UK Amazon Kindle Forum discussion
Agony Aunt
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Help Dawn with her English
Pavement - roadFootpath - pavement
Chips - crisps
Fries - chips
Sidewalk-pavementUnderwear-knickers or pants
Pants-trousers
Cigarettes-fags
Go to the bar-go down the pub. Although some people seem to go up the pub.
Purse-handbagWallet-purse (female only, guys carry a wallet)
US: What time ya got - Eng: What time is it?
I bet Alicia would enjoy this thread, too. I'll bring it to her attention.
Yes - it's right up her streetRight up her street = something she enjoys (her thing)
Damn, I'm almost fluent in British English, aren't I?Green thumb-green fingers
Residential Delivery = Home Delivery (parcels and babies)
We call it home delivery too. I've never heard it called residential delivery. Unless that's 'murcan and not North American.
Lush-gorgeous (predominantly used by the Welsh)
WOW! I can't believe we are that different. I'm writing these all down. So, how would you use the word 'residential?' Flo, Home delivery. Parcels and babies is cute! Right up her street. I'd say it's "right up her alley." Patti, so, I have green fingers instead of thumbs? Take out vs take away. Funny because the phrase came about according to the POV. If you are the restaurant you're taking it out, but if you're the customer you take it away. We always say 'take out,' I wonder why? This is great guys:)
Knocked up - alarm callPregnant - knocked up
Patti (baconater) wrote: "We call it home delivery too. I've never heard it called residential delivery. Unless that's 'murcan and not North American."It was a phrase Dawn used on a different thread.
This one's a difference between Welsh/English and English/EnglishW/E Daps = E/E Plimsolls (neither used much since the advent of "trainers")
We called them runners. But at college they were gutties!
Okay, so what do you think?British vs American English Matchup
1. Lorry ____ Umbrella
2. Holiday ____ Fries
3. Snogging ____ Wrench
4. Bonnet ____ Vacation
5. Knackered ____ Truck
6. Crisps ____ Kissing
7. Boot ____ Tired
8. Spanner ____ Chips
9. Chips ____ Trunk
10. Brolly ____ Hood
T4bsF (Call me Flo) wrote: "This one's a difference between Welsh/English and English/EnglishW/E Daps = E/E Plimsolls (neither used much since the advent of "trainers")"
She's talking about running shoes, Dawn.
Dawn wrote: "Okay, so what do you think?British vs American English Matchup
1. Lorry ____ Umbrella
2. Holiday ____ Fries
3. Snogging ____ Wrench
4. Bonnet ____ Vacation
5. Knackered ____ Truck
6. Crisps ____ K..."
Too easy!
Patti (baconater) wrote: "Dawn wrote: "Okay, so what do you think?British vs American English Matchup
1. Lorry ____ Umbrella
2. Holiday ____ Fries
3. Snogging ____ Wrench
4. Bonnet ____ Vacation
5. Knackered ____ Truck
6. ..."
You'd be surprised. But I want to start out easy. Of course, I'm hoping to discover some harder words later on.
Patti (baconater) wrote: "T4bsF (Call me Flo) wrote: "This one's a difference between Welsh/English and English/EnglishW/E Daps = E/E Plimsolls (neither used much since the advent of "trainers")"
She's talking about runn..."
Thank you! I thought we'd really gone into another language:)
Food is another area where US and UK differ, these spring to mind:Eggplant - Aubergine
Zucchini - Courgette
Cilantro - Coriander
Rutabaga - Swede or Turnip
Oatmeal - Porridge
To Brits, oatmeal is a dry foodstuff that you would either cook or feed to horses. When I first saw oatmeal on a menu in the US, I thought it would come in a nosebag; I was really miffed to find out later that I'd missed out on porridge.
(Miffed - disappointed, a bit p***ed off.)
Speaking of truck = lorry...Semi = Artic (or articulated lorry)
Cat = JCB
minivan = people carrier
pickup = ute (Australia) (uk: they're extremely rare so there isn't really a name for them)
station wagon = estate
sedan = saloon
subcompact = hatchback
driver's license = driving licence
parking lot = car park
stolen = fallen off the back of a lorry
booger = bogie
check = bill
check = cheque
bill (dollar) = note (pound)
line = queue
pound (symbol) = hash
In Britain, a cell is part of a prison. A mobile is a portable phone.
Oh, and a skillet is called a frying pan. Got mine in use as we speak.
And we still have back yards, those in Victorian back to back terraced houses, anyway. It's a small square of concrete surrounded by a brick wall.
T4bsF (Call me Flo) wrote: "This one's a difference between Welsh/English and English/EnglishW/E Daps = E/E Plimsolls (neither used much since the advent of "trainers")"
In gym classes at school they were pumps (!)
gimme = sorry to bother you, but please may I have - if it's not too much trouble?
Oh, that's so annoying, BJ. The card I had with my old phone provider said, 'Gimme some credit' and I apologised every time I slid it through to the nice lady in the post office.
Great - Not badFantastic - Not half bad
Also, the name of pretty much every single bakery product other than bread is applied to something different: muffin, crumpet, scone, pancake, pikelet, biscuit...
Very true, Richard. I was astonished to be offered 'biscuits and gravy'.
We called gym shoes and slippers baffies. But that's probably not English.
Does our Motorway = US Highway?
Rosemary what's that coming over the hill wrote: "We called gym shoes and slippers baffies. But that's probably not English."We called them daps.
Humiture -Humidity
Rosemary what's that coming over the hill wrote: "We called gym shoes and slippers baffies. But that's probably not English."Slippers are carpets in Aberdonian.
Jane wrote: "Humiture -Humidity"...and Precipitation - Rain or rainfall.
T4bsF (Call me Flo) wrote: "Does our Motorway = US Highway?"Probably, Flo. How big is it? We can have 2 lanes, one lane for each direction that we call a highway, but they are a main road that is paved.
B J wrote: "Very true, Richard. I was astonished to be offered 'biscuits and gravy'."Ewww. Cookies and gravy from your point of view. I can see why that wouldn't be appealing:)
I think its more like an Interstate. This is a Motorway.
Jane wrote: "Rosemary what's that coming over the hill wrote: "We called gym shoes and slippers baffies. But that's probably not English."We called them daps.
Humiture -Humidity"
So, in Great Britain, slippers are daps?
Dawn wrote: "T4bsF (Call me Flo) wrote: "Does our Motorway = US Highway?"Probably, Flo. How big is it? We can have 2 lanes, one lane for each direction that we call a highway, but they are a main road that is ..."
Motorways are our biggest, fastest roads, usually with at least 3 lanes in both directions.
Bette Midler used to say that the British are so quaint because they think that a good screw is a conscientious prison officer.
UK Amazon Kindle Forum
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Authors mentioned in this topic
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I'm going to be doing a monthly newsletter and I want a section to be British vs American vocabulary. I'd begun a list but I could use your help for future newsletters. So, I'll start:
American/British
Umbrella - Brolly
Tired - Knackered
Kissing - Snogging
Wrench - Spanner
Rented garden space - Allotment
Trunk - Boot
Hood - Bonnet
Truck - Lorry
If I misspell something, please correct me. Thank you in advance for helping with this! Feel free to use phrases as well as words.
Update: The thread has grown to explore differences in popular culture, history, word usage, etc. I love discovering how things are done in GB compared to the US! Please feel free to add your two cents, uh, two pence:)