100+ Differences between British and American English | British vs. American Vocabulary Words

I attended a technical collage which concentrated on science / maths subjects rather than 'arts' which was more associated with grammar schools. I took A levels in Maths, Applied maths, Physics and chemistry and studied Electrical & Electronic engineering at university.

I and my children went to 'University'. To say 'The university' would imply that there was only one, which is definitely not the case.
 

Capt Lightning said:
I attended a technical collage which concentrated on science / maths subjects rather than 'arts' which was more associated with grammar schools. I took A levels in Maths, Applied maths, Physics and chemistry and studied Electrical & Electronic engineering at university.

I and my children went to 'University'. To say 'The university' would imply that there was only one, which is definitely not the case.
Click to expand...
Technical colleges back in our day were far removed from those of today. Back then you could study for highers as you just described..
 
RadishRose said:
Strikes me funny that while Brits say tap while we say faucet, we don't drink faucet water, we drink tap water!
Click to expand...
Those are fun. Like a tin can being called a tin in the UK and a can in the US, although there's no such thing as a tinnery (for preserving food).

And when we preserve foods like jams, et al, it's called canning in the US and bottling in the UK (which makes sense really, as it's done in glass jars at home).

I just looked this up because I love etymology and couldn't help myself. (I'd forgotten about spigot).

faucet (n.)
c. 1400, from Old French fausset (14c.) "breach, spigot, stopper, peg (of a barrel)," which is of unknown origin; perhaps diminutive of Latin faux, fauces "upper part of the throat, pharynx, gullet." Not in Watkins, but Barnhart, Gamillscheg, and others suggest the Old French word is from fausser "to damage, break into," from Late Latin falsare (see false).

Spigot and faucet was the name of an old type of tap for a barrel or cask, consisting of a hollow, tapering tube, which was driven at the narrow end into a barrel, and a screw into the tube which regulated the flow of the liquid. Properly, it seems, the spigot was the tube, the faucet the screw, but the senses have merged or reversed over time. OED reports that faucet is now the common word in American English for the whole apparatus.

https://www.etymonline.com/word/faucet
 
Medusa said:
Those are fun. Like a tin can being called a tin in the UK and a can in the US, although there's no such thing as a tinnery (for preserving food).
Click to expand...
Yes but we always say can when referring to food.. can of tomatoes, soup, etc.. in fact we rarely use the word tin when talking about a can which has contents of anything.. :)
 
That's weird. I had that wrong then. Is that relatively new? I ask because (don't laugh), when watching, "Call the Midwife," which is based around the 1950's and 60's, I noticed them referring to canned salmon as tinned.

I could swear I've heard my boyfriend refer to tins of certain types of foods.
 
Medusa said:
That's weird. I had that wrong then. Is that relatively new? I ask because (don't laugh), when watching, "Call the Midwife," which is based around the 1950's and 60's, I noticed them referring to canned salmon as tinned.

I could swear I've heard my boyfriend refer to tins of certain types of foods.
Click to expand...
I'm with you, @Medusa. I think the difference is not only regional, but you and I get our British lingo from books while Holly gets hers from real life. Norah Lofts, Catherine Cookson, Agatha Christie and the like are always having their characters opening a tin of soup, or giving the children eggy bread for tea, while the man is out plowing the field to plant, "corn,' meaning wheat or "maize" meaning corn.

When I arrived at Heathrow Airport, in1990. I asked someone who worked there where the loo was and he laughed at me. After a few months of being laughed at, I realized my British was about a hundred years out of date.

Another thing I learned was once they heard my American accent they started correcting me even when I was right. I remember talking to some English people and saying we had just been to Warwick castle. I pronounced it "Warick" and she said no it was "War-wick," until someone admitted I was right. I found out many things about us "Yanks". I would wear pants to the pub and some man would tell me American women always wore pants because we always wore the pants in the family, the next time I would wear a skirt and be told we Yanks always wore overly bright colors, "Why do you have to dress like Mickey Mouse?" It never ended. If you pronounce scone to rhyme with stone they'll say it rhymes with wan and vice versa.
 
