The Great British Thread

[Leesifer]

I stopped myself from calling this The Great English Thread because there aren't enough of us. So, Scottish and Welsh are welcome but I'm not sure about the Irish. :wink:

So, this is for us Brits.

In chat tonight we are already struggling to explain the term "grill" to the heathen Americans. For some strange reason they term this "broiling" but also have no concept of an eye-level grill.

Also, they can't spell words properly. Like colour, flavour and they can't spell or pronounce aluminium.

I feel it is our duty to edumacate them.



:iloveuk:

eta: Hen parties are called bachelorette parties. Bless them. :aww:

[ChuckF]

This thread makes me miss Princess Diana. :bigtear:

[livius drusus]

I was told there was going to be a detailed explanation of this so-called grill item, complete with visual aids. :waiting:

[Ensign Steve]

I was told that California is in the UK, so GTFO, Americans. :shakefist:

[Watser?]

I feel the importance of the aluminium issue cannot be stressed enough.

OMG the :ff: spellchecker is trying to 'correct' me! Stop oppressing me!! :shakeff:

ETA: sorry about being foreign in your thread, Lees.

[LadyShea]

I stopped myself from calling this The Great English Thread because there aren't enough of us. So, Scottish and Welsh are welcome but I'm not sure about the Irish. :wink:

So, this is for us Brits.

In chat tonight we are already struggling to explain the term "grill" to the heathen Americans. For some strange reason they term this "broiling" but also have no concept of an eye-level grill.

Also, they can't spell words properly. Like colour, flavour and they can't spell or pronounce aluminium.

I feel it is our duty to edumacate them.



:iloveuk:

eta: Hen parties are called bachelorette parties. Bless them. :aww:

That's rich coming from a society for which a master bathroom is a novelty, or reserved for royalty or some such.

And you call acetaminophen something wrong too, and I don't think you even have ibuprofen available for pain relief.

[BracesForImpact]

This is a grill where I come from.

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e287/ronjrose/grill-too-hot-716044.jpg

[TheCat]

This is a grill where I come from.

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e287/ronjrose/grill-too-hot-716044.jpg

NO NO NO NO!!!

THAT'S A BLOODY BARBEQUE!

[Adam]

This is a grill where i come from.

http://i163.photobucket.com/albums/t293/WiredLady/liljohngrillz.jpg

[Leesifer]

TEH GRILL

My oven - the top door is both oven and grill:

http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/gallery/files/5/3/oven_thumb.jpg

The door open showing the grill tray:

http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/gallery/files/5/3/grillopen_thumb.jpg

The grill is on:

http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/gallery/files/5/3/grillon_thumb.jpg

Oh, and of course we have ibuprofen - we probably invented it. As for that other long word in your post, Shea, I'll get back to that once I've googled it.

[LadyShea]

Oh, and of course we have ibuprofen - we probably invented it. As for that other long word in your post, Shea, I'll get back to that once I've googled it.

You call it paramecitol or some such. When I was visiting in 2004 I couldn't find ibuprofen anywhere, and when I asked for it they all looked at me like I was speaking Japanese, and offered me whatever the hell you call Tylenol...which is not what I wanted.


Barbecuer and Grill are synonyms

TRANSITIVE VERB:
grilled , grill·ing , grills

1. To broil on a gridiron.
2. To torture or afflict as if by broiling.
3. Informal To question relentlessly; cross-examine.
4. To mark or emboss with a gridiron.

NOUN:

1. A cooking surface of parallel metal bars; a gridiron.
2. Food cooked by broiling or grilling.
3. A grillroom.
4. A series of marks grilled or embossed on a surface.

[TheCat]

So what's a grille then?

[Watser?]

Oh, and of course we have ibuprofen - we probably invented it. As for that other long word in your post, Shea, I'll get back to that once I've googled it.

I think she's talking about paracetamol.

[LadyShea]

TEH GRILL

My oven - the top door is both oven and grill:

http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/gallery/files/5/3/oven_thumb.jpg

The door open showing the grill tray:

http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/gallery/files/5/3/grillopen_thumb.jpg

The grill is on:

http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/gallery/files/5/3/grillon_thumb.jpg



How cute, you still use knobs. What year was that thing manufactured Lees?

[LadyShea]

So what's a grille then?

We don't use that spelling. But a grill is anything that has a gridiron. We have electric, gas, or charcoal burning grills.

[TheCat]

So what's a grille then?

We don't use that spelling. But a grill is anything that has a gridiron. We have electric, gas, or charcoal burning grills.

So what do you call a barbeque?

[LadyShea]

So what do you call a barbeque?

A grill or a barbecue, though most use grill. Barbecue is also a type of grilled food with special regional sauces, so you can say "We're having barbecue for dinner"

[ceptimus]

But that's not an eye-level grill (except for Lees of course)

Here is an eye-level-grill equipped cooker.

http://www.thegascompany.ie/iopen24/images/product_images/lg4981d74205fdd.jpg

Note that the grill has NO DOOR!

[Adam]

How cute, you still use knobs. What year was that thing manufactured Lees?

The nerve. I'll have you know her grandmum commissioned the finest indoor firepit the village smithy could fashion in the heady modern days of King George's reign!

[Leesifer]

I feel the importance of the aluminium issue cannot be stressed enough.

OMG the :ff: spellchecker is trying to 'correct' me! Stop oppressing me!! :shakeff:

ETA: sorry about being foreign in your thread, Lees.

We're all part of the EU, Watser?, so feel free.

This is a grill where I come from.

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e287/ronjrose/grill-too-hot-716044.jpg

NO NO NO NO!!!

THAT'S A BLOODY BARBEQUE!

YES!
TEH GRILL

My oven - the top door is both oven and grill:

http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/gallery/files/5/3/oven_thumb.jpg

The door open showing the grill tray:

http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/gallery/files/5/3/grillopen_thumb.jpg

The grill is on:

http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/gallery/files/5/3/grillon_thumb.jpg



How cute, you still use knobs. What year was that thing manufactured Lees?

I think it was just before we invented America.

[livius drusus]

Barbecue experts categorically refuse to call what they do grilling. Grilling = flipping some burgers over charcoal/briquettes/propane flame. Barbecuing = sloooooowly cooking meats rubbed with spices and/or sauce over a wood fire or in a smoker.

[LadyShea]

The microwave goes there at the top, and that's apartment sized!

Standard newer American homes have something like this
http://www.geappliances.com/products/images/cleansteel_kitchen.jpg

[Leesifer]

I could probably make do with that kitchen but the ducks would have to go.

[LadyShea]

Do you have a master bathroom, Lees?

[TheCat]

Barbecue experts categorically refuse to call what they do grilling. Grilling = flipping some burgers over charcoal/briquettes/propane flame. Barbecuing = sloooooowly cooking meats rubbed with spices and/or sauce over a wood fire or in a smoker.

Yes indeed. Barbequeing is NOTHING like grilling but it does involve cooking outside over charcoal and can often include flipping burgers. Grilling takes place in the kitchen and consists of cooking underneath a heatsource which may be gas or electric

[ChuckF]

TEH GRILL

My oven - the top door is both oven and grill:

http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/gallery/files/5/3/oven_thumb.jpg

The door open showing the grill tray:

http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/gallery/files/5/3/grillopen_thumb.jpg

The grill is on:

http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/gallery/files/5/3/grillon_thumb.jpg

qft. WTF is that crap. You're stupid.
The microwave goes there at the top, and that's apartment sized!

