Real English vis a vis U.S english

Tefila

Mon, Feb 14 2005, 3:15 pm

Since when is a plug that we pop in babys mouth called a sussy, here in England it is called a dummy.

A part of the bottle that the baby sucks on is a Nipple pleeeeease
shock

here in England it's called a teat.

A serviette is what one uses to wipe their face and hands NOT a napkin shock

Anymore ladies that you can come up with? Tongue Out

sarahd

Mon, Feb 14 2005, 3:18 pm

In England you probably wouldn't say, "Pull up your pants" embarrassed

'twould be trousers, I dare say...

And go figure out the difference between a pram and a buggy. A prize to the American who can guess which is the carriage and which the stroller.

Motek

Mon, Feb 14 2005, 3:21 pm

Americans' sweater is your jumper.

and you spell funny too Wink

I can tell the non-American posters by their extra 'u'

and sussy is not American, pacifier is

and you say milkie and meaty which Americans do NOT say!

Motek

Mon, Feb 14 2005, 3:23 pm

REASONS WHY THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE IS SO HARD TO UNDERSTAND:

"The bandage was wound around the wound."

"The farm was used to produce produce."

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

"We must polish the Polish furniture."

"He could lead if he would get the lead out."

"The soldier decided to desert his dessert in the desert."

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

"A bass was painted on the head of the bass drum."

"When shot at, the dove dove into the bushes."

"I did not object to the object."

"The insurance was invalid for the invalid."

"There was a row among the oarsmen about how to row."

"They were too close to the door to close it."

"The buck does funny things when the does are present."

"A seamstress and a sewer fell down into a sewer line."

"To help with planting, the farmer taught his sow to sow."

"The wind was too strong to wind the sail."

"After a number of injections my jaw got number."

"Upon seeing the tear in the painting I shed a tear."

"I had to subject the subject to a series of tests."

"How can I intimate this to my most intimate friend?"

***
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.

Quicksand works 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, 2 geese. So one moose, 2 meese? If you have a bunch of odds and ends and get rid of all but one of them, what do you call it? Is it an odd, or an end?

If teachers taught, why didn't preachers praught? If a vegetarian eats vegetables, what does a humanitarian eat? 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?

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.

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

P.S. - Why doesn't "Buick" rhyme with "quick"?

Tefila

Mon, Feb 14 2005, 3:26 pm

Quote:

And go figure out the difference between a pram and a buggy.

And a pushchair

Your right in England you would not go to the drycleaners and ask them to clean your husbands pants.
Or ask your daughter to put on her jumper thats all, what about a dress shock

there it is called a pinafore dress!

A Trunk here is called there a boot not sure that any of these terminologys make sense!

But generally England despite the impression they give, is all with it Tongue Out

Tefila

Mon, Feb 14 2005, 3:29 pm

We go to a chemist not a drug store shock

We say newspaper not neuspaper

Meaty and milky is the same made up language as your sussy so there Tongue Out

And yep it requires brains to both read and understand our language which not many possess.
So yes then it's hard.
But there is always American language which one can learn it is on the remedial level!

Motek

Mon, Feb 14 2005, 3:35 pm

biscuits for cookies

and americans haven't heard of scones, nor that vile stuff called marmite!

http://www.spurgeon.org/~phil/marmite.htm

and we don't have wainscot

ooh, I would have so many more words but my English-book-reading days are long past

Tefila

Mon, Feb 14 2005, 3:41 pm

Since when is jelly something you spread on bread ewwww, with us it's kids desert or treat.

Scones are your breakfast muffins, but way better.

Ok some of your words do make more sense but for sure they are a minority
Like a bungalow by us is by you a ranch house. And your bungalow is our holiday home!
Your diapers are our nappys they prob came up with that terminology after a child mispronounced, who knows Rolling Eyes

hadasa

Mon, Feb 14 2005, 3:56 pm

I have a whole dictionary American-English English-American Smile

. (OK, it's only 40 pages.) Some of the entries:

apartment : flat
crib : cot
candy : sweets
chips : crisps
french fries : chips
eggplant : aubergines
elevator: lift
fall : autumn
garbage : rubbish
gas: petrol
soccer : football
truck : lorry
vacuum cleaner : hoover
vacation : holiday
zee : zed
zucchini : courgettes

sarahd

Mon, Feb 14 2005, 3:57 pm

You know the one about the Englishman and the American, who were arguing about car parts. The Limey said, "It's a windscreen" and the Yank said, "It's a windshield." The argument continued till the American said, "Our term must be correct because we invented the car." "Well we," said the Englishman, "invented the language."

