Here are some of my experiences that i have had with my British English and American English
Just sitting around after i have done all my cleaning and i had rememberd that i read
John Healds Blog the other day and came across a funny story. (John is an amazing Cruise Director who is British. He was our CD on the Carnival Splendor when we were stuck at Sea and ever since then i have loved reading his blog. He has such a great sence of humour (Spelt correctly as he would say), which not everyone gets but then again hes British!!!). Anyway it was about some people he was working with and one of the ladies was British and they all stayed in a hotel. The lady had asked someone who works for Carnival Cruise to
''Knock her up in the morning'' To which he replied
''He could knock her up right now if she wanted too'' I had to laugh out loud. What she really meant was she needed a wake up call in the morning and obviously knocking someone up has a whole different meaning in America.
I remember my first time in America at Mcdonalds trying to order some Chips/Fries. I had asked for a ''Small portion of chips'' The lady looked at me as if i was from another planet and said ''Im sorry ma'am i dont understand'' so i said it again. She just looked puzzeled and i didnt get why it was so hard to understand what i was saying. Jon budged in and said ''She means small fries''. No i didnt i meant a small portion of chips but anyway the lady was like ''Ohh fries!! Chips are potatoe chips''..so i replied ''No those are Crisps''. I felt so akward and confused..I was speaking english and she didnt understand me lol.
Another time something like this happend was when me and Jon were in Vegas. We were in the Hotel room with Tim & Bri and i think we were talking about meeting them somewhere that night. They didnt know there way around to good so i asked if they had a ''Sat Nav''..I just got empty stares lol. ''A Sat Nav?'' Of course in that moment i couldnt remember the other name for it so i tried to explain what a Sat Nav is..''Ohhh GPS'' is what i got back haha. Sat Nav, GPs..Same thing.
It happens a lot that i say something and people dont understand what im saying or question me about something. I asked one of Jons friends if i could ''Borrow the Loo'' because i was busting for a pee. To this day i still get made fun of when im around his friends. Or i have a lush pair of Zebra
wellie boots!! You know what they are dont you..
Rainboots according to Americans. And what makes it even funnier is i say zE(like'E'lephant)bra and not Ze(ee)bra. Hard to explain but if your American, next time you speak to someone British ask them to say: Zebra :-P
One of my favourites is ''Cheeky Cow''. I dont even know how to explain it when i say it to someone and they dont know what it is but this is what it means according
Urban Dictionary.
Cheeky is a word used by english people like myself. 1. it is a word used to describe someone who does something or says something sort of disrespectful and sometimes rude, but says it in a cunning way. 2. can also be used in a more serious way i.e if you found out that one of your friends has been talking behind your back, you might say that she is a "cheeky bitch"
1. student says: miss, i like your sweat patches, i think they look nice against that lovely brown dress you are wearing today...Teacher says: "dont be so cheeky"
or Another term for quick or sly."Do you fancy a cheeky drink down the pub while the missus is busy."
