Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[zeter]

Dear teachers:

I like coffee very much. And I have a question about the right spelling about coffee. Which is correct caf� or cafe? And does it mean a cup of coffee or a coffee shop? Thanks a lot!

Best wishes,
Zeter : )

[CP]

In English, the drink is coffee, made from roasted coffee beans. In French, the word is caf�, which is also used in English to mean coffee shop or diner. We try to avoid accent marks in English, so we often spell caf� as cafe.

When we order certain drinks, we use the word caf� rather than coffee. I like caf� au lait, for example, which is just French for coffee with milk. But selling it as caf� au lait allows the shop to charge more, usually.
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