American English: Difference between revisions
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For those interested in articulation rather than vocabulary, there are many pages about [[Accent Tropes|various nations' accents]], including [[American Accents|American ones]].
* '''Bathroom''', where somebody goes to relieve themselves, and may or may not contain a bath or shower.<ref>
* '''Busboy''': Nothing to do with public transport. Instead an employee of a restaurant whose duties include dish washing and "bussing" the tables, that is, gathering up the dirty dishes/napkins/etc and wiping the tabletop down.
* '''Cell phones''' are mobile phones. Both terms are used on both sides of the Atlantic, but "cell" is used much more often than "mobile" in America, vice versa in Britain.
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** '''Lesbian''' is used for a female homosexual.
** '''Gay''' has two distinct meanings, confusingly enough- a homosexual person of any gender, OR a homosexual man specifically. Most commonly it carries the former meaning ''unless'' it's specifically contrasted with lesbian, in which case it only refers to men. Also see [[Have a Gay Old Time]] for how gay ''used'' to be used.
** '''Queer''' basically means anything but
* '''Fanny''' is a polite, fastidious word for your rear end. If someone's grandmother or old maiden aunt were talking to a misbehaving five-year-old, she might threaten to "spank him on his little fanny." Though you wouldn't use the term when visiting the UK as it is generally considered an offensive term for female genitalia.
** '''Fanny packs''' are equivalent to bum bags, i.e. a small sealable bag with an integrated belt worn over the top of clothes.
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** Americans also pronounce H without using an H sound. "Aytch" instead of "haytch".
** There isn't that somewhat rare letter ash ("Æ"). "E" is used instead, or in some cases type out an A followed by an E. "Æsthetic", for example, is "aesthetic" or "esthetic". To type out an "ash" requires the use of the alt codes on U.S. keyboards (alt-145 for lowercase and alt-146 for uppercase, if you were wondering). The same goes for ''ethel'' ("œ").
* '''Check''' -- the U.S. spelling of ''cheque''
** Although virtually no restaurant accepts checks any longer.
* '''Bills''' is the colloquial name for paper money in the US, such as "a one-dollar bill," rather than "notes," which is the technical term used in banks.
* '''Buck(s)''' is a very common slang word for "dollar(s)." There have been any number of other such words ("pictures of the president", "dead presidents"
** Conveniently for Britons, "fiver" and "tenner" for five- and ten-dollar bills are generally understood, and if they're not generally used, they're not really remarked upon, either.
** '''Jacksons''' - The most commonly used slang terms for twenty dollar bills, slightly more common than "double sawbuck" (a sawbuck being ten). By which we mean, "Almost nobody ever uses them." You might hear "Jacksons", "Hamiltons", "Lincolns", or "Washingtons" in jest,<ref>Someone making a crappy wage might joke that they're "bringing in the Washingtons", parodying the saying "bringing in the Benjamins" for "making the big bucks", i.e. a good salary.</ref> but that's about it. The most common term for a twenty-dollar bill is just "a twenty."
** '''Benjamins''' for one hundred dollar bills. One might refer to the figure on the bill by name in conversation, "Me and my friend, Benjamin Franklin, here, would like to make an offer..."
*** You may refer to many Benjamins as "Bennies"<ref>which, confusingly, is also an old slang term for benzadrine</ref> or "C-Notes".
* '''Ground floor''' is interchangeable with "first floor" in America, unlike most other places. So the second floor up from the ground is called the second floor, not the first, and so on. But it depends on the building. Typically the ground floor is the bottommost floor that isn't a basement, regardless of function. The first floor is the floor where things like the reception area are, or the commons area or the equivalent for whatever type of building you are
** And it's not uncommon to find that the thirteenth floor is omitted in American buildings.
* An '''elevator''' is a lift that runs indoors. "Lift" is still used for hydraulic outdoor lifts used by construction workers, and is acceptable for lifts used for transporting goods (but more commonly known as "freight elevators" or "service elevators") and possibly dumbwaiters (probably derived from the association with ''English'' manors).
** And elevators, those things that you put in the back of your shoes, are called "lifts."
** '''Electric Steetcars''' are the equivelent of a "tram" or "trolly"
* '''Gasoline''' or '''gas'' is what fuels cars in America, not "petrol." Filling a car's fuel tank is sometimes called "gassing up," and to tell the driver to press down on the accelerator pedal you can say "give 'er the gas."
* '''[French] fries''' (No one actually calls them "[[wikipedia:Freedom fries|freedom fries]]".) are what people in the US call "chips"
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** The TV series [[Adam-12]] also popularized "211" (two-eleven), which means a robbery, and "415" (four-fifteen), which means a public disturbance.
** A similar example is a "Section 8," US Military slang for a crazy person (referring to a discharge for mental illness). It's also an old term for federally subsidized housing.
*** Speaking of the US Military, the various military dialects<ref>
** "Chapter 11" (from Chapter 11 of Title 11 of the United States Code) refers to bankruptcy. Hence, people file Chapter 11 <ref>
** "420" has become slang for Marijuana, although this number doesn't appear to be used in any jurisdiction's legal codes for marijuana crimes and its origin is [[Rule of Cautious Editing Judgement|hotly debated]].
