還有幾天就到春節了，我們都知道春節用英語表達為「The Spring Festival」，那你知道除夕用英語怎麼表達嗎？
讓我們一起來學習用英語介紹中國傳統節日「除夕」吧！
Chinese New Year’s Eve
除夕
Chinese New Year’s Eve is the last night of the lunar New Year, that is, the night before the Spring Festival. In China, the New Year’s Eve is of great importance, because for Chinese, it is a time when one grows one year older, and the night connects the past year and the new year.
除夕俗稱「年三十」，是農曆一年最後一天的晚上，即春節前一天的晚上。除夕是舊歲已過，新年到來的一夜，被視為一年的終結，是極為重要、隆重的傳統節日。按照中國人的傳統，除夕是一個人增長一歲的節點，因此，除夕有「一夜連雙歲, 五更分二天」的說法。
Chinese New Year’s Eve has a long history, the earliest record of which can be seen in Master Lü’s Spring and Autumn Annals. On New Year’s Eve, Chinese families gather for a reunion dinner to talk about the past and share their dreams about their future. They often stay up all night to welcome the coming new year, which is tremendously important for Chinese people. In ancient China, some prisoners were even allowed to go home to spend the night with their families. On New Year’s Eve, every household is brightly lit, known as 「a year of light」, showing people’s aspiration to drive away all evils and diseases, and have a happy new year.
*annals英[ˈænlz]n.編年史; 歷史記載; （學會等的）活動年報*reunion英[ˌriːˈjuːniən]n.重聚，（親友等的）聚會; 再結合，再合併; 再統一
*tremendously英[trə'mendəslɪ]adv.極大地; 極端地; 極其; 非常
*household英[ˈhaʊshəʊld]n.家庭; 同住一所房子的人adj.家喻戶曉的; 皇室的
*aspiration英[ˌæspəˈreɪʃn]n.抱負，志向; 送氣
*evils[ˈi:vəlz]n.邪惡，罪惡，禍害( evil的名詞複數 )
*diseases英[dɪ'zi:zɪz]n.疾病( disease的名詞複數 ); 弊端; 惡疾; 痼疾
除夕習俗歷史久遠，有關除夕的記載最早見於《呂氏春秋》。除夕之夜，中國人合家團聚，一起吃年夜飯，敘舊話新，暢談未來。一家人常常徹夜不眠，圍坐守歲。在中國古代，一些囚犯甚至可以被允許回家與家人過除夕，足見除夕守夜在中國人心目中的重要地位。除夕通宵守夜，燈火不息，俗稱「光年」，寓意把一切邪瘟病疫照跑驅走，期待來年吉祥如意。
Nowadays, with improvement of people’s livelihood, watching Spring Festival Gala on New Year’s Eve has become an important activity. Although customs vary from place to place, it has become an indispensable part of New Year’s Eve celebration to worship the ancestors, set off fireworks and firecrackers before eating the reunion dinner, and, after it, give lucky money to the younger generations.
*livelihood英[ˈlaɪvlihʊd]n.生活，生計; 謀生之道; 營生
*ancestor英[ˈænsestə(r)]n.祖宗，祖先; （動物）原種; （機器）原型
*fireworks英[ˈfaɪəwɜːks]n.煙火表演; 精彩難忘的演出（或作品）
*firecrackers英['faɪəkrækərz]n.爆竹，鞭炮( firecracker的名詞複數 )
*generations英[dʒenə'reɪʃnz]n.代( generation的名詞複數 ); （家史中的）一代; 產生; 一批
如今，隨著中國人生活水平的提高，除夕之夜觀看央視春晚節目已經成為除夕守歲的重要活動。儘管各地除夕的風俗有所不同，但吃團圓飯前燃放煙花爆竹、祭拜祖先，團圓飯後長輩給晚輩發壓歲錢等常常是不可或缺的重要習俗。