words in england that mean something totally different in america!!

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  • LAWoman72
    LAWoman72 Posts: 2,846 Member
    HeliumIsNoble wrote: »
    Yard. As far as I can tell, in America, it's your garden or lawn, generally small piece of land belonging to your house?

    In the UK, the word yard isn't used much for land, except in compound words (backyard, scrapyard), but when it is, it is always a paved or gravelled space. Never a lawn, so you could never "mow a yard".

    Oh! Yes. A "garden" on this side of the pond is something deliberately planted...usually veggies, flowers...you can have a garden ON your lawn somewhere but the whole thing together with all the grass and stuff is a lawn. :)
  • HeliumIsNoble
    HeliumIsNoble Posts: 1,213 Member
    LAWoman72 wrote: »
    HeliumIsNoble wrote: »
    Yard. As far as I can tell, in America, it's your garden or lawn, generally small piece of land belonging to your house?

    In the UK, the word yard isn't used much for land, except in compound words (backyard, scrapyard), but when it is, it is always a paved or gravelled space. Never a lawn, so you could never "mow a yard".

    Oh! Yes. A "garden" on this side of the pond is something deliberately planted...usually veggies, flowers...you can have a garden ON your lawn somewhere but the whole thing together with all the grass and stuff is a lawn. :)
    Hang on? You can call the whole thing a lawn?

    Here, only the grass is a lawn. So, for example, in a typical good-sized suburban garden, I might have a patio, some flowerbeds, and a lawn.

  • strawberrysnap
    strawberrysnap Posts: 71 Member
    I just came back from a year abroad in America and no one understood when I said I was " gutted " or if I said I was " chuffed" idk if this is slang or if the word itself differs but hey was very entertaining to try and see everyone guess lol
  • rugratz2015
    rugratz2015 Posts: 593 Member
    strawberrysnap wrote: »
    I just came back from a year abroad in America and no one understood when I said I was " gutted " or if I said I was " chuffed" idk if this is slang or if the word itself differs but hey was very entertaining to try and see everyone guess lol

    I don't think it's slang, but I have used 'chuffed' on a FB group I'm in, where most members are from the states, and I've had to explain it. I thought it originated from the midlands? 'Gutted' isn't a word I use a lot, no idea where it originated from.
  • rugratz2015
    rugratz2015 Posts: 593 Member
    This may make interesting reading for some :smile:

    http://www.birminghammail.co.uk/whats-on/whats-on-news/birmingham-black-country-phrases-accent-6477059
  • MarcelloPasquale
    MarcelloPasquale Posts: 212 Member
    rugratz2015 wrote: »
    strawberrysnap wrote: »
    I just came back from a year abroad in America and no one understood when I said I was " gutted " or if I said I was " chuffed" idk if this is slang or if the word itself differs but hey was very entertaining to try and see everyone guess lol

    I don't think it's slang, but I have used 'chuffed' on a FB group I'm in, where most members are from the states, and I've had to explain it. I thought it originated from the midlands? 'Gutted' isn't a word I use a lot, no idea where it originated from.

    I honestly had to google chuffed.
  • BeJeanne11
    BeJeanne11 Posts: 32 Member
    Chips in the US means potato crisps and chips in the UK means french fries.
  • LAWoman72
    LAWoman72 Posts: 2,846 Member
    edited May 2017
    HeliumIsNoble wrote: »
    LAWoman72 wrote: »
    HeliumIsNoble wrote: »
    Yard. As far as I can tell, in America, it's your garden or lawn, generally small piece of land belonging to your house?

    In the UK, the word yard isn't used much for land, except in compound words (backyard, scrapyard), but when it is, it is always a paved or gravelled space. Never a lawn, so you could never "mow a yard".

    Oh! Yes. A "garden" on this side of the pond is something deliberately planted...usually veggies, flowers...you can have a garden ON your lawn somewhere but the whole thing together with all the grass and stuff is a lawn. :)
    Hang on? You can call the whole thing a lawn?

    Here, only the grass is a lawn. So, for example, in a typical good-sized suburban garden, I might have a patio, some flowerbeds, and a lawn.

    Well no, I mean...you would cut away part of your lawn so the garden would be "in" it. I mean...that whole rectangle of grass is the lawn.

    And then everything around your house that's within your property is "your yard."

    It didn't make sense the way I explained it, sorry.
  • HeliumIsNoble
    HeliumIsNoble Posts: 1,213 Member
    LAWoman72 wrote: »
    HeliumIsNoble wrote: »
    LAWoman72 wrote: »
    HeliumIsNoble wrote: »
    Yard. As far as I can tell, in America, it's your garden or lawn, generally small piece of land belonging to your house?

    In the UK, the word yard isn't used much for land, except in compound words (backyard, scrapyard), but when it is, it is always a paved or gravelled space. Never a lawn, so you could never "mow a yard".

    Oh! Yes. A "garden" on this side of the pond is something deliberately planted...usually veggies, flowers...you can have a garden ON your lawn somewhere but the whole thing together with all the grass and stuff is a lawn. :)
    Hang on? You can call the whole thing a lawn?

    Here, only the grass is a lawn. So, for example, in a typical good-sized suburban garden, I might have a patio, some flowerbeds, and a lawn.

    Well no, I mean...you would cut away part of your lawn so the garden would be "in" it. I mean...that whole rectangle of grass is the lawn.

    And then everything around your house that's within your property is "your yard."

    It didn't make sense the way I explained it, sorry.
    Whew! *wipes forehead*

    For a moment there, I thought I was going to be forced to backtrack on my descriptivist stance of 'there is no true English and usages are only right or wrong within particular contexts, including but not limited to cultural, historical or geographical contexts". Some things would be a bridge too far, they really would.

    I'm going to have a lie down now, after that excitement.

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