I was once stationed in the UK (RAF Greenham Common, Newbury) when my wife and I fell on the stairs. I busted my elbow, resulting in putting me in a sling. There are those that might say it was an alcohol-related incident, but I will neither confirm nor deny the allegation (mainly because I was too drunk to remember clearly).
Anyway, when I got to work that Monday, one of the British civilians asked me what happened. When I told him, he asked me something that baffled me: “Was ya pissed?†In the US, to be pissed is to be angry, so I answered: “Well, no. I mean she didn’t throw me down the stairs.â€
The difference in our languages are hysterical, aren't they? :wah:
Yes, to us Pissed means drunk, totally inebriated, drunk as a skunk, pissed as a newt, and some other...er...equally colourful colloquialisms!
Angry is also furious, boiling mad, steamed, steaming at the ears!, apoplectic, and again....other colourful synonyms! A lot of our words are regional also, so, being from the South, I wuldn't use a Northerners expressions. No offence to Northerners!
I have worked as an English nanny in the States and also in London for Americans.
I found it amusing when the grandmother of the child I cared for, came for a visit.
We took the child to the park to play; in the sandpit several children were already playing and one child took another childs dummy, making the second child cry for his dummy. The grandmother was extremely shocked that two such young children could be so rude and call each other 'dummy'. so, laughingly, I had to explain that 'dummy' means 'pacifier' in Americanese and that your word 'dummy' equates more to us saying 'idiot', which is not the same as idiot savant (which we also don't use!)
Confused? You will be! :wah:
Personally, I was extremely shocked at the American word 'fanny' which I later discovered meant butt or bottom or bum. (I think!)
So, now tell me......if someone (a man) dresses in a three piece suit...we call the top a jacket and the bottom half - trousers. Next comes a natty little waistcoat with, perhaps, a fob watch. Underneath this is a shirt and tie, and underneath those are a vest, pants and socks. Now I know you call a waistcoat...a vest! So what do you call a vest?? It is the thing that Bruce Willis wears in all his Die Hard movies and it becomes very grey and covered in blood and sweat? Also, if you call trousers...pants...what do you call pants?? And are socks still socks??
Rapunzel wrote: So, now tell me......if someone (a man) dresses in a three piece suit...we call the top a jacket and the bottom half - trousers. Next comes a natty little waistcoat with, perhaps, a fob watch. Underneath this is a shirt and tie, and underneath those are a vest, pants and socks. Now I know you call a waistcoat...a vest! So what do you call a vest?? It is the thing that Bruce Willis wears in all his Die Hard movies and it becomes very grey and covered in blood and sweat? Also, if you call trousers...pants...what do you call pants?? And are socks still socks??
Now I'M confused!!! Hehehe :wah:
We confuse ourselves! The outer garment of a suit may be a coat, jacket, or blazer. I even heard some people distinguish a sports jacket out of the mix, though I'm far too unsophisticated to know the difference. What you call trousers may optionally be trousers or pants here. Indeed, inside the jacket is a vest, then shirt & tie, with the undergarment being a T-shirt or undershirt. The specific style Bruce Willis wears is sometimes called a "wife beater." Your "pants" we call simply underwear. Some I suppose get more specific, calling them boxers or briefs as appropriate. Socks are socks are sox! I had a doctor who recommended I wear support stockings! He didn't understand why I got so upset until he realised that what he meant were socks, and what I'd visualized were panty-hose! :yh_rotfl
Accountable wrote: We confuse ourselves! The outer garment of a suit may be a coat, jacket, or blazer. I even heard some people distinguish a sports jacket out of the mix, though I'm far too unsophisticated to know the difference. What you call trousers may optionally be trousers or pants here. Indeed, inside the jacket is a vest, then shirt & tie, with the undergarment being a T-shirt or undershirt. The specific style Bruce Willis wears is sometimes called a "wife beater." Your "pants" we call simply underwear. Some I suppose get more specific, calling them boxers or briefs as appropriate. Socks are socks are sox! I had a doctor who recommended I wear support stockings! He didn't understand why I got so upset until he realised that what he meant were socks, and what I'd visualized were panty-hose! :yh_rotflTrousers - slacks,pants,britches,legs,(I used to wear drainpipes in 1960s)
Personally, I was extremely shocked at the American word 'fanny' which I later discovered meant butt or bottom or bum. (I think!)
So what else does it mean? :-3
In the US, the phrase "doesn't it?" "didn't you?" or other variations are always used during interrogation, as in "You broke my favorite china cup, DIDN'T YOU?!?" However, in the UK it seems to only point out irony. "I went to buy the new CD but they were sold out, weren't they?"
The first time I came upon this was when I was talking with the sweetest old lady one day. I don't remember specifically what we were talking about, but she said something like "I was going to get another cup of coffee, but the pot was empty, wasn't it?" Thank goodness I practice my motto (see below) or I might have said something like "How the Hell am I supposed to know? Are you accusing me of emptying the pot and not making fresh, you old bag?!?"
In the US, the phrase "doesn't it?" "didn't you?" or other variations are always used during interrogation, as in "You broke my favorite china cup, DIDN'T YOU?!?" However, in the UK it seems to only point out irony. "I went to buy the new CD but they were sold out, weren't they?"
The first time I came upon this was when I was talking with the sweetest old lady one day. I don't remember specifically what we were talking about, but she said something like "I was going to get another cup of coffee, but the pot was empty, wasn't it?" Thank goodness I practice my motto (see below) or I might have said something like "How the Hell am I supposed to know? Are you accusing me of emptying the pot and not making fresh, you old bag?!?"
Instead, I just smiled and nodded.In Dublin, you would laugh all day just listening to Sish she to tiss she - Meaning She said to her
In the US, to be pissed is to be angry, so I answered: “Well, no. I mean she didn’t throw me down the stairs.†
