Put Some English On It!

and the word is aluminium

when we're not using tinfoil to wrap our food in

There are some Irish variants

a hot press is an airing cupboard, by extension a press is a cupboard

we do "messages" instead of groceries

we use "feck" as a milder version of its rude equivalent 

bleedin' and bloody are also swearwords

so now we know what you think of when you lie back and think of England (but does your DH know ?)

The rubber/eraser thing came up in the office today because my American colleague is doing an entire translation on an office supplies catalog (translating among other expressions a "gomme mie de pain",) and my English colleague's husband is from Condom, so that made the conversation trilingual (American and English are two different languages after all )

Hugs

Sadhbh

This expression was originally found in New Zealander/Australian books from about 1875 and is generally considered to refer to Larry Foley a pugilist born in 1847 who retired at the age of 32 with a final winning purse of $1000, so presumably as a successful fighter he would have been famous and justifiably happy with his success

No way of knowing if that's the actual origin, just that the expression has been recorded in books and general use for over 130 years

Hope that helps

Forgot... I showed my 9 yr old son your post. He doesn't believe there is such a word as aluminium!

How about queue, boot sale, or Wellingtons?

A few examples: 

I used to work with an Irish guy...one day at work, i was having tuna and crackers for lunch, he asked if he could have a biscuit....we lived relatively close to each other, so sometimes he would give me a ride home.  Sometimes he would stop for "petrol", and check under the "bonet" or put something in the "boot" of the car.

Another story:  I have a co-worker from Australia...she says that when she first moved here, a neighbor took her to a Dodger (baseball) game....while they were at the game, people realized she wasnt from here and were asking her how she liked it here, etc...then one man says "who are you rooting for?".  Well, she got upset because where she comes from "rooting" is a slang word for the sex act.

I have known a few people from either England, or countries formerly held by the UK.....so I have gotten used to the words...plus I watch a lot of british programing, like  "Are you Being Served", :"As Time Goes By", "EastEnders", plus some mysteries. 

 One last story:

My cousin and her husband were living in Sweden for a while, due to the husbands work...when they first got there and settled in, they invited some of their new neighbors, for dinner....the wife says sure, and I will bring some pudding...my cousin says, great..bring pudding....so when the neighbors show up, they bring a cake. my cousin says to herself, great, but wheres the pudding...she learned pudding is just a word for desert.

I've been watching all kinds of UK programming and I never realized that when they mention pudding, they aren't talking pudding. I mean, I just thought the whole country loved pudding as much as me. So, the whole dessert world falls under pudding?

Oh, hubby wanted me to ask...is figgy pudding made of fig? With this new info, is it pudding at all?

Dee

I think it is an acquired taste. Very similar to plum pudding and some people ignite it as well.

I went to a Thanksgiving dinner made by the British wife of one of my co-workers at RAF (Royal Air Force)Lakenheath. She made turnips and brussel sprouts for the veggie and that was the best thing I have ever tasted. Never have been able to eat them in the states.

Welll, I'm American, but I learned British grammar and spelling in school and use it still---I am in an editing class right now and it's all I can do to NOT correct things like "recognize" and "practice" because to me that's wrong. I have only had a few people try to tell me I was wrong, I think  most realise it's British English.

I have always used many British words too, and have had to explain myself a few times.  It gets interesting at times. 

Arabic terms were mentioned in the intro--like what? 

schoof - look

I'll have to think about the rest of it, my Club Med memories are fading fast

That's evil of microsoft--Keep the U's!!!  It looks better, and besides, I've got my Word set to UK English so it accepts it. 

Anyway, I think that depends on region of the US.  Most older people I know say "billfold" down here, but I think mostly everyone else says "wallet."  Ummm...drats what was the other one you mentioned?  Oh yes----Soda and Pop are Northern US---in the South (the states that formed the CSA) it is a Coke whether it's a Pepsi, a Sprite, an RC---you go into a restaurant in the South and order a coke and you get asked what kind--pepsi, sprite, coke, etc....Up North, they say Soda and Pop, you say that down in the South and we'll know where you're from. 

Bag and sack seem to be regional as well.  I grew up with sack---so that's what I use.  I know people who say bag. 

the first time I heard "shed-ule" it really blew my mind. Most of the time I remember the differences and only occassionally have to guess from the context

Thongs = Flip-flops

and I'm probably spelling this wrong, since I've only heard it spoken, Batch = Beach House

I am going to be slightly boring here and point out the UK editors can copy edit in English,American or Australian.  This is in case anyone was worried that somehow if they submitted to Richmond, they should have UK spellings/words or slang. 

It would depend on where the ms was set.

 As an American who has lived in the UK for nearly twenty years, I am fluent in both languages and cultures. And there are vast differences.

Because I have lived so long in the UK, I am copy editted with a UK style rather than with an American style.

But let's see obvious phrases:

English -- American

Mobile -- cell phone

full stop -- period

dinner -- lunch

tea  -- dinner/supper

creche -- nursery

cot -- crib

crib  as in Crib service -- nativity play

crib - manger

corn -- wheat, barley or oats

sweet corn -- corn on the cob

handbag -- purse

purse -- coin purse

frock -- dress

trousers -- slacks/pants

pants -- underpants

knickers -- underpankts

shreddies -- underpants

Jumper -- pullover sweater

cardigan -- sweater that buttons

fleece -- sweat top

track suit -- sweats

pinny -- apron

specs/spectacles -- glasses

flat -- apparentment

bungalow -- detached one story house

semi -- semi detached house shares a party wall

terraced -- houses that share common walls

freehold -- you own the property, you have title to the property.

leasehold -- you lease the property for a fixed number of years. This is quite common when someone has purchased a flat. Many houses in London on leasehold.

