Britain and America: divided by a common language

[KickChick]

From the BBC....
This is a fun article that discusses commonly confused words between the US and the UK

For example the slang term "rubber" has two completely different meanings ...
Britain and America: divided by a common language (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/2970815.stm)

[Andy Murray]

Like you guys say 'Pants' and we say 'trousers' ?

When we say 'Pants' we mean underwear?

I dunno how all this started, but the differences in spelling are funny too;

You say 'Color', while we say 'Colour'

Speaking of 'rubber'; to give someone a 'rubber' in the UK, might mean to ignore them, as in 'turn a rubber ear'?

We could be missing all sorts of opportunities?

[Brad Ellin]

I'm having fun with it all the time. My wife, being from India, speaks "proper" English, while I (according to her) speak "*******ized" English. I don't. I speak American.

[LilBunnyRabbit]

Come on, English people from the south don't understand English people from further north, you expect us to understand you weirdos in America?

[Brad Ellin]

Hey! I represent that remark!
By the way, most Americans from the North don't understand most from the South and none of us understand those from California.

[JediMasterChris]

Haha...yeah people think I speak weird here, since I am originally from america.

[Jazman]

wat? can't understand those from California? I would say those from northern Minnesota are the worst... never knew trousers meant underwear in british... so many things one can learn on this site :D

[KickChick]

Originally posted by Jazman
... so many things one can learn on this site :D

..."you can say that again"!! (that means that is so correct it bears to be be repeated again!)

With such a number of us from here in the States and alot of you from GB ... this would help us out alot. So what does "bloody" mean?? ;)
As far as English north/south and "other" regions (Scots, Wales, Irish,....).... ere is a good dictionary!
British-American Slang Dictionary (http://www.bbcamerica.com/britain/dictionary.jsp)

[Mo Lung]

OK, now add this into the pot - I live in Australia. Australian English is like a hybrid of American English and English English. Then, on top of that, we have Strine, which is pure Australian, with words like Dunny, Ute, Blue, Tinnie, Arvo, etc.

Sheesh, it's a constant confusion lemme tell ya. ;)

[Freeform]

But surely English English is just English!

Other types of English are *******isations of the original.

What annoys me is that I can't seem to get MS Word on my Uni account to stick to UK spelling, rather than US!

Ggggggrrrrrrrr.

Col

[KickChick]

Originally posted by Mo Lung
OK, now add this into the pot - I live in Australia. Australian English is like a hybrid of American English and English English. Then, on top of that, we have Strine, which is pure Australian, with words like Dunny, Ute, Blue, Tinnie, Arvo, etc.
Sheesh, it's a constant confusion lemme tell ya. ;)

I hear ya .... I had a "forum buddy" from Australia and I often found some of his "sayings" quite interesting to say the least!
Australian Slang (http://www.koalanet.com.au/australian-slang.html)

[Mo Lung]

Don't you come the raw prawn with me, mate!

One of my faves.

Or

Get a dog up ya!

;)

[Jim]

Do you mean it's one of your faves OR I should get a dog up me?

[Mo Lung]

Your choice. ;)

[YODA]

never knew trousers meant underwear in british..

It doesn't :D

Anyway - Yon mon farze weel tha noze. Faverz a sheppie! Tha mornt tell ees maud tho else it's pon praters fer thee.

... and THAT MAPers - is my native tongue :D

[Obi-Wan]

:eek:

[KickChick]

So, you thought you were tough enough to try to learn English?

This little treatise on the lovely language we share is only for the brave.
It was passed on by a linguist, original author unknown (George Carlin and Richard Lederer cite many of these examples in their
work). Peruse at your leisure, English lovers.

Reasons why the English language is so hard to
learn:

1 ) The bandage was wound around the wound.

2 ) The farm was used to produce produce.

3 ) The dump was so full that it had to refuse more
refuse.

4 ) We must polish the Polish furniture.

5 ) He could lead if he would get the lead out.

