The Septic's Companion - List of British Words For Travel & Transport The most common British words or British English terms related to cars (or parts of cars), travel and transport generally. artic: n abbr articulated vehicle, usually a large hauling truck or semi. articulated lorry: adj semi truck which is able to bend in the middle. Of course, I just wrote pretty much the same thing two seconds ago. I�m beginning to understand why the guy who wrote the first Oxford English Dictionary ended up going mad and cutting his penis off. Belisha Beacons: n yellow flashing lights on sticks that are positioned next to zebra crossings and flash constantly to alert drivers. They were named after Hore Belisha, who was Minister of Transport when they were introduced. Perhaps a more interesting derivation was put forward by an episode of the BBC radio programme �Radio Active,� which featured an unwinnable quiz, one of the questions being �From where did the Belisha Beacon get its name?� Answer: �From the word �beacon�.� I was younger then, and in the cold light of day it seems less funny now than it once did. You can�t take away my childhood.

big end: n the end of the conrod, which is attached to the crankshaft in a conventional combustion engine. The other end, attached to the piston, is called the �small end.� bollard: n small concrete or metal post generally used to stop cars from driving into certain places. While used only in a nautical context in the U.S., it is accepted universally in the U.K. When not on boats, Americans call them �pylons,� which to Brits are the giant metal structures used to hold up national grid electricity wires. bonnet: n hood of a car; the part of a car which covers the engine. Confusion arises in the U.K. when dealing with rear-engined cars; it�s difficult to determine whether to call it a bonnet or, as seems perhaps more logical, a boot, on account of it being at the back. The trials of modern life. To encourage confusion, �hood� is used in the U.K. to describe the convertible top of a convertible car. boot: n trunk of a car. The boot of a car is the part you keep your belongings in.

So called because it was originally known as a �boot locker� � whether it used to be commonplace to drive in one�s socks is anyone�s guess. camper van: n motorised caravan in which you can take your entire family for a horrible holiday. Americans call them �R.V.s,� but the average European camper is significantly smaller than the average American one. Also, the average European is, of course, smaller than the average American, as proven by statistics. car park: n parking lot. The large buildings composed of many floors of just parking spaces are called �multi-storey car parks� in the U.K. but �parking garages� in the U.S. caravan: 1 n terrible device which attaches to the back of your car and allows you to take your whole family on holiday at minimal expense and with maximum irritability. They�re more popular in Europe than they are in the U.S., where they�re called �trailers.� Be careful not to confuse a touring caravan (which a family will generally keep outside their house and drag behind their normal car somewhere for a few holidays a year) with a static caravan, which is generally deposited once by a truck and left there.

Americans call both of these things �trailers,� and where a distinction is needed they�ll call the touring variants �travel trailers.� The devices that Americans call a �fifth wheel� � caravans which attach to a conventional diesel truck � are pretty much non-existent in the U.K. Another caravan variant common to both sides of the Atlantic is the �trailer tent,� which is like a caravan except the walls and roof fold out like some sort of ghastly mobile puppet theatre. No doubt you�re much less confused now. I could go on about caravans for days. 2 v the act of staying in a caravan: Doris has taken it into her head to go caravanning this weekend. cat�s eyes: n little reflectors mounted in the centre of the road, amid the white lines. When you�re driving along at night your headlights reflect in them to show where the road goes. When you�re driving like a screaming banshee they gently bounce the car up and down in order to unsettle it, causing you subsequently to lose traction and crash the rented 1.3-litre VW Polo through a fence and into a yard.

Everything goes black � your senses are dead but for the faint smell of petrol, and the dim glow of a light coming on in the farmhouse. Somewhere in the distance a big dog barks. As you slowly regain consciousness, you find that you�re in a soft bed, surrounded by candles and with a faint whiff of incense drifting on the breeze from the open window. You see a familiar face peering down at you � could it be Stinky Potter, from down by the cottages? Wasn�t that corner just about where they found poor old Danny�s motorbike? And how does this guy know your name? If you try to run, roll the dice and turn to page seventeen. If you choose to kiss the old man, turn to page twelve. central reservation: n median. Far from being a sought-after restaurant booking, this is in fact what Brits call the grassy area in the centre of a motorway which is there to stop you colliding with oncoming traffic quite as easily as you might. coach: n bus. Generally used in the U.K. for longer-haul buses (50 miles or more).

