by White Dove 46 Replies latest jw friends
bathroom (toilet)...
Ohhh you're making me remember all the British words in my head...
If you don't see a sign for toilet in Britain, you might see a "W.C." (water closet).
Of course, in the US the signs generally say "restroom"... Not that you want to take a rest in a stinky public bathroom...
And Brinjen, my 'arse' stands (or sits) corrected... Thanks!
Brinjen - I visited your lovely nation about twenty years ago. I stayed in Sydney about one month. Of course, I visited the Opera House. One thing that made an impression on me was how many people called each other "mate." I remember visiting in January, which is your summer season. Because I had flown out of New York, I was waring a heavy, winter top-coat. Upon entering Sydney airport [or is it aeroport?] there was a custom's officer who told me: "No need to wear that coat here, mate." If it had been a "civilian," I would not have been so surprised. But this was a uniformed custom's agent or perhaps a soldier.
Another thing that I remember was how common it was for Australians to call women "love," as in "How may I help you, love?" And they used this term of endearment with total strangers.
By the way, if you read this post of mine, I would appreciate your answering a question that I have. While in Sydney, I would occasionally hear Australians referring to other people as the "ethnics." Could you tell me to whom does this word apply? Were the people referring to recently-arrived immigrants coming from non-European nations? Does it refer to any particular race or nationality? Is the term considered pejorative or racist?
A mid-western thing- bubbler (water fountain)
Pop- soda
In some European countries, they use the English word, cock, to refer to a "faucet" or a "tap". I'll never forget an incident that happened when I was on campus at the university. There was a guy who came from some country in central or eastern Europe. One day, he had a problem with his faucet and wrote the following note to his landlady: "Dearest Madam: I wish to inform you that my cock is leaking."
While in Sydney, I would occasionally hear Australians referring to other people as the "ethnics." Could you tell me to whom does this word apply? Were the people referring to recently-arrived immigrants coming from non-European nations?
An ethnic is pretty much anyone from a non-white, non-christian background. It's not meant as a derogatory term, though it is often used in a very narrow sense.
Another thing that I remember was how common it was for Australians to call women "love," as in "How may I help you, love?" And they used this term of endearment with total strangers.
It's usually the older generation that use that one, it's disappearing gradually.
'Mate' is still as common as ever though.
"Another thing that I remember was how common it was for Australians to call women "love," as in "How may I help you, love?" And they used this term of endearment with total strangers."
That is a common phrase in the UK but I remember when I first moved down to Devon, here it is more common to use the phrase "My lover" to both men and women, which can be most disconcerting.
You know I find Americans seem to Hollywood-ise their speech. Like naming the terrorism attack "9-11" See if that happened in Australia they would probably be referred to as "the terrorist attacks" or something. The weird thing about the term 9-11 is that in just about every other part of the world the date 9-11 is actually the 9th of November.
That is why still have in the back of my mind it was planed that way to have the most impact for political gain.
9-11 is the emergency phone number in the states to call the Police and Fire rescue.
Police and Fire are the only that are remembered in the popular mind on the day.
The date also had some past minor historical significance.
1776 - British-American peace conference on Staten Island fails to stop nascent American Revolution.
1973 - A CIA backed coup in Chile headed by GeneralAugusto Pinochet topples the democratically elected PresidentSalvador Allende. Pinochet remains in power for almost 17 years.
1990 - U.S. PresidentGeorge H. W. Bush delivers a nationally televised speech in which he threatens the use of force to remove Iraqi soldiers from Kuwait, which Iraq had recently invaded. He mentions the term "New World Order" in this speech for the first time, which is also named "Towards a New World Order".(full text of the speech)
| British English | American English |
|---|---|
| not touch something with a bargepole | not touch something with a ten-foot pole |
| sweep under the carpet | sweep under the rug |
| touch wood | knock on wood |
| see the wood for the trees | see the forest for the trees |
| throw a spanner (in the works) | throw a (monkey) wrench (in the works) |
| tuppence worthalso two pennies' worth, two pence worth, two pennyworth, two penny'th, two penn'orth, two pen'th or (using a different coin) ha'penn'orth) | two cents' worth |
| skeleton in the cupboard | skeleton in the closet |
| blow one's trumpet | blow (or toot) one's horn |
| a drop in the ocean | a drop in the bucket |
storm in a teacup | |
A friend of mine has lived in Boston for many years. He came over a couple of years ago and in his English accent used American terms, which was quite funny. He kept referring to the path as the side walk, and the rubbish as the trash.
Here in South Africa, we use the word "dummy" for "pacifier", "nappy" for "diaper", "lift" for "elevator" and "robot" for "traffic light"!
