And of course, the various spelling differences (e.g., US tires, UK tyres), and pronunciation differences: "Basil" = "Bay-sihl" in the US, "Bah-sehl" in the UK, "Herbs" = "Erbs" in the US (H is silent), but "Herbs" in the UK (H is pronounced).
Teachick - I think the semantics, the explanations and the discussions are part of the fun.
To each his or her own. And I use "whilst" all the time (I'm sure I picked it up from my very English mother)! And as Diana has pointed out, so does Tony Blair.
Okay, if part of the game is having things explained, then I need some help with this term.
UK: Bullocks US: Balls (?)
or
UK: Bullocks Us: **** (!)
I hear this all the time and in many different ways. I know the literal definition of the word bullock, but what does it really mean when you say it in the UK?
Originally posted by teachick: Okay, if part of the game is having things explained, then I need some help with this term.
UK: Bullocks US: Balls (?)
or
UK: Bullocks Us: **** (!)
I hear this all the time and in many different ways. I know the literal definition of the word bullock, but what does it really mean when you say it in the UK?
When somebody says " thats a load of bullocks"! it mean bulls**t! Or you can call somebody a bullocks. Like A**hole.
Posts: 1720 | Location: Seattle, WA for now... | Registered: 02 May 2005
The word "bullocks" is not used like this at all in the UK. But replace the U with an O and you have it. It then has the various meanings ascribed to it above.
It also has the useful purpose of expressing general annoyance as in "Oh B_____________"!
Not very rude really, you will often hear it on the TV after 9.30pm.
Ricardo
Posts: 560 | Location: Surrey, England | Registered: 18 May 2003
Kim: US equivalent for bloody: friggen' (cleaned up ST version.)
US luxurious UK posh
US cop UK bobby
US get drunk UK get lushed
US dessert UK puddings
UK teas UK dinner (Note: I have noticed that our British guests' children call their dinner "teas" so I might be only an occasional/regional usage thing)
"tea" and "dinner" - it's a class, and to a lesser extent regional thing, though it's dying out as the social basis for it alters.
Upper and middle classes - lunch is the midday meal, dinner is the evening meal; you might (but not many people now do) have afternoon tea with sandwiches and cakes and so on to fill the gap.
Working classes - the midday meal is dinner (which is why the standard phrase for meals in school is "school dinners"), and tea is what's waiting for Dad when he gets home from the mine or factory (traditionally), i.e., earlier than an upper crust dinner. At the weekend, this might be "high tea", i.e., a mixture of upper crust afternoon tea and some more substantial items (ham, salad, puddings), and often a family gathering.
That tends to reflect late Victorian patterns of work and leisure, which have largely disappeared. Where people aren't simply snacking in front of their favourite TV cook, they are increasingly likely to be influenced by them towards the upper/middle class or Continental pattern.
Makes sense...one set of parents did argue, the father (swiss aristocracy decendant) hates the kids using dinner for lunch and tea for dinner, and the lovely (Wales country-girl) wife found nothing wrong with it!!
[QUOTE]Originally posted by PatrickLondon: "tea" and "dinner" - it's a class, and to a lesser extent regional thing, though it's dying out as the social basis for it alters. QUOTE]
It's still a complicated regional thing (much more than class I think). In Scotland and the North of England "Tea" is still the main evening meal. It is a cooked meal.
In the South, "Tea" tends to mean Afternoon Tea (which oop North, they would agree with). It is very complex and very local.
I'm a Scottish Yorkshireman who has lived many years in London and the ramifications of "Tea" still confuse me.
Posts: 301 | Location: London, UK | Registered: 08 August 2005
I don't cook often, but I've a feeling there's some difference between what's sold as treacle and molasses in the UK. I don't think it matters much if you're not making Christmas pudding. For an awful lot of people what they think of as treacle is actually Golden Syrup anyway (e.g., as in treacle tart, which would probably taste foul if made with proper black treacle).
Patrick, you're right there are various types of treacle and molasses, so here are two more to add to the list.
UK: light treacle or golden syrup US: light molasses
UK: dark treacle US: blackstrap molasses
Most recipes in the US (like gingerbread) call for light molasses or what is labeled either black molasses or just plain molasses. Blackstrap molasses is quite bitter.
-Krista
Posts: 1716 | Location: Santa Barbara, California | Registered: 21 May 2004