Standard newer American homes have something like this
http://www.geappliances.com/products/images/cleansteel_kitchen.jpg
Wales could fit in there!

[Leesifer]

Do you have a master bathroom, Lees?

Maybe...

Actually, yes I do. Because I only have the one toilet facility in my house.


qft. WTF is that crap. You're stupid.

qft? WTF? Speak English you moran.

[ChuckF]

I don't know how to say it in English but in Oirish it's quit feckin trollin now.

ETA: Ok, I think I have it now: Oi! Quit fuckin trollin ya tosser!

[BracesForImpact]

But that's not an eye-level grill (except for Lees of course)

Here is an eye-level-grill equipped cooker.

http://www.thegascompany.ie/iopen24/images/product_images/lg4981d74205fdd.jpg

Note that the grill has NO DOOR!

No, no. That is a stove, or stovetop. The bottom part is the oven. Under that in most American cooking devices is the broiler.

Goofy English types. Calling your trunk a boot and a hooker a pickup. :D

[Leesifer]

ETA: Ok, I think I have it now: Oi! Quit fuckin trollin ya tosser!

Not bad. You show promise young padawan.

Goofy English types. Calling your trunk a boot and a hooker a pickup. :D

You, however, have much to learn. We call hookers prostitutes here.

And you call trousers pants! And you call your arses fannies. Both are totally wrong but extremely funny.

[Qingdai]

This thread is both British and great. I'd like to subscribe to your newsletter.

[TheCat]

and we LOVE faggots with onion gravy and mashed potato

[ChuckF]

Hey Britishers, how do you say sloth?

[Leesifer]

sloth

[Doctor X]

So, have you achieved central heating yet?

--J.D.

[Leesifer]

We stole it off the Romans. Then we gave it to you.

[BracesForImpact]

Originally posted by Leesifer:
And you call trousers pants! And you call your arses fannies. Both are totally wrong but extremely funny.

I most emphatically do not say fannie. I say ass. In polite company I say ass. In really polite company I may be inclined to say rear end, butt, or buttocks.

[ChuckF]

Originally posted by Leesifer:
And you call trousers pants! And you call your arses fannies. Both are totally wrong but extremely funny.

I most emphatically do not say fannie. I say ass. In polite company I say ass. In really polite company I may be inclined to say rear end, butt, or buttocks.
Dearest Nigel, last eve I had occasion to put my dick your mother's rear end. Most satisfying.
:aristea:

[xyza]

I was told that California is in the UK, so GTFO, Americans. :shakefist:I used to live just down the coast from California :yup:

The beach
http://www.sunbeachchalet.com/assets/california_beach_norfolk.jpg

The Casino
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1011/1033373265_5401a5d616.jpg?v=0

The Chippy
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/21/29926119_1a67eaa9f9.jpg?v=0

[erimir]

The word barbecue comes from the Americas, most likely the Taino word "barbacoa" which is nowadays a word for certain dishes in some Latin American countries (you can order barbacoa at many Mexican restaurants, for example). The Taino were indigenous to the Caribbean.

It is, as others said, a slow cooking method, and most definitely not what you Brits call "barbecuing." You can't pull that "we invented the English language, wot!" crap in this particular case.

[livius drusus]

BRITFAGS SCHOOLED ITT

[ChuckF]

It is, as others said, a slow cooking method, and most definitely not what you Brits call "barbecuing."
I think it is a slow cooking method in Britain too. They boil the meat slowly and for a very long time, until all the flavor is gone, then they put some baked beans on it and call it a pie.

[Leesifer]

Originally posted by Leesifer:
And you call trousers pants! And you call your arses fannies. Both are totally wrong but extremely funny.

I most emphatically do not say fannie. I say ass. In polite company I say ass. In really polite company I may be inclined to say rear end, butt, or buttocks.
Dearest Nigel, last eve I had occasion to put my dick your mother's rear end. Most satisfying.
:aristea:

Tarquin, Mater would rather you used her front bottom instead
:aristocrat:

[xyza]

The microwave goes there at the top, and that's apartment sized!

Standard newer American homes have something like this
http://www.geappliances.com/products/images/cleansteel_kitchen.jpg

That's not much different from my kitchen at the house (difficult to explain, I inherited it but still live in my flat), only my kitchen is bigger :yup:

[Leesifer]

The word barbecue comes from the Americas, most likely the Taino word "barbacoa" which is nowadays a word for certain dishes in some Latin American countries (you can order barbacoa at many Mexican restaurants, for example). The Taino were indigenous to the Caribbean.

It is, as others said, a slow cooking method, and most definitely not what you Brits call "barbecuing." You can't pull that "we invented the English language, wot!" crap in this particular case.

Of course we can. We invented the Americas. I bet you pronounce Caribbean wrong as well.

BRITFAGS SCHOOLED ITT

It's you. You're the Britfag.


It is, as others said, a slow cooking method, and most definitely not what you Brits call "barbecuing."
I think it is a slow cooking method in Britain too. They boil the meat slowly and for a very long time, until all the flavor is gone, then they put some baked beans on it and call it a pie.

I would direct you to a film called "The Naked Gun" which, I believe is exactly how Americans are. Wherein, the actress (who I believe married a famous singer) said "I am boiling a roast".

[ChuckF]

I would direct you to a film called "The Naked Gun" which, I believe is exactly how Americans are. Wherein, the actress (who I believe married a famous singer) said "I am boiling a roast".
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/ChuckF/naked-gun_l.jpg

AMERICA IS ON TOP BITCH

[Leesifer]

OMG! A BREACH OF PROTOCOL ITT.

It's almost as bad as Michelle Obama putting her arm around Her Maj.

[xyza]

Of course we can. We invented the Americas. I bet you pronounce Caribbean wrong as well.But the locals call it the West Indies so we all say it wrong :eek:

I live with a Bajan and am surrounded by Bajans and Trinnies so I do as they do being the minority myself

[xyza]

OMG! A BREACH OF PROTOCOL ITT.

It's almost as bad as Michelle Obama putting her arm around Her Maj.Aren't they both shrinking though ??? The queen and the duke that is :cheerful:

[Deadlokd]

TEH GRILL

My oven - the top door is both oven and grill:

http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/gallery/files/5/3/oven_thumb.jpg

The door open showing the grill tray:

http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/gallery/files/5/3/grillopen_thumb.jpg

The grill is on:

http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/gallery/files/5/3/grillon_thumb.jpg



How cute, you still use knobs. What year was that thing manufactured Lees?

I think it was just before we invented America.

Oh snap! I think Lees just won.

The microwave goes there at the top, and that's apartment sized!

Standard newer American homes have something like this
http://www.geappliances.com/products/images/cleansteel_kitchen.jpg

Can't help but notice the knobs on your oven there LS. That would make it as old as those tacky ducks right? About 1950?

I don't know how to say it in English but in Oirish it's quit feckin trollin now.

ETA: Ok, I think I have it now: Oi! Quit fuckin trollin ya tosser!

Tosser is Australian. Probably.

[livius drusus]

So prison-reject British, then.

[Deadlokd]

No u!

U first anyway!

True dat too. :P

[Pinecone]

I don't understand what's wrong with the ducks in the kitchen Lees. You could be all like "How was your day Ducks?" You would sound all English wouldn't you now?
"I think I'll have a spot of tea, Ducks."

