UK vs North American Cultural Differences
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Bloody Hell vs. F-bomb
I love using it even though I am from the US.
calling someone a w@nker is the most fun known to mankind
When I was dating my husband he called the store I was working at and (as a joke without me knowing who it was) asked for Wanker Beer. I knew, at that moment, this was the man I was going to marry.0 -
Bloody Hell vs. F-bomb
I love using it even though I am from the US.
calling someone a w@nker is the most fun known to mankind
When I was dating my husband he called the store I was working at and (as a joke without me knowing who it was) asked for Wanker Beer. I knew, at that moment, this was the man I was going to marry.
lol, I see why! Also their pronunciation of something like, "Butter". Squee!0 -
string cheese is just mozzarella
Couple cute UK terms jumpers for sweaters aweeeee! Trainers for sneakers and knickers. Aweee British people say the cutest things and when you hear a little kid speaking in Brithishnese it just melts your heart.0 -
string cheese is just mozzarella
Couple cute UK terms jumpers for sweaters aweeeee! Trainers for sneakers and knickers. Aweee British people say the cutest things and when you hear a little kid speaking in Brithishnese it just melts your heart.
i say trainers for running shoes. sneakers for street shoes.
my have relatives that moved from essex to knoxville, tennessee and their kids were about 5 and 6 at the time. it was hilarious a couple years later to hear their crazy mash-up uk/southern us accents.0 -
You guys drive on the wrong side of the street.0
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i say trainers for running shoes. sneakers for street shoes.
my have relatives that moved from essex to knoxville, tennessee and their kids were about 5 and 6 at the time. it was hilarious a couple years later to hear their crazy mash-up uk/southern us accents.
I just had that convo with a Brit about what we call tennis shoes that aren't really for sports, but just more stylish. I was stumped.0 -
I coudln't believe the size difference in just about EVERYTHING when I went to England. It's safe to say that everything here in the US is just bigger. WAY bigger.
But I have to say, I loved the people, the mushy peas, Liverpool and the clothes. Fashion here is "****E" compared to over there!
One more thing, many of the white people seemed REALLY, REALLY, REALLY white to me. Seriously... I did a double take a few times because some were white as paper. I was in awe of the whiteness... hahaha. (good awe, not bad awe..)
We're a bit cramped over here so we have to downsize accordingly lol
I think the average 3 bed house is about £250k ($380k) where I live which I'm sure would buy a helluva lot of real estate in the US. By 3 bed house I mean a house where only two of the bedrooms will be big enough to take a double bed and you can forget a games room!
The further north you go in the UK, people get progressively paler - we're planning on having summer on a Tuesday this year
Cost of housing depends on where you live here in the US. Here in the Los Angeles area you might be able to find a small townhouse for $380k. Prices have gone down over the last 5 years, but $380k will still only buy you a cardboard shack in Malibu.0 -
I just had that convo with a Brit about what we call tennis shoes that aren't really for sports, but just more stylish. I was stumped.
that's certainly what i call sneakers. thinks like chuck taylor all stars, vans, pumas, and the like. things you would wear as every day shoes in an urban environment. i wouldn't dream of wearing trainers if i wasn't actually AT the gym.0 -
Cost of housing depends on where you live here in the US. Here in the Los Angeles area you might be able to find a small townhouse for $380k. Prices have gone down over the last 5 years, but $380k will still only buy you a cardboard shack in Malibu.
come on now! there is NO way you could get a cardboard shack for $380K in malibu. you can't even buy a parcel of land large enough to turn in a circle on for that price!0 -
a cup is an actual measuring device not just a random cup.
Ah, but a cup is not always a cup...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cup_(unit) lists 5 different sizes of cup; metric, Imperial, US customary, US legal and Japanese0 -
I live in the US, and read a lot, including lots of British literature. I often spell things the British way, and would get marked incorrect in school for that. I just think grey looks more like the color than gray (maybe because ray is sunshine?). And I keep the u in, instead of deleting it like Americans do. So I have to go back and "correct" my spelling later.
