English is English, right? Not so, according to Matthew Engel of The Guardian. Last week, he wrote an article for the BBC about the most offensive “Americanisms” — words or phrases that Americans have distorted over time. The list includes "faze," "elevator," and "rookies." The Guardian then invited readers to send in their own most-hated Americanisms.
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Comments [8]
As a Brit My most hated English Slang is "Gobsmacked" I Can't Believe even the BBC has quoted the Royal Family as being in this state !! Can you imagine the Queen refering to her mouth as "A Gob" !!!
My least favorite Britishisms are: "fag" for cigarette; "chin wag" for conversation, and "lie down" for nap.
On the other hand, when my sister-in-law first came to this country, she said she would make an effort never to use "guess" in place of "suppose."
I am an American who loves everything about the Brits, except their food (unless it's a curry takeaway :-).
I have watched EastEnders religiously for over 20 years on my local PBS station and have caught myself saying things like:
"it get's right up my nose when..." instead of "it bothers me when..." or "give him a ring" instead of "call him" Then I think to myself, "what the bloody hell am I doing?" At least I have never said "Come on over for a knees-up" (i.e. party) But watching the show for so long, I also notice Americanisms creep into the dialogue.
Okay Brits, here's one of the ugliest Americanisms - one that I hate so much I will NEVER use: "My bad" That just gives me the willies. :-)
I was checking into a hotel in London and the desk clerk asked me very politely "Shall I have someone knock you up in the morning?" You could only imagine the look of horror on my face and the swear words that came out of my mouth. I figured out eventually that the desk clerk was asking me if I would like a wake up call.
My word that rankles me is awesome, a supernova is awesome, a hot dog can never be awesome. From an expat in NY.
Having been corrected, or at least given a funny look, by many a Brit regarding my antiquated use of "gotten" rather than "got":
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gotten
Having been corrected, or at least given a funny look, by many a Brit regarding my antiquated use of "gotten" rather than "got":
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gotten
Hey! what about strange Britishisms? Like fag for cigarette, or boot for - what is it? - the hood or trunk of a car???
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