This tag is for questions related to English as spoken in the isles of Britain and sometimes Ireland.
9
votes
3answers
535 views
“I park my car in the yard”
What is the origin of the different pronunciation of words like park, yard,
cartoon, margarine in American and British English?
In other words, why doesn’t British English generally pronounce the r ...
9
votes
3answers
4k views
Why Isn't Citizen 'Citisen' in British English?
In British English vocabulary, most words with 'z's are replaced with 's's. For example, capitalization to capitalisation. Industrialization to industrialisation.
But for some words, like citizen, ...
9
votes
3answers
1k views
Why is “a couple of <things>” often shortened to “a couple <things>”?
I would write a couple of . I often read/hear a couple .
I assumed this was an American English thing (I'm British), and just a convenient shortening of the phrase for speaking. It's easier to say a ...
8
votes
4answers
1k views
Do Americans use the world 'turtle' as a generic word to mean 'tortoise'?
Obviously there are two different animals — a tortoise and a turtle. But I have been told by a colleague that in the US the word turtle is used to describe both.
I find this odd as for example the ...
7
votes
6answers
6k views
'Expired' or 'Passed away'?
When someone dies, do we say they expired or passed away?
Does the word expired give any more respect when used? Or less respect than passed away?
7
votes
4answers
14k views
“Pricey” vs. “Pricy”
I've recently encountered these two variations of the spellings for the informal word for "expensive." My dictionary and the online dictionary seem to indicate that both of these spellings are ...
7
votes
6answers
1k views
The origin of the phrase “Now then!”
This pair of adverbs of opposed meaning, one indicating the present and the other the past, when conjoined is used to attract attention to what is going to be said or suggested next, in other words ...
7
votes
3answers
31k views
How offensive is it to call someone a “slag” in British English? (NSFW)
One more colorful slang term I gleaned from the British movie I recently watched is slag. In the movie, it was used in curses like, "Fuck-ing dogs! Slags." "Right slag, that one."
Now I know via ...
6
votes
5answers
1k views
“If I knew you're coming I wouldn't have come”
Is the statement
If I knew you're coming I wouldn't have come
correct? Should we use
If I had known you're coming, I wouldn't have come
instead? Please consider American-British ...
6
votes
3answers
2k views
What does “on a hiding to nothing” mean?
I watched a movie with English actors just the other day and came across this phrase in the dialogue. What does it mean, and who would typically use it?
EDIT: Sorry, I'm terrible about these ghost ...
6
votes
7answers
3k views
Does “pants” more commonly mean “trousers” or “underpants”?
In the UK, I've heard pants being used as slang for underpants (or was it in Bridget Jones' Diary?), whereas in India it almost exclusively means "trousers".
Describing the meaning of "put your pants ...
5
votes
2answers
2k views
Usage of “and” and comma when writing numbers UK style
I am trying to understand the rules for writing numbers in words under the UK rules (with "and"). I understand how to write small numbers (up to a few thousands), but I am not sure when to use "and" ...
5
votes
5answers
699 views
Differences between dialects
I'm Italian and I'm trying to improve my English, but I have some difficulty speaking with and understanding people of different countries.
For example when I study English in books it seems to be ...
5
votes
2answers
596 views
What is the proper adjective for the UK?
I've heard Ukonian used, and I must say I rather like it, but I don't think it's a fully accepted word yet. British leaves out Northern Ireland.
5
votes
6answers
806 views
“tag question” vs. “question tag”
I've just read this page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tag_question
So regarding this passage:
The term "question tag" is generally
preferred by British grammarians,
while their American ...
5
votes
2answers
737 views
Identifying accents of British actors
As an American, a large part of my impoverished experience of British accents comes from ancient BBC comedy imports on PBS. I'd very much like to identify the regional accents the following actors are ...
5
votes
11answers
780 views
What should I call the English spoken in UK?
I have read that saying British English is too specific, and that I should say English English.
Is that true?
When I say British English, what do people think I am referring to?
4
votes
3answers
253 views
Etymology and meaning of the word “snog”
Having looked to urban dictionary, witionary, online etymology, dictionary.com, Wikipedia and wordfreaks.tribe.net, I have found a wide variance in the etymology and definition of the word snog. I ...
4
votes
3answers
233 views
What were the British equivalents of Webster's dictionary and the Simplified Spelling Board that standardized spelling and usage?
