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Knickers = Panties (although I have a note on this one that it's my assumption as I'd never heard of 'panties' before I came across nfic!)

This is true; however, you need to be careful with this one. Women wear panties. When you call men's underwear panties, it's usually intended as an insult, ie, to tell a man he's acting in a way usually associated negatively with women, ie, catty or bitchy. Such as "Don't get your panties in a wad."


Rubber = Eraser

This made me laugh, since rubber is a term for a condom in the US. You might get some odd looks if you called the thing on your pencil a rubber.

Sometimes, even dictionaries can lead you astray. I know of a case where a German wanted to use the word for "Hahn" (= male chicken). The first translation that came up was cock, without any warning attached. (Sure, she was later told that she should have used the term rooster, but still...)

Maybe this is another thing that's different between American and British English? Also, this other meaning of cock always makes me think of what a cock fight must look like. (Never fails to make me giggle.)

Another thing I noticed (as being taught British English at school) is the term "cab", which took me a while to figure out. (Sometimes, I'm just too lazy to look things up.) I was taught to call a cab a taxi. :rolleyes:

Part of the problem with English, I think, is that there are just so many words for everything. I would consider the words cab and taxi as fully interchangeable. However...

Well, if someone were to talk about a cock fight, I'd know immediately that they were talking about two roosters fighting. On the other hand, if someone were to write this:

It might take me a moment to realize what the author was actually saying.

ML

There's a British expression that always makes me do a double-take: Keep your pecker up. I know it only means something to the effect of, "Keep your spirits up," or "Don't get discouraged," but such an encouragement said in the United States would *definitely* be nfic fodder!

Joy,
Lynn

tires=tyres
pajamas=pyjamas
on vacation=on holiday

Also, I think the best example of walking the English/Am-glish line is the Harry Potter series. I heard that Scholastic went through the language to make it “universal” as possible but I don’t know if they kept the same text everywhere.

tennis shoes=trainers (though an athelete might also call them trainers)

BTW—My wife hates the term “panties”.

Just remembered--"bloody" has an entirely different meaning here in the States. There was an English expat teacher in my elementary school. A child fell off a swing and it was reported to her that "Johnny has a bloody lip." Wow did she get upset!

Did she? Why? I'm not aware of any reason why someone from the UK would get terribly upset at the use of the word bloody. It's used in both the context of something bleeding and as a very, very mild cussword. But in the latter context, it's not considered at all scandalous.

LabRat

English-American differences have always fascinated me,,and I have adopted some English forms because I prefer them. For example, grey instead of gray and theatre instead of theater because I think the English forms are prettier to look at. Other differences can be hilariously confusing. An English friend of mine recounted a story about her experience in dating an American GI during the war. (That's WW 2 to you youngsters.) He asked her for a date and she replied, "Great. Come round and knock me up about 7:00." Ensuing explanations were enjoyed by all.

On the point of knickers, I seem to recall that was the term used for the short to the knee pants that little boys wore in the early days of the 20th century. They were mighty pleased when they were old enough to wear trousers which were long pants. Perhaps a throwback to the adult males in the 18th century who wore knee britches until Beau Brummel made it fashionable to wear the full length trousers.

Jude

It could well be - that item of clothing was called knickerbockers, so it seems likely. Ah, here we go - from Wiki:

LabRat

I thought of an American English to English English question while off on vacation.
So American to English
if cookie = biscuit
what does American "biscuit" equal?
It is not an English Muffin. We have that here too.
Biscuits in America are often called "baking powder biscuits" because they use baking powder to rise. You make a dough, cut the biscuits with a round cutter, put them on a greased baking sheet and bake them. When done and cooled, you cut them in half and put butter and jam or honey on them and eat them for breakfast.
What do the English eat that is comparable?

Artemis

Not to distract from Artemis's biscuit question. (I want to know too.)

car park=parking lot (general) or parking structure (if a covered lot or multistory)

take-away restaurant=take out restaurant

ring (place a telephone call)=multiple--usually "call", but British English is more flexible in this than American. For example, I was just reading "The Game". Lois is thinking that Clark's number is "the only one that didn't ring into a take-out restaurant." An American would probably use a more awkward construct like "the only one that wasn't for a take-out restaurant." In this case, the British is less familiar but I still think it reads more smoothly.

