UK vs. US
Miscellaneous Forums/General Discussion/UK vs. US
Old topics I know...
But what are some major US/UK differences in language? Like color/colour, etc.
I reside in US so I'm not very sure (isn't that another? vary/very)
I predict lockage or deletage.
Nah, this is handy for people making games that are compatible with proper English as well as barbarian English ;)
I may make use of this information myself, since I prefer proper English, but will have to make it compatible with the barbarians. Has anyone looked into asking Windows what country the computer is located in, or what its language setting is?
(Proper / Barbaric)
Colour / Color
Neighbour / Neighbor
There's more!!....
Edit:
Woah! I just realized there's United in the names of both those countries... So boring :(
WHOH, BARBARIC? Lets not through around harsh words buddy... remeber there is a larger economy over here and a larger market for games. Including indie. So watch it!
OMG, Proper/Barbaric?
Get off of it already.
Extra silent letters are asinine.
Just make it:
UK/US
(isn't that another? vary/very)
No. Different words.
very = much of
vary = differ
UK/US
Torch/Flashlight
Petrol/Gas
Zucchini Courgette
WHOH, BARBARIC? Lets not through around harsh words buddy
Hehe, just kidding :)
I use a few non-UK words, too. (Such as Gas and Flashlight)
Besides, at this point, we are
all speaking a completely different language from the original English... (Does anyone even know how to use Thy and Thee anymore?)
Wolron: I think you misspelled Petrol.
Zucchini Courgette
WTF?
Well it is a "very" useful thing in games and all to understand exactly what you are refering to. Like, if you said "torch" I think of a medievil fire on a large stick. Petrol to me, is just oil. And zucchini, is a vegatable.
But thy, and thee is odd. Thy i think is in reference to yourself and thee is in reference to someone else. As in, Thy ponders the differences in thees language. And in old english you use cool words like solutations (or however you spell it)
neighbour / neighbor
colour / color
civilisation / civilization (And the same for a bunch of other words with the same ending)
aluminium / aluminum
grey / gray
Numbers:
US: million, billion, trillion, quadrillion, quintillion, sextillion, septillion
UK: million, milliard, billion, billiard, trillion, trilliard, quadrillion
So some of the numbers are written the same, but a few orders of magnitude larger in one country.
cars:
bonnet / hood
boot / trunk
lorry / truck
tyre / tire
fag / cigarette
Here's a list I found with some googling:
American English
-------- -------
A
account bill/account
adhesive tape sticking plaster
aisle gangway
AM radio Medium wave
antenna aerial (radio/TV)
apartment/unit flat
apartment hotel service flats
apartment house block of flats
awaken someone (to) knock up
B
baby bed/crib cot/crib
baby carriage/baby buggy pram (perambulator)
back-up lights reversing lights
balcony (theater) gallery
band-aid elastoplast/plaster
barrette hairslide
baseboard skirting board
bathe (v.) bath
bathrobe dressing gown
bathtub bath
bell pepper green pepper
biscuit scone-like thing (no equivalent)
bill bank note
billfold wallet (mens)
billion=thousand million billion=million million
black top tarmac
bobbie pin hair grip/kirby grip
bomb (disaster) bomb (success)
booth (telephone) kiosk (telephone/cigarette)
brass knuckles knuckle duster
broil grill
buffet sideboard
bureau chest of drawers
business suit lounge suite
C
call/phone ring up/phone
call collect reverse charges
can tin
candy sweets/chocolate
candy store sweet shop/confectioner
caravan convoy
carnival fair (fun)
change purse/small wallet (womens) purse
charged (goods bought) put down/entered
check (restaurant) bill
checkers draughts
check room cloakroom
cheese cloth butter muslin/cheese cloth
chicory endive
chips (potato) crisps
cigarette fag
city/municipal government corporation
closet cupboard
closet (hanging clothes) wardrobe
clothes pin clothes peg
collar button collar stud
collar stay collar stiffener
comforter eiderdown
concert master leader
conductor (train) guard
connect (telephone) put through
cookie biscuit (sweet)
corn starch corn flour
cotton batting/absorbing cotton cotton wool
cotton candy candy floss
cracker biscuit (unsweetened)
crazy bone funny bone
cream of wheat semolina
cross-walk pelican crossing
cuffs (pants) turn-ups (trousers)
custom made bespoke/made to measure
D
davenport/sofa sofa
dead-end cul-de-sac
deck (cards) pack
delivery truck van
denatured alcohol methylated spirits
derby bowler/hard hat
desk clerk receptionist
dessert pudding/dessert
detour diversion
diaper nappy
dime store/five and ten Woolworth's
directory assistance directory enquiries
dishes, do the wash up
divided highway dual carriageway
downtown centre (city/business)
draft conscription
drapes curtains
dresser chest of drawers
druggist chemist
drugstore/pharmacy chemist's shop
drygoods store draper
dump (n. and v.) tip
dungarees jeans
duplex semi-detached
E
editorial leader
eggplant aubergine
electric cord/wire flex
elevator lift
endive chicory
engineer (train) driver
eraser rubber/india rubber
erector set meccano (tradename)
eyeball (v.) visually position
F
faculty staff
fag or faggot homosexual
fall autumn
faucet tap
fender wing/mudguard
first balcony upper circle
first floor ground floor
flashlight torch/flashlight
floor lamp standard lamp
floor walker shop walker
FM radio VHF
freeway/super highway motorway
freight truck goods truck
french fries chips
freshman (at university) 1st year undergraduate
front desk (hotel) reception
G
garbage/trash rubbish
garbage can/ash can/trash can dustbin/bin
garter belt suspender belt
garters suspenders
gas petrol
gas station filling station
gear shift gear lever
generator dynamo
German shepherd/police dog alsation
goose bumps goose pimples
grade class/form
grade crossing level crossing