You're all batty over there anyway. Who would notice? Calling people ducks is so cute, even if there are no people and you are all alone shuffing aboot in your teeny tiny slippers talking to the statuary.

[BracesForImpact]

Yeah! Talk to the ducks. You could even greet them like Her Majesty, the queen. "Heeelllloooooooooo!"

[Qingdai]

"The Queen of England is completely hollow, hollow, hollow," anyone else ever heard that bit before?

[LadyShea]

I was kidding on the knobs, they're used on some ranges. I myself have all buttons and digital readouts and flat surfaces (heating elements are under glass on the stove), being fully electric.



Actually, yes I do. Because I only have the one toilet facility in my house.

I believe you call it en suite, meaning one of your bedrooms has an attached private bathroom. We call that the master bed and bath or master suite. It seems rare there, or at least people were very excited to tell me someplace had "en suite" facilities like it was really special or something.

Also, you call closets cupboards, so what do you call cupboards? Do you also have cabinets?

And what's with calling Van de Camp pork and beans "Baked Beans"? And why is there never any whole wheat or raisin toast? Every morning for 10 days in 8 cities in the UK I was fed scrambled eggs, white toast, and pork and beans. Oh and some mushy stuff they said was sausage.

Any of you Brits had or made American biscuits? If you come visit me I'll make you sausage and biscuits and gravy and you will go home and slap anyone who makes you eat bland breakfast again.

[Qingdai]

I thought the breakfasts (although heart attacks with a slice of tomato) were fine. The veg was not, who knew that there were only 3 vegetables in England, and they were all over-boiled broccoli?
Plus food bland enough to be used as an wound dressing.
Desserts though, no wonder every colony has a "pudding course."

[BracesForImpact]

Oh man, there's nothin' like a good biscuits and gravy.

[JamesBannon]

Is that chocolate digestive by any chance?

[ceptimus]

If you stay in bland hotels you're going to be served bland breakfasts and other meals. You would never have scrambled egg with a real British breakfast - it's just that for self-service buffet type breakfasts, scrambled works easier.

[ceptimus]

In Britain, the master bedroom is just the biggest one. Bedrooms with attached bathrooms are en-suite. They're common in newer houses. My house has 4 bedrooms and 2 of those are en-suite. There is a separate bathroom too, plus another washroom downstairs so there are 4 toilets in the house.

[Mendeh]

Hehehe.... this thread is the best!

Presumably other lingo is the same?

Frying pan = flat circular thing for frying stuff
Saucepan = deep cylindrical thing for boiling stuff
Kettle = what you boil water in

[ceptimus]

But in America you fill your kettle from a faucet, not a tap. Electric kettles are less common in the USA and are usually slow underpowered things - presumably because their lower voltage electricity can't power a kettle like our British ones.

[xyza]

Aubergine = Egg plant

This one bugs me he asks me what it is as I've added it already chopped and diced to something I'm cooking and I always have to answer twice.

This is NOT a vest
http://chicago.timeout.com/chicago/resizeImage/htdocs/export_images/135/135.x600.check.wardrobe.vest3.jpg

This IS a vest
http://81.201.129.62/images/newproducts/15757-00.jpg

[livius drusus]

Dude that's clearly a tank top. Also acceptable is wifebeater.

[xyza]

Okay the traditional, all British holiday maker image.

Modelling the tradition string VEST :tmlol:

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/167/485340695_e6d0994abf.jpg?v=1178390545

Sex on legs or what :P

[LadyShea]

If you stay in bland hotels you're going to be served bland breakfasts and other meals. You would never have scrambled egg with a real British breakfast - it's just that for self-service buffet type breakfasts, scrambled works easier.


They were all bed and breakfast inns, houses that had been converted. I stayed in York, Glasgow, Llandudno, and Cardiff, and ate meals in between as we were traveling. In London I stayed at a Days Inn type place and actually had a menu to selct breakfasts from, but the B&Bs were all bland.

I must say I did enjoy the shepherds pie at various pubs. And though I enjoyed a curry, didn't quite understand why it seemed to be the only thing people eat there. Nobody said they were going for Chinese, or Italian...nope, they were going for curry.


Okay the traditional, all British holiday maker image.

What's on his head? And why are those mesh tanks even sold at all? That's scary.

[xyza]

What's on his head? And why are those mesh tanks even sold at all? That's scary.It's a hanky with knots tied in the corners, to protect the balding head from getting burnt, that was the traditional image of the UK holiday maker down at the beach years ago. :yup:

As for the string vests, no idea. When hunting for an image I saw some that were army issue, holes are supposed to keep you warm in the winter and cool in the summer. You have to remember that the British wear vests as under shirts.

[Watser?]

Those hankies with knots tied in were what farmers would wear on their heads when working the field on a hot day. They still did that here when I grew up. If they weren't wearing caps of course. They also feature in Monty Python, but I can't find it just now.

[Qingdai]

I don't think anyone says faucet here, unless they are buying one.
We drink tap water.

[xyza]

Faucet water would sound stupid though :giggle:

[JamesBannon]

One drinks water from the tap, not tap water

[ms_ann_thrope]

One drinks water from the tap, not tap water If I drank water from the tap, I'd be putting my lips against the faucet! I like sipping my tap water from a glass. :D

[JamesBannon]

:lol:

[Leesifer]

I don't understand what's wrong with the ducks in the kitchen Lees. You could be all like "How was your day Ducks?" You would sound all English wouldn't you now?
"I think I'll have a spot of tea, Ducks."

You're all batty over there anyway. Who would notice? Calling people ducks is so cute, even if there are no people and you are all alone shuffing aboot in your teeny tiny slippers talking to the statuary.

Excuse me! I would be talking to my many cats that I am pushing around in my pram. (For my American friends: Pram is a small carriage with wheels for putting a baby in and taking out for walks).

Yeah! Talk to the ducks. You could even greet them like Her Majesty, the queen. "Heeelllloooooooooo!"

You have obviously never met Her Maj. She only puts on that voice for the public. Usually, she would say "alright mate, fancy a cuppa?"

I believe you call it en suite, meaning one of your bedrooms has an attached private bathroom. We call that the master bed and bath or master suite. It seems rare there, or at least people were very excited to tell me someplace had "en suite" facilities like it was really special or something.
It's only called an ensuite if it's attached to the bedroom. Otherwise it's called the bathroom. However, a few places have one main bathroom( (with bath and/or shower, sink (basin to you probably) and lavatory, and an extra separate room with just a lavatory in it. We usually call that room "the toilet", because that's all that's in there.

Also, you call closets cupboards, so what do you call cupboards? Do you also have cabinets?
We call closets wardrobes and cupboards cupboards. Yes ma'am, we do have cabinets.

And what's with calling Van de Camp pork and beans "Baked Beans"? And why is there never any whole wheat or raisin toast? Every morning for 10 days in 8 cities in the UK I was fed scrambled eggs, white toast, and pork and beans. Oh and some mushy stuff they said was sausage.
I have no idea what Van de Camp pork is. But baked beans (http://www.heinz.co.uk/products/heinz_baked_beanz.aspx)are a British staple. You can get these with hotdog sausages in a tin but they're not my favourite.

