Watercress is a small leafy green plant that grows in shallow running water — streams, springs, and beds specially flooded for it. The leaves are round and dark green, the stems are hollow and crisp, and the taste is peppery and slightly bitter, a bit like a mild radish or rocket. It bites back a little, which is exactly why people like it.

Watercress is a small leafy green plant that grows in shallow running waterWatercress是一種生長在淺淺的流動水裡的小型闊葉綠色植物—— streams, springs, and beds specially flooded for it溪流、泉水，還有特別為了種它而淹水的苗床。 The leaves are round and dark green葉子是圓形、深綠色的， the stems are hollow and crisp莖是中空、脆脆的， and the taste is peppery and slightly bitter味道帶點辛辣、微苦， a bit like a mild radish or rocket有點像溫和版的白蘿蔔或芝麻葉。 It bites back a little它會回咬你一點， which is exactly why people like it而這正是人們喜歡它的原因。

In British cooking it is very traditional: watercress soup, watercress sandwiches, watercress under a piece of roast meat or beside smoked salmon. It has a slightly old-fashioned, countryside feeling in Britain.

In British cooking it is very traditional在英式料理裡它非常傳統： watercress soup, watercress sandwiches, watercress under a piece of roast meat or beside smoked salmonwatercress soup（watercress濃湯）、watercress sandwiches（watercress三明治）、watercress放在一塊烤肉底下，或放在燻鮭魚旁邊。 It has a slightly old-fashioned, countryside feeling in Britain在英國，它帶有一種有點老派、鄉村的味道。

In Taiwan and southern China the same plant is thoroughly familiar but treated quite differently — it goes into soup, often long-simmered with pork bones, or is stir-fried with garlic, and nobody thinks of it as an English salad at all. So this is one of those words where the English name and the Chinese name point to the same plant but bring completely different meals to mind.

In Taiwan and southern China the same plant is thoroughly familiar but treated quite differently在台灣和中國南方，同一種植物大家非常熟悉，但處理方式完全不同—— it goes into soup, often long-simmered with pork bones, or is stir-fried with garlic它會被拿去煮湯，常常跟豬骨長時間燉煮，或用蒜頭快炒， and nobody thinks of it as an English salad at all完全沒有人會把它想成是一種英式沙拉。 So this is one of those words where the English name and the Chinese name point to the same plant所以這是那種英文名字和中文名字指的是同一種植物的詞， but bring completely different meals to mind卻讓人聯想到完全不同料理。

It is an uncountable noun: you buy 'some watercress' or 'a bunch of watercress', never 'a watercress' or 'two watercresses'. Because it grows in water that may come from farmland, wild watercress needs washing carefully — this is a plant people are told to buy rather than pick.

It is an uncountable noun它是不可數名詞： you buy 'some watercress' or 'a bunch of watercress'你買的是『some watercress（一些watercress）』或『a bunch of watercress（一把watercress）』， never 'a watercress' or 'two watercresses'絕不會說『a watercress』或『two watercresses』。 Because it grows in water that may come from farmland因為它生長在可能來自農地的水裡， wild watercress needs washing carefully野生的watercress需要仔細清洗—— this is a plant people are told to buy rather than pick這是一種人們被建議用買的、而不是自己去採的植物。