Oh, courgette is French for zucchini which is Italian. I was surprised to see a French word used in British English!
I strongly suggest you track down "Mother Tongue" by Bill Bryson. Great look at the divergent evolution of our shared language.0 -
If you walk on the pavement in the UK you're in the right place, if you walk on the pavement in the US you could get run down
I used to use the word 'nought' for zero. Got teased relentlessly for that when I attended junior high for a year when we lived in Michigan. Everyone, maths (or should I say math!) teacher included, wanted to hear me say 'nought'.
We say "zed" for Z, you say "zee".
I also like US ladies clothes sizes, I'm a 14-16 in the UK but a nice small 12-14 in the US.I know, it's all psychological, but I like it!0 -
BUMP to read later, it seems an enlightening and humorous read 0
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haitch for H!If you walk on the pavement in the UK you're in the right place, if you walk on the pavement in the US you could get run down
I used to use the word 'nought' for zero. Got teased relentlessly for that when I attended junior high for a year when we lived in Michigan. Everyone, maths (or should I say math!) teacher included, wanted to hear me say 'nought'.
We say "zed" for Z, you say "zee".
I also like US ladies clothes sizes, I'm a 14-16 in the UK but a nice small 12-14 in the US.I know, it's all psychological, but I like it!0 -
the beer is generally not cold, which was weird to me.
If anyone tried to chill my best bitter, I would go ape****. What y'all call beer ain't beer
Real beer's meant to be served at room temperature.
NOOOOOOOOO!
It should be served at cellar temperature which is about 10-12C0 -
Cost of housing depends on where you live here in the US. Here in the Los Angeles area you might be able to find a small townhouse for $380k. Prices have gone down over the last 5 years, but $380k will still only buy you a cardboard shack in Malibu.
come on now! there is NO way you could get a cardboard shack for $380K in malibu. you can't even buy a parcel of land large enough to turn in a circle on for that price!
you can buy the shack for 380k but you have to move it because the ground it sits on is $1 million 0 -
Americans always seem to be overly mushy and tend to overshare...We don't do that either, it's a bit cringeworthy and uncomfortable and not in-line with the European stiff upper lip!
As an aside, I'm not from the UK, I'm Irish and the US can't pour a proper pint of Guinness, they pour it straight up instead of letting it settle and then topping it off. That bugs me!0 -
Cost of housing depends on where you live here in the US. Here in the Los Angeles area you might be able to find a small townhouse for $380k. Prices have gone down over the last 5 years, but $380k will still only buy you a cardboard shack in Malibu.
come on now! there is NO way you could get a cardboard shack for $380K in malibu. you can't even buy a parcel of land large enough to turn in a circle on for that price!
Sounds like anywhere inside the M25! Parking spaces probably cost as much as my first house.
M25 = Circular Motorway (freeway?) that surrounds London. Most people in England work out how much of a pain a journey will be by working out if the M25 figures anywhere in the travel plan; either on it, near it or inside it. We have smaller cars so they can fit the maximum number of cars onto it at rush hour when it becomes stationary for long periods of time for no apparent reason.
Of course when we think of travel in the USA we picture miles of deserted highway and some cacti growing by the roadside - well I do, don't spoil it for me!0 -
Americans always seem to be overly mushy and tend to overshare...We don't do that either, it's a bit cringeworthy and uncomfortable and not in-line with the European stiff upper lip!
As an aside, I'm not from the UK, I'm Irish and the US can't pour a proper pint of Guinness, they pour it straight up instead of letting it settle and then topping it off. That bugs me!
We're soppy like that.0 -
i love their term "rocket greens"
if we had such fun names for vegetables then perhaps americans would eat more of them :P
i agree what someone else said about how huge america is and how each region is vastly different from another. west coasters, east coasters, south, up north, and the various sub sections of culture in each region. makes it very fun to travel, i always find something new or interesting that i've never seen.0 -
Might wana change that title to UK vs America
Because in Canada we use the metric system, and we're in North America!0 -
Oh and I forgot, I also learned the hard way that "pants" in the UK were underwear. In the US, pants are jeans and trousers.