Any of you Brits had or made American biscuits? If you come visit me I'll make you sausage and biscuits and gravy and you will go home and slap anyone who makes you eat bland breakfast again.
Unfortunately, I have had biscuits and gravy - when I was in Vegas last year. I hated them. I was disappointed because it sounds so nice but they were very bland and the gravy was nasty. It may have been because it was at one of those buffet breakfasts, so I'll keep an open mind about them.

I thought the breakfasts (although heart attacks with a slice of tomato) were fine. The veg was not, who knew that there were only 3 vegetables in England, and they were all over-boiled broccoli?
Plus food bland enough to be used as an wound dressing.
Desserts though, no wonder every colony has a "pudding course."
Gawd, you and Shea must've stayed at some shitty places. We didn't invent Gordon Ramsay for nothing you know.
Oh man, there's nothin' like a good biscuits and gravy.
See my above answer to the good Lady, kind sir.

[Dingfod]

I'm laughing at this thread. You Brits may have "invented" English, but you didn't perfect it. Leave it to the Yanks to finish up where you left off, as usual.

[Dingfod]

Pram? LOL, that's just slang for parambulator, a word I used to describe a baby buggy not more than a few weeks prior.

[Nullifidian]

Yeah! Talk to the ducks. You could even greet them like Her Majesty, the queen. "Heeelllloooooooooo!"

Dame Edna has been elevated to the throne? :confused:

That's going to be interesting when people have to sing "God Save the ____".

http://www.orlandoweekly.com/blog/images/dame_edna_everage_393071a.jpg

[ceptimus]

Some other things Americans get wrong:

The thing you walk on, between the road and the buildings is the pavement.

The first floor of a building is not the ground floor - it is the one above the ground floor.

The smelly stuff that powers your car is called petrol (short for petroleum spirit).

A baby buggy isn't a pram. It's a baby buggy or a pushchair. A pram is a more upmarket thing - like a limousine for babies.

http://www.vam.ac.uk/images/image/17249-large.jpg

[Leesifer]

I'm laughing at this thread. You Brits may have "invented" English, but you didn't perfect it. Leave it to the Yanks to finish up where you left off, as usual.
I am laughing at you, Dingfod (if that is your real name)

Pram? LOL, that's just slang for parambulator, a word I used to describe a baby buggy not more than a few weeks prior.

Oh, we also have buggys. Also, a pushchair is the same thing as a buggy.

This is a pram:

http://www.comparestoreprices.co.uk/images/si/silver-cross-sleepover-classic-pram.jpg


eta: crossposted with that fine English Gentleman, ceptimus

[livius drusus]

...Oim classy oi am.
:pram:

[Nullifidian]

Some other things Americans get wrong:

The thing you walk on, between the road and the buildings is the pavement.

:hmph:

No, it is a sidewalk, because it's on the side of the road and you walk on it.

If you walk on the pavement, then you're going to get mowed down by a car. :seestars:

[JamesBannon]

We must face the inevitable fact that the Amercians have butchered our fine mother tongue. How can people be such barbarians? It does not say much for their breeding! :snooty:

:tongueincheek: :giggle:

[Dingfod]

What you Brits have depicted as a "pram" is a baby carriage or baby buggy. What you call a baby buggy is a stroller.

[Dingfod]

So what's a grille then?A gold-toothed grin by some "gansta".

We must face the inevitable fact that the Amercians have butchered our fine mother tongue. How can people be such barbarians? It does not say much for their breeding! :snooty:

:tongueincheek: :giggle:Oh go invent something, you bloody drunken Scot.

[JamesBannon]

Hey, I might be a :scot:, but I'm not a :drunk: :offended:

[Leesifer]

What you Brits have depicted as a "pram" is a baby carriage or baby buggy. What you call a baby buggy is a stroller.

Oh no it isn't.

This is a baby buggy:

http://www.a-kiddies.com/Products/s1568.jpg


The first floor of a building is not the ground floor - it is the one above the ground floor.

And you get to the first floor by using the lift!

[curses]

This is a pram?
:pram:

[Watser?]

Differences Between American and British English - American and British English Differences (http://esl.about.com/od/toeflieltscambridge/a/dif_ambrit.htm)

[JamesBannon]

Watser? is, of course, an honorary :scot: As is :storm: and maddog. I would make Leesifer one, but she probably wouldn't take kindly to that.

[ceptimus]

This is a pram?
:pram:

Prams nearly always have the baby facing the person looking after him or her. This is thought to be less stressful for the baby.

[Leesifer]

I would make Leesifer one, but she probably wouldn't take kindly to that.
gtfo Bannon.

[Dingfod]

What you Brits have depicted as a "pram" is a baby carriage or baby buggy. What you call a baby buggy is a stroller.

Oh no it isn't.

This is a baby buggy:

http://www.a-kiddies.com/Products/s1568.jpgOh not it isn't, that's a stroller (http://www.strollers.com/).

lift!Lifts are what you put in elevator shoes (http://www.elevatorshoes.com/).

[JamesBannon]

:fuckyou:

[Mendeh]

The talk has turned to prams, and I don't think we Britons have quite communicated all the modern nuances of the word, so allow me to respectfully submit the word pramface for your transatlantic delectation.

Pramface is a pretty recent coinage, and it describes the sort of chavvy girl who looks just the type to have had a kid whilst being underage. Pramface = young chav who looks like she should be pushing her bastard offspring about in a pram. A very derogatory word, really. Those gorgeous victorian pictures of perambulators don't really do justice to the feelings evoked by the word "pram" in these troubled times...

Oh, In case you're not sure about chavs, allow me to help you out. Here are some:

http://medal.unn.ac.uk/images/chav.gif

http://www.yorktheatreroyal.co.uk/cgi/news/images/mediumimage199-1.jpg

When I was going through school in Essex, the word we used to describe these unfortunates was Townie. But recently, Chav has become the word used by almost everyone in England, regardless of location.

The Way of the Chav is not an easy one to summarise, so I refer you to the Urban Dictionary (http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=chav).

The actress in the final picture is modelling the Chav hairstyle known as the Croydon Facelift (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Croydon_facelift). By pulling the hair tightly back, you replicate some of the effects of a facelift at a fraction of the price. The side-effect of this is going very slowly bald due to the pressure on the follicles, but this is generally considered to be a small price to pay for the resultant fashion gains...

[Leesifer]

Lifts are what you put in elevator shoes.
Only for men? I could do with some of those.

I know about shoe lifts - we probably invented them

[curses]

YouTube - Little Britain - Vicky Pollard - Supermarket

[livius drusus]

Somebody post the pic of Lees' favorite shoes.

[curses]

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_pW25E7cqX-A/Rtx36TRg2-I/AAAAAAAAAF4/6bLGK3eDGhE/s400/White+Stilettos.jpg

[livius drusus]

No way, man. Those are way classier. You know the ones I mean. You once upended her closet looking for to steal them.

[Leesifer]

She still hasn't given them back. Although I have it on good authority it's not actually curses that's wearing them.

Is it Mr curses?

[curses]

I bet she got them from a charity shop.

http://cache.gawker.com/assets/images/gizmodo/2009/02/Lamborghini_Gallardo_stilettos-thumb-450x486.jpg

[Leesifer]

Oxfam do lovely shoes. They are always nice and comfy because they are worn in already.

[Leesifer]

Oh, and something I just posted in the food forum reminded me.

Crisps are not chips.

