One of the best things about blogging is chatting to people from all over the world but one thing I’ve definitely learned along the way is that when we technically all speak English but we’re not always speaking the same language!
The inspiration for this post comes from the lovely Maria who sometimes says in her comments that she had to Google a word I’ve used in my posts or that she simply loves a particular British phrase or word that I’ve thrown into a blog post without thinking twice. It made me realise how often I use phrases or words that might make absolutely no sense to someone across the pond and truth be told I do the same when I read American blogs. Sometimes I’m scrolling along, nodding in agreement when suddenly I hit a sentence that makes me stop, blink and quietly mutter what on earth are they talking about? I mean that in the nicest way possible and don't mean to offend. It's just because words are just used differently depending on where you are from.
Let’s start with one of my favourite words ever: faff which was the word that inspired this blog post. I had no idea this wasn’t a global term until Maria pointed it out and now I feel oddly proud to be flying the faff flag! In the UK a faff is something unnecessarily fiddly, annoying or time consuming. Matching socks? Bit of a faff. Chopping garlic? Also a faff. When I say I’ve been faffing about all morning, I mean I’ve been wasting time in a fussy, ineffective way maybe moving the laundry from the washer to the basket and then forgetting it exists. I’m not sure if there’s a US equivalent?
Some of my other favourite British words and phrases are:
Knackered - meaning tired, not broken!
Chuffed - being pleased and happy about something.
Skint - broke, poor!
Bevvy - An alcoholic drink.
Throwing a wobbly - having a tantrum.
Gutted - Deeply disappointed.
Gobsmacked - completely shocked!
Taking the mick - joking or teasing, not something rude!
Dodgy - Suspicious or just plain off.
Calling everyone “love” or “pet” - even strangers!
Spend a penny - Pop to the loo!
Another classic area where things get muddled is the school system. I swear, trying to understand the American school stages has given me more headaches than my GCSE Maths revision ever did. When I read American blogs and someone says their daughter is a junior or a sophomore, I genuinely have to pause and mentally Google it (again). I think I am getting the hang of it now. In the UK it seems simple to me infants (ages 4 to 7), juniors (7 to 11), secondary school (11 to 16), and then either sixth form or college (16 to 18) and if you decide to pursue a degree, that’s university, not college. So when I say my daughter is at college, I mean she’s still living at home, doing further education and not living on campus. She has only just turned 18 years old and is in her 3rd year of further education.
Another area where things get hilariously lost in translation is food. Reading American recipes or food blogs sometimes feels like decoding a secret language. I once had to Google what a biscuit was because based on the photo it definitely wasn’t a Digestive or Hob Nob that you dunk into a cup of tea and don’t get me started on chips!
Over here chips are thick cut, fried potatoes what we eat with say battered cod, covered in salt and vinegar. In the US chips are our crisps and just to confuse things we sometimes eat crisps in sandwiches. Americans eat chips with dip. It’s chaos. lol The vegetable aisle in the supermarket brings more confusion. Aubergine? Eggplant. Courgette? Zucchini. Swede? Rutabaga. Then there’s coriander which becomes cilantro, spring onions are green onions and rocket is arugula which sounds like a Marvel character to me. lol
One of the funniest things I’ve ever had a comment about from an American blog reader was why is your washing machine in the kitchen and I didn't know what to say apart from that is just where it goes. Here in the UK, it’s completely normal for the washing machine to live in the kitchen. It’s just part of the kitchen. Some newer UK homes do have utility rooms but for a lot of us it’s kitchen or nothing
Another thing that tripped me up early on in my blogging journey was about holidays! In the UK when we say someone’s on holiday, we mean they’re away somewhere, sunbathing in Spain, camping in Cornwall. Holidays = vacation time but in the US holiday almost always means a specific calendar event like Thanksgiving, Christmas, the Fourth of July. There’s also the fact that the US has holidays we don’t celebrate here and vice versa. The whole concept of Thanksgiving is fascinating meanwhile, over here we have things like Boxing Day, Bank Holidays and Pancake Day (yes, a whole day devoted to pancakes!) which might sound completely random to someone in the US and don’t even get me started on Bonfire Night. We celebrate the failure of the Gunpowder Plot in 1605 with fireworks!
