7. Hot or spicy?

When english speaking people talk about hot food, are they saying the food is spicy like curry, or are they talking about its temperature as an hot coffee. These two difference of "hot", may seem confusing to Japanese students. But as a matter of fact, the word is the right one for describing the way the body response to spice and heat. As simple explanation would go something like this: when we eat or drink, the same nerves in the mouth react both spicy chemicals in the food and to a rise in temperature. The english expression, therefore, reflects this fact about the human body.