I am familiar with questions about when to double 'l' and differences between British and American spellings. However, I stumbled across this image.
As you can see, several words end in the double ...
4
votes
3answers
764 views
British English - “In two hours time”
From users of British English, I have noticed the pattern of adding "time" after a unit of time, as in:
He has class in 30 minutes time.
My initial impression as an American is that this is ...
4
votes
4answers
7k views
Correct usage of “to coin a phrase”
I've always thought "to coin a phrase" means to invent a phrase or be the first person to use it.
Today I came across this usage by a reporter for the Lancashire Telegraph
The Burnley board are ...
4
votes
1answer
443 views
Is it true that Cockney English is disappearing? And being replaced with “Jafaican”?
I read a couple of comments to that effect on this Youtube video, which is basically a man ranting in Cockney from the movie Football Factory (2004). The comments bemoan American ignorance about the ...
3
votes
1answer
705 views
Order of preposition in US and UK English
In Britain we'd say
He had a black hat on.
Speakers of American English are more likely to say*
He had on a black hat.
The latter just seems wrong to me. Is my intuition correct or are ...
2
votes
4answers
269 views
“Fall term”, “autumn semester”, “autumn term” or “fall semester”?
Please clarify which is UK English, American English, and where and when to use which:
Fall term (American English?)
Autumn semester (UK English?)
Autumn term (wrong?)
Fall semester (wrong?)
2
votes
1answer
730 views
Members’ Benefits vs Member’s Benefits [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Where should the apostrophe go in the word “beginners” in “beginners guide”?
I’m currently developing a site which has a membership scheme which ...
2
votes
2answers
375 views
'to'-infinitive without the verb
I seem to recall reading somewhere that using a to-infinitive with the actual verb omitted (because it's clear from context) — as in
He asked me to go, but I don't want to. (1)
— is ...
2
votes
1answer
2k views
Please explain the: upwards vs upward difference [duplicate]
Possible Duplicates:
“Backward” versus “backwards” — is there any difference?
Afterward versus afterwards — which, and/or when?
I have seen both used ...
2
votes
5answers
567 views
Use of ! to convey sarcasm vs. emphasis
One, two or even three exclamation marks are often added, especially in e-mail, to convey emphasis to phrases such as Thanks!, or No problem!. My problem is that in British English, you could also ...
1
vote
1answer
571 views
Mixing British and American spellings in writing [closed]
I like color more than colour, but I like favourite more than favorite. For me it is better to write
My favourite color is blue.
Is it wrong to mix British and American spellings in writing, and ...
1
vote
1answer
445 views
What kind of rain is “sprinkles”?
It appears that MSN Weather has chosen an amusing adjective (from my British point of view) for the weather today:
I'm assuming the precipitation (sadly) won't contain any hundreds-and-thousands. ...
1
vote
1answer
106 views
Which does ‘rising’ here mean, to stand up or to get angry?
Harry was sitting up on a bed in the hospital wing at school, surrounded by his visitors. Fudge, one of them, started to insult Harry. Did Mrs. Weasley want to prevent him from getting angry or from ...
1
vote
4answers
241 views
What does this mean: “Avoid oral calcium, dairy products, shark cartilage & exercise during the medication.”
I found this behind a medicine. At first thought, the sentence looks like it suggests avoiding exercise during the medication. However, I remember reading somewhere that in US English, when there is a ...
0
votes
1answer
67 views
Is on/before 15 July better than by 15 July if I want to be precise and unambiguous? Which is the more common form?
When the last day of registration is, let's say, 15 July, we currently say "please confirm your registration before 16 July" but students often send their confirmation on 16 July, rather than 15. I ...
0
votes
0answers
50 views
their or his/her [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Is it correct to use “their” instead of “his or her”?
Often I seen some write wrote "their" and some using "his/her". Which is correct?
Everyone ...
0
votes
0answers
358 views
How Would One Use A Semicolon (;)? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
How does one correctly use a semicolon?
I'm wondering about the difference between just ending the sentence and starting a new one based on the same subject and using a ...
-1
votes
1answer
706 views
“Three-hundred forty-two” or “three-hundred and forty-two”? [closed]
So on this answer here: http://stackoverflow.com/questions/12699791/finding-the-word-version-of-a-number/12700097#comment17146082_12700097
We were having the argument whether it is “three hundred and ...