green thumb green fingers
ground wire earth wire/earth
H
hamburger bun bap
hamburger (meat) mince
hamburger beefburger
hardware store ironmonger
hat check girl cloakroom attendant
homely - ugly homely - pleasant
hood (car) bonnet
hope chest bottom drawer
hotdog bun bridge roll
housewares hardware
hutch Welsh dresser
I
incorporated limited
intermission interval
J
jail gaol/jail
janitor caretaker/porter
jello jelly
jelly/jam jam
jelly roll Swiss roll
jock a keen athelete (from jockstrap)
jump rope skipping rope
junior 3rd year (school)
K
kerosene paraffin
knickers plus-fours
knock up make pregnant
L
laundromat laundrette
lawyer/attorney solicitor
leader leading article in newspaper/
1st violin in orchestra
lease/rent let
legal holiday bank holiday
license plate number plate
Life Savers (candy) Polos (fruit version)
lima bean broad bean (similar to)
line (n.) queue
line-up identification parade
liquor spirits
liquor store off licence/wine merchant
liverwurst liver sausage
living room sitting room/lounge/
drawing room/living room
lobby/foyer foyer
long distance trunk call
lost and found lost property
love seat settee
lumber room box room
M
M&Ms/Resses Pieces (candy) Smarties
mail (n.) post
mail box/mail drop pillar box
mailman postman
make reservations book
Mars Bar (candy) Topic
meat grinder mincer
median strip/divider centre reservation
mezzanine/loge dress circle
Milky Way (candy) Mars Bar
molasses black treacle
mollybolt rawlplug
monkey wrench spanner
mopboard skirting board
motorbike moped
motorcycle motorbike/motorcycle
mountain oyster cooked testicles of a sheep or bull
movie film
movie house/theater cinema
moving van pantechnicon/removal van
muffler (car) silencer
mutual fund unit trust
N
newsdealer/news stand newsagent
nightstand truncheon
notions haberdashery
O
odometer mileometer
office (doctor's/dentist's) surgery
oil pan sump
one way ticket single ticket
orchestra seats stalls
outlet/socket point/power point
overalls dungarees
overpass flyover
P
pacifier dummy
package parcel
paddle (ping pong) bat
panty hose/nylons tights
pantry larder
pants/slacks trousers/slacks
parka anorak
parking lot car park
pass (vehicle, etc.) overtake/pass
pavement road surface
pedestrian crossing zebra crossing
penitentiary/prison prison
period full-stop
person-to-person personal call
phonograph/record player gramophone/record player
pig in a blanket sausage roll
pit (fruit) stone
pitcher jug
plexiglas perspex
pocket book handbag purse
pocket knife pen knife
pollywog/tadpole tadpole
popsicle iced lolly
pork and liver meatball faggot (normally fried)
pot holders/gloves oven gloves/cloth
powdered sugar/confectioner's sugar icing sugar
precinct district
president (business) chairman
principal headmaster/mistress
private school public school/private school
private school gofer fag
public school state school
pull-off lay-by
pullman/sleeper sleeping car
pump (shoe) court shoe
purse/pocketbook handbag
R
raincheck postponement
raincoat mackintosh
raisin sultana
realtor estate agent
rear view mirror wing mirror
recess break (school)
restroom toilet/cloakroom/
public convenience
rhinestone diamante
roast joint (meat)
robin (large red-breasted bird, robin (small red-breasted bird,
symbol - first sign of spring) symbol of Christmas)
roller coaster big dipper
roomer lodger
round trip ticket return ticket
rubber condom
rubber cement cow gum
rubbing alcohol surgical spirit
run (for public office stand
rutabaga/turnip swede
S
sack lunch packed lunch
sales clerk/sales girl shop assistant
scab blackleg
scallion spring onion (similar)
schedule time-table
scotch tape sellotape
scratch pad scribbling pad/block
second floor first floor
sedan saloon car
semester (school - 2 in a year) term (3 in a year)
senior 4th year (school)
sewer pipe/soil pipe drain (indoor)
shade (window) blind
sheers/under drapes net curtains
sherbet ice/sorbet
shoestring bootlace/shoelace
shorts/jockey shorts briefs
shorts (underwear) pants
shot (injection) jab
shredded (coconut) desiccated
sideburns sideboards
sidewalk pavement/footpath
sled sledge/toboggan
slice (bacon) rasher
slingshot catapult
smoked herring kipper
snaps press studs
sneakers/tennis shoes gym shoes/plimsolls/tennis shoes
Snickers (candy) Marathon
soccer football/soccer
soda cracker cream cracker
spatula/pancake turner fish slice
spool cotton reel
squash marrow (similar)
stand in line/line up queue
station wagon estate car
stop light/traffic signal/
stop signals traffic lights
stove cooker
straight (drink) neat
stroller pushchair
sub-division housing estate
subway tube/underground
suspenders braces
sweater/pullover jumper/sweater/pullover
Swing-arm/Architect's lamp Anglepoise lamp
T
tag label
take-out take-away
tea cart tea trolley
Texas gate cattle grid
thread cotton
Three Muskateers (candy) Milky Way
thumb tack drawing pin
tic-tac-toe noughts and crosses
time payment/installment plan hire purchase
toilet/john/bathroom lavatory/toilet/w.c.
top (car) roof/hood
traffic circle roundabout/island
trailer/camper/mobile home caravan
tractor trailer truck/semi articulated lorry
tramp/call girl/hooker/street walker prostitute/tart/whore
truck lorry
truck stop transport cafe
trunk/rear deck (car) boot
tube valve
two weeks fortnight
U
undergraduates:
freshman 1st year undergraduate
sophomore 2nd year undergraduate
junior 3rd year undergraduate
senior 4th year undergraduate
undershirt vest
underwear (washing) smalls
V
vacation holiday
vacuum (v.) hoover
vacuum cleaner hoover
valence pelmet
VCR Video
vest waistcoat
W
wall to wall fitted carpet/wall to wall
wash cloth face flannel
wash up wash your hands
water heater (electric) immersion heater
water heater (gas) geyser
weather stripping draught excluder
wharf/pier quay (pron. 'key')
white lima been butter bean
windbreaker windcheater
windshield windscreen
wire telegram
with or without?
(milk/cream in coffee) black or white?