Some differences between the 2 langauges:
| AMERICAN ENGLISH | QUEENS ENGLISH |
1st Floor | Ground Floor |
2nd Floor | 1st Floor |
3rd Floor (and so on) | 2nd Floor |
| Advert |
Ages (as in ages ago) | Yonks |
Angry | Pissed off (for just "pissed" see "drunk") |
Area code | Dialing code |
Ass | Arse |
Apartment | Flat |
Apartment - two floors | Maisonette |
Appointment calendar | Diary |
Automobile (car is also used) | Car, motor car |
Baby carriage | Pram |
Baby crib | Cot |
Back up (a car) | Reverse |
Bandaid (bandage) | Plaster, elastoplast |
Bangs (hair) | Fringe |
Bar | Pub |
Barrette | Hair slide |
Baseboard | Skirting board |
Bath robe / house coat | Dressing gown |
Bathing suit | Swimming costume |
Beets | Beetroot |
Biscuit | Roll or Bread roll |
Blacktop | Tarred road |
Bleachers | Terrace |
Blender | Liquidiser |
Blinkers, turn signals | Flickers, indicators |
Boy | Lad |
Braid (hair) | Plait |
Broil | Grill |
Broke | Skint |
Buddy (friend) | Mate, matey |
Bumper cars (at amusement parks) | Dodgem Cars |
Busy (as in telephone line is busy) | Engaged |
Butt | Bum (bum in the US is a tramp) |
Button (kind that pins on) | Badge |
Cafeteria | Canteen (canteen in US is a drinking bottle) |
Can | Tin |
Candy | Sweets |
Candy Bar | Chocolate Bar |
Check (as in restaurant check) | Bill |
Cigarette | Fag (in the USA a fag is slang for some one who is gay!) |
Closet | Cupboard |
Club Soda | Soda |
Coat (men's suit) | Jacket |
Collect call | Reverse charge call |
Condo | Flat (that is owned not leased)
|
Cotton Candy | Candy Floss |
Counterclockwise | Anticlockwise |
Cookie | Biscuit (VERY different to a US biscuit) |
Crepe | Pancake (normally served rolled with cinnamon and sugar - very different to US pancake) |
Cross walk | Zebra crossing |
Davenport (in USA a couch) | Davenport (in UK a desk) |
Dessert | Pudding |
Defroster, defogger | Demister |
Dead End | Cul-de-sac |
Deductible (insurance) | Excess |
Diaper | Nappy |
Diner | Tea room |
| Dishes - to do the dishes | To do the washing up |
Divided highway (4 lanes) | Dual carriageway |
Down payment | Deposit |
Downsize (at work) | Retrench, made redundant |
Drapes, draperies | Curtains |
Dress | Frock |
Drunk | Pissed |
Eggplant | Aubergine |
Electrical cable | Flex |
Elevator | Lift |
Emergency room | Casualty |
English beer or ale | Bitter |
Eraser | Rubber (rubber in the US is a condom!)
|
Estimate (as in "to obtain an estimate") | Quote |
Extract (as in Vanilla extract) | Essence |
Exit | Off Ramp |
Expert (like a computer nerd) | Boffin |
| Autumn |
Fancy | Posh |
Fanny Pack (fanny in UK does NOT mean butt, use this word VERY carefully) | Bum Bag |
Faucet / Spigot | Tap |
Festival | Fete (pronounced "Fate") |
Fire (from a job at work) | Sack (fire is used as well) |
Fire Department | Fire Brigade |
First Name | Christian Name |
| Fishing Pole | Fishing Rod |
Flashlight | Torch |
French Fries | Chips |
Futon (sleeper couch is also used) | Sleeper couch (Futon in the UK is the "real" Japanese style low bed with slats)
|
Game (as in sports) | Match |
Garbage man | Dustman |
Gas station | Filling station, petrol station |
German Shepard | Alsatian |
Good bye | Cheerio |
Goof off | Skive off |
Granola | Muesli |
Grill | Barbecue |
Ground (electrical) | Earth |
Ground beef | Mince, minced meat |
Guy | Bloke |
Hash Browns | Grated potato, fried |
Home Fries | Cubed potato, fried |
Hood | Bonnet |
Honk | Hoot |
Horn | Hooter |
Horny | Randy |
Hot pocket (brand name) | Meat Pie |
Hot water heater | Geyser |
Intermission | Interval |
Jail | Jail, was originally spelled Gaol |
Jello | Jelly |
Jelly | Jam |
| Paraffin |
Ketchup | Tomato Sauce |