The difference between a coach and a �bus� is that a coach tends to have a loo, not so much chewing gum attached to the seats and fewer old ladies hacking up phlegm in the back. Brits do not use coach to refer to economy-class seats on an aircraft; that�s a peculiar American thing. damper: n shock absorber. The part of a vehicle�s suspension system that stops the suspension from bouncing (rather than actually absorbing any shock). demister: n defroster. The little network of electrical wires that weave around your car�s rear window and are intended to remove frost. They are perhaps referred to as such in the U.K. because any devices attached to British-built cars have precious little chance of getting rid of frost, and, indeed, don�t stand much of a chance against mist, either. deplane: v disembark from an aeroplane. A very antiquated term, it�d be met with a vacant stare by most Brits under forty, as would its antonym, �enplane.� dodgem: n bumper-car. Once used in U.S. English too, but now chiefly British. Odd that it should imply an aim to the game that is quite the opposite of what it is.

dual carriageway: n divided highway. There is generally very little difference between a dual carriageway and a motorway except that learner drivers are not allowed onto motorways. earth: n ground. Only in the electrical context � this is the wire that zooms off into the planet somewhere and somehow stops people from electrocuting themselves in the bath. enplane: v get onto an aeroplane. As out of use as its sister word, �deplane.� estate car: n station wagon. gear lever: n the �stick� of a stick-shift car. This applies to cars with manual transmission - automatic cars in the U.K. are reserved for pensioners, the severely disabled and Americans. gearbox: n transmission. The box of gears that sits between the engine and the prop shaft of a car. give way: interj yield. This phrase on a road sign means that, at the junction you�re approaching, other traffic has the right of way. The signs themselves are white upward-pointing triangles with a red line around them. Americans have similar signs but the arrow is downward-pointing, and they have �Yield� written on them instead.

Americans used to have yellow ones, but this turns out to be a whole separate topic that I don�t want to get into. handbrake: n emergency brake (on a car). A handbrake operates like a normal brake pedal but only on the rear wheels. Before the days of speed-cameras, Brits used to use the handbrake to slow down when they passed police cars as the brake lights don�t go on and it�s not so obvious you were speeding. hard shoulder: n shoulder. The poorly-surfaced bit at the side of the road that you�re only supposed to drive on if you�ve broken down, have fallen asleep at the wheel or desperately need to wee. hood: n convertible top. The part of a convertible car that, well, converts. This only serves to complicate the bonnet/boot confusion. Brits do not use �hood� as an abbreviation of �neighbourhood,� unless they are trying to act like American rap stars. Brits are not very good at that, although it doesn�t stop them trying. indicator: n turn signal.

The little orange lights that flash on the side of the car to show that you�re about to frantically try and turn across four lanes of traffic into your driveway. jump leads: n jumper cables. The pair of heavy wires which you use to connect the battery of your working car to the battery of your dead car, or to a person from whom you wish to extract information. kerb: n curb. Not entirely sure how the different spellings arose. L-plates: n big white square stickers with a red letter �L� in them, which have to be put on the front and back of a car that�s being driven by a learner driver (i.e. someone on a provisional license). There�s no real American equivalent. lay-by: n rest area. A little parking area off the side of a main road (usually a motorway), where people generally stop to have a sandwich, let their children vomit, empty the dog or copulate with their work colleagues. Perhaps this is where the name came from. light: n car window.

Largely obsolete - most seen in modern English inside the term �quarterlights,� which is used to refer to those small windows a little ahead of the front door windows, near where the mirrors are attached. �Light� is used in the U.S. architecturally to refer to the individual panes of a split window. The etymology of the term is nautical - small prisms were inserted in the decks of sailing ships to improve visibility below deck, and these themselves became known as �lights.� lorry: n truck. Not a pick-up truck (which barely exist in the U.K.); more of a goods truck. manual gearbox: n stick-shift transmission. The way God intended cars to be driven. milometer: n odometer. The thing that tells you how far you�ve gone in the car. A fairly antiquated term. motor: n automobile. Derived from the time when all cars were known as �motor-cars.� motorway: n freeway. multi-storey car park: n commercial car parking garage with, well, many floors. Americans call the same building a �parking ramp,� �parking structure� or �parking deck,� depending upon where they are in the country.

nearside: n the side of a car closest to the kerb. The other side is the offside. Don�t bother looking up �offside,� because it�s pretty much a copy-paste of this with one word changed. I�m lazy like that. number plate: n license plate. I already wrote about this under my entry for �registration� and I�ll be damned if I�m writing any more. offside: n the side of a car furthest from the kerb. omnibus: n 1 old-fashioned bus. This is a quaint word, dating back to the times when buses were open at the rear and had a conductor ready to meet you. An omnibus is essentially one step technologically forward of a tram. 2 concatenated episodes of a week�s worth of television or radio series (typically soap operas) often screened at the weekends (also called �omnibus edition�). The Latin word �omnibus� means simply �for all,� which could explain both of these etymologies. I�m just saying that because I can�t be bothered checking either of them. I can�t even be bothered checking the Latin - someone just told me it.