Sports is another massive area where the cultural and wordy differences between the UK and the US come into play. Football here is soccer there, our rugby is more like American football but a lot muddier and more violent and let’s not forget netball, a sport that’s absolutely huge in British schools for girls but is virtually unheard of in the US. It’s sort of like basketball but no dribbling, no running with the ball and very strict rules about where you can stand. We also don’t really do school spirit in the same way. You won’t find students here wearing school jerseys or chanting on the side lines unless they’re on a school trip. No pep rallies or mascots. I'm betting half the kids in a UK school probably can’t remember their school’s motto, never mind sing a chant about it.
Despite all the confusion I genuinely love these little differences. We’re all part of the same world, just with different dialects. I think it’s brilliant. There are so many more words and phrases which haven't come to mind when writing this blog post so there might be a 2nd part further down the line. If I ever say something that you don't understand feel free to ask me about it.
What British words or phrases do you really like?
I like the word 'knackered' you mentioned. Just the sound says it all. And indeed, isn't it lovely how the internet and blogs provide us with the opportunity to 'meet' people from all over the world? I love it!
ReplyDeleteEnjoyed reading this post!! How fun and thanks for the shout out. I read a number of British books (both past and present- so many great thrill writers are British!) which has gotten me used to reading some of the words that we don't use here. However, I don't think I'd ever come across "faff" before. I do like that word a lot!!
ReplyDeleteI can see how reading American blogs would be confusing especially regarding education. I was a bit familiar with the British terminology from novels. Something that I think would be confusing for a Brit trying to understand the American ed system is that, yes, for us, students go to college after high school. So when they're around 18 years old (unless they were young for their grade) and have graduated high school, some students go on to college. But most colleges have the word "university" in them. So, my daughter is in college at Ohio State University. You get both the word "college" and "university" to describe post- high school education. My sister in Canada uses a number of British words so she would say "university" where I would say college. It's all so interesting and I have enjoyed reading your blog and getting to know words and phrases that I otherwise wouldn't have!
Fun post! My rabbi is British and the way he says certain words makes a laugh - schedule, controversy, etc.
ReplyDeleteWe are familiar with most of your examples, as we watch a lot of British TV shows. I too love the differences. Don't tell anyone, but I use a few myself...
ReplyDeleteThis is a fantastic post; I laughed all the way through it. Having been on both sides of the pond, I can so relate to the confusion over the different terms. I love "faff". I heard it used once on the Bake Off, I think the baker was talking about decorating a pastry, "It's all a bit of a faff, innit?" in that accent. I laughed so hard. I often slip a British term into a conversation and have to correct myself because I know the group I'm speaking with would have no idea what I'm talking about.
ReplyDeleteI watch a lot of British TV (Acorn & Britbox) so knew most of these things, but I've not heard faff before and I did think your daughter was in college (university). Thanks for explaining that!! I catch myself saying "well done" often, and also will note that something is "brilliant". I've been gobsmacked a few times, too! LOL To make things even sillier, here in the USA there are differences betwee the regions and even the states. It's certainly all good and adds to the fun and intrigue. I enjoyed this post, Kim!! xo
ReplyDeleteThis post was so enlightening and interesting to me! We do have so many differences in our language of words and what they mean in different countries and cultures. Thanks for sharing this with your US readers!
ReplyDeleteWhat a super post! As a fellow US blogger....I can personally say that we have some weird sayings and backwards things. I love the phrases and words you shared, used in the UK. A lot I am familiar with and say myself because I am strange and kind of an anglophile. I have always been. It would be a dream to come over to the UK one day. Since, I was a young girl I have always wanted to! I watch more UK shows, movies and follow more things in the UK than I do in the US. It is my preference. Thanks for sharing some new words and phrases. My husband will be entertained. HAHA!! I use UK slang all the time to annoy him. Hehehe!!
ReplyDeleteI love this post kim it was really fun to read. Do you find that you feel the need explain that tea is your evening meal? I do as half the country eat lunch and dinner and the other half dinner and tea lol.
ReplyDeleteOh I love this post so much! I have had to Google a couple of things that you've said as well because I didn't know what you were saying either. So funny how we speak the same language but don't always have the same slang. I actually knew most of these that you posted about. I LOVE the word dodgy... husband and I have used it for 20+ years since Love Actually came out. That's our favorite movie and they talk about the "dodgy end of Wandsworth" in the movie several times. I don't even know if there really is a dodgy end of Wandsworth, but it always makes me laugh!
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