# What Britishisms most baffle Americans? What Americanisms most baffle Brits?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [October 18, 2024, 8:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941 "2024-10-18T08:53:01Z")\
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**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\
**Post date:** [April 8, 2025, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941/1165 "2025-04-08T19:30:15Z")

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I just came across the word “Picayune” in the [Do you have an inner voice?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-an-inner-voice/1011680) thread (OP). I had to look it up, and not for the first time - AFAIK it’s completely absent in British English. I think “Piffling” is a near equivalent in British English, but there’s a certain dismissiveness about that word that I’m not sure that picayune connotes.

j

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