6 ) The soldier decided to desert his dessert in
the desert.

7 ) Since there is no time like the present, he
thought it was time to
present the present.

8 ) A bass was painted on the head of the bass
drum.

9 ) When shot at, the dove dove into the bushes.

10 ) I did not object to the object.

11 ) The insurance was invalid for the invalid.

12 ) There was a row among the oarsmen about how to
row.
14 ) The buck does funny things when the does are
present.

15 ) A seamstress and a sewer fell down into a
sewer line.

16 ) To help with planting plants, the farmer
taught his sow to sow.

17 ) The wind was too strong to wind the sail.

18 ) After a number of injections my jaw got
number.

19 ) Upon seeing the tear in the painting I shed a
tear.

20 ) 1 had to subject the subject to a series of
tests.

21 ) How can I intimate this to my most intimate
friend?

Let's face it - English is a crazy language.
There is no egg in eggplant nor ham in hamburger; neither apple nor pine in pineapple.
English muffins weren't Invented in England or French fries in France.
Sweetmeats are candies while sweetbreads, which aren't sweet, are meat.

We take English for granted. But if we explore its paradoxes, we find that quicksand can work slowly, boxing rings are square
and a guinea pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig. And why is it that writers write but fingers don't fing, grocers don't groce and hammers don't ham?

If the plural of tooth is teeth, why Isn't the
plural of booth beeth?

One goose, two geese. So one moose, two meese?
One index, two indices?

Doesn't it seem crazy that you can make amends but not one amend?

If you have a bunch of odds and ends and get rid of all but one of them, what do you call it?

If teachers taught, why didn't preachers praught?

If a vegetarian eats vegetables, what does a humanitarian eat?

Sometimes I think all the English speakers should be committed to an asylum for the verbally insane. In what language do people
recite at a play and play at a recital? Ship by truck and send cargo by ship?

Have noses that run and feet that smell? How can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same, while a wise man and a wise guy are opposites?

Why do we park in the driveway and drive on a parkway?

You have to marvel at the unique lunacy of a language in which your house can burn up as it burns down, in which you fill in a
form by filling it out, and in which an alarm goes off by going on.

English was invented by people, not computers, and it reflects the
creativity of the human race, which, of course, is not a race at all. Does that make it crawl?

That is why, when the stars are out, they are visible, but when the lights are out, they are invisible?

Why doesn't "Buick" rhyme with "quick?"

[Mo Lung]

You have to remember that English (the language) was invented by the English (the people), renowned xenophobes!

Why is abbreviation such a long word?

If you ate a clown, would he taste funny?

Do you know the shortest sentence in the English language?

No?

You just read it!

[LilBunnyRabbit]

You have to remember that English (the language) was invented by the English (the people), renowned xenophobes!

Not quite true, it was made up of just about every other language in Europe, and a few others thrown in for good measure, then isolated, force-evolved, and finally set down into the format that we have today, with all of the variety in dialects and accents.

[Mo Lung]

Originally posted by ckdstudent
then isolated, force-evolved, and finally set down into the format that we have today, with all of the variety in dialects and accents.

And who did that bit?

;)

[LeggyLass]

Originally posted by Jazman
wat? can't understand those from California? I would say those from northern Minnesota are the worst...

:D Riiiight!!

You mean you're not "OUt and abOUt in a bOat? Ya, sure you betch'a!!"

At least we're "not fixin' to go," somewhere from the south! :)

[LeggyLass]

Originally posted by Mo Lung


Why is abbreviation such a long word?



Ya!

And how come there isn't another word for thesaurus?;)

[YODA]

.... and which cruel person decided to spell lisp with an "s"?

[stumpy]

Here's a weird one.
Take the gh as in "rough"
The o as in "women"
The ti as in "station"
ghoti = fish

I'm sure other languages are equally odd, aren't they?

