求。请通过电子邮件将你在英语方面的问题发给我们。
And that's Ask a Teacher for this week.
以上就是本期名师答疑的全部内容。
I'm Jill Robbins.
我是吉尔·罗宾斯。