Motek

Mon, Feb 14 2005, 4:13 pm

hey sarahd - whose side are YOU on? Wink

"Real" English vs. U.S. English - hah!

zuncompany

Mon, Feb 14 2005, 4:18 pm

wait wait wait!

freilich- I thought you were in canada!

sara

micki

Mon, Feb 14 2005, 4:25 pm

or the first time I was exposed to a real proper english (england that is not american) speaking human-

was in seminary and this girl comes by and in her rapid fire not to understandible english tells me " have you seen the hoova" I said oh my name is micki nice to meet you ahuva. so she says no have you seen the hoova? I say oh you are not ahuva but you are looking for her. she says no you daft americans- the hoova the hoova!!! and make a vaccume cleaner motion.
and B"H I am blessd with enough brains to figure out that english use the brand name as the item and figured out she wanted the hoover. a vaccume cleaner. who would have thought the the guy who invented the VACCUM CLEANER would forever have his inventione called by his last name!!>??
that was a good laugh.
or how kleenex instead of tissue. and what happens if you bought a different brand? say tissue!!!

sussy is yiddish- pacifier american

the funniest is my brother in law who was raised in brooklyn married a girl from another country and today when he comes to our house asks for a nappy for his kid!!!

zuncompany

Mon, Feb 14 2005, 4:47 pm

Bet his wife is pretty proud of this fact!

sara

Tefila

Mon, Feb 14 2005, 5:00 pm

Ok zun I'm living in Canada but was born in England so I speak ENGLISH no r'rs at the end of each word! Very Happy

Motek

Mon, Feb 14 2005, 5:09 pm

I was once in northern England, Newcastle area, where the people speak Question

I dunno what, definitely nothing I could understand!

Tefila

Mon, Feb 14 2005, 5:12 pm

There you go like I said earlier you need a college degree or something to understand them, oops us. Very Happy

motheroftwo

Mon, Feb 14 2005, 7:14 pm

how 'bout "knickers" for underpants?
My mother lived a long time in England and still uses alot of "english" english words. WHenever she says knickers, I cringe!!
When she was newly married she told her mother-in-law that she needs to buy a Hoover (meaning vacuum cleaner). Her mother-in-law berated her for having to get such a "fancy" vacuum and couldn't she just buy a cheaper brand!!! SHe must have told us this story 1000 times.

Rivka

Mon, Feb 14 2005, 7:17 pm

Quote:

was in seminary and this girl comes by and in her rapid fire not to understandible english tells me " have you seen the hoova" I said oh my name is micki nice to meet you ahuva.

Hey I said that in sem and the girl was like "who's ahuva?" and I didn't understand what she was talking about because I wanted the hoover.
But the other girl's name wasn't micki.
Anyway talking about us using brand names. What we call cellotape (brand name) you Americans call Scotch Tape (brand name).
Jel-o is your jelly, when Jell-O is infact a brand name and I don't think it is kosher.
Oh Americans say food tastes good but we say it tastes nice.

Quote:

and you spell funny too I can tell the non-American posters by their extra 'u'

We spell funny? I think it is the Americans who can;t spell.
also why wouldn't a girl wear a jumper freilich? A jumper in the US are dungarees and the US doesnt have a cardigan.
But your turtle necks are our polar necks.
Dress is a dress. Unless you talk Enid Blyton and call it a frock.
A fag is a cigarette, but in the US it's a gay bloke.
Loads of differences only that in the UK we know all the American words so you can't say anything without us knowing what you mean, in the meantime we can say nasty stuff and you American't wouldn't have a clue. I mean even the Harry Potter book had to be changed for the Americans. What was it the Philosopher's Stone to the Sourcerer's Stone, coz the American's wouldn't understand.

technic

Mon, Feb 14 2005, 7:48 pm

rivka heres a tip - drop the extra "u" and theyll never know WHERE u r (except thats its in ur profile!!!!) - ive been doing it for yrs;)