10. Beverages: For some reason no matter how I pronounce coke or water in American restaurants I have to repeat it several times. Water and ‘wodder’ I get, but the Coke one puzzles me no end. Lemonade’s another, firstly there’s the pronunciation, LEMonade instead of lemonADE then there’s the fact that it’s some kind of water and squeezed lemon concoction not the ‘Every bubble’s passed its fizzical’ proper stuff. And don’t get me started on Ribena/orange squash’
9. Hair styles: Bangs- ‘I like girls with bangs’, my mate told me. I let it pass thinking well, it takes all sorts to make the world go round. I later found that across the pond, ‘bangs’ means a fringe. Somehow’
8. Food: Zucchini / Courgette, Cilantro / coriander, eggplant / aubergine, ground round/ mincemeat, ‘ If you’re buying a recipe book in the states, make sure you have a native handy to translate. Zucchini, I ask you…
7. Adjectives: Mad- If you’re mad in the States, you’re extremely angry. In the UK, you’re insane. It’s a subtle, but important difference. ‘My mate got sectioned after his wife left him’, he must be mad. Discuss’ see also ‘mean’ (evil vs. stingy) and if you’re allowed to say it on the family-friendly interweb, pissed (drunk vs. in a bad mood)
6. Carcinogens: Fags / cigarettes/ smokes- Somewhat frosty reception to the phrase ‘It’s nigh on impossible to bum fags round here (in California)’.
5. Body parts: Fanny/arse: The first time I heard the theme tune to dire 90’s US sitcom, ‘The Nanny’ and it got to the line, ‘What was she to do, where was she to go, she was out on her fanny’ I was shocked to the very core. Of course, fanny means bottom in US English.
4. Car parts: windshield/windscreen, bonnet/hood, trunk/boot, gas/petrol, bumper/fender, lorries/trucks. It’s a mystery…
3. Verbs: Fancy, as in I fancy a pint/your mate is simply not said. My (American) wife thought she understood what it meant and asked me, after I met her parents for the first time, if I fancied her mum. I answered, erm no, and she got extremely upset. She thought I didn’t get on with her mum or something. It took a dictionary and a lot of tact to rectify the situation.
2. Gender of names. Gwyn is definitely a girl’s name in the States (I’m a bloke, it’s a Welsh name and the female version is Gwynne *edit* Gwen), but there’s plenty of other names you’d expect to be girls but aren’t. There are men happily living their lives called Tracy (http://tracylawrence.musiccitynetworks.com/) and women called Charlie.
1. Sweets/ Candy. As you’ll hear on Total Podcastrophe, it’s extremely hard to hold a conversation between an American and a Brit about favourite sweets/chocolate/candy/biscuits without a lot of explanation. Some exist in both countries: Cadburys’ Creme Eggs, some don’t: Dime bars, Crunchies, some have the same name but aren’t the same: Milky Ways. It’s a minefield. Stay well clear.