Last edited:
Della said:
I'm with you, @Medusa. I think the difference is you and I get our British lingo from books while Holly gets hers from real life. Norah Lofts, Catherin Cookson, Agatha Christie and the like are always having their characters opening a tin of soup, or giving the children eggy bread for tea, while the man is out plowing the field to plant, "corn,' meaning wheat or "maize" meaning corn.

When I arrived at Heathrow Airport, in1990. I asked someone who worked there where the loo was and he laughed at me. After a few months of being laughed at, I realized my British I was about a hundred years out of date.
Click to expand...
He laughed at you? Really? Yeesh. LOL

I totally agree that an English person is going to be the final say on what English people say, but I have just asked my English boyfriend about this particular one because I've heard him use that term so often.

And there's, @Octavo_48, up there, who is from England (though also Australia).

You mentioned "tea;" I wonder if that term is still in prevalent use in the UK or if it's dinner? My BF says, "dinner," but that's one person, obviously so I'm curious.

I think the use of supper and dinner have changed around here in the US or are used differently depending on region.

EDIT: Took a comma out.
 
I don't think that the usage of the word can or tin is regional. I'm from the north west of England, my late husband was from the south of England and we both used the word tin, never can. Regarding meals, in my neck of the woods it's breakfast, dinner and tea whereas to my husband it would have been breakfast, lunch, dinner.

Something this area and some other parts of north west England have in common with Americans is that trousers are called pants. đź‘–
 
Pam said:
I don't think that the usage of the word can or tin is regional. I'm from the north west of England, my late husband was from the south of England and we both used the word tin, never can. Regarding meals, in my neck of the woods it's breakfast, dinner and tea whereas to my husband it would have been breakfast, lunch, dinner.

Something this area and some other parts of north west England have in common with Americans is that trousers are called pants. đź‘–
Click to expand...
This is so freaking interesting, the way language, word meaning and usage changes over time and space (or doesn't).

Your husband and my boyfriend are from the South of England and, like your husband, my boyfriend says, "dinner," as opposed to, "tea." However, he does use, "trousers," and used to be amused at my use of "pants," because to him that means "underpants."

What used to really get him was when I used the term, "fanny pack." Apparently, "fanny" means something very different in our two countries. 🤫

EDIT: Added a sentence.
 
Octavo_48 said:
I think it may be a regional thing in the UK. I'm from "up north" :) and we always used the word tin ... tin of peaches, tin of peas ... where's the biscuit (cookie) tin etc. ... but we did use the watering can in the garden.

Here in Oz its "can" :)
Click to expand...
yes many decades ago we said Tin... perhaps if you came back you would be saying CAN... :LOL:..however we do still say Biscuit Tin.. even if it isn't a tin..
 
hollydolly said:
yes many decades ago we said Tin... perhaps if you came back yo would be saying CAN... :LOL:..however we do still say Biscuit Tin.. even if it isn't a tin..
Click to expand...
This is really getting interesting. My BF says tin, currently and apparently so does @Pam. We should poll our English members about it and see who is using can and who is using tin to find out if it's regional / temporal and if so, where/when.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Pam
Medusa said:
He laughed at you? Really? Yeesh. LOL

I totally agree that an English person is going to be the final say on what English people say, but I have just asked my English boyfriend about this particular one because I've heard him use that term so often.

And there's, @Octavo_48, up there, who is from England (though also Australia).

You mentioned "tea;" I wonder if that term is still in prevalent use in the UK or if it's dinner? My BF says, "dinner," but that's one person, obviously so I'm curious.

I think the use of supper and dinner have changed around here in the US or are used differently depending on region.

EDIT: Took a comma out.
Click to expand...
Tea tends to be used much more often in the North of England and in Ireland and in Scotland to mean the evening Meal, while we in the South of England call it Dinner

When I was growing up in scotland, my father always called the evening meal Supper.. altho' he was perfectly aware that supper means a snack later in the evening.. altho' we never had supper at home.. but my mum called it Tea ..
 

You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top