UK English vs US English?

tap-fosset

crisps-chips

chips-fries

ar$e-***

bum-fanny

Mum-Mom

tomatoe/tomato

pavement-sidewalk

jam-jelly

toilets-rest room

flat-apartment

handbag-purse

dummy-Pacifier

nappy-diaper

tissues-kleenex (do they not know any other brand?!?!)

I went to visit some of my relatives in America(they went to live ther bout 14yr ago) my little nephew said mommy look at the aeros on the road...i was looking for bubbly minty chocolate bars til his mum explained he said arrows!!

Also whats with them calling it English when they dont use our english words?!

That was fun...have a star.xx

;-)

Motorway = highway

Colour = color

Pavement = sidewalk

Plaster = Band-aid

Garden = yard

Crisps = chips

Chips = Fries

Centre = center

Post Code = Zip code

Post = Mail

Nappy = Diapper

Rubbish = Garbage

Bin = Garbage/ Dust bin

Tissues = Kleenex

Flat = apartement / Condo

Block of flats = Condonium

Petrol = Gas

Council = City

Lift = Elevator

MobilePhone = Cell Phone

Bathroom = Washroom

Loo = toilet

Sweet = Candy

Holiday = Vacation

That's all i can think of.

I have just read a very sad book about Latvians moving to America after many years of torture from the Russians. They were preparing a meal and decided they needed paper napkins (or serviettes!) One of the older men was sent to the drug store to purchase some (drug store always confuses me!) and got a thick ear when he got back with a packet of sanitary towels!

I too had a few mishaps when I went to America. I was cheerfully explaining that I was an AI (Assistant Riding Instructor in English) and wondered why everything went quiet until it was explained that AI in America means Artificial Inseminator!

I love languages though!

Car boot- trunk

Nappies- diapers

Doughnuts-donuts

Colours-colors

Toilet- restroom/bathroom

Rubbish-trash

Lift-elevator

Secondary school-high school

Centre- center

Holiday- vacation

Easter holidays- spring break

WC/Toilet - restroom/bathroom

teddy is wrong. We do use "pregnant" the same way the British do here in the U.S. "Knocked up" is slang.

handbag and purse are used interchangeably here in the U.S.

Differences of "mall" and "shopping center" here in U.S. :

mall = big shopping area usually in a big building composed of many department stores and access to a big parking lot and a food court.

shopping center = a small shopping area with a variety of shops & supermarkets, with limited parking space, etc...

In the past, there were no movie theaters in the malls or shopping centers, but now it's becoming a trend?!

Even though we don't use the term "fortnight" here in the U.S., most dictionaries would say it means 2 weeks [14 days], but that's wrong. A fortnight = 15 days!

In the US it's called "gas" or gasoline while almost everywhere else it's called "petrol", but in Norway it's called "benzin"[benzine]

In the UK it's called "lorry". In the U.S., it's called a "truck". Here's why "lorry" might be wrong: In Norwegian, it's called "trukk". See the similarities between "truck" and "trukk"? Now where did "lorry" come from?

John B,

All over the US, it's called a highway, not freeway. Only in California, it's called a "freeway". But what does CHiP stand for? I guess you don't really know? California Highway Patrol.

Why do they call it "jelly" in UK, while it's called "jam" in US? But then when it's made with orange and orange peel, it's called marmalade, not jam/jelly? There's strawberry jam/jelly, but it's [orange] marmalade!

Most of the -ize, -ise, -our, -or, -re, -er, differences are due to the British clinging to the Normandy French words.

The British pronunciation of "schedule" is due to Germanic/Scandinavian influences, so it's pronounced "shed-jyool", but the U.S. pronunciation is based on German / Dutch influences, so it's pronounced "sked-jyool".

"condom = rubber"

stupid, we do use the word "condom" here in the U.S. Rubber is something from a tree, not a condom! Rubber might be a euphemism for "condom".

nickynackynoo,

We do use the word "huge" and "herb" here in the U.S. The ' might be from Ebonics?!

tyres/tires

favourite/favorite

centre/center

theatre/theater

jewellery/jewelry

labour/labor

any that ends in "ise" we use "ize" except for advertise

Pronounced differently:

privacy

schedule

process

jaguar

centimeter

Words that mean different things:

fanny

***

rubber

knickers

boot

bonnet

pants

U.S. for "paddock" is "pasture"

And whoever said pregnant, we do use that word in the U.S. "Knocked up" is slang, duh.

Why can't we appreciate the differences between our two countries instead of starting this slanging match with the "UK is superior" mantra we hear constantly on here? My ancestors had every right to use a language they were taught from their homeland. Languages change. Just like the Afrikaans spoken in South Africa is different from the Dutch of the Netherlands. Sorry about my rant, but I come from English descent and now think I come from the most elitist, snobbish group of people in the entire world! Dang, are you that insecure that you have to say "it's our language," and "the correct way to say it"? Sounds like something a 11-year-old would say.

Sidewalk - Pavement

Period - Full stop

Fall - Autumn

Sneakers - Trainers

Jelly - Jam

Ladybug - Ladybird

Chips - Crisps

Cotton Candy - Candy Floss

Zip Code - Post Code

Diaper - Nappy

color - colour

theorize - theorise

theater - theatre

analyze - analyse

honor - honour

cozy - cosy

center - centre

favorite - favourite

Examples of spelling metre - English meter - American. (favourite - " favorite - American. (There are plenty of words with the 'ou' and 'er' variations) There are many words that have different meanings in either language, some of them although innocuous in one language are offensive in the other. (e.g Fanny - American meaning someone's bottom as in 'Kiss my bottom' but considered rude/vulgar in English as it is the female genitalia )

Don't feel sad! I know that words : Candy - Sweet, Cinema -Theatre, Centre - Center, Toilet -Washroom, Colour - Color, Building - Mansion, Post - Mail, and so on.... Nows-a-day, we almost use US English already for many US movies (Hollywood) coming out. And I know that US English is very easily to learn, very easily to get the meanings. But UK English is difference. They have noble & royal English, general English. Just try your best!!

bonnet-hood

windscreen-windshield

lorry-truck

petrol-gasoline

tele-tv

chips-french fries

bisquit-cookie

underground-subway

football-soccer

ground floor-first floor

loo-toilet

lift-elevator

-joke-

An American tourist went to London and asked the doorman at a hotel, "Where's the elevator?"

"The lift is down the hall."

"No, you don't understand. It's an ELEVATOR! Some guy in America invented the thing!"

"That's true, but some bloke over here invented the language."