Y
yard garden
Z
zero nought
zip code postal code
zucchini courgettes
ENGLISH - AMERICAN
------------------
English American
------- --------
A
aerial (radio/TV) antenna
alsation German shepherd/police dog
Anglepoise lamp Swing-arm/Architect's lamp
anorak parka
articulated lorry tractor trailor truck/semi
athelete (a keen one) jock
aubergine eggplant
autumn fall
B
bank holiday legal holiday
bank note bill
bap hamburger bun
bat (ping pong) paddle
bath bathtub
bath (v.) bathe
beefburger hamburger
bespoke/made to measure custom made
big dipper roller coaster
bill check (restaurant)
bill/account account
billion=million million billion=thousand million
biscuit (sweet) cookie
biscuit (unsweetened) cracker
black or white?
(milk/cream in coffee) with or without?
black treacle molasses
blackleg scab
blind (window) shade
block of flats apartment house/building
bomb (success) bomb (disaster)
bonnet (car) hood
book (v.) make reservation
boot (car) trunk/rear deck
bootlace/shoelace shoestring
bottom drawer hope chest
bowler/hard hat derby
box room lumber room
braces suspenders
break (school) recess
bridge roll hotdog bun
briefs shorts (jockey shorts)
broad bean lima bean (similar)
butter bean white lima bean
butter muslin/cheese cloth cheese cloth
English American
------- --------
C
candy floss cotton candy
car park parking lot
caravan trailer
caretaker/porter janitor
catapult slingshot
cattle grid Texas gate
centre (city/business) downtown
centre reservation median strip/divider
chairman (business) president
chemist druggist
chemist's shop pharmacy/drug store
chest of drawers dresser/bureau
chicory endive
chips french fries
chocolate/sweets candy
cinema movie house/theater
class/form (school) grade
cloakroom check room
cloakroom attendant hat check girl
clothes peg clothes pin
collar stiffener collar stay
collar stud collar button
conscription draft
condom rubber
convoy caravan
cooker stove
corn flour corn starch
corporation city/municipal government
cot/crib baby bed/crib
cotton thread
cotton reel spool
cotton wool cotton batting/absorbent cotton
courgettes zucchini
court shoe pump
cow gum rubber cement
cream cracker soda cracker
crisps chips (potato)
cul-de-sac dead end
cupboard closet
curtains drapes
D
desiccated (coconut) shredded
diamante rhinestone
directory enquiries directory assistance
district precinct
diversion detour
drain (indoor) sewer pipe/soil pipe
English American
------- --------
draper drygoods store
draught excluder weather stripping
draughts checkers
drawing pin thumb tack
dress circle mezzanine/loge
dressing gown bathrobe
driver (train) engineer
dual carriageway divided highway
dummy pacifier
dungarees overalls
dustbin/bin garbage can/ash can/trash can
dynamo generator
E
earth wire/earth ground wire
eiderdown comforter
elastoplast band-aid
endive chicory
estate agent realtor
estate car station wagon
F
face flannel wash cloth
fag cigarette/private school gofer
faggot (normally fried) pork and liver meatball
fair (fun) carnival
filling station gas station
film movie
first floor second floor
fish slice pancake spatula/turner
fitted carpet wall to wall
flat apartment
flex electric cord/wire
flyover overpass
football/soccer soccer
fortnight two weeks
foyer lobby/foyer
full-stop (punc.) period
funny bone crazy bone
G
gallery (theatre) balcony
gangway aisle
gaol jail
garden yard
gear lever gear shift
geyser (gas) water heater
goods truck (railway) freight truck
English American
------- --------
goose pimples goose bumps
gramophone/record player phonograph/record player
green fingers green thumb
green pepper/capsicum bell pepper/green pepper/sweet pepper
grill (v.) broil
guard (train) conductor
gym shoes/plimsolls/tennis shoes sneakers/tennis shoes
H
haberdashery notions
hair grip/kirby grip bobbie pin
hair slide barrette
handbag purse/pocket book
hardware housewares
headmaster/mistress principal
hire purchase time payment/installment plan
holiday vacation
homely - pleasant homely - ugly
homosexual fag/faggot/gay
hoover (n.) vacuum cleaner
hoover (v.) vacuum
housing estate sub-division
I
ice/sorbet sherbet
iced lolly popsicle
icing sugar powdered sugar/confectioner's sugar
identification parade line-up
immersion heater (electric) water heater
interval intermission
ironmonger hardware store
J
jab (injection) shot
jam jelly/jam
jelly jello
joint (meat) roast
jug pitcher
jumper/sweater/pullover sweater/pullover
K
kiosk (telephone/cigarette) booth (telephone)
kipper smoked herring
knock up to awaken someone
knock up (tennis) warm up
knuckle duster brass knuckles
English American
------- --------
L
label tag
larder pantry
laundrette laundromat
lavatory/toilet/w.c. toilet/john/bathroom
lay-by pull-off
leader:
1. leading article in newspaper editorial
2. 1st violin in orchestra concert master
left luggage office baggage room
let lease/rent
level crossing (railway) grade crossing
lift elevator
limited (company) incorporated
liver sausage liverwurst
lodger roomer
lorry truck
lost property lost and found
lounge suite business suit
M
mackintosh raincoat
Marathon (candy) Snickers
marrow squash (similar)
Mars Bar (candy) Milky Way
Meccano (tradename) erector set
Medium wave (radio) AM radio
methylated spirits denatured alcohol
mileometer odometer
Milky Way (candy) Three Muskateers
mince (meat) hamburger
mincer meat grinder
moped motorbike
motorway freeway/throughway/super highway
N
nappy diaper
neat (drink) straight
net curtains sheers/under drapes
newsagent news dealer/news stand
nought zero
noughts and crosses tic-tac-toe
number plate license plate
English American
------- --------
O
off licence/wine merchant liquor store
off-side lane right-hand land nearest center
of road - in UK
oven gloves/cloth pot holders/gloves
overtake (vehicle) pass
P
pack (of cards) deck
packed lunch sack lunch
pantechnicon moving van
pants shorts (underwear)
paraffin kerosene
parcel package
pavement/footpath sidewalk
pelican crossing cross-walk
pelmet valence
pen knife pocket knife
personal call person-to-person
perspex plexiglas
petrol gas(oline)
pillar box mail box/mail drop
plaster band-aid
plus-fours knickers
point/power point outlet/socket
Polos (candy - fruit version) Life Savers
