It took the Portuguese only about 50 years to take control of the spice trade.

葡萄牙人花了区区50年的时间就控制了香料贸易。

The Portuguese wanted to take over the spice trade.

葡萄牙人想接管香料贸易。

First, a path to the Indian Ocean so they could get in on the lucrative spice trade.

首先，通往印度洋的道路让他们可以从事利润丰厚的香料贸易。

The Portuguese soon discovered that the Arabs were not about to give up their spice trade without a fight.

葡萄牙人很快发现阿拉伯人不会不战而降地放弃他们的香料贸易。

Now the ancient Romans had a thriving spice trade and they sent their ships to the east and back. ?

现在古罗马人的香料贸易很繁荣，他们派船往返于东方。 ？

Pepper became a key commodity in the spice trade stretching between Asia and Europe, where its main use, like other pungent spices, was to mask the flavor of meat that was, shall we say, past its prime.

胡椒成为亚洲和亚洲之间香料贸易的重要商品欧洲，在那里它像其他辛辣香料一样主要用途是掩盖香料的味道，而它已经过了它的鼎盛时期。