# Do British and Irish people have a hard time understanding Americans speak? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 10, 2008, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-british-and-irish-people-have-a-hard-time-understanding-americans-speak/462903 "2008-09-10T05:01:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**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:** [September 11, 2008, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-british-and-irish-people-have-a-hard-time-understanding-americans-speak/462903/61 "2008-09-11T00:42:24Z")
What blows my mind is people (as the poster above) who _know_ they speak with an accent & go on doing so wilfully. I suppose one would say it’s a case of situational accents, neither accent more correct per se, but it would feel strange to me always alternating my speech patterns. ---
**Author:** ![Indistinguishable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/90ced4/32.png) [@Indistinguishable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indistinguishable)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-british-and-irish-people-have-a-hard-time-understanding-americans-speak/462903/62 "2008-09-11T00:48:14Z")
> [@Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](#): > > What blows my mind is people (as the poster above) who _know_ they speak with an accent & go on doing so wilfully. I suppose one would say it’s a case of situational accents, neither accent more correct per se, but it would feel strange to me always alternating my speech patterns. It’s not possible to speak without an accent. Given that basic fact, why should anyone attempt the impossible? ---
**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:** [September 11, 2008, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-british-and-irish-people-have-a-hard-time-understanding-americans-speak/462903/63 "2008-09-11T00:54:19Z")
> [@Indistinguishable](#): > > It’s not possible to speak without an accent. Given that basic fact, why should anyone attempt the impossible? I’m pretty sure **Ellis Aponte Jr.** realises that - and probably meant to say something to the effect: ‘speaks with an affected accent in addition to their own’ ---
**Author:** ![Indistinguishable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/90ced4/32.png) [@Indistinguishable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indistinguishable)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-british-and-irish-people-have-a-hard-time-understanding-americans-speak/462903/64 "2008-09-11T00:56:14Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > I’m pretty sure **Ellis Aponte Jr.** realises that - and probably meant to say something to the effect: ‘speaks with an affected accent in addition to their own’ The poster he refers to doesn’t seem to be adopting an affected accent in addition to his own. All he mentions is having the ability, when necessary, to affect a more mainstream accent, other than his own natural one, or perhaps equally natural to him now. ---
**Author:** ![Mississippienne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d2c977/32.png) [@Mississippienne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mississippienne)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-british-and-irish-people-have-a-hard-time-understanding-americans-speak/462903/65 "2008-09-11T01:05:59Z")
If **Ellis Aponte Jr**. is referring to me, I (often unconsciously, sometimes not) drop or lessen my accent in certain situations because I know that non-Southerners think it makes me sound ignorant or uneducated. I know that because they tell me. I’m endeavoring lately not to drop it, but its an ingrained habit and one that’s difficult to unlearn. ---
**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:** [September 11, 2008, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-british-and-irish-people-have-a-hard-time-understanding-americans-speak/462903/66 "2008-09-11T01:27:48Z")
Yeah, I know everybody has an accent. Being conscious of your own enough to turn it off & back on is… interesting. Not being critical here. I know a similar thing happens with African-Americans who are used to speaking “ebonics,” but then “standardize” their speech for more formal situations. ---
**Author:** ![Ximenean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/aca169/32.png) [@Ximenean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ximenean)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-british-and-irish-people-have-a-hard-time-understanding-americans-speak/462903/67 "2008-09-11T01:40:29Z")
But the notion that you can “turn off” your accent is mistaken. There is no “correct” accent. Some are more widely accepted than others at some times, that’s all. You can modify your speech so that it is closer to what is currently the more prestigious dialect, sure. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-british-and-irish-people-have-a-hard-time-understanding-americans-speak/462903/68 "2008-09-11T01:41:20Z")
> [@Mississippienne](#): > > What nonsense. Excuse me? ---