post mail
postal code zip code
postman mailman
postponement raincheck
pram baby carriage/baby buggy
pregnant (to make) knock up
press studs snaps
prison penitentiary
prostitute/tart/whore tramp/call girl/hooker/street walker
public convenience restroom/toilet/comfort station
public school/private school private school
pudding dessert
purse change purse/small wallet (womens)
pushchair stroller
put down/entered (goods bought) charged
put through (telephone) connect
Q
quay wharf/pier
queue (n.) line
queue (v.) stand in line/line up
English American
------- --------
R
rasher (bacon) slice
rawlplug mollybolt
reception (hotel) front desk
receptionist desk clerk
return ticket round trip ticket
reverse charges call collect
reversing lights back up lights
ring up call/phone
road surface pavement
robin (small red-breasted bird, robin (large red-breasted bird,
symbol of Christmas) symbol - first sign of Spring)
roof/hood (car) top
roundabout traffic circle
rubber eraser
rubbish garbage/trash
S
saloon (car) sedan
sausage roll pig in a blanket
scribbling pad/block scratch pad
sellotape scotch tape
semi-detached duplex
semolina cream of wheat
service flats apartment hotel
settee love seat
shop assistant sales clerk/sales girl
shop walker floor walker
sideboard buffet
sideboards (hair) sideburns
silencer (car) muffler
single ticket one way ticket
sitting room/living room/
lounge/drawing room living room
skipping rope jump rope
skirting board baseboard/mopboard
sledge/toboggan sled
sleeping car pullman/sleeper
smalls (washing) underwear
Smarties (candy) M&Ms/Reeses Pieces
sofa davenport/couch
solicitor lawyer/attorney
sorbet sherbet
spanner monkey wrench
spirits (drink) liquor
spring onion scallion (similar)
staff (academic) faculty
stalls (theatre) orchestra seats
stand (for public office) run
English American
------- --------
standard lamp floor lamp
state school public school
sticking plaster adhesive tape
stone (fruit) pit
sultana raisin
sump (car) oil pan
surgery (doctor's/dentist's) office
surgical spirit rubbing alcohol
suspender belt garter belt
suspenders garters
swede turnip/rutabaga
sweet shop/confectioner candy store
sweets/chocolate candy
Swiss roll jelly roll
T
tadpole pollywog/tadpole
take-away take-out
tap faucet
tarmac black top
tea trolley tea cart
telegram wire
term (academic - 3 in a year) semester (2 in a year)
tights panty hose/nylons
time-table schedule
tin can
tip (n. and v.) dump
Topic (candy) Mars Bar
torch flashlight
traffic lights stop lights/traffic signals/
stop signals
transport cafe truck stop
trousers pants/slacks
truncheon (police) night stick
trunk call long distance
tube/underground subway
turn-ups (trousers) cuffs (pants)
U
Undergraduates:
1st year freshman
2nd year sophomore
3rd year junior
4th year senior
unit trust mutual fund
upper circle first balcony
English American
------- --------
V
valve (radio) tube
van delivery truck
van (car type) panel truck
vest undershirt
VHF (radio) FM radio
Video VCR
visually position eyeball (v.)
W
waistcoat vest
wallet billfold
wardrobe closet
wash up do the dishes
wash your hands wash up
Welsh dresser hutch
windcheater windbreaker
windscreen windshield
wing/mudguard (car) fender
Woolworths dime store/five and ten
Z
zebra crossing pedestrian crossing
I wouldn't worry too much. We British are pretty familiar with 'americanism' so we are unlikely to be confuse by gas or a fawcett.
Your car's hood is our 'bonnet'. Your trunk is our 'boot'.
Corgette is the same vegetable as zucchini.
Our 'fag' is your cigarette.
Your 'elevator' is our 'lift'.
Your 'theater' is our 'theatre' except we go to the theatre to watch plays and the cinema to watch movies.
Your potato chips are our 'crisps'.
Your 'jelly' is our 'jam'.
We both eat sandwhiches but sometimes we call ours 'butties'.
Your beer is weak and tasteless.
Ass/Arse
Numbers:
US: million, billion, trillion, quadrillion, quintillion, sextillion, septillion
UK: million, milliard, billion, billiard, trillion, trilliard, quadrillion
So some of the numbers are written the same, but a few orders of magnitude larger in one country.
Wow, I never knew this. How confusing.
I'm biased with the American english version, but IMO, it makes more sense...
i.e.:
1,2,3,...
million, billion, trillion,...
UK: million, milliard, billion, billiard, trillion, trilliard, quadrillion
Wow, I never knew this. How confusing.
It's the same in a bunch of other languages.
Dutch: miljoen, miljard, biljoen, biljard, triljoen, triljard, quadriljoen, quadriljard
I guess they tried to simplify things in the US when they came up with the alternate usage, except now it gets even more confusing when you have two standards where the same word means a different number...
Anyway, just keep in mind when speaking to an international audience
'a thousand million' is the same everywhere, while
'a billion' is not.
..huh..after reading this post, I realize truth..I'm pure barbarian..
Smoking a fag would get you hurt (or arrested) in some cities in the US :-P
We have both JAM and Jelly!
Our Theatre is still spelled theatre, but we add the term "Movie" to the begining to define what type of theatre it is. 'movie theatre'
Our Lift's are hoists, like sicisor lifts.
Our 'boot' is something we wear on our foot!
I am sure though, that it is in the US that in different parts of the US, different terms are used for the same thing, which I would assume is much like the UK.
Examples would be Soda. I call it soda, most of those in Wisconsin call it that, but go 100 mi south of me, and it's called pop. We tend to call bubblers what other states call water fountains.
I use a few non-UK words, too. (Such as Gas and Flashlight)
I call it Fuel and glowstick, much as some call a shower, where I call it a rainlocker!
Some: Car
Me: Horseless Carriage
Some:Computer
Me: Suped up Atari
Some: A Weirdo
Me: A Psuedo-masicistic-pyro-necro-beastialitist
(Term describing someone who derives pleasure in beating/beaten by dead, flaming animals)
Theatre is a posh place you watch plays and things, whilst a movie theater is a cinema in england, and a movie is a film.
pcd guy - way offbeam with thee and thy - in fact almost back to front.