Did everybody giggle at you? My brother lives in Canada and every time he refers to his trousers as pants, the entire family starts laughing at him. Possibly a bit childish but it's really funny!
Yeah I learned that the hard way too. Complimented someone on their "pants" and didn't realize my gaffe until I saw their horrified expression!!
I lived in England for 2 years and I always regretted I didn't keep a little book of the little language differences. Even after 2 years I'd still find a new one at least every week.0 -
Might wana change that title to UK vs America
Because in Canada we use the metric system, and we're in North America!
Yeah it gets confusing being Canadian sometimes!! We usually spell the British way, we colloquially use imperial, but technically use metric system and a lot of our language is a hybrid.0 -
I'm British and married to an American.... I've lived with this for nearly 13 years now LOL
I'm used to navigating cultural and linguistic differences.
The funniest Brit eng/am eng confusion I've heard though was a taxi driver in London... had a USA passenger... well taxi drivers are not allowed to smoke in their cabs if they have a passenger, so he pulled over and said "I'm just going round the back for a *kitten*, I'll be back in five minutes" (or words to that effect).....0 -
the "cup" is 8oz-not literally grabbing a coffee mugAs a Brit on this board I've noticed just how many cultural differences there are between us an you guys across the pond when it comes to things like food...
Imperial vs Metric - I have no idea what an oz of liquid or food looks like!
Cups - you really measure stuff in cups? What if everyone uses a different size cup?
Coffee creamer - what the hell is this stuff? Do you not just use milk?
String cheese - WUT?
We take our tea hot and with milk (& sugar) and is English Breakfast blend unless otherwise specified...
Feel free to add...
Coffee creamer is powdered or liquid cream with flavor and sweetener added. i use coconut milk.
Stting cheese is horrible and you should never try it. blech.
a friend of my husband is from northern england and said he hated tea until he moved to the states. i drink hot green or chai tea with soymilk in the winter, but in texas 100+ weather iced tea is the way to go.0 -
I also find that a lot of Americans seem to follow things like Insanity, P90x etc, more than British people. They probably have bigger houses though and more space!
From a USA person -- I'm enjoying this compare/contrast discussion!
I haven't been to UK (yet!).0 -
I'm an American living in the UK, using metric most places has helped with my science degree because we measure and convert every day! I now prefer to weigh my food instead of use cups, but I have cups as well that I use occasionally.
I don't miss coffee creamer! I was back at Christmas and it was vile in my coffee, I'm a straight milk girl now!
One of my favorite differences is the different meaning for fanny! Some brits are more reserved but I've got a great group of friends here and when they start drinking all that goes right away!0 -
Cost of housing depends on where you live here in the US. Here in the Los Angeles area you might be able to find a small townhouse for $380k. Prices have gone down over the last 5 years, but $380k will still only buy you a cardboard shack in Malibu.
come on now! there is NO way you could get a cardboard shack for $380K in malibu. you can't even buy a parcel of land large enough to turn in a circle on for that price!
WOW. $380K here gets a 2000+ sq ft house and 15+ acres of land!0 -
the beer is generally not cold, which was weird to me.
If anyone tried to chill my best bitter, I would go ape****. What y'all call beer ain't beer Real beer's meant to be served at room temperature.
NOOOOOOOOO!
It should be served at cellar temperature which is about 10-12C
Cellar is actually the word I meant, I was writing about rooms in my essay.
Not even kidding, my dad is a drayman for a brewery 0 -
Great thread!!
I am from America but i read alot of books by English authors, so alot of the terms here are not new to me, but it took awhile to figure them out, like pissed, *kitten*, torch.
I work in the medical field and we do use metric as standard, at least in New England area. So I am familiar with kg/gm, but when you guys start talking about stones I am completely lost!0
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