[Shaolin Dragon]

Would you Adam and Eve it? Here I am, sitting on me Khyber, in front of me car and scooter, waiting for me Ruby to come from the Jay-Kay, (and it only cost me a Lady Godiva) when I come across this pony and trap. Well sod this, I'm off to get Brahms and Liszt with me trouble and strife.

[xubis]

Did you know you can still walk into a hairdressers in the United States and ask for a "shag" with complete impunity? rofl, first thing I read... this has got to be good

[Ad McG]

Originally posted by Shaolin Dragon
Would you Adam and Eve it? Here I am, sitting on me Khyber, in front of me car and scooter, waiting for me Ruby to come from the Jay-Kay, (and it only cost me a Lady Godiva) when I come across this pony and trap. Well sod this, I'm off to get Brahms and Liszt with me trouble and strife.


Translated, by a northerner :D

"Would you leave it? Here I am, sitting on my arse, in front of my computer, waiting for my curry to come from the take away (and it only cost me a fiver) when i come across this cr*p. Well sod thid, I'm off to get p*ssed with my wife."

[wayofthedragon]

interesting

[Topher]

Why is Phonetic spelt with a P?

[acrawford]

My favorite differance is how in heck did you guys figure to name that one special happy place a Lunch???. I really want to know who came up with that one. My wife is english and she uses that term quite frequently.


Is it a dirty term or normal or who knows.......

[Indestructible]

none of us understand those from California.

Eso es porque todos hablamos español. :D

[mattsylvester]

Pants also means bad as does boll*cks.

But dog's boll*cks means good :)

Like you guys say 'Pants' and we say 'trousers' ?

When we say 'Pants' we mean underwear?

I dunno how all this started, but the differences in spelling are funny too;

You say 'Color', while we say 'Colour'

Speaking of 'rubber'; to give someone a 'rubber' in the UK, might mean to ignore them, as in 'turn a rubber ear'?

We could be missing all sorts of opportunities?

[mattsylvester]

I was in Fort Bragg for a couple of weeks and boy did I have trouble understanding some of the locals. Vice versa, they didn't know what 'buttaahh' (butter) was.

Hey! I represent that remark!
By the way, most Americans from the North don't understand most from the South and none of us understand those from California.

[mattsylvester]

Trousers means trousers, pants means underwear :)

wat? can't understand those from California? I would say those from northern Minnesota are the worst... never knew trousers meant underwear in british... so many things one can learn on this site :D

[mattsylvester]

There is no egg in eggplant nor ham in hamburger; neither apple nor pine in pineapple.

Hamburgers come from Hamburg :) Truth.

French fries in France.

I think that they're actually Belgian.

Why do we park in the driveway and drive on a parkway?

What's a parkway? We (English) drive on the road.

You have to marvel at the unique lunacy of a language in which your house can burn up as it burns down, in which you fill in a
form by filling it out, and in which an alarm goes off by going on.

English was invented by people, not computers, and it reflects the
creativity of the human race, which, of course, is not a race at all. Does that make it crawl?

That is why, when the stars are out, they are visible, but when the lights are out, they are invisible?

Why doesn't "Buick" rhyme with "quick?"

Cos it's American, if it was English, it would :)

[Judderman]

Why is Phonetic spelt with a P?

Because the P is silent as in hedgehog.

Did you know that you can lead a horse to water but your pencil must be lead?

A little while ago it was reported that foreign nurse working in Birmingham needed special lessons to understand the dialect/accent.

[Anth]

Come on, English people from the south don't understand English people from further north, you expect us to understand you weirdos in America?

if i could, i would demonstrate this point by confusing everyone with geordie, but as i cant, ill just point everyone to this site: http://www.geordiepride.demon.co.uk/geordiestuff.htm

gawd, i go to a tournament on the other side of the hills and no-one can understand me :)

[spacepimp]

I wish I could remember the name of the movie, but the basic premise was a young guy whose mother was in prison. He wanted to buy her a place away from where they were, so he stole some drugs and bought a plce next to a lake (loch) which his friend then burned down. Anyways, in america they put subtitles on it.