Yanks never get this.
Your 'medieval dramas' cause us to hoot with laughter.
xlsior, I think that boxed list you have there is a little, erm, well... It's not accurate! :)
I've worked my way down to 'C' and I can see 17 'American' terms I know people use in the UK!
A lot of english is seperated in accents, since I live in the NE of England (Geordie), I use words like canny (nice), aye (yes), nor (no), stottie (bread bun), haway(come on), reet (right), tac it (take it)... And there's countless others! A lot of my sentences vocally end up with the words man or like somewhere, like 'Haway man, am ganning doon the club, are ye coming like?'
So really, the Queens English is probably only ever spoken by toffs... and erm, the queen... 'I say, jolly good show old chap'
So language is different between the UK and USA, by a small margin, but it is also different in every county of the UK! And I guess the USA is the same?
So really, on the language front, it's not different at all! :)
Dabz
P.S. I've just woke up by the way, and I havent got a clue on what I'm on about! :D
And you think they'll notice? :D
burgularized... nuff said:P
And you think they'll notice? :D
LMAO!!!
Dabz
awaken someone (to) knock up
it would certainly awaken me!!
Does either the US/UK use the word togs for swimsuit. Learned it when I lived in NZ, but don't think it's used elsewhere. Is it?
Perturbatio:
awaken someone (to) knock up
Yeah I saw that one and laughed. To knock someone up is TO GET THEM PREGNANT lol.
RagTag: People use it occasionally for a laught but not seriously.
Also no one seems to have mentioned that the U.S. puts Z in IZE words whereas most English ones are (currently) using S i.e ISE (but not all just to confuse things).
Some other vital ones:
Fanny (US. = body part you sit on; UK = female parts) So don't say "does my fanny look big in this".
Bum (US = Tramp/Homeless person; UK = body part you sit on)
Bummer (US = oh no dude; UK = same, but also gay person, well sorta, and related words like bumming i.e activity gays get up to) btw some older people in the U.K. still say gay when they mean happy.
There hopefully you'll never get confused when using those in a game.
Oh yeah that pasted in big list has some real dodgy ones in it that just aren't right!
through/thru (see MIDI, to name something)
"I said..." / "I was all, like..."
;)
heh these from the big list are wrong:
M&Ms/Resses Pieces (candy) Smarties
Mars Bar (candy) Topic
M&Ms are NOT smarties
Mars Bar is NOT a Topic!
Does either the US/UK use the word togs for swimsuit. Learned it when I lived in NZ, but don't think it's used elsewhere. Is it?
Togs is simply clothes.
Swimming togs = Swimsuit.
'Get togged up' = Dress smartly.
Fanny
(it's different. Hope I dont need to explain further, but US are a couple of inches off)
More seriously, though:
Pants are UNDERWEAR! because we have Trousers.
Shorts are worn for swimming, sports, or in hot weather!
We walk on pavements.
Women carry their money in a purse and keep the purse in a handbag.
Bumpers not fenders
Kids eat sweets not candy
The storage space of a car is a boot.
Petrol is a liquid. It's Kerosene not Gasoline!
Shows are things they put on at theatres. Programs (PRROGRAMMES?)are shown on television.
A mobile telephone is a 'mobile or a 'phone. Cellular has no meaning for us british folk!
A sandwich is two slices of bread with a filling. A baguette or a roll is what you have if the bread partisn't normal sliced bread :)
We have motorways, the freeways' baby brothers.
Our apartments would be flat
Our elevators would be a lift
Asian people come from Asia, more typically, the indian subcontinent. Not just Oriental types from the far east!
Football is Soccer
Hockey is a girls game with no ice.
A park is a place with swings, climbing frames and maybe a river and some nice scenery.
A car park is where you park your car
Spring Summer AUTUMN Winter
---Ahh okay, so I started repeating a lot of that list up there, but- hey thats confusing, the way it changes from ENGLISH-AMERICAN to AMERICAN-ENGLISH....
Oh and as I recently experienced:
We have MANUAL TRANSMISSION. "Stick Shift" Does seem to simplify :D
The year 292,277,026,596 problem is not, however, widely regarded as a pressing issue
Interesting read thanks. Can you tell I'm bored.
A program is computer code. All other types of programmes, such as TV programmes are spelt as such.
Nobody really seems to have mentioned the other English speaking countries. As far as I understand it, apart from colloquialisms, every English speaking country bar the USA and Canada speak the same type of English with very, very few exceptions. The USA has quite a few differences in spellings and words in general although I've no idea why. Canada seems to be a half way house between proper English and US-English.
My 'favourite' is Aluminium vs Aluminum.
www.dictionary.com takes Aluminum as *the* spelling while, under Aluminium it states... 'Chiefly British'.
Blooming cheek.
Smoking a fag would get you hurt (or arrested) in some cities in the US :-P
RLACS (ROARING LAUGHING AND CAAN"T STOP)
yeah... and what's da deal with the word schedule... why can't you blokes pronounce it the way it's supposed to be pronounced...
--Mike
Hello.
Bush = Pubic Hair.
Goodbye.
"every English speaking country bar the USA and Canada speak the same type of English with very, very few exceptions."One very big exception is Hingrish, which is a kind of half breed between Hindi and english, and is becoming more and more popular in the middle east!
I find it quite amusing when english people get defensive about it being OUR LANGUAGE and such, yes it may have originated here but c'mon, it flew the nest years ago and it's its own entity now. Half of the english language is borrowed anyway - from France, Germany, even India! (pyjamas - indian word!).
http://www.wordorigins.org/histeng.htm#amer
Well thanks for that lovely comment SoggyP. What a wonderful way to show up, turn the thread political, and put it on the 'to be locked' list!
SoggyP = Bush's Pubic Hair
yeah... and what's da deal with the word schedule... why can't you blokes pronounce it the way it's supposed to be pronounced...
lol, we just use the h as a silient letter :-) Tomato Tomato I guess!
Spring Summer AUTUMN Winter
Well, we have Winter and Construction, the only two seasons that apply in Wisconsin!