For all I know it�s Latin for pig-fucker. pavement: n sidewalk. Brits call the part that cars drive on �Tarmac.� I wonder how many holidaymakers have been run over as a result of this confusion. Well, probably none really. I digress. Historically, �sidewalk� is in fact an old, now-unused British English word meaning exactly what the Americans take it to mean. Pelican crossing: n pedestrian crossing. An area of the road, marked with black and white stripes, where traffic lights stop cars so that pedestrians can cross. A contraction of �PEdestrian LIght CONtrolled crossing.� Yes, I know that would be �pelicon.� People were stupid back then. petrol: n gas. An abbreviation of �petroleum,� much like �gas� is an abbreviation of �gasoline.� prang: n fender-bender. An event towards the more sedate end of car accidents - you�re unlikely to hear on the news that fourteen people were killed in a multi-car prang and ensuing fireball on Wednesday evening. puncture: 1 n flat tire.

In the U.K., puncture is used to describe the offending tire itself rather than just the hole in it: We had to pull over because we got a puncture. 2 infraction (universal). quay: n pron. �key� the place in a docks where boats are loaded and unloaded. The word exists in American English, but the British pronunciation can cause blank stares. railway: n railroad. Can�t think of anything witty. recovery lorry: tow truck. The vehicle that comes to collect you when you have either legitimately broken down or are too boneheaded to change a tyre. It�s really not that hard. There are instructions in the glove box. And I mean you too, girls. registration: n licence plate. While Americans can have anything they fancy on theirs, and they bear little pictures of sunny beaches and legends like �Ohio - The Flour Biscuit State� and such, the Brits have slightly more plain affairs and less choice about what goes on them. Well, no choice at all, in point of fact. As the government changed their systems of number/letter combinations a good few times, however, there is a lively secondary market in plates that look like they say something.

return ticket: adj round-trip ticket. As you probably know, it just means that you�re planning on coming home again. roundabout: n traffic circle; rotary. The device put into the road as a snare for learner drivers and foreigners. Everyone has to drive around in a circle until they see their selected exit road, at which point they must fight through the other traffic on the roundabout in a valiant attempt to leave it. Roundabouts do exist in the U.S. (predominantly in Massachusetts) but in the U.K. they�re all over the place - there is no such thing as a four-way-stop. saloon: n sedan. The cars that, well, aren�t estates or sports cars. The kind your dad and the dentist have. They are called saloons in the U.K. because they usually have wooden swing doors, spittoons and people tend to burst into them waving a gun and saying something about the car not being big enough for two of us. Them. Us. I see why people hate learning English. sleeper: n railroad tie. The very large blocks of wood which go between the rails and the ground on a section of railway line.

slip-road: n on-ramp/off-ramp. A road that runs parallel to a major one, allowing you to gain or lose speed safely while joining or leaving the main road. speedo: n abbreviation for �speedometer.� subway: n underground pedestrian walkway. Built to enable you to cross the road safely, urinate or inject heroin. Brits do not call the London underground train system the �subway.� They call it the �underground.� tailback: n traffic jam; back-up: Don�t bother going via the M25, there�s a ten mile tailback. tarmac: n blacktop. The stuff that covers roads. Perhaps you�d like to hear some road-making history? Hmm? Or perhaps not. Perhaps you�re sitting in bed naked, waiting for your husband to finish in the shower. Perhaps you�re on a train in a strange foreign country, hoping that this stupid book was going to be much more of a tour guide than it turned out to be. Perhaps you�re having a shit. Well, bucko, whatever you�re doing you�re stuck now, and so you�re going to hear a little bit of road-making history.

