quote:

'Press' (Irish) = 'Cupboard' (UK)

Sano,

"Press" also was once used this way quite extensively in the US, perhaps because of the many Scots-Irish immigrants who came in the 17th & 18th centuries. My husband affirms that it is still used like this, but probably mostly by older people in the American South.

Ann

You will sometimes find "linen press" used, I think in relation to antiques, in England. But, like "hot press" in Ireland, it would normally mean "airing cupboard" for most people in England.

Back to "period". There's a relatively recent usage in England that equates to "period" as a way of emphasising your point: "End of." As in "X is the best football team ever. End of."

That's something we definitely say this side of the pond. As in, "You're not going out with that boy — period."

Here's another possible difference. I've noticed US usage of "what's up with..." seems to be fairly neutral, where we would say something like "what about...".

In the UK, I think to say "What's up with X" implies that you think there's something wrong or odd or out of the ordinary about X, e.g., if they seemed unusually tetchy or withdrawn. If they were really tetchy, you might say something like "Who rattled his cage?" - but only when out of earshot.

quote:

In the UK, I think to say "What's up with X" implies that you think there's something wrong or odd

Patrick,
I think that's the way it's generally meant in the US also, although some people may use it more neutrally. If I were to hear it at the beginning of a question, I would assume that the person using it took something to be wrong.

Ann

We would still use "press" for cupboard here; but i think if we get onto Scots usage we could fill another 20 pages.

maria

I'm sure my collegaues in the profession would snap you up.

You may like to listen to the BBC7 programAs Soon As I Open My Mouth
Potato, Potahto: Anne Marie is a smooth Yank and Trevor is a Yorkshire bumpkin. Their daughter Wendy speaks Scottish - sort of.

John, that is absolutely fascinating! The levels and levels of irony... My husband came in while Anne-Marie was speaking and made some comment about "the English woman" in the broadcast. She's so effectively neutered her English as to be neither Yank (certainly not New York, anyhow) nor English.

And while Trevor of Yorkshire celebrates the regional pride and individualism he associates with having a regional accent, daughter Wendy is being mocked and bullied for being "other" -- an outsider -- for that very reason!

Here, we often notice that friends who've spent extended periods in the UK come back with fake English accents. Somehow, though, I doubt that English ex-pats in Canada who return home have acquired fake Canadian accents .

Brilliant programme.
nb

I searched the thread and have yet to find:

U.K. "Happy Christmas"
U.S. "Merry Christmas"

and in the same vein:

U.K. "Father Christmas"
U.S. "Santa Claus"

Sending good wishes to all, however you express the sentiment....

Fancy

If we are saying it on its own, we use 'Happy Christmas' but if combined with a New Year Greeting ( as is usual) it becomes Merry Christmas and Happy New Year',othere wise there are too many Happys (not that there should be too much Happi -ness.....)

On the theme of nativity...

UK: Antenatal classes
US: Prenatal classes

UK Rubbish
US Garbage

Rubbish:Garbage:Trash

All go into the "Bin" in UK or the "Dust Bin" or (if it has wheels) the "Wheely Bin."

All go into the (Trash)Can in the US, or(Garbage) Can....seldom hear (Rubbish) bin or can in US.

There's an interesting Australian habit of using "-o" as a diminutive (thus, smokeo= a smoke or tea-break, arvo = afternoon) - so, I'm told, the man who comes to empty your dustbin (or garbage) is known as a "garbo".

I vant to be alone....

quote:

Originally posted by Jeff H:
Rubbish:Garbage:Trash

All go into the "Bin" in UK or the "Dust Bin" or (if it has wheels) the "Wheely Bin."

All go into the (Trash)Can in the US, or(Garbage) Can....seldom hear (Rubbish) bin or can in US.

Hawaii still uses rubbish to this day.

quote:

Originally posted by PatrickLondon:
There's an interesting Australian habit of using "-o" as a diminutive (thus, smokeo= a smoke or tea-break, arvo = afternoon) - so, I'm told, the man who comes to empty your dustbin (or garbage) is known as a "garbo".

I call it the two syllable tendency. Words get shortened or lengthened to two syllables or transformed to a more easily pronounced two-syllable. Other endings may be used e.g.
Postman -> Postie
Yob -> yobbo
Tin (of beer) -> tinnie
A westie comes from Sydney's western suburbs (but there is no eastie)
Politician -> pollie
A greenie is an environmentalist
Footie is Rugby football or Australian rules football.
A bottlo is a bottle shop (off-license or liquor store)
mozzie is a mosquito
and we are just coming up to the Chrissie holiday.


This is aussie lingo.

U.S.: Truck
U.K.: Lorry
Also, the phrase "fallen off the back of a lorry" refers,in the U.K., to something that was stolen,or "nicked",or "pinched".

US: The diplomats must agree to a plan and strategy.

UK: The diplomats must agree a plan and strategy.

Not so sure about that, Jeff. Of your two examples, in the UK, the first would certainly not be odd, but would imply that they would be asked to agree to someone's else's plans. The second would imply they had to come up with one of their own.

One I don't think we've had is that, where in the US you protest things, in the UK we protest at or against them (you will occasionally find that someone is reported as "protesting their innocence" or their belief in something or other, implicitly against some sort of accusation or counter-argument, which is rather the opposite of US usage).

I see your point - it's the second example (coming up with a plan) that fits best. In either case, the US uses the preposition whereas the UK sometimes does not use it.

Not unlike "The victim is in hospital" - UK
"The victim is in the hospital" - US

UK: breastfeeding
US: nursing

UK: nursing (a baby) i.e. holding, rocking etc.
US: ????

My wife told me not to offer to nurse a baby when I was in the US.

quote:

UK: nursing (a baby) i.e. holding, rocking etc.
US: ????

Maybe cuddling.

I have a question about "cove." I understand it's slang for "fellow," but is it still used? When would it be used? I don't even know where I picked it up! It could have been from a contemporary or historical British novel or from a British TV show or movie.
Thanks!

I think it died out of popular use sometime in the 1930s or 40s. I have no idea where it came from. It's in that class of words for different sorts of people that seem to come and go with some speed, and all with slightly different shades of meaning (which also shift over time, I suspect) - like chap, bloke, geezer (now there's a difference between the UK and the US - to us, it's fairly neutral, if over-familiar, but I suspect in the US it means what we would mean by "old git").

Even "sort" has different connotations depending on the class of the speaker and the gender of the subject. Middle to upper middle can call a man an "odd sort" and mean Sherlock Holmes. Delboy Trotter calling a woman an "odd sort" is insulting her morals..