Chips. To be eaten covered in salt and malt vinegar.

http://www.freefoto.com/images/9905/05/9905_05_31---Chips-with-salt-and-vinegar_web.jpg

Crisps: To be eaten by opening the bag and scoffing them.

http://www.publicdomainpictures.net/pictures/1000/nahled/crisps.jpg

[curses]

:lol:

[livius drusus]

Aha! Found them! curses was holding out.

http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=5407&stc=1&d=1241895347

[curses]

I couldn't find those, thanks liv!

[Leesifer]

They are beautiful!

[livius drusus]

Check the trunk of your car under the puddle of lager puke.

[curses]

Check the trunk of your car under the puddle of lager puke.

I thought lees was still in England?

[Leesifer]

I think you mean the boot of her car, liv. :tsktsk:

Oh, and eta: FUCK YOU CURSES!

[curses]

http://www.vam.ac.uk/images/image/17249-large.jpg

Aww, here lees, have another stella.

Meant to say that this pic looks more like a baby hearse.

[LadyShea]

It's only called an ensuite if it's attached to the bedroom.

Yes, the master bed and bath always is attached. Otherwise it's called the bathroom. Here too
However, a few places have one main bathroom( (with bath and/or shower, sink (basin to you probably) and lavatory We call it a sink
, and an extra separate room with just a lavatory in it. Just a toilet and a sink is called a half bath(room) or powder room

We also have 3/4 bath(room)s, which means it has toilet, sink, and either a shower or a bathtub but not both. A full bath must have a shower/tub combo or both a tub and shower if they are separate.

I have no idea what Van de Camp pork is. Van de Kamp is a brand name of canned "pork and beans" (what you call baked beans). Here in the SE US baked beans have spices and molasses and bacon etc. and are usually baked at home, but sold in a can as well

[Dingfod]

Lifts are what you put in elevator shoes.
Only for men? I could do with some of those.

I know about shoe lifts - we probably invented themAccording to this article (http://ezinearticles.com/?Introduction-to-Elevator-Shoes&id=1684882), Spaniards invented them in the 1500s, short, swarthy Spaniards.

[curses]

Just the way she likesthem.

[Leesifer]

Van de Kamp is a brand name of canned "pork and beans" (what you call baked beans). Here in the SE US baked beans have spices and molasses and bacon etc. and are usually baked at home, but sold in a can as well
I like the sound of those. I think I may have to see if I can get them over here. I usually put worcester sauce on my beans to spice them up a bit.

According to this article (http://ezinearticles.com/?Introduction-to-Elevator-Shoes&id=1684882), Spaniards invented them in the 1500s, short, swarthy Spaniards.

Just the way she likesthem.

I like them because they're short!

[Pinecone]

Oh wait til you hear how very cosmo and posh it's getting up here in the wooded frontier lands!!

I was in the Wally-world the other day and saw a box of that frozen poxxed penis!
I thought how very London and chic of them!!

[Leesifer]

Spotted dick?

[Pinecone]

:yes!: I really WAS surprised. Wally world only recently thought organics were too fringe to stock.

[Dingfod]

Walmart has gone all pommy on us?

[livius drusus]

I don't think you're supposed to put it in your mouth if it's got the pox.

[fragment]

Van de Kamp is a brand name of canned "pork and beans" (what you call baked beans).
I was going to say there's no pork in baked beans, but wiki tells me that pork & beans "is recognized by American consumers generally as an article of commerce that contains very little pork". Weird.

[Ensign Steve]

Van de Kamp is a brand name of canned "pork and beans" (what you call baked beans).
I was going to say there's no pork in baked beans, but wiki tells me that pork & beans "is recognized by American consumers generally as an article of commerce that contains very little pork". Weird.

I thought it was called pork and beans because it's a can of beans with a chunk of pork fat floating in the can, for flavor. Or as we call it in my home, "The QUEEN BEAN!" We stole that from a cartoon or stand-up comedy or something, but I can't find it on the google because way too many assholes think The Queen Bean is a good name for a coffee shop. It is not. :glare:

[fragment]

When I read the name I imagined something that contained actual chunks of pork, at least enough compared to the beans to warrant sticking pork at the front of the name. Although baked beans doesn't make much sense as a name either, I doubt there's any baking going on in the manufacturing process, just some big damn boiler.

[Dingfod]

Bzzzzzt! There's only one or two tiny chunks of pork fat in Pork 'n' Beans, that's it, the best is beans in a semi-sweet slurry. Not what I would call "baked beans" exactly, though I'm sure some would.

[Ymir's blood]

Those hankies with knots tied in were what farmers would wear on their heads when working the field on a hot day. They still did that here when I grew up. If they weren't wearing caps of course. They also feature in Monty Python, but I can't find it just now.
Those would be the Gumbys.

YouTube - D. P. Gumby - My Brain Hurts!



The actress in the final picture is modelling the Chav hairstyle known as the Croydon Facelift (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Croydon_facelift). By pulling the hair tightly back, you replicate some of the effects of a facelift at a fraction of the price. The side-effect of this is going very slowly bald due to the pressure on the follicles, but this is generally considered to be a small price to pay for the resultant fashion gains...
They call that a hillbilly or redneck facelift here.

[Dingfod]

I learned to make a kerchief into a hat like that when I was in Boy Scouts.

[Ensign Steve]

Or as we call it in my home, "The QUEEN BEAN!" We stole that from a cartoon or stand-up comedy or something, but I can't find it on the google because way too many assholes think The Queen Bean is a good name for a coffee shop. It is not. :glare:
I remember now! It was from an "Ask Dr. Stupid" sketch on Ren and Stimpy.

:stimpy:

[Mendeh]

The actress in the final picture is modelling the Chav hairstyle known as the Croydon Facelift (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Croydon_facelift). By pulling the hair tightly back, you replicate some of the effects of a facelift at a fraction of the price. The side-effect of this is going very slowly bald due to the pressure on the follicles, but this is generally considered to be a small price to pay for the resultant fashion gains...
They call that a hillbilly or redneck facelift here.

Are you suggesting that modern Chavs and Rednecks share a common ancestor? I think you may be onto something...

[LadyShea]

Basic baked beans recipe (http://www.recipezaar.com/Crock-Pot-Baked-Beans-from-Scratch-322024) (one of a bazillion but this looks to be a nice base).

The fun thing about these is you can experiment. Add some Worcestershire or chili powder. I like mine extra mustardy.

Also, I put them in the broiler (grill or whatever) with raw bacon on top until the bacon is cooked. This makes a thicker dish, rather than beans floating in a runny sauce. So yummmeh

[erimir]

Crisps are not chips.

Chips. To be eaten covered in salt and malt vinegar.

http://www.freefoto.com/images/9905/05/9905_05_31---Chips-with-salt-and-vinegar_web.jpg

Crisps: To be eaten by opening the bag and scoffing them.

http://www.publicdomainpictures.net/pictures/1000/nahled/crisps.jpgPsh.

We invented "crisps" and will call them whatever we fucking please.

:giggle:

[Watser?]

And the Belgians invented fries and call them frieten. :belgian:

[Qingdai]

Well, the Peruvians invented potatoes and said you could all bite them.

[Dingfod]

The Asians invented Peruvians and said "Everybody Wang Chung tonight."

