Our Common Language

[Brian]

This thread has been started as an aid to anyone travelling between the USA and Britain,
once described as "two nations divided by a common language". Over the past few weeks of frequent conversation with a certain someone who's making the leap from USA to UK later this year, several words and phrases have come to light which mean different things in each country.Some only exist in one of the two.

Example:
American "sidewalk" = British "pavement"

I'll post some soon when I get a collection together, but please feel free to contribute any you know of (humour welcome as always...)

Brian

[jinmich]

Does pavement only refer to sidewalk?

Pavement can mean roads in US right?

[Brian]

Okay, the first few that come to mind are to do with cars (automobiles)

USA "Hood" = UK "Bonnet"
USA "Trunk"= UK "Boot"
USA "Tires" = UK "Tyres"

Bri

[Brian]

Jinmich, Yes "pavement" applies only to the bit you walk on - your sidewalk. It doesn't apply to roads. It's the bit you're NOT supposed to drive on!

Brian

[dclor]

Well, there's another expression, girls, they have in Scotland that you really should be aware of! I almost fainted when Brian said this to me the first time! Someone can say that they are trying to keep their pecker up (!) when all they mean is they're trying to keep their spirits up, stay happy!!! (Wait a minute, Bri! Stay happy????) - Diane

[Willy]

OK....and since we are speaking autos (not cars) I would have to add petrol, in liters no less, as opposed to gasoline. And actually, in jaguars over here it is still referred to as the boot and the bonnet.

I still remember my first trip to London where we were asking about tickets to the Tower. I asked at Victoria station if I bought in advance what the advantage was. Her response, in a very thick English accent was "Oh, you'll avoid the queue that way". I asked her to repeat her answer as I was "interpreting" her 1st response. (I think you may hear more of the "queue on the East Coast in the U.S. but you NEVER hear than on the West coast.)
Also at our recent party we spoke of the "water closet". (We had a few teenagers here who had NO idea what we were talking about).

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Di (aka ^..^ ~ Willy)

[Brian]

Okay, just looking out the window brought a great Scottish word into my mind which really describes Edinburgh's weather this afternoon.

The word is "dreich" - pronounced "dreech", with a Scottish "ch" on the end (like loch).

It's used to describe a day which is cold, wet, grey, overcast, and generally damp and miserable. As far as I know it has no corresponding equivalent in the English language. Only Scotland has days like this
(still ok, Diane?)

Slainte
Bri