Brit-Picking Resources

[cuddyclothes]

Words That Could Be Confusing and Embarrassing In The UK US

Excerpt:

Words that could be confusing and embarrassing in the UK & US

At long last, here is the complete list of Anglo-American confusions. The definitions have been cross referenced with the most recent edition of the Oxford Dictionary, so if you don't agree with some of my definitions take up the argument with them (unless I say otherwise in the text.)

1) Buns. You know what these are. You're probably sitting on them now. Over here buns are either bread or cake rolls. Asking for a couple of sticky buns in a bakery here will mean Mr Crusty the baker will give you two cake buns with icing (frosting) on the top. If I went into a deli in Manhattan and asked for a couple of sticky buns I'd probably get arrested...

The Great Brit-Picking Dictionary

This is a reddit post relating to Harry Potter fanfiction, with over 200 additional comments and corrections.

Excerpt: 

Taking the piss is mockery, being pissed off is angry, being pissed is drunk, go piss up a wall is go away because I don't like you.

duskpeterson  added:
I like the wonderfully comprehensive book, Mighty Fine Words and Smashing Expressions: Making Sense of Transatlantic English.

Comments

[petra]

That's an interesting excerpt, considering that in my area of the US -- not that far from Manhattan -- sticky buns are a foodstuff, not a bottom thing. I don't hit the derrière association until several iterations down "What does 'buns' mean?"

[sanguinity]

I'm right on the other side of the country, and we also use 'buns' to refer to foodstuffs. For me to immediately think of body parts, the context has to be already sexualized somehow.

Obviously the author is doing a shtick, trying to go for naughty misunderstandings, but some of these alleged American usages are exaggerated for the sake of the joke.

[cuddyclothes]

See below. Whoops!

[cuddyclothes]

Are you in England?

Yes, here in America we say "sticky buns". I'm not sure when this was published. However, quite a bit of it is helpful.

[dragoness_e]

Speaking as an American who has had "fish & chips" in a London pub, what the Brits call "chips" are what we call "steak fries". I don't know what they call those skinny bits of potato we call "french fries".

[cuddyclothes]

I think they also call them "chips". Although I haven't seen many specimens like that in England! I'm American, I've just been in England several times.

[duskpeterson]

I like the wonderfully comprehensive book, Mighty Fine Words and Smashing Expressions: Making Sense of Transatlantic English.

[cuddyclothes]

You are amazing, Dusk!