**Author:** ![Bam\_Boo\_Gut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8c91f0/32.png) [@Bam\_Boo\_Gut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bam_Boo_Gut)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-british-and-irish-people-have-a-hard-time-understanding-americans-speak/462903/69 "2008-09-11T01:52:21Z")
> [@Usram](#): > > I think that would be overstating things a little. People in the south, such as people from Oxford, can _generally_ understand Glaswegians perfectly well. There have been countless nationally prominent people who speak with Glasgow accents. But a very strong Glasgow accent, of the type caricatured by the comedy character Rab C. Nesbitt, can be hard for them to understand. > > A wider range of regional accents has been heard on British TV in the last few decades, although London-ish accents still predominate. It’s only really strong regional accents that cause problems (_Trainspotting_, for example, did not have subtitles when it was shown in English cinemas 😉 ), and even then one can attune to them with a modest amount of effort. I’m from nearby Oxford and I can understand most accents fairly well - but I love them all. I gave up asking for orange juice in the US (ar’n juice) because I couldn’t make myself understood - Maine & South Florida - I tried to get the accent on it but just couldn’t - I had to make do with OJ! Forget asking for “war-ter” I had to learn wadder to slake my thirst. Not saying I wasn’t understood eventually and my accent is pretty mild. Aytside nye - brilliant! ---
**Author:** ![Bam\_Boo\_Gut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8c91f0/32.png) [@Bam\_Boo\_Gut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bam_Boo_Gut)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-british-and-irish-people-have-a-hard-time-understanding-americans-speak/462903/70 "2008-09-11T02:02:49Z")
> [@PaulParkhead](#): > > I’d have written this as “Oytside noy” 😛 Which probably shows you’re ten miles away from Aytside… I don’t assume words - especially place names - will be spelt how they look, and found myself interpreting in Norlins (New Orleans) for my friend from Ohio! ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-british-and-irish-people-have-a-hard-time-understanding-americans-speak/462903/71 "2008-09-11T02:05:35Z")
> [@Usram](#): > > (_Trainspotting_, for example, did not have subtitles when it was shown in English cinemas 😉 ) Did it anywhere? I saw it in the theater when it first came out in the US, and it had subtitles for only one scene, which took place in a loud bar. I think the subtitles were only because the dialogue was inaudible, not because the accents were incomprehensible. BTW I understood everything everyone said in all of the clips people have posted. I ARE GENIUS! ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-british-and-irish-people-have-a-hard-time-understanding-americans-speak/462903/72 "2008-09-11T02:16:41Z")
> [@Illuminatiprimus](#): > > I know I’m posting late but this question ellicited a big fat 😕 from me. > > Don’t you Americans realise your pop culture and media is the most globally pervasive? You think there’s no-one in the developed world who isn’t familiar with the American accent? Actually, I think a lot of Americans are totally unaware of this fact. We watch American TV shows in America, so we tend to assume that people in Britain watch their own TV shows, people in Argentina watch Argentinian TV show, etc. I was just discussing this with a classmate, who’s French. She told me how when she first got to the US (she did a study abroad program in the US a few years ago), she thought it would be very easy to adjust to American culture because she thought she knew all about it was TV and movies. She was quite surprised to find out that pop culture isn’t a necessarily a very accurate picture of real life in America. This is because American producers are making shows and movies and music for, in large part, for an American audience, and don’t always consider the effect they might be having on a worldwide audience. The result is somewhat amusing; things we, as Americans know are exaggerated for entertainment value, are sometimes taken seriously by a global audience. (My students in Bulgaria were heartbroken to find out that my life in California did not much resemble _The OC_.) A British friend has figured this out and now sometimes asks us Americans (via LiveJournal) what sorts of things she sees in TV shows and movies are accurate, and what’s just made up. (I specifically remember her asking about whether high school girls actually campaign for Homecoming Queen, a la an episode of _Buffy_. The answer: no. It only happens on TV shows.) ---
**Author:** ![Indistinguishable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/90ced4/32.png) [@Indistinguishable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indistinguishable)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-british-and-irish-people-have-a-hard-time-understanding-americans-speak/462903/73 "2008-09-11T02:24:25Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > Excuse me? You were speaking nonsense and you were called out on it. (Perhaps the best response was [**Mangetout** ’s](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=10177240&postcount=26)). You can take offense, if you want, but it would be even better if you take the opportunity to learn from those who are simply trying to help fight ignorance. ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-british-and-irish-people-have-a-hard-time-understanding-americans-speak/462903/74 "2008-09-11T02:37:19Z")
> [@An\_Gadai](#): > > My girlfriend is American and she has confessed that sometimes when I’m talking with my friends she doesn’t understand fully what we’re saying. In a comparable scenario the other way around I would have no such problem. Similar experience here. My wife is American and often has problems with British films or TV programs (or the members of my family with the broad Yorkshire accent). I have never come across an American accent I could not understand, but have significant problems with some Geordies and Glaswegians. ---