A mobile telephone is a 'mobile or a 'phone. Cellular has no meaning for us british folk!
Lol, well we have a ton of mobile devices. Asking to use someone's mobil over here would welcome the 20 questions game
"My mobil what?"
"Yer mobil"
"Well, I'm sitting at the moment, so not really"
"No, yer MOBIL"
"Not really, do you want me to be?"
:-P
A park is a place with swings, climbing frames and maybe a river and some nice scenery.
Same here. To
park your car is different than going to a park! Parking your car is named for the 'park' [P] gear, which is similar to parking the heads on an old hard drive before shutting it down.
Football is Soccer
Football is Football, soccer is soccer! A football player could kick the crap out of a soccer player anyday!
;-)
Bumpers not fenders
same here. A fender is behind the bumper.
Women carry their money in a purse and keep the purse in a handbag.
We call the whole handbag a purse because they never get the money to stay in that little compartment. Its usually all over inside there. I have fears, deep seeded fears of my wife's purse.... Excuse me, that brought a horrible purse exploring flash back.......................
/shakes it off
> Your beer is weak and tasteless.
I submit that it is not tasteless, but what it actually tastes like I cannot say since that would get the thread locked.
American English
-------- -------
aisle gangway
Here "gangway!" means "Get out of the way!", yelled only in circumstances, such as this:
AM radio Medium wave
antenna aerial (radio/TV)
AM stands for Amplitude Modulation.
And here we have aerials on our cars.
awaken someone (to) knock up
Haha! That's one that could lead to some confusion.
Here, knocking someone up means getting them pregnant.
baby bed/crib cot/crib
Here, a cot is this:
band-aid elastoplast/plaster
Here if you ask for plaster, you're likely to be sent to a hardware store:
biscuit scone-like thing (no equivalent)
Only some kinds of biscuits are scone-like. The ones I like are like little bits of dense, fresh baked bread.
Eh, I just noticed the list has translations that go both ways, so I'm not going to go through all the rest of it. :-)
cross-walk pelican crossing
Why's it called a pelican crossing?
Here's a few english words we use over here interchangeably:
dead-end cul-de-sac
desk clerk receptionist
drapes curtains
faculty staff
fall autumn
faucet tap
front desk (hotel) reception
garbage/trash rubbish
garbage can/ash can/trash can dustbin/bin
Speaking of stuff from England... I mentioned here a while back I was gonna try bangers and mashed at the local bar. Well I did! The sausages were terrible! They tasted like breakfast sausage. And they provided gravy and some weird sweet reddish sauce with it. I don't know whether that's usally how it tastes or is supposed to come, but I'd never order it again!
I was hoping for some fancy thick sausages with a mild or spicy flavor, more like italian sausage. But it did make for some conversation with the guy next to me at the bar who wanted to know what it was. :-)
"Football is Football, soccer is soccer! A football player could kick the crap out of a soccer player anyday!
;-)"
Since soccer players do a lot more kicking than football players, I think it would be the other way around. :-)
> Here "gangway!" means "Get out of the way!", yelled only in circumstances, such as this:
That video clip is awesome! (I miss the old Batman)
There are also a few grammatical differences. for example, in US English you can use the word "gotten" but in UK english you must use "got".
Is anyone actually doing any development?
yeah... sure we are :)
actually... as we speak, i'm in the process of porting over all my 3DRAD logic for my sub game to my new OO Blitz engine...
seeeeee....
Blitz is proving sooooo much easier to work with, now that i've got it object oriented (sort of :) )... so much so, that i have time in between the lines of coding to watch that olde Batman clip up there over and over (thx for the memories sswifty :) where did ya dig that up )...
hey... don't you guys have a Batman over there as well... except he's some osrt of gentleman's gentleman... or something... and doesn't wear a cape and a cowl...
--Mike
M&Ms are NOT smarties
Not directly, no... But what they sell as 'smarties' in Europe is pretty much the same as standard M&M's, while in the US 'smarties' as are those little dextrose (pure sugar) tablet candies.
coloUr (meh... 99% of my Blitz errors)
humoUr
laboratory does not sound anything like lavatory
thrOuGH
...iSe
Jam is the stuff you spread on toast. Jelly is the wobbly stuff in a trifle and Jello just isnt anything.
BURGLED! Places are never 'burglarizd'
'flu is effluenza. No one wants it. Chimneys are useful for places with real fires.
Smart means tidy and presentable. Clever means intelligent.
----------------------------------------------------------
;) Implied if not otherwise stated!
BTW, speaking of Mars Bars. We don't have Mars Bars here in the US. But we do have Milkyways.
The funny thing is, the milky way here in the states is actually a UK Mars bar since it has the caramel and whatsit filling.
I am glad I can still get my Mars bars, even if they are hidden in Milkyway clothing :)
look smarties and M&Ms really aren't similar at all sure they are chocolate in a shell but the chocolate AND the shell taste different and have a different texture imho.
We have MilyWay in the U.K. but it's not the same as mars bar for sure, it's softer and has no caramel.
Hello.
@Darkhalf: Bush = Pubic Hair. Not trying to be political, just contributing - it just so happens we hit a point of humourous (sorry humoros) coincidence. No more, no less. Sorry, if humour isn't allowed anymore.
@#!*ed = Drunk
@#!*ed = Angry
Pants = Trousers
Pants = Not Very Good
Goodbye.
Sorry, if humour isn't allowed anymore.
it's not... so cut it out.
:)
--Mike
"BTW, speaking of Mars Bars. We don't have Mars Bars here in the US. But we do have Milkyways."
I know we had Mars bars in the 80's. I haven't seen one recently, but I haven't been looking. :-)
"We have MilyWay in the U.K. but it's not the same as mars bar for sure, it's softer and has no caramel."
I wonder if that is what we call a "Three Musketeers". Mars bars have caramel on top, and a soft filling undernearth. Three Musketeers has no caramel but is full of that weird soft filling.
Do you guys have
malls in the UK?
It took me a while to get used to using the 'colour' command in AMOS on the Amiga, since every other pgroamming language I'd used until then had always used 'color'...
Do you guys have malls in the UK?