A long time ago, a Scotsman named John Loudon Macadam invented a way of surfacing roads with gravel, this coating being known as �Macadam� - a term also used in the U.S. �What happens when the road aged?,� I hear you say. Well, I�m so glad you asked. Unfortunately as the road aged the gravel tended to grind to dust and so it was coated with a layer of tar - this being �Tar-Macadam,� which was concatenated to tarmac. Somewhere in the mists of time the Americans ended up using this only to describe airport runways, but the Brits still use it to describe the road surface. tickover: n idle (of a car engine): It even overheats on tickover! ticking over idling. trailer tent: n pop-up camper. A sort of folding-up caravan. It starts off as an average-sized trailer and then unfolds into a sort of crappy shed when you reach a campsite. tram: n streetcar; trolley.

A device very much like a train except it generally runs on tracks built on top of normal roads and is often powered electrically by high-strung cables (I mean ones on poles, not ones of an excitable disposition). Trams are making something of a comeback in Europe generally, with new systems springing up in the U.K. Tube: n the London Underground railway. Londoners are clearly not as inspired as Glaswegians, who call theirs the �Clockwork Orange.� In the U.S., these sorts of rail systems are known as �subways� which, no doubt in order to cause confusion, is what the Brits call the walkways which go underneath roads, where tramps live and drunk people urinate. tyre: n tire. The black rubber things around the wheels of your car. The British spelling in this particular instance is, well, curious. underground: n subway (specifically underground railway): There�s an underground station two minutes from my house. verge: n shoulder. The edge of the road, populated by hitch-hikers, frogs and children urinating.

That�s �frogs� and �children urinating,� not �(frogs and children) urinating.� Glad I could clear that up. Let me know if you have any other questions. windscreen: 1 n windshield (of a car). 2 n one of those things that you put up on a beach that stops the sand from blowing in and stops those inside from noticing that the tide is coming in. wing: n fender. The metal part of a car that covers the front wheel and joins onto the bonnet. Perhaps it derives from the time when cars were made which could fly. zebra crossing: n the black-and-white striped pathways drawn across roads where pedestrians have right of way and motorists have to stop if anyone is waiting by them. The phrase has been slightly usurped by the less exciting term �pedestrian crossing.� While this very concept of �it�s alright, on you go, the cars all have to stop� is dangerous enough, a great deal of them are positioned straight after roundabouts where motorists are least likely to be ready for them. I swear these things are part of some sort of population control policy.

To make them marginally easier to see, some of them are marked with Belisha Beacons. British and American English British and American English Conclusion Introduction Those people who complain about the difficulties of learning German, don't know how lucky they really are - they only have one language to master. Admittedly, there are regional differences of dialect in German-speaking countries, but the non-native speaker who has learned Hochdeutsch (high or standard German) should have no problems in making himself understood by citizens of Germany, Austria or Switzerland. The difficulty for the non-native learner of English on the other hand is that there is no standard English form. He is confronted with two English dialects to learn: British English and American English (leaving aside Australian, Indian, South African English etc.) And despite the many cross-cultural influences, it seems that the vocabularies, spellings and pronunciations of these two dialects are diverging year by year. To be consistent in his use of English and, more importantly, to be understood , the non-native speaker needs to know which words have distinct meanings and pronunciations depending on whether they are used by a Briton or an American. This is necessary not only for sake of communication, but also to avoid embarrassment.

For example, if a Londoner tells a resident of New York that she has left her child's dummy in the pram and its nappy in the boot, she will merely be greeted with a look of bewilderment. If the New Yorker then tells the London woman that she has nice pants, he may well wonder why she doesn't seem to take his remark as a compliment. [In America dummies and nappies are called pacifiers and diapers; prams and boots are called baby carriages and trunks. For Americans pants are trousers but for Britons pants are what you wear under your trousers.] What follows are brief examples of the major areas of difference† between the two languages, together with some quiz questions. Top Spelling differences In general, where there are differences between British English (BrE) and American English (AmE) spelling, it can be said that American English has the more economical and phonetic spelling. Unnecessary letters are left out and words are spelled how they sound. An obvious example is the omission in AmE of the letter u in words such as color, neighbor, honor etc. Compare also the AmE words traveling, jewelry and program with their BrE counterparts travelling, jewellery and programme.