**Author:** ![Cider\_Depot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Cider\_Depot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cider_Depot)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-british-and-irish-people-have-a-hard-time-understanding-americans-speak/462903/75 "2008-09-11T02:48:56Z")
Oim from Osstraya so oim keepen roit outta this shit foit. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-british-and-irish-people-have-a-hard-time-understanding-americans-speak/462903/76 "2008-09-11T02:58:10Z")
> [@Indistinguishable](#): > > You were speaking nonsense and you were called out on it. (Perhaps the best response was [**Mangetout** ’s](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=10177240&postcount=26)). You can take offense, if you want, but it would be even better if you take the opportunity to learn from those who are simply trying to help fight ignorance. Did you happen to miss where **wotnot** , a real live Brit said “what you’ve transcribed looks like a credible impression of a London accent, to me”? In any case thanks junior mod but I didn’t ask you and I don’t think Mississippienne wants or needs you speaking for her. No one in this thread has been half as rude as you and neither you nor I know what Mississippene meant by her comment, which is why I asked. Don’t pretend to be “fighting ignorance” just so you can act like a jerk. There are plenty of helpful, contributing posters in this thread and you’re not one of them. Move along. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-british-and-irish-people-have-a-hard-time-understanding-americans-speak/462903/77 "2008-09-11T03:41:34Z")
Except for specific (and heavy) Southern accents, and possibly a few isolated Northeastern accents- rural New Hampshireans spring to mind- no, you’re easy to understand. There’s just as much American stuff on TV in Britain as there is British stuff. That’s why British actors generally have little difficulty impersonating Americans (_House_, anyone?), while American actors are really, really bad at doing a generic British accent, let along a regional one. ---
**Author:** ![Indistinguishable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/90ced4/32.png) [@Indistinguishable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indistinguishable)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-british-and-irish-people-have-a-hard-time-understanding-americans-speak/462903/78 "2008-09-11T03:44:02Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > Did you happen to miss where **wotnot** , a real live Brit said “what you’ve transcribed looks like a credible impression of a London accent, to me”? In any case thanks junior mod but I didn’t ask you and I don’t think Mississippienne wants or needs you speaking for her. No one in this thread has been half as rude as you and neither you nor I know what Mississippene meant by her comment, which is why I asked. Don’t pretend to be “fighting ignorance” just so you can act like a jerk. There are plenty of helpful, contributing posters in this thread and you’re not one of them. Move along. The nonsense was the idea that the American accent couldn’t also be written in just such “eye dialect” a manner to one whose ears were not used to it, as, say, _ **wotnot** _ themself proceeded to do, in the exact same post. My apologies for the rudeness I have apparently displayed. However, I do not believe I have engaged in any junior modding, as I understand that term to be used. ---
**Author:** ![Indistinguishable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/90ced4/32.png) [@Indistinguishable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indistinguishable)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-british-and-irish-people-have-a-hard-time-understanding-americans-speak/462903/79 "2008-09-11T03:52:03Z")
That took like 10 minutes to post, destroying my ability to edit it. My apologies for the clunkiness of the writing of the first sentence. (Draft, proofread, and _then_ post, dammit!) ---
**Author:** ![ragerdude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d07c76/32.png) [@ragerdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ragerdude)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-british-and-irish-people-have-a-hard-time-understanding-americans-speak/462903/80 "2008-09-11T04:33:26Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > Spanish phonetics, the th in think is closest to a spanish z than to any other letter we use and the r in short, even when pronounced, is almost nonexistant compared with our soft r. What is a “soft r” and how does it differ from a “hard r”? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-british-and-irish-people-have-a-hard-time-understanding-americans-speak/462903.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-british-and-irish-people-have-a-hard-time-understanding-americans-speak/462903.md?page=5)