Once upon a time, I worked for a very large New York City book publisher, who, periodically, gave me British books to “Americanize” before publishing the books for American readers. I changed both British spellings and British words that were foreign to Americans. Of course, being a royal (lowercase “r”) Anglophile, I loved this task!
In the United States, nearly all book publishers today use the Merriam-Webster dictionary as a reference for spelling and word meanings—while UK editors use the Oxford English Dictionary. The Merriam-Webster dictionary is a direct descendant of the famous dictionary that Noah Webster wrote, An American Dictionary of the English Language. Webster, a Connecticut Yankee who studied at Yale, was a lexicographer and English spelling reformer. He thought many British spellings were unnecessarily complex and simplified them—thus, for example, giving us “honor” instead of “honour.” With two English-speaking countries calling upon different dictionaries to supply “proper English,” little wonder American English and British English parted ways. Such would have been the case anyway, with the distance between our countries, but differing reference books helped cement the deal.
When I first started Americanizing books, I was quite surprised to find almost all of the unfamiliar words in the British books were, actually, in the Merriam-Webster dictionary—but they were typically labeled “chiefly British variant.” Seeing words used in wonderful new ways fascinated me! And like any good Anglophile, I soon incorporated the British words into my own vocabulary. I hope you will too!
Below is an index of British words that I think may confound many Americans. Because the entire list is a bit long, I’ll present the information in my next few blogs posts. Enjoy!
Britishism / Americanism
A
advert = ad, advertisement
amongst = among
aubergine = eggplant
B
banger = sausage
barmy = nutty
barrister = trial lawyer in an English superior court
baths = public swimming pool
(the) beeb = BBC
beefburger = hamburger
blighter = contemptible person
bloke = a guy (informal)
bloody = damn (mildly offensive)
bobby = cop
bonnet (of car) = car hood
boot (of car) = car trunk
braces = suspenders
brilliant = great, fantastic, cool
brolly = umbrella
bum = butt, buns
busker = street musician
C
car park = parking lot
cashpoint = ATM machine
castor sugar = confectioners’ sugar
chap = guy, fellow
cheeky = nervy, sassy, bold
cheerio = good-bye
cheers = thanks or good-bye
chemist (store) = drugstore, pharmacy
chips = French fries
Christian name = first name
cinema = movie theater
city center = downtown
cling film = plastic wrap, such as Saran Wrap
cloakroom = coat-check room or bathroom (i.e., toilets)
concession (when buying admission tickiets) = discount
conk = nose
copper = cop
cornet (for ice cream) = cone
cot = baby crib
council estate = public housing project
crisps = potato chips
cuppa = cup of tea
c.v. (curriculum vitae) = resume or curriculum vitae
D
daft = stupid
demerara sugar = brown sugar
digestive biscuit = similar to a graham cracker
draughts = checkers (game)
dressing gown = bathrobe
dummy (for infant) = pacifier
E
Elastoplast (trademark name) = Band-Aid (trademark name)
elevenses = mid-morning tea break
en suite = a sleeping room (in home or hotel) with attached bathroom
estate agent = real-estate agent
F
fag = cigarette
faggot = type of meatball
fire (gas or electric) = heater
fizzy drink = carbonated soda of any type
flannel = wash cloth
flat = apartment (rented or owned, such as a condo)
flatmate = roommate
flautist = flutist
football (game or ball) = soccer (game or ball)
fortnight = two weeks
freehold = unrestricted ownership of real estate
fringe (hair) = bangs
G
garden = yard
gawp = gawk
git (person) = a fool
goods lift = freight elevator
goose-pimples = goose bumps
gymkhana = horse-show competition
******************************
Go to: BRITISH BOOKS
Go to: CHAT FORUM
Go to: VISIT BRITAIN
Go to: HOMEPAGE
In the United States, nearly all book publishers today use the Merriam-Webster dictionary as a reference for spelling and word meanings—while UK editors use the Oxford English Dictionary. The Merriam-Webster dictionary is a direct descendant of the famous dictionary that Noah Webster wrote, An American Dictionary of the English Language. Webster, a Connecticut Yankee who studied at Yale, was a lexicographer and English spelling reformer. He thought many British spellings were unnecessarily complex and simplified them—thus, for example, giving us “honor” instead of “honour.” With two English-speaking countries calling upon different dictionaries to supply “proper English,” little wonder American English and British English parted ways. Such would have been the case anyway, with the distance between our countries, but differing reference books helped cement the deal.
When I first started Americanizing books, I was quite surprised to find almost all of the unfamiliar words in the British books were, actually, in the Merriam-Webster dictionary—but they were typically labeled “chiefly British variant.” Seeing words used in wonderful new ways fascinated me! And like any good Anglophile, I soon incorporated the British words into my own vocabulary. I hope you will too!
Below is an index of British words that I think may confound many Americans. Because the entire list is a bit long, I’ll present the information in my next few blogs posts. Enjoy!
Britishism / Americanism
A
advert = ad, advertisement
amongst = among
aubergine = eggplant
B
banger = sausage
barmy = nutty
barrister = trial lawyer in an English superior court
baths = public swimming pool
(the) beeb = BBC
beefburger = hamburger
blighter = contemptible person
bloke = a guy (informal)
bloody = damn (mildly offensive)
bobby = cop
bonnet (of car) = car hood
boot (of car) = car trunk
braces = suspenders
brilliant = great, fantastic, cool
brolly = umbrella
bum = butt, buns
busker = street musician
C
car park = parking lot
cashpoint = ATM machine
castor sugar = confectioners’ sugar
chap = guy, fellow
cheeky = nervy, sassy, bold
cheerio = good-bye
cheers = thanks or good-bye
chemist (store) = drugstore, pharmacy
chips = French fries
Christian name = first name
cinema = movie theater
city center = downtown
cling film = plastic wrap, such as Saran Wrap
cloakroom = coat-check room or bathroom (i.e., toilets)
concession (when buying admission tickiets) = discount
conk = nose
copper = cop
cornet (for ice cream) = cone
cot = baby crib
council estate = public housing project
crisps = potato chips
cuppa = cup of tea
c.v. (curriculum vitae) = resume or curriculum vitae
D
daft = stupid
demerara sugar = brown sugar
digestive biscuit = similar to a graham cracker
draughts = checkers (game)
dressing gown = bathrobe
dummy (for infant) = pacifier
E
Elastoplast (trademark name) = Band-Aid (trademark name)
elevenses = mid-morning tea break
en suite = a sleeping room (in home or hotel) with attached bathroom
estate agent = real-estate agent
F
fag = cigarette
faggot = type of meatball
fire (gas or electric) = heater
fizzy drink = carbonated soda of any type
flannel = wash cloth
flat = apartment (rented or owned, such as a condo)
flatmate = roommate
flautist = flutist
football (game or ball) = soccer (game or ball)
fortnight = two weeks
freehold = unrestricted ownership of real estate
fringe (hair) = bangs
G
garden = yard
gawp = gawk
git (person) = a fool
goods lift = freight elevator
goose-pimples = goose bumps
gymkhana = horse-show competition
******************************
Go to: BRITISH BOOKS
Go to: CHAT FORUM
Go to: VISIT BRITAIN
Go to: HOMEPAGE