Kiss, make out | Snog |
Last Name | Surname |
Leash (for a dog) | Lead |
Letter opener | Paper knife |
Laundromat | Laundrette |
Laundry detergent | Washing powder |
Lawyer | Barrister, solicitor |
License plate, tag | Number plate |
Line (as in "standing in") | Queue |
Liquor Store | Off License, Off sales |
Living room | Lounge, sitting room |
Loaded (as in a car is "loaded" with extras) | Full house |
London Broil | Silverside beef roast |
Love Seat | Couch, sofa, settee |
Mail | Post |
Main Street | High Street |
Mixture of fruit preserve used like ketchup on meat dishes such as curry or sausages | Chutney |
Mobile home, trailer | Caravan |
Molasses | Treacle |
Movie Theater | Cinema |
Moving truck | Removal van |
Muffler (car) | Silencer |
Nail polish | Nail varnish |
Naked | Starkers |
Napkin | Serviette |
Nurse - R.N. equivalent | Sister |
Oatmeal | Porridge |
Outlet (electrical) | Socket, Power point, wall plug |
Overpass | Flyover |
| Dummy |
Pants | Trousers |
Panties | Knickers |
Panty hose | Stockings |
Parka, hooded jacket | Anorak |
Parking lot | Car park |
Pass (another car) | Overtake |
Pavement | Tar road |
Payphone | Phone box
, call box |
Period (punctuation) | Full stop |
Pig's stomach, eaten boiled with onions | Tripe |
Pissed | Angry (pissed in the Commonwealth means drunk!!) |
Pharmacy, drug store | Chemist |
Plexi-glass | Perspex |
Policeman or cop | Copper or Bobby |
Pop (Midwest US for Soda) | Coldrink, soft drink |
Pork Sausages | Bangers |
Popsicle | Ice lolly |
Potato Chips | Crisps |
Pound sign (on a telephone) | Hash sign |
Powdered sugar | Castor sugar |
President (of a company) | Managing Director |
Private school | Public school |
Purse | Handbag |
Radio | Wireless |
Railroad | Railway |
Realtor | Estate agent |
Red hair | Ginger hair |
Reflectors (in the middle of a road) | Cat's eyes |
Resume | CV (Curriculum Vitae) |
Restroom, bathroom | Toilet, W.C. (Water Closet) |
Round Trip (as in flight tickets) | Return |
Santa Claus | Father Christmas |
Saran Wrap | Cling Film |
Savings Bank | Building Society |
Scotch tape | Sticky tape |
Sewing thread | Cotton |
Shopping Cart | Supermarket Trolley |
Shrimp | Prawn |
Sidewalk | Pavement |
Sleep | Kip, doss |
Slowpoke | Slowcoach |
Small flapjack, served with tea | Crumpet |
Sneakers | Trainers |
Soda | Coldrink, soft drink |
Squash | Marrow |
State | Province |
Station Wagon | Estate |
Steal | Nick, pinch |
Store | Shop (in US Shop is only a verb)
|
| Stove - burners | Hob - hot plates |
Street car | Tram |
Stroller | Push chair |
| Students (at school) | Pupils |
Studio apartment | Bedsitter |
Study, learn hard | Swot |
Stupid | Daft |
Styrofoam | Polystyrene |
Subway | Underground / Tube |
Suspenders | Braces |
Sweater (pullover) | Jumper or jersey |
TV, Television | Telly |
Take out (as in fast food) | Takeaway |
Taxi stand | Taxi rank |
Thumb tack | Drawing pin |
Ticket (Midwest for restaurant check) | Bill |
Tired | Knackered |
Toilet | Loo |
Traffic circle | Roundabout |
Traffic light, stop light | Robot, traffic light |
Trash | Rubbish |
Truck | Lorry |
Tram | Cable car |
Trunk (on a car) | Boot |
Turnpike, Interstate | Freeway, Motorway |
Umbrella | Brolley |
Undershirt | Vest |
Unemployed | On the dole |
Unemployment checks | Giros |
| Holiday |
Valence (window) | Pelmet |
VCR (Video Cassette Recorder) | Video Machine |
Vest | Waist Coat |
Vice-president | Director |
Visit with | Gossip, catch up with events |
Windshield | Windscreen |
Wrench | Spanner |
Y'all (used in Midwest and South) | You lot |
Yard | Garden |
Zee (the letter as in XYZ) | Zed |
Zip Code | Postal Code |
Zucchini | Courgettes, baby marrows |
MORE TO COME