However, this rule does not always apply. For example, you would expect skilful to be the AmE spelling and skillful the BrE spelling, but unfortunately you would be wrong! Quiz 1 In the following table, which words are spelled in American English and which in British English? Can you give the alternative spelling in each case? Example: AmE - mustache : BrE - moustache airplane Go to answers Vocabulary differences As a percentage of the total English vocabulary the number of words which are used only in one or the other country is very small, but the problem for learners of English is that these words are among the most common in the language. There are many words that are used almost exclusively by Americans which are understood by most Britons, and vice versa. But there are others which can cause difficulty. For example, most Britons know that Americans call biscuits cookies and flats apartments, but not so many know what an alumnus or a fender is. Similarly, Americans know that what they call their yard is called a garden in Britain and that trucks are lorries, but common British English words like plimsolls or oflicence may mean nothing to them.

Quiz 3 From the lists below, choose the pair of words that have the same meaning and identify them as American English or British English. Example: AmE - cookie = BrE - biscuit closet Top Grammar British English and American English grammar are mostly in agreement; there are however some interesting variations. For example there are differences in certain verb forms. In AmE the past tense of fit is fit; in BrE it is fitted. Americans say I've gotten to know her well; Britons I've got to know her well. In BrE the present perfect tense is used for situations in which AmE would typically use the past simple. For example using the words just or already, Britons would be more likely to say: I've just seen him or I've already done it whereas in AmE it would be common to hear I just saw him or I already did it. As another example, Americans are much more likely to be technically correct in the agreement of collective noun and verb form than Britons. So in standard AmE it would be: The team is playing well this season whereas in BrE it is common and acceptable to say The team are playing well.

Similar differences can be seen in the use of words like government, committee etc.: The government is .. (AmE), The government are .. (BrE). Quiz 4 The following sentences are typically AmE. What would the typical Briton say? Do you have any siblings? It is important that she be told. The jury has not yet reached its decision. Go fetch your book. Top Usage There are countless other small and interesting differences between AmE and BrE, which come under the heading of usage . Take the useful expression used in AmE through, meaning up to and including. E.g., The exhibition is showing March through June. The equivalent expression in BrE is from March to June, but this is ambiguous. Does the exhibition close at the end of May or the end of June? To avoid any misunderstanding, it is necessary to say something like The exhibition is showing from March to the end of June. As another example: for Americans the number billion has 9 zeros (a thousand million); for most Britons it has 12 zeros (a million million). Zero itself is a much more common word in AmE than in BrE, where nought is more widespread.

Americans are likely to say the number 453 as four hundred fifty three, whereas in Britain it would almost always be said four hundred and fifty three. And so on! Quiz 5 Are the following sentences more likely to be said (or written) by an American or a Briton? I'll try and visit you on the weekend. Please write me when you arrive. Call me as soon as you get there. Most everyone has a telephone and a refrigerator these days. If you make a mistake, you'll just have to do it over. He was born 3/27/1981. pajamas - pyjamas jail - gaol* * Jail is more common in BrE too nowadays, although gaol is still perfectly acceptable (and pronounced the same as jail!) Quiz 2 - Pronunciation Americans and Britons agree in most cases on where a word in stressed.

For example, everyone says pencil and relax, cinema and consider, but the following words from the table are stressed differently in the two dialects: ballet - BrE : ballet - AmE garage - BrE : garage - AmE advertisement - BrE : advertisement - AmE The differences in pronunciation of the other words lie in the vowel sounds, not in differently-stressed syllables. They are therefore more difficult to illustrate in writing without recourse to phonetic script, which few people know. Their proununciations are illustrated therefore by reference to common words with the same sound vase: vars as in cars (BrE) : vace as in face (AmE) route: root as in shoot (BrE) : rout * as in shout (AmE) buoy: boy as in toy (BrE) : booey as in the French name Louis (AmE) ate: et as in let (BrE) : ate as in late (AmE) tomato: tomarto (BrE) : tomayto * (AmE) leisure as in pleasure (BrE) : leesure (lee as in she) (AmE) * Some Americans pronounce these words as Britons do.

Quiz 3 - Vocabulary The AmE words are shown in red, the BrE words in blue: : closet - cupboard : vacation - holiday : fall - autumn : thumb tack - drawing pin : flashlight - torch : subway - underground : baggage - luggage : movie - film : drapes - curtains : elevator - lift : hood - bonnet : mailman - postman : check - bill * : line - queue : candy - sweets : gas - petrol : trailer - caravan : * In England you ask the waiter for the bill at the end of your meal. In America you ask for the check. A bill in AmE is a synonym for a banknote. Quiz 4 - Grammar AmE - Do you have any siblings? BrE - Have you got