Then there is all the cockney rhyming slang, which I have gone blank on. plus slang that is specific to a particular region.For example, up here in Northumberland, they speak Geordie. It sounds a bit like Norwegian with a bad accent. Georide comes from the fact that Newcastle supported King George I rather than Bonny Prince Charlie in 1745 uprising and the name has stuck ever since.

Michelle S -- bilingual with an accent somewhere over the Atlantic. The British can tell I am American (very) and the Americans tend to think I am British...

UK A & E = US ER I think from the context.

We watch a lot of British TV on DVD and most makes sense according to context but I love the close captioning if the accent is different or there is a ton of slang.   

I Love this blog. Over the years I have learned what a treacle tart, aga, court shoes and shirtwaister are.

are you sure you're not talking about a "couch"  ..... LOL 

PS ... it's a sofa when we're looking to buy a new one, or to cover it with a "sofa"cover .. otherwise, it's just a regular couch

I say Couch, so do most people I know.

But when the "Couch" folds out into a bed, it is called a "Sofa Bed"....I have never heard anyone say "Couch bed".

I have also heard the words Setee and Davenport, but I think those are just names of other types of places to sit.

I watch several british shows on PBS, A & E, and BBC America....It is not just the "language" it is the speed of the talking.

One of my favorite shows is called EastEnders.  It is a "soap", set in a community in the east end of London. 

I have been watching the show for a few years now, and gotten used to the way they speak, but when they start shouting or arguing, understanding them is a challenge.

There was a time when they brought in a Scotish girl, and it really took some time to understand the way she spoke.

Since it is on a PBS station, they have periodic pledge drives to raise money for the station....sometime it is specificly for this show...they say it is the most expensive show they run.

One of the gifts they give away for  a certain level of donation, is a glossary of terms called "How to Speak EastEnders".  I gave it to a friend who went to London and she said it came in handy.

British -- American explanation

Unversity -- where you get an advanced degree, including a BA. Mostly in England it  is 3 years for an undergraduate course and you choose the course of study BEFORE you enter the UNiversity. For example students apply to do English or History. If they wish to change courses, it is far more difficult than changing majors in the US system. Univeristies in the UK are state funded. Scottish univeristies offer a four year course.

College -- generally a 6th form college, or part of a unversity.

Oxbridge -- Oxford or Cambridge, students may apply to one or the other, and they must choose which college and course within the university to apply to.

University challenge -- popular quiz show on the BBC where univesity students answer general knowledge questions. No prize except the satisfaction of winning.  Four members to a team, host by Jeremy Paxman.

6th form -- years 12 and 13. a prepartion for further education, cumplusory education ends at 16, divided into upper and lower sixth

A levels -- tests taken during the 6th form to help you win a place at university

GCSE -- replaced O levels, taken when you are sixteen. You need at least 5 GCSE  c grades or above to study at A level. Used to be called 5th form

infant school -- primary school

reception class --kindergarten,

head of school -- principal

form tutor -- home class teacher

Comprehensive school -- like a high school and junior high school. Started in the 1970s to replace grammar and second moderns.

 11 plus -- old exam to determine if you were academically minded. Could change the course of your life.

Grammar school -- competetive test needed to enter, taken at 11, for the brightest students. Depends on the are where you live.

Secondary modern -- where you go if you fail the exam to get into the grammar school

Public school -- independant elite private schools such as Eton,Harrow, Winchester -- generally boarding schools.

Independant school -- private school, day or boarding.

State school -- run by the state, this includes some religous school for example Roman Catholic and C of E schools tend to be also partly funed throug the state.Includes a few boarding schools as well.

School governours -- school board

Prep  -- homework

Maths -- math

Michelle S

I have heard that expression all my life, but never knew where it came from.

I've also heard that south of the Mason Dixon line a ballpoint pen is referred to as an "ink pen." Not sure what you call'em in the UK.  And has anyone heard of "Chinese Whispers"?

Jayne

Telephone.

One poor editor from the UK got into a lot of trouble on the Blogs for that one. Once they figured out she wasn't a racist, it was interesting to see the differences a few words could make.

Now to wonder what other games we share by different names. :)

Dee

Yes we say ink pen down here in the Southern US.  There are several things that are referred to differently between the South and the North. 

I heard al; sorts of things growing up. My mom's family was from New England, my father's from the South. I spent most of my summers visiting my grandmother who lived in Bermuda. Bermuda is a British colony so most of the English there is UK English but there were lots of Canadian and US residents there as well. I loved coming back to the US and intentionally spelling words with the UK spellings though I never did it on spelling tests. I like seeing UK English. It adds a nostalgic feeling sometimes for me.

Brand names becoming verbs/nouns for an item:

UK to hoover something whereas it is to vacuum in the US.

In the US we say (or at least said since with more brands maybe phtocopy is becoming more widespread in recent times) to xerox something or a xeox. I don't know if the UK uses photocopy but in France it is une photocopie. We also say Kleenex for tissue.