[curses]

Proof that the Brits are indeed the superior culture, have the following evidence:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v227/invisikitty/js.jpg
They invented Jerry Springer - The Opera

[godfry n. glad]

Americans...

If abandoned in Britain for a short period of time, remember:

- Do not order coffee, you will get that abomination of caffiene, Sanka.

- Do not order pizza in Aberdeen. Despite the presence of scads of Okies and Texans, nobody in Aberdeen knows how to make pizza.

- If you like your breakfast toast hot, you will have to hover over the toaster so that they don't place it in the toast rack to get cold.

- What's with the soggy tomato served with breakfast, anyway?

- There are, so far as I can tell, only a few things which the Brits really know how to do well....shepard's pie, fish & chips, clotted cream teas, and top-rate alocholic beverages.

Oh...and pasties are what exotic dancers wear over their nipples, not bland empanadas.

[JamesBannon]

Basic baked beans recipe (http://www.recipezaar.com/Crock-Pot-Baked-Beans-from-Scratch-322024) (one of a bazillion but this looks to be a nice base).

The fun thing about these is you can experiment. Add some Worcestershire or chili powder. I like mine extra mustardy.

Also, I put them in the broiler (grill or whatever) with raw bacon on top until the bacon is cooked. This makes a thicker dish, rather than beans floating in a runny sauce. So yummmeh

That's an awful lot of cooking time for a can of baked beans ;)

[godfry n. glad]

Basic baked beans recipe (http://www.recipezaar.com/Crock-Pot-Baked-Beans-from-Scratch-322024) (one of a bazillion but this looks to be a nice base).

The fun thing about these is you can experiment. Add some Worcestershire or chili powder. I like mine extra mustardy.

Also, I put them in the broiler (grill or whatever) with raw bacon on top until the bacon is cooked. This makes a thicker dish, rather than beans floating in a runny sauce. So yummmeh

That's an awful lot of cooking time for a can of baked beans ;)


Yes...But it has that element which has repeatedly escaped you Brits: flavor.

Take it from us, faster is not necessarily better. Just look at fast food.

[Watser?]

I just came across the expression Half Day Closing in a translation, I bet you Americans have never heard of that one either (I hadn't).

[Leesifer]

Americans...

If abandoned in Britain for a short period of time, remember:

- Do not order coffee, you will get that abomination of caffiene, Sanka.

- Do not order pizza in Aberdeen. Despite the presence of scads of Okies and Texans, nobody in Aberdeen knows how to make pizza.

- If you like your breakfast toast hot, you will have to hover over the toaster so that they don't place it in the toast rack to get cold.

- What's with the soggy tomato served with breakfast, anyway?

- There are, so far as I can tell, only a few things which the Brits really know how to do well....shepard's pie, fish & chips, clotted cream teas, and top-rate alocholic beverages.

Oh...and pasties are what exotic dancers wear over their nipples, not bland empanadas.

I have never heard of Sanka!

Never been to Aberdeen (see what I did there), so can't comment.

Agreed about the toast. Of course, that's if it is indeed actually toast and not just hot bread. I like my toast properly toasted.

We talked about that in the fried egg thread. For some reasons some hotels and cafes use tinned tomatoes instead of fresh in their breakfasts.

Proper pasties are tasty. Never had an empanada so I can't comment.

[Leesifer]

I just came across the expression Half Day Closing in a translation, I bet you Americans have never heard of that one either (I hadn't).

That brings back memories. We don't have it any more but Thursday afternoon was always half day closing day where I lived.

[Adam]

Oh, In case you're not sure about chavs, allow me to help you out. Here are some:

http://medal.unn.ac.uk/images/chav.gif

http://www.yorktheatreroyal.co.uk/cgi/news/images/mediumimage199-1.jpg

When I was going through school in Essex, the word we used to describe these unfortunates was Townie. But recently, Chav has become the word used by almost everyone in England, regardless of location.

The Way of the Chav is not an easy one to summarise, so I refer you to the Urban Dictionary (http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=chav).

This always confuses me. Why do your WT wear warmup gear?

[Watser?]

I just came across the expression Half Day Closing in a translation, I bet you Americans have never heard of that one either (I hadn't).

That brings back memories. We don't have it any more but Thursday afternoon was always half day closing day where I lived.

Actually we had something similar here, shops were closed on Tuesday afternoon in our village (and on Monday morning in the next town) to compensate for being open until 9 PM on Fridays or Thursdays.

[godfry n. glad]

Americans...

If abandoned in Britain for a short period of time, remember:

- Do not order coffee, you will get that abomination of caffiene, Sanka.

- Do not order pizza in Aberdeen. Despite the presence of scads of Okies and Texans, nobody in Aberdeen knows how to make pizza.

- If you like your breakfast toast hot, you will have to hover over the toaster so that they don't place it in the toast rack to get cold.

- What's with the soggy tomato served with breakfast, anyway?

- There are, so far as I can tell, only a few things which the Brits really know how to do well....shepard's pie, fish & chips, clotted cream teas, and top-rate alocholic beverages.

Oh...and pasties are what exotic dancers wear over their nipples, not bland empanadas.

I have never heard of Sanka!

That's because you call it coffee. It's the most popular instant coffee brand in Britain, so far as I can tell. In my first foray to GB in 1980, it was the only kind of coffee that could be had in the entire archipelago, so far as I could tell. When I returned in 1995, I found that if one were careful and actually asked for filtered coffee, a visitor could, on rare occasion, manage to obtain a decent cuppa Joe. I'm guessing that some free-spirited Brit had actually ventured a taste whilst on holiday across the channel, liked it, and brought it home.

Never been to Aberdeen (see what I did there), so can't comment.

Consider yourself lucky. I can only vouch for Aberdeen, but, given the typical quality of food throughout the island, I tend to extend the making of really bad pizza throughout. I really should have known better than to order the damned thing. If I'd stuck to the curry, I would never have known about the hopeless condition of British cuisine.

Agreed about the toast. Of course, that's if it is indeed actually toast and not just hot bread. I like my toast properly toasted.

After several B&Bs, I finally got the gumption to ask what those little doohickies were that seemed to be on every Brit table....a toast rack....to cool the toast off. :facepalm:

We talked about that in the fried egg thread. For some reasons some hotels and cafes use tinned tomatoes instead of fresh in their breakfasts.

No...That is not it. Here....I guess my question is, have you people ever heard of eating tomato (TOE - MAY - TOE) without cooking it first? It is possible, y'know.

Proper pasties are tasty. Never had an empanada so I can't comment.

Only in Cornwall.

[Leesifer]

That's because you call it coffee. It's the most popular instant coffee brand in Britain, so far as I can tell. In my first foray to GB in 1980, it was the only kind of coffee that could be had in the entire archipelago, so far as I could tell. When I returned in 1995, I found that if one were careful and actually asked for filtered coffee, a visitor could, on rare occasion, manage to obtain a decent cuppa Joe. I'm guessing that some free-spirited Brit had actually ventured a taste whilst on holiday across the channel, liked it, and brought it home.

Meh! I googled it and now I have to check next time I go shopping because I've never even seen this stuff before. The best coffee is from European countries anyway. I like my coffee very strong, no milk or sugar.

[Watser?]

Britain is a European country too
:psst:

[JoeP]

Sometimes, Watser?.

[Watser?]

Well, yeah except when there's a fog and the continent is isolated.