Can't say I've ever heard of parking structure. I've heard of multi-story car parks and lock-ups (private garages rented from the local council by home owners, which stand in a row at the bottom of the street). Also parking bays (where it's not a garage as such, but the parking areas outside homes are covered with a roof on pillars, to give some protection from the elements, but the sides and front are open to the air).

But, as always, that comes with a caveat that the UK is a big place, made up of many regions and more than one country, all with their own phrases. So just because I've never heard of it doesn't mean it's not in use somewhere.

Artemis, I'm not sure what your biscuits would be. From the description, I think the closest might be scones - but few people would have those for breakfast.

LabRat

A quick note; all I have time for.

Scones are sweeter than our biscuits.

I would use the term "parking garage" to refer to what Shallowford called a parking structure. And we, too, have parking bays over here.

Joy,
Lynn

I love scones, but they are not baking powder biscuits. It's sad to know England may never have experienced them. It may be an American invention because we didn't have yeast in the early days.
Also you can buy them in the grocery store in the refrigeration section in paper tubes. You break open the tube, place to shape on a baking sheet and bake it.
Here's a Pilsbury site with a picture of biscuits:
http://www.pillsburybaking.com/reci...its&gclid=CLa_r_mnvqMCFSL6iAodgmXQcw
Also a breakfast tradition is "biscuits and gravy". The white gravy with sausage pieces in it is poured over hot biscuits. The two items are kept separate on a buffet and you combine the two on your plate to your ratio of gravy to biscuits. This is very popular in the free breakfasts in hotels.
http://www.pillsbury.com/Recipes/Sh...0200_636117&WT.srch=1&esrc=11183
This is a car port, attached to a house in the southwest of America where there is no or little snow for winter and the car won't freeze. It is basically to keep the car in the shade.
Thanks for your replies.
Artemis

Well, I’m learning something new every day. It appears that I’ve never had scones properly before. The ones I’ve had have been these dry triangular brick things.

Nothing beats biscuits hot out of the oven with cold butter on them. My family puts jelly or jam on them but I don’t believe in desecrating something so perfect with sugar. I’d be interested to hear what you think of them across the pond(s).

Note: Do NOT overmix the ingredients. If you do, you’ll end up with something as bad as the “scones” I’ve had.


A parking garage is the same thing as a parking structure. I think of a parking structure as less protected from the elements.

Some northern homes also have carports but they don’t perform any meaningful purpose-- snow still piles up and it is more difficult to shovel. Also, many apartments and condominiums have carports rather than garages.

Funny, I’ve never heard the term “parking bay”. Regional terms are all strangely dispersed though. Groceries usually go into a “bag” in the north but in a “sack” in the south. Water comes from a “drinking fountain” here but I think the term is “bubbler” there. We drink “pop”—southerners and the west coast people drink “soda”. It's amazing we can communicate in our own country.


Since Queen of the Capes brought it up I’ve been thinking about the “in hospital”/”in school” usage. It bugs me that we’re not consistent. I think part of the (American) difference might be referring to a specific place versus a generic concept or a title. I would go to “a school” building (“the school” if everyone knew which one I was mentioning) but “in school” means that I’m attending classes at an institution. I would go to “a/the hospital” building if I was hurt but “in the hospital” means the person has been admitted. Then again, my father-in-law goes to “the hardware” and it’s like nails-on-a-chalkboard every time. (I can see him standing in his back yard looking over a jumbled pile of rusted metal when he says it. Dan, it’s a hardware STORE!)

Yes, scones can be bricks, especially in an airport. The best scones I ever had was (I think, this is a few years ago) in Scotland on the way to the Highlands at the Pass of Killiecrankie Vistors Center on the A9 near Blair Atholl lodge. A local lady made them. I didn't put anything on it and it melted in my mouth. Actually, it was a lot like a biscuit.

Artemis

To solve the flashlight mystery: originally, flashlights were used not only for lighting but also for signaling. They had one switch which turned the light on, but a separate button which caused it to flash (like the pulse button on a blender). Thus, you could use the flash button to send a Morse code signal through the dark. You can see this in old WWII movies or, more recently, in the battle scene in the Disney version of Prince Caspian.