[spacepimp]

Eso es porque todos hablamos español. :D
no, eso es porque todos usar palabras como "dude, gnarley, sweet, bogus, totally etc.."

(just joking)

[Kinjiro Tsukasa]

Cough. Rough. Bough. Though. Through.

Five words having almost identical spelling. Five completely different sounds. There's the English language for you...

[Topher]

Because the P is silent as in hedgehog.

Did you know that you can lead a horse to water but your pencil must be lead?

A little while ago it was reported that foreign nurse working in Birmingham needed special lessons to understand the dialect/accent.
You get the joke when you fine the meaning of the word :)

[aikiMac]

I recently learned that you Brits call the period (that dot at the end of most sentences) a "full stop." That's a nice name. I like it.

Questions:
1) What's the comma called? Is it a half stop?
The comma to Americans is that curvy mark next to the M key on the keyboard.
You know, <-------- that thing that I just typed after "you know."

2) What's the semicolon called? Is it a three-quarters stop?
The semicolon to Americans is that funny mark next to the L key on the keyboard. It looks like " ; "

[Kwajman]

This is making my head hurt.... :bang:

[aikiMac]

This is making my head hurt.... :bang:
Ya, next we'll learn that their keyboards don't match our keyboards. Like, their comma is next to the R key maybe.

[Jang Bong]

:D spots fun revived thread :D

OK. No.1 (or #1 for the USA) our keyboards are different - but it is usually the shift+3 giving us a £ sign and you a #. There are a couple of other swaps ("speach marks" are on shift+2, but I think yours are elsewhere).

And secondly - all the other punctuation marks you mentioned are the same. In other words, you have kept the English names rather than changing them with your 'period' instead of the full-stop.

There was a recent TV advert regarding child abuse, and the catch line was "Make it stop - FULL STOP" with a large dot finishing off the sentence. No doubt this would have confused some people across the pond. :D

Because the P is silent as in hedgehog.

We usually say the P is silent as in BATH - but that's a different matter :D

[aikiMac]

:D spots fun revived thread :D

OK. No.1 (or #1 for the USA) our keyboards are different - but it is usually the shift+3 giving us a £ sign and you a #. There are a couple of other swaps ("speach marks" are on shift+2, but I think yours are elsewhere).

That's interesting. What's on your 4 key? Ours has the dollar sign, $. None of our keys have the British currency. There is a way to make it, yes, but I don't know the way.

And where do you get the # sign from? Obviously you have it -- you made one!

Our language barrier is so amusing at times.

[minimal]

Freeform: try changing the dictionary which is used, and once it is changes, find a 'set to default' button or option. (I don't use MSN but it's something similar in MS Word).

[minimal]

Once I went to Britain and a girl in a nightclub gave me her number and address, directions, and told me "come and knock me up in the morning".

When I went, her door was unlocked, so I attempted to follow her instructions. It wasn't until many hours later when she made a comment about my cheekiness, that I realised that a misunderstanding had taken place. I guess it was for the better!

[aikiMac]

I guess it was for the better!
Ahem. Err, I do not want translate that story for the younglings. :)

But did she have a keyboard in her room? Did you look at the keys?

[minimal]

Best way to make a UKP (United Kingdom Pound) sign if it's not on your keyboard is to find one (like on a web page) and copy and paste it. If you paste it into a text doc in 'My Documents', it's easy to find.

[Yossarian75]

Ive noticed with some surprise Canadians still use a few Scottish slang words, like aboot, hoose(house), bum(butt, not homeless).

[Jang Bong]

That's interesting. What's on your 4 key? Ours has the dollar sign, $. None of our keys have the British currency. There is a way to make it, yes, but I don't know the way.

And where do you get the # sign from? Obviously you have it -- you made one!