* People of African racial decent are typically called "black" without insult. '''African-American''' is a very common and politically correct term for American blacks, to the point that Americans will occasionally slip up and use the term to refer to any black person, regardless of where they live ([[Freema Agyeman]] and [[Being Human (UK)|Lenora Crichlow]] have both been referred to as African-American, despite the obvious problems with that.) The term is generally used only in a racial sense, and it's therefore incorrect to use it for non-black people who immigrated from Africa to America. "People of color" often refers to all non-white racial groups. The terms "colored," "negro," "mulatto," and "Afro-American," are all dated and usually considered insensitive. (See also the trope on [[N-Word Privileges]].)
* The native cultures and races of America are most appropriately called "Native Americans." "American Indians" is also generally acceptable. "Indians" by itself is considered somewhat insensitive and also confusing, since it could also refer to ''actual'' Indians.
** It is fairly common to simply call Native Americans "Natives" while using terms like Aboriginals and Indiginous Peoples to refer to those native to other regions, the exact location is often specified directly especially when not set up by context.
** You will find many Native Americans who prefer "Indian" for whatever reason. Some don't like being called Native Americans because it feels possessive, some like Indian because it is supposed to mean "People with God" (from Spanish ''[gente] en Dios''
** Because of the persistence of using "Indian" to mean Native
** If you are going to carry conversation or a relationship with a Native American, it is considered acceptable to politely ask their tribe of origin, although many prefer "nation" to "tribe." This is useful because many of the native nations do have animosity with other nations, and calling a member of one nation by another name can be upsetting.
*** The reason for this is the rise of the term First Nations to refer to them.
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* A '''bender''', if not used to indicate "[[Futurama|something that]] [[Avatar: The Last Airbender|bends things]]," generally refers to a wild night, or series of nights, spent partying with copious amounts of alcohol or other intoxicating substances. As in: "I had several days off, so I went on a complete three-day bender." This does not imply homosexual (or any sex) acts were committed during the time period, but it might be true anyway.
* When the British want to refer to someone as having a less than noble character, they'll use "bent," like a "bent policeman." In America, they have a similar "not straight" term, but '''crooked''' is used, like a "crooked cop." It's pronounced in two syllables as well; "crook-ed" instead of one syllable like "looked."
* [[Baseball]] terms are sometimes used in everyday conversation as metaphors. "Strike out" means to fail, as in: "I went to a bar hoping to meet a girl, but I totally struck out." "Home run," or "out of the park," means to succeed greatly. Strange ideas "come out of left field." Inappropriate comments are "off base." "Foul tip" meaning something that ends with neither a complete failure nor a satisfactory outcome. "Seventh-inning stretch," refers to a brief break from something to stretch your legs. "Getting to # base" refers to sexual activity, with each base coming closer to intercourse.
* [[American Football]] metaphors are generally pretty simple. "Touchdown!"
* '''Pissed''' in America means "angry," not "drunk", which is why "piss drunk" can sound redundant. Sometimes, people will say "pissed off," which means the same thing ("angry"). "Pissing the night away," however, will generally be understood as a long drinking session. "Go on a pisser" means the same thing. A "pisser" can also refer to a fun or amusing person or event. Or a urinal.
** On that note, pissing or taking a piss means to urinate, as does taking a leak. Thus, you can [[Incredibly Lame Pun|get pissed off at getting pissed on]] [[Rule of Three|by a piss drunk.]]
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* The syntax for a job title is not ''title name'' for ''whatever'', it's ''title name'' '''of''' ''whatever''. What this says about leadership philosophies on opposite sides of the pond belongs on [[Wild Mass Guessing|a different page]].
* '''Line power''' is the American term for what Commonwealth countries call ''mains power''. And you'll rarely hear an American use the term, either - this is mainly due to the fact that Americans don't wire their buildings in a massive loop circuit directly connected to the the powerline. Instead, the powerline comes into a central control panel - technically called a ''service'', but usually referred to as a ''fusebox'' or ''breaker box'', where it's stepped down (excepting certain high-draw appliance lines) and split out into independent circuits.
** The standard American electrical outlet produces 120 volts AC. Only for special high-power appliances like electric ovens, clothes dryers, and central air conditioners are 220-volt outlets provided. Additionally, the alternating current in American homes oscillates at a frequency of 60
* In the DC Metropolitan area, if you hear the initialism "DMV," it's very likely that whomever is not referring to the Department of Motor Vehicles. Over the last several years, more and more people have been referring to this area as the D(C)M(aryland)V(irginia).
* '''[[Country Matters|Cunt]]''' is ''extremely''
* '''Yankee''' or '''Yank''' applies to people from the northeastern states. Never, ever call someone from the Deep South a Yank. Those from other parts of the U.S. may not appreciate it, either.
* '''Shotgun''' can refer to either a gun or the passenger seat in a car: if someone wants to ride as the front passenger, they might say "I call shotgun". (The term dates from the [[Wild West]] era, when stagecoaches frequently required an armed guard; he would sit out on top of the coach to the right of the horses' driver.)
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