Yeah, theres a BIG indoor shopping centre called 'The Metro Centre' in Gateshead... near where I live (Well, about 15 miles away), and it's seperated into malls... Red Mall, Green Mall, Blue Mall and Yellow Mall!
Supposedly, it's the biggest in Europe... It's quite a place! :)
Dabz
A small gripe of mine is how Windows uses American spelling even though I chose British/English settings:
UK US
------------------------
Favourite Favorite
Colour Color
As for Malls, yes but we call then shopping precincts.
I think we ought to cater for the Kiwis amongst us too:
Kiwi English translation
-------------------------------------------
g'day Cobber Good afternoon my Frined
Ripper Excellent
What a beaut Thats very nice indeed
Fair dinkum I'm happy with that
Isnt there a street in sheffield called 'The Mall'???
I worked there a few years ago, and it seems familiar!
Dabz
"Supposedly, it's the biggest in Europe... It's quite a place! :)"
A hundred square feet even! It's like two English houses side by side!
Oh, and I figured out why the English call a car's trunk a "boot". Because that's about how big it is, and about all it can hold. :-)
A hundred square feet even! It's like two English houses side by side!
We use metric in the UK... More accurate, that's why our houses look better! ;)
Dabz
Cashpoint = ATM
>> Oh, and I figured out why the English call a car's trunk a "boot". Because that's about how big it is, and about all it can hold. :-)
For want on not getting drawn into this however... Our cars can go round corners. But lets not get into cars because we all know the Germans do it best... especially when they have British design.
We get 100 Amps of incoming power capacity to our homes. Americans can't even run an electric kettle. Seriously, just try and buy a kettle in the US, you get funny looks.
I wonder if that is what we call a "Three Musketeers".
I dunno...Can you eat one between meals without spoiling your appetite?
"humped" = to defeat in a humiliating way
rugby ~ (american) football
as in "the Scots humped the English at rugby this weekend"
Not directly relevant, just thought I would rub it in !
USA: Baseball (Men with caps hitting ball with a stick)
UK : Rounders (Junior school girls hitting ball with a stick)
USA: Basketball (Men with vests and squeaky shoes bouncing a ball)
UK : Netball (Junoir school girls with plimsoles bouncing a ball)
USA: American football (Men with more armour than a Challenger tank throwing a ball)
UK : Rugby (Men who chew each others ears and noses off throwing a ball)
USA: Beat the English yonks ago at a little game called war
UK: Beat everybody else! :D
Good thread this... Though, I hope my aunty pat doesnt read this, she lives in California and I'll probably get a slap next time I see her! LOL
Dabz
OMG.. it's 21:35.... Better get a little coding done before I hit the hay... night night all! :)
"We get 100 Amps of incoming power capacity to our homes. Americans can't even run an electric kettle. Seriously, just try and buy a kettle in the US, you get funny looks."
Ha! I'll have you know I FOUND an electric kettle at the gourmet kitchen/food store at the local mall. :-)
Funny story about boiling water though. I live in an older building, with cruddy wiring, and if I try to run the microwave and the toaster at the same time, I lose all power to my kitchen because it trips the circuit breaker. :-)
Of course there's no such problem making toast and boiling water with my coffee maker. Darned microwaves!
As for amps:
Our dryer outlets are 30 amps at 240 volts. I've seen the dryers you guys have on TV... The hole is about 1' (30 centimeters) wide to stuff the clothes in! You can fit like ONE blanket in there. Our dryers have like 4x the capacity, and a hole about twice as wide.
So if we only need 30 amps to run that huge dryer, you English chaps must make a hell of a lot of tea to need 100 amps at 240 volts.
Either that or all your computers and TV's and Radios are still running off vaccuum tubes.
English motherboard:
sswift: I do have a couple of Marshall Amps with nice fat valves in. btw, that three mustkeeteers DOES sound like a milky way. Post a pic?
Rob Farley: Actually I think the Japanese have figured out going round corners pretty well with Subaru, Mitsubishi and Nissan. I'm wondering if I can upgrade my Impreza to a Skyline before they become illegal due to running on fossil fuel.
Wonder if I can sneek this "beer goggles" joke in here, I thought it was pretty funny.
A man walks into a bar and asks for a beer. After drinking it, he looks in his shirt pocket and asks for another beer.
After drinking that one, he looks in his shirt pocket again and asks for another beer.
This happens about another seven times before the bartender asks him, "Why do you keep looking in your pocket?"
The man replies, "I have a picture of my wife in there. When she looks good enough, I'll go home."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3_Musketeers_(candy)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milky_Way_%28candy%29http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars_barSo according to this the conversaion chart is:
UK : US
Mars : Milky Way
Milky Way : Three Musketeers
So we don't have any Mars bars (I know we did in the 80's, but maybe that was before the name got changed) and you don't have Three Musketeers.
The Marathon bar got changed to Snickers over here
There are plenty of websites showing comparisons of common differences in language.
Beyond the actual spelling of words that is different there are also differences in how sentences are put together.
British is much more wordy and longwinded. If you chop out as much unnecessary `bumph` as possible it sounds more American, which is more spontaneous and simple.
Also emphasis is wholly different both in the pronunciation of the words and in the order in which the emphasis is expected to flow, with it being generally the opposite in each country.
In American speak, they usually put more emphasis on the start of a sentence and the start of each word, whereas British puts more emphasis toward the end of the sentence and the end of the word. This is a general rule, might not always apply. Usually they are opposite.
America: "COUldn't EXplain WHat haPPENED"
British: "coulDN't exPLAIN whAT HAppened"
Something like that.
Just don't refer to words like fanny or pants in the wrong way.
swift: cool I think that is the most important piece of UK/US research in thsi thread. Thanks.
Angel, I do believe you're wrong on you emphasis location point (certainly with the example given). I think anyone speaking in a British accent the way you suggested would sound very strange indeed. The only people who would speak like that would be criminal masterminds (who are always English) in hollywood movies.
Of course there is the 'valley' american where everything is a question and the intonation rises at the end of every sentence. Likewise this also happens with Canadians and Austrailians too.
Generally I do agree with your point on diction, certainly the american diction is simplified in many ways and spelling frequently appears to be reduced to phonetic spelling. Through / Thru, Colour / Color etc etc.
I do find speech fascinating though, having had 10 years of speech therapy for a severe stutter I really don't take being able to speak what I'm thinking for granted.
Okay but heres something else. America is made up of every other country so it makes sense that it would be different. But to add to the language confusion, this is how we do it in the East Bay of California...
A "fag" is a derogitory term. (homosexual)
No can be "napes"
Yes can be "fo sho"
And a whole list of slang terms used in everyday language like "hellsa"
And highways are freeways, and streets technicly can be ways, streets, avenues, boulevards, drives, circles, etc.
But besides that, we have are own inter-state problems. As in more south eastern people say "pop" as we say cola/or soda. And even though cola is a type of soda, it can mean anything here.
heh when I answer the phone, and it's for the wife who isn't homem I often pick up the phone and say....
"I'm afraid she isn't home at the moment, would you like to leave a message?"
This amuses Americans no end.
At my old work, they were always trying to get me to say "CD Burner", because the way I said burner was so cool!!!!
Through / Thru
Where do you come up with thru? I've never written it that way, and it's not even in the dictionary. That's just lazy internet speak, like b4.
"I'm afraid she isn't home at the moment, would you like to leave a message?"
This amuses Americans no end.
Why? I don't geddit.
maybe he just sounds English or something?
You mean he's polite. :P
yeah he doesn't say "What? Who? OK."
It's the 'afraid' part. Apparently afraid only means scared here, so using it to communicate regret doesn't make much sense to most people.
I'm not surprised you don't get many electric kettles in the USA, if you are running a 3000w kettle @ 110v you are drawing something like 27 Amps. I might be wrong, but I think the flexible cable to the kettle would have to be about 4mmSquare (and not very flexible).
Does anyone remember the "Double Decker"? When my Canadian auntie came over for a holiday, she nearly pee'd herself when she saw the advert for the chocolate. It was something like "Keep your pecker up, with a double decker".
wow I never knew about "Afraid".
Yeah, pecker is nothing, compared to when I first heard an Australian on Neighbours say "Yeah, he's full of spunk" or something similar, I mean Jesus!
Hello.
There was a children's film out far too many years ago called 'Spunky and the Tadpole' that my friends and I used to spend hours outside the video shop laughing at.
Yes, things were grim in Wales.
http://www.toontracker.com/spunky/spunktad.htmGoodbye.
lol/Interesting. At least he was a little boy. Imagine being a teenager and being called spunky. In fact imagine being a girl... village bike an' all that.
Wow, that's something else that is.
"It's the 'afraid' part. Apparently afraid only means scared here, so using it to communicate regret doesn't make much sense to most people."
I'm afraid you're mistaken about that. :-) I'm perfectly comfortable using it in that manner, and I'm sure a lot of other people are too. I'm sure they're just giggling at his silly accent.
"I'm not surprised you don't get many electric kettles in the USA, if you are running a 3000w kettle @ 110v you are drawing something like 27 Amps. I might be wrong, but I think the flexible cable to the kettle would have to be about 4mmSquare (and not very flexible)."
3000 watts?! 27 amps?!
I have a device called a
"Hot Shot". It heats one cup of water in about a minute and draws only 1450 watts. It doesn't say how many amps, but the cable is of standard thickness, which going by my extension cables, is good for 13 amps.
I have a "heavy duty" extension cable which is quite a bit thicker. About as thick as the one on the microwave. But I'm pretty sure it's not quite as heavy duty as that. It is good for a mere 15 amps. My microwave is 1550 watts, and will also boil a cup of water in around a minute. At 110 volts that's around 14 amps.
How the hell much tea are you making and how fast that you need 3000 watts to do it?!
USA : Perfect teeth
UK : Crooked yellow smashed to bits teeth
That's another beauty... Americans always think their teeth is whiter than ours!?!
I find it amusing because I brush twice a day, chew 'chewy' and visit the dentist at every check up, because if I don't, I lose my place... And it's an absolute nightmare in the UK to re-register in another dentist!
Dabz
*Just thought I'd throw that into the mix... because it was probably coming anyway! :)
Your beer is weak and tasteless.
Amen! :)
Beer is nothing but vile swill anyway.
Captain Morgan's Spiced Rum and Coke with a slice of lime is where it's at.
In the the Uk a 'rubber' is used for rubbing things out, in the US its a Condiominium which is a posh flat... hehe. Nah ok its its a condom :)
Cheers
Garion
The most common and annoying spelling "mistakes" in games are armor and honor. Which are correctly spelt armour and honour.
Take heed of the mothercountry people as if you stray too far we may not accept you back, and could even send over troops to quell the rebellion.
Tea party indeed...
Right, i'm off to wax my jacket and re-thatch the roof.
Over here (Australia) a 'thong' (plural 'thongs') is/are something you wear on your feet which I believe elsewhere is called a 'flip-flop'.
More interesting is what a thong is over here ;)
The highest fuse for domestic plugs is 13Amps so if your kettle took any more it would blow.
Another Cringe worthy gripe is the use of the word loose instead of lose to indicate that yoo have LOST something, but thats not strictly a UK/US thing :)
Cheers
Garion
who spells you like yoo
coz its da thing to doo
Nope, that's just illiteracy - the official language of the internet.
"Right, i'm off to wax my jacket"
You should really keep that to yourself. :-)
wt y tlkn bt, jstlk?
Yeah, I've never heard it called a 'jacket' before. :P
funniest one I ever heard, I'm "lol"ing right now, is "Punch the Pumpkin" rofl!
How come having 4 pints in the USA means something is up, and the bartender does a trisha!
In the UK, you've got to drink 2 litres of 20/20, 8 cans of super strength (11%) and 15 gallons of vodka and redbull before the bouncer thinks about tearing you to bits!?!
Dabz
P.S. I cannot believe this post is still going... and yep, I am drunk... Drinking red wine... 'I say old chap, since you ponder the red stuff, would you class yourself as a blackpool donkey?'
When you read headlines like "Four dead in cartoon row"
I have to wonder which row, maybe isle three in the cereal
section or a book store in the comics section. It was
a drive by in a mini clowncar.