Foreign Language -

Okay, here is the anticipated list of observed language differences between Great Britain and America. Granted, some of these will seem very obvious and a few may even be in common with parts of the US. But this list is more accurately described as observed differences between me and the folks I interacted with while there. A few of these were observed road signs as well and not actually used in conversation. Merriam Webster has not been consulted for definitions.

British > American

Dual carriageway > divided highway with a minimum of four lanes
Motorway > major highway – we would normally describe as interstate, except they don’t have states for these motorways to interconnect
Slip road > on or off ramp for motorway
Ramp > speed bump
Concealed drive > hidden driveway or road (not easily visible to main road drivers)
Car park > parking lot
Give Way > road sign for Yield
Lorry > truck – usually a large delivery truck or “big rig”
Fry up > traditional full breakfast
French stick > french bread or baguette
Panoply > assortment or large variety (ie – buffet of food)
Rationalize > made efficient, as in a company downsizing or laying off redundant workers
Tender > a proposal or negotiation, seeking to obtain a contract. Similar to our paper money being called ‘legal tender,’ which would indicate that it is legal to be used to obtain goods and services or to negotiate.
Bang on > exact or correct (“Your answer to that question was bang on!")
To Let > for lease or rent (related to houses or apartments or commercial space)
Pushchair > baby stroller
Trolley > shopping cart
Nappy > diaper
Voluble > noisy or talkative (A baby’s jibberish may not be loud or verbose, but the baby could be described as voluble.)
True > level or exact, as in a level playing field – “The cricket square is true.”
Hirer or To Hire > contractor or to rent, a hirer could be a contracted professional for some task or you could ‘hire’ the equipment and do it yourself
Church Walk > a specially designated sidewalk which would pass alongside a church usually a short cut between two parts of a village or town
Footpath, Footway, Bridleway > a designated path for public use across private property (footpath and footway being for pedestrians and bridleway accepting horse riders)
Crisps > chips
Chips > french fries

This was jolly good fun!