We have your $ as the shift on our 4 key. My keyboard is old (no 'Windows' key, etc) so I haven't got the added complication of the Euro symbol being added as a 3rd character to one of the number keys :(

I'm sure when our old computers arrived with an 'americanized' keyboard, the shift+2 gave the @ symbol, and the "speechmarks" were where our @ is.

Starting from the 'L' key and moving to the right, we have 3 keys ;: '@ #~ before reaching the 'Return' key.

Pressing the shift on the numbers 1234567890 gives ! " £ $ % ^ & * ( )

[Duncan!]

I come from a particularly obscure part of Scotland, and I lost quite a few marks in a recent Linguistics exam because I had to write certain words using the International Phonetic Alphabet, and I say words very differently from the "correct" way, that of posh English people.

[aikiMac]

Jang Bong -- thanks for the info on the keyboards. They are different in several respect. Whoda thunkit? I would have expected only one difference -- the pound sound instead of the dollar sign. Strange.


I come from a particularly obscure part of Scotland, and I lost quite a few marks in a recent Linguistics exam because I had to write certain words using the International Phonetic Alphabet, and I say words very differently from the "correct" way, that of posh English people.
Correction: The Californians say words the "correct" way. :D
The Orkney Islands have puffin birds, right? My daughter and I love puffins. They're so cute!

[Drunken Miss Ho]

Correction: The Californians say words the "correct" way. :D

Yes, I think us Californians should be responsible for determining all correct pronounciations in American (or world wide) English. Even though Kurohana on page 1 said the entire US can't understand us. He's got it backwards, we can't understand the rest of the US because they are so beneath us :rolleyes: But really, I can't understand anything people say in New England. I have to have people repeat things over and over to me, which makes me think I won't fare that well in Scotland.

aikiMac- how do us west coasters say "apricot"? I've always said "ape-ricot", and people out here say "ah-pricot", and I've been getting made fun of for saying it the "English way". Now I can't remember how people say it back home.

[aikiMac]

Yes, I think us Californians should be responsible for determining all correct pronounciations in American (or world wide) English. Even though Kurohana on page 1 said the entire US can't understand us. He's got it backwards, we can't understand the rest of the US because they are so beneath us :rolleyes: But really, I can't understand anything people say in New England. I have to have people repeat things over and over to me, which makes me think I won't fare that well in Scotland.

aikiMac- how do us west coasters say "apricot"? I've always said "ape-ricot", and people out here say "ah-pricot", and I've been getting made fun of for saying it the "English way". Now I can't remember how people say it back home.
It's "ape-ricot." Duh! :D
I don't know what Kurohana is talking about. I can understand us just fine. ;) It's the deep South that I can't always follow well.

Where in California are you from? Redondo Beach/Manhattan Beach is home in my heart. I'm stuck in Arizona for the time being.

[Drunken Miss Ho]

Hiya neighbor! I'm from Long Beach. I consider my current residence in New England a temporary exile.

[Cantwell]

Inorder to easily make ANY symbol is using a sequence of numbers ot get the desired sign. You can find out what keys you have to hit to make different symbols using the "character map" under the "accessories" flap on your computer, I see the Yen there so the pound is most likely there too.

[bcullen]

That's interesting. What's on your 4 key? Ours has the dollar sign, $. None of our keys have the British currency. There is a way to make it, yes, but I don't know the way.

And where do you get the # sign from? Obviously you have it -- you made one!

Our language barrier is so amusing at times.

Alt+0163 = £

Who needs English, I speak hexadecimal and unicode. :D

[Duncan!]

The Orkney Islands have puffin birds, right? My daughter and I love puffins. They're so cute!

They certainly do! But I can't say I've seen one, and I've spent my entire life in Orkney (apart from this year due to university). I only ever see them on post-cards.

[DangerMouse]

Well, to solve all problems of the language divide across the pond, there is now hope:
dictionary24.com (http://www.dictionary24.com/)
If you enter text on the home-page, it will translate it between loads of languages, including UK - US English and vice versa :D