Do you care for breakfast or afternoon tea?

The word “breakfast” popped into my mind while interpreting the #idiom “It’s a piece of cake” during a business meeting. We say “[something can be done] even before breakfast (Asameshi mae/朝飯前)” to describe something very easy.

I was happy with this choice of phrase as it is a metaphor that also relates to food and seemed perfectly fitting in the context of what was being discussed in a quasi-breakfast meeting.

Actually, there is another similar idiom “ochanoko saisai /お茶の子さいさい” which means “as easy as having sweets with a cup of tea”.
It’s true that sweets fall into exactly the same category as a piece of cake. But
the sound “sai sai” comes across as too colloquial in a business setting. This internal deliberation took place in a split second in my mind before I came up with “breakfast”.

Interpreting is all about responding instantly. Do you prefer breakfast or afternoon tea with sweets as your “easy stuff”?

#interpreting #english #japanese #ideom #CulturalUnderstnding