[mickthinks]

Britain is a European country too'.'.'.Nah, We prefer to imagine we're just off the coast of whichever Commonwealth nation it is that's beating us at cricket
'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'. :psst::english:

[Anastasia Beaverhausen]

:giggle:

[godfry n. glad]

Britain is a European country too
:psst:

Hmmm....That's not what I was told by the natives. Several of them assured me that they were not part of Europe and would never be part of Europe. Never, never, never, never! They then prattled on about how they were going to pound some guy named Sterling. I assume that Sterling was responsible for the social faux pas of referring to Britain as 'part of Europe.'

It was made ever so clear that Britain is not a country, but an archipelago off the northwest coast of the European continent. On the islands of that archipelago are four countries, England, Scotland, Cymri, and Cornwall. The folks across the Irish Sea were quite vehement that the island of their abode was NOT part of Britain, despite being part of the same archipelago.

Anyway, the folks in those four countries, along with some others in that non-British part of the nation, Ulster, who still consider themselves Britains (despite not being in Britain), are politically and culturally suppressed by, and shackled to, the English, and all together make up a nation state known as...the United Kingdom.

:P

[Watser?]

Oh

And geezer, somehow in the US that seems to mean an old man. Whereas I first came across it in the Fast Show:
YouTube - The Fast Show: Chris The Crafty Cockney s03e01

I'm a geezer ain't I?

[Qingdai]

I dunno, you that good at nicking things?

[mickthinks]

Get wind of this:-
Britains Got Talent

[godfry n. glad]

Oh

And geezer, somehow in the US that seems to mean an old man. Whereas I first came across it in the Fast Show:

I'm a geezer ain't I?

Sorry...I couldn't get away with watching your Fast Show, but I grew up learning that 'geezer' meant 'eccentric' or 'oddball'. Here is almost always used with the qualifier 'old'; that seems to indicate to me that there could be young, adolescent, middle-aged, child or even infant geezers. With the addition of 'old', 'geezer' becomes synonimous to 'coot'.

Yes...I have no doubt that you are a 'geezer', Watser?. I mean...look at your handle for crepes sake...Anybody who has to use a long, tortured and twisted full stop to write their name has just GOT to be a geezer.

Take it from another confirmed geezer.

[JoeP]

Britain's part of Oceania isn't it?

[JoeP]

I dunno, you that good at nicking things fings?

:fixed:

[JamesBannon]

Britain is a European country too
:psst:

Hmmm....That's not what I was told by the natives. Several of them assured me that they were not part of Europe and would never be part of Europe. Never, never, never, never! They then prattled on about how they were going to pound some guy named Sterling. I assume that Sterling was responsible for the social faux pas of referring to Britain as 'part of Europe.'

It was made ever so clear that Britain is not a country, but an archipelago off the northwest coast of the European continent. On the islands of that archipelago are four countries, England, Scotland, Cymri, and Cornwall. The folks across the Irish Sea were quite vehement that the island of their abode was NOT part of Britain, despite being part of the same archipelago.

Anyway, the folks in those four countries, along with some others in that non-British part of the nation, Ulster, who still consider themselves Britains (despite not being in Britain), are politically and culturally suppressed by, and shackled to, the English, and all together make up a nation state known as...the United Kingdom.

:P

:rofl:

[livius drusus]

Coughity cough (http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/showthread.php?p=701073#post701073).

[Stephen Maturin]

colour . . . flavour . . . aluminium.

:laugh:

You put too many letters in each of those words! Yuns Mexicans crack me up.

[godfry n. glad]

colour . . . flavour . . . aluminium.

:laugh:

You put too many letters in each of those words! Yuns Mexicans crack me up.


Yeah...They must have an oversupply of letters and they're sending them out as all those extra letters. Notice how they stuck us with all those silent 'gh' endings? And they're still shipping that extra crap out, wholesale!

Also, note that they use a lot of letters, but they don't pronounce all of them. Most notorious is the vast numbers of the letter 'w' which go unpronounced in Brit place names....If it's 'ick', just frikken write it that way; don't beat around the bush with the 'wick', it just confuses non-Brits.

[Leesifer]

I have more:

aeroplane sounds much more mexican than airplane
moustache - hah! this time it's an extra "o" rather than a "u"

eta: gtfo godfry you stupid crossposter

Also, note that they use a lot of letters, but they don't pronounce all of them. Most notorious is the vast numbers of the letter 'w' which go unpronounced in Brit place names....If it's 'ick', just frikken write it that way; don't beat around the bush with the 'wick', it just confuses non-Brits.
How do you pronounce Arkansas?

[Stephen Maturin]

Yeah...They must have an oversupply of letters and they're sending them out as all those extra letters.

That's downright neighborly of them, sharing their abundance with the poor folk across the pond.

[Watser?]

Moustache sounds even more Mexican, eh looks Mexican

[Leesifer]

Yeah...They must have an oversupply of letters and they're sending them out as all those extra letters.

That's downright neighborly of them, sharing their abundance with the poor folk across the pond.

Hey! We look after our colonies.

[godfry n. glad]

How do you pronounce Arkansas?

To be honest, I try not to....

*snicker*

You didn't have to go that far out of the way, Lees. You should have asked me about 'Oregon'...shiploads of 'Merkens can't pronounce it correctly, according to the natives.

[mickthinks]

*snigger*

:fixed:

[erimir]

How do you pronounce Arkansas?That's a wrong letter, not an extra letter.

It should be Arkansaw.

Although I think the Arkansas River is pronounced more as you would expect - like Kansas anyway. That might just be in Kansas tho (it flows through Kansas and Arkansas).
Moustache sounds even more Mexican, eh looks MexicanUmmm... not really.

It neither sounds nor is spelled like a Spanish word.

"ou" is not a letter combination generally found in Spanish words, and pronouncing "ch" as a [ʃ] sound is not found in most Spanish dialects. Neither is ending words in that sort of sound. Only a few consonants can end a syllable in standard Spanish, and even fewer can end a word. In everyday Spanish, many speakers don't even pronounce a number of those.

[Deadlokd]

I do like what you 'Merkins have done to the 'gh'. You don't have a drive through, you have a drive-thru. No need to write 'though' when you can write 'tho'. I have to admit, you're all very tou'.

[Qingdai]

"Our Kansas"?

[godfry n. glad]

I do like what you 'Merkins have done to the 'gh'. You don't have a drive through, you have a drive-thru. No need to write 'though' when you can write 'tho'. I have to admit, you're all very tou'.

That's 'tuff'.

[Demimonde]

Noah Webster fought to remove all the unnecessary letters from the English language. Some like "color" and "flavor" caught on, others like "iland" did not. He tried really hard to get rid of the silent 'th' IIRC, so we are just continuing his good work.

[Ensign Steve]

What's the silent th?

[Deadlokd]

Zebrath, dogth and Americath.

[Demimonde]

D'oh! I meant the silent "gh," as in the whole though, through, etc.

But I dyslexed it. :doh:

ETA:

:glare:

:giggle:

[Ensign Steve]

:glareglomp: I wasn't giving you a hard time. I really am that slow.

[godfry n. glad]

I do like what you 'Merkins have done to the 'gh'. You don't have a drive through, you have a drive-thru. No need to write 'though' when you can write 'tho'. I have to admit, you're all very tou'.

That's 'tuff'.

