# British, American different turns of phrase **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 22, 2010, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-american-different-turns-of-phrase/565070 "2010-12-22T13:58:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-american-different-turns-of-phrase/565070/161 "2010-12-28T15:48:43Z")
> [@Candyman74](#): > > The correct response is “alright?”. Think of it more like a grunt you’re expected to repeat back; don’t focus too much on the actual words. I think of Karl Pilkington muttering something that sounds more like “aye?” Is that it? ---
**Author:** ![Candyman74](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ad7895/32.png) [@Candyman74](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Candyman74)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-american-different-turns-of-phrase/565070/162 "2010-12-28T15:51:54Z")
> [@acsenray](#): > > I think of Karl Pilkington muttering something that sounds more like “aye?” Is that it? Yup. He’s saying “alright”. But he’s mumbling! ---
**Author:** ![Charley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/97f17d/32.png) [@Charley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charley)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-american-different-turns-of-phrase/565070/163 "2010-12-28T16:16:54Z")
> [@HeyHomie](#): > > Well if one’s school isn’t state-supported, but it isn’t an olde worlde one like Eton, then what kind of school is it? Oh yeah… mentioned it, but only in passing - I could have been a bit more helpful. **amarone** is right that technically both types of fee-paying schools are ‘independent’ but my type of school is generally referred to as ‘private’ as in the US usage. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-american-different-turns-of-phrase/565070/164 "2010-12-28T16:26:44Z")
> [@Kyla](#): > > Wait, are you implying that if an American said one hundred twelve, they mean it as “100,12”, or it sounds like that to you? Because 100,12 = 10,012, and that would be pronounced as “ten thousand twelve” or “ten thousand and twelve”. Now I’m confused. I mean, because it’s foreign to my ears, I can’t help hearing it as a list of two items - the first of which is 100 - the second is 12. (the comma in 100,12 was intended to serve as a list separator, but I see how it was ambiguous) It never causes me any lasting confusion, but it’s just a blip that lifts me out of unconscious understanding of what is being said - and makes me engage my conscious brain to interpret the meaning. ---
**Author:** ![Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellis_Aponte_Jr)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-american-different-turns-of-phrase/565070/165 "2010-12-28T16:27:43Z")
> [@irishgirl](#): > > The whole _en route_ pronunciation thing, is one that I pick up in US shows, especially _24_- where someone was always on the way to somewhere else. > UK: on root > US: in rowt Americans have been conflicted about the route pronunciation for many years. Nat King Cole sings root (actually “on Route,” not “en route”) in the song “Route 66” and the Beach Boys sing root in “Surfin USA.” I think for many Americans it’s a very situational pronunciation depending on the context or simply the mood of the speaker at the moment. Am not sure why “in” would be more common than “on” though. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-american-different-turns-of-phrase/565070/166 "2010-12-28T16:34:15Z")
> [@Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](#): > > Am not sure why “in” would be more common than “on” though. I think he’s trying to indicate different pronunciations of the French word “en.” ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-american-different-turns-of-phrase/565070/167 "2010-12-28T16:37:26Z")
> [@Push\_You\_Down](#): > > Not specific to UK/US I think but I tend to hear Brits and Canadians say “on line” rather than “in line” as in “waiting on line at the supermarket” vs “waiting in line at the supermarket.” Where the heck is this coming from? I’ve never heard anyone from any part of Britain say “on line”. We say ‘in line’ or - more likely - ‘in a/the queue’ ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tao\_s\_Revenge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/73ab20/32.png) [@The\_Tao\_s\_Revenge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tao_s_Revenge)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-american-different-turns-of-phrase/565070/168 "2010-12-28T16:38:30Z")
In UK it’s perfectly normal to knock your daughter up in the morning. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-american-different-turns-of-phrase/565070/169 "2010-12-28T16:39:33Z")
Way back when my UK friends got a whole different mental picture from the “Watergate bugging” than I did. ---
**Author:** ![Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellis_Aponte_Jr)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-american-different-turns-of-phrase/565070/170 "2010-12-28T16:40:42Z")
> [@acsenray](#): > > I think he’s trying to indicate different pronunciations of the French word “en.” Yes, but why the preference? If someone says “in” it would strike me as an attempt to avoid saying a French word, but of course saying “on” would serve the same purpose… and again I think many Americans would say “on” just as readily. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-american-different-turns-of-phrase/565070/171 "2010-12-28T16:49:08Z")
> [@Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](#): > > Yes, but why the preference? If someone says “in” it would strike me as an attempt to avoid saying a French word, but of course saying “on” would serve the same purpose… and again I think many Americans would say “on” just as readily. The French pronunciation of “en” is, I believe [ɔ̃]. Many Americans pronounce it as [ɛn] as in “pen.” I think this is the pronunciation he’s indicating with “in.” Other people try to pronounce it the French way or settle for something close, such as [ɒn] or [ɔn] or even [ɑn]. ---
**Author:** ![kferr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/71e660/32.png) [@kferr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kferr)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-american-different-turns-of-phrase/565070/172 "2010-12-28T16:50:14Z")
In the US both the woodworking tool and computer networking device are ‘routers’ pronounced with the ‘out’ sound. In the UK the woodworking tool is pronounced the same as in the US but the networking device is pronounced ‘rooter’. ---
**Author:** ![Charley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/97f17d/32.png) [@Charley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charley)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-american-different-turns-of-phrase/565070/173 "2010-12-28T18:21:37Z")
> [@kopek](#): > > Way back when my UK friends got a whole different mental picture from the “Watergate bugging” than I did. What picture did they get? ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-american-different-turns-of-phrase/565070/174 "2010-12-28T20:07:25Z")
US: Shag = a dance popular in the nightclubs of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, which commonly hold shagging contests in the summer tourist season UK: Shag = shag 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-american-different-turns-of-phrase/565070/175 "2010-12-28T20:17:49Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > UK: Shag = shag 😉 Or a deep-pile carpet, or a certain cut of tobacco, or a type of seabird. But you are correct, it’s mostly referring to just plain old shagging. ---
**Author:** ![Candyman74](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ad7895/32.png) [@Candyman74](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Candyman74)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-american-different-turns-of-phrase/565070/176 "2010-12-28T20:19:43Z")
> [@Charley](#): > > What picture did they get? Buggered if I know. ---
**Author:** ![Charley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/97f17d/32.png) [@Charley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charley)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-american-different-turns-of-phrase/565070/177 "2010-12-28T22:01:42Z")
> [@Candyman74](#): > > Buggered if I know. 😃 couldn’t let that go unappreciated… ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2010, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-american-different-turns-of-phrase/565070/178 "2010-12-29T02:48:57Z")
US: study for an exam UK: revise for an exam US: quarter of nine (for 8:45), UK: quarter to nine (although this one is a US alternative too) US: sidewalk UK: pavement (also used some places in the NE US, including my native Philadelphia) US: he’s in college UK: he’s at university and of course, the name of the 26th letter of the alphabet ---
**Author:** ![Ximenean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/aca169/32.png) [@Ximenean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ximenean)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2010, 11:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-american-different-turns-of-phrase/565070/179 "2010-12-29T11:05:15Z")
“Have” (US) vs. “have got” British. “I have an apple” vs. “I’ve got an apple”. The illustrative phrase I remember is “I don’t have a faucet in my bathroom” (US) vs. “I haven’t got a tap in my toilet” (British). [QUOTE=The Tao’s Revenge] In UK it’s perfectly normal to knock your daughter up in the morning. [/QUOTE] It’s been covered a couple of times already, but if you said this in British company, sniggers would probably ensue. It’s not a particularly common phrase, but would more usually mean “to make pregnant”, just as in the US. Like others, I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone use “knock up” meaning to rouse someone from sleep by knocking on their door. It sounds quite old-fashioned. ---
**Author:** ![Dave\_Hartwick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7feea3/32.png) [@Dave\_Hartwick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dave_Hartwick)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2010, 11:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-american-different-turns-of-phrase/565070/180 "2010-12-29T11:09:30Z")
US: “Hey Dave.” (Greetings, Dave.) UK: "Hey Dave… (I’m going to say something to Dave.) I’m just going off what some English guy said, here. “Hey” isn’t the same as “hi” according to him. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-american-different-turns-of-phrase/565070.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-american-different-turns-of-phrase/565070.md?page=10)