Y'know...some of those 'gh' additions are silent, while others carry an 'f' pronunciation. As in tough, above, and slough, which is what snakes do with their old skins. Where'd you Brits pick that up at? From the :shiftier: Irish? And...why can't you make up your mind? Is it silent or does it sound like something that is not even written there?

I blame Frenchmen with Scandinavian names and accents.

[Deadlokd]

I think the Englishmen that wrote the first dictionary couldn't spell, and we've been paying for their ignorance ever since.

[erimir]

Y'know...some of those 'gh' additions are silent, while others carry an 'f' pronunciation. As in tough, above, and slough, which is what snakes do with their old skins. Where'd you Brits pick that up at? From the :shiftier: Irish? And...why can't you make up your mind? Is it silent or does it sound like something that is not even written there?The different effects of 'gh' on pronunciation of words is explained mostly by two things: where it is in a word, and which dialect the standardized pronunciation was drawn from.

In cases where 'gh' was followed by another consonant, the sound was simply deleted in every case I can think of except "draught". Oh, and "laughter", but in that case there's the root form of "laugh" which would influence the pronunciation of "laughter". The "augh" combination has less variation than "ough" in general tho, daughter and laughter basically covering it.

Basically, the pronunciations of "ough" all derive from an original pronunciation similar to that of "lough" (same pronunciation as Scottish "loch"... IPA [lɒx]).

The differences between the sets:
rough, tough, enough, slough
cough, trough
bough, plough, drought
thought, bought
through
thorough (when the "ough" is pronounced like "uh"... thurra)
hough (usually spelled "hock" nowadays)

Are mostly accounted by different dialects developing in different ways, but in the mixture in London, pronunciations from different dialects becoming part of the standard dialect. In most of these cases (except the first set), the 'gh' sound was deleted, and the vowel went through a compensatory change, lengthening or becoming a diphthong (bough, plough). In the case of thorough, I'm assuming that after the 'gh' was elided, the vowel, being unstressed, became a schwa due to normal processes acting on vowels. Different phonological environments also may have played a role, as you can see in drought, thought and bought, the gh is not associated with a consonant sound, just as it isn't in words like daughter, slaughter, caught, haughty, etc.

The spelling hiccough is a folk etymology, an assumption that the word had a relation to the word "cough", which it does not. It does not reflect an original "ough", or [ɒx] pronunciation - hiccup is the older spelling.

Words like "lough" are borrowings from Irish or Scots Gaelic, which is why they retain their original [x] (velar fricative) pronunciation, or the modern English approximation of it [k] (as also seen in English pronunciation of German or other foreign words, such as Bach, khaki).

Now, we could have avoided all this confusion if the English had simply been good enough to reform their spelling in the 1600s or 1700s before it became so entrenched (some of the sound changes, such as the silencing of the magic 'e', were pretty recent at that point). But they didn't, and now we're stuck with the most inconsistent alphabetic writing system in the world.

Thanks a lot, jerks.

Meanwhile, in Scotland, someone who speaks Scots (aka Lallans, not merely Scottish English) will pronounce most of these 'gh's as their original sound, often with the vowel being different as well (since many of the vowels of these words changed partly due to the 'gh' being elided).

[Anastasia Beaverhausen]

Dearest creature in creation,
Study English pronunciation.
I will teach you in my verse
Sounds like corpse, corps, horse, and worse.
I will keep you, Suzy, busy,
Make your head with heat grow dizzy.
Tear in eye, your dress will tear.
So shall I! Oh hear my prayer.

Just compare heart, beard, and heard,
Dies and diet, lord and word,
Sword and sward, retain and Britain.
(Mind the latter, how it's written.)
Now I surely will not plague you
With such words as plaque and ague.
But be careful how you speak:
Say break and steak, but bleak and streak;
Cloven, oven, how and low,
Script, receipt, show, poem, and toe.

Hear me say, devoid of trickery,
Daughter, laughter, and Terpsichore,
Typhoid, measles, topsails, aisles,
Exiles, similes, and reviles;
Scholar, vicar, and cigar,
Solar, mica, war and far;
One, anemone, Balmoral,
Kitchen, lichen, laundry, laurel;
Gertrude, German, wind and mind,
Scene, Melpomene, mankind.

Billet does not rhyme with ballet,
Bouquet, wallet, mallet, chalet.
Blood and flood are not like food,
Nor is mould like should and would.
Viscous, viscount, load and broad,
Toward, to forward, to reward.
And your pronunciation's OK
When you correctly say croquet,
Rounded, wounded, grieve and sieve,
Friend and fiend, alive and live.

Ivy, privy, famous; clamour
And enamour rhyme with hammer.
River, rival, tomb, bomb, comb,
Doll and roll and some and home.
Stranger does not rhyme with anger,
Neither does devour with clangour.
Souls but foul, haunt but aunt,
Font, front, wont, want, grand, and grant,
Shoes, goes, does. Now first say finger,
And then singer, ginger, linger,
Real, zeal, mauve, gauze, gouge and gauge,
Marriage, foliage, mirage, and age.

Query does not rhyme with very,
Nor does fury sound like bury.
Dost, lost, post and doth, cloth, loth.
Job, nob, bosom, transom, oath.
Though the differences seem little,
We say actual but victual.
Refer does not rhyme with deafer.
Foeffer does, and zephyr, heifer.
Mint, pint, senate and sedate;
Dull, bull, and George ate late.
Scenic, Arabic, Pacific,
Science, conscience, scientific.

Liberty, library, heave and heaven,
Rachel, ache, moustache, eleven.
We say hallowed, but allowed,
People, leopard, towed, but vowed.
Mark the differences, moreover,
Between mover, cover, clover;
Leeches, breeches, wise, precise,
Chalice, but police and lice;
Camel, constable, unstable,
Principle, disciple, label.

Petal, panel, and canal,
Wait, surprise, plait, promise, pal.
Worm and storm, chaise, chaos, chair,
Senator, spectator, mayor.
Tour, but our and succour, four.
Gas, alas, and Arkansas.
Sea, idea, Korea, area,
Psalm, Maria, but malaria.
Youth, south, southern, cleanse and clean.
Doctrine, turpentine, marine.

Compare alien with Italian,
Dandelion and battalion.
Sally with ally, yea, ye,
Eye, I, ay, aye, whey, and key.
Say aver, but ever, fever,
Neither, leisure, skein, deceiver.
Heron, granary, canary.
Crevice and device and aerie.

Face, but preface, not efface.
Phlegm, phlegmatic, ass, glass, bass.
Large, but target, gin, give, verging,
Ought, out, joust and scour, scourging.
Ear, but earn and wear and tear
Do not rhyme with here but ere.
Seven is right, but so is even,
Hyphen, roughen, nephew Stephen,
Monkey, donkey, Turk and jerk,
Ask, grasp, wasp, and cork and work.

Pronunciation -- think of Psyche!
Is a paling stout and spikey?
Won't it make you lose your wits,
Writing groats and saying grits?
It's a dark abyss or tunnel:
Strewn with stones, stowed, solace, gunwale,
Islington and Isle of Wight,
Housewife, verdict and indict.

Finally, which rhymes with enough --
Though, through, plough, or dough, or cough?
Hiccough has the sound of cup.
My advice is to give up!!!

-B. Shaw


:muahaha:

[erimir]

Psh, he's just bitter we didn't adopt his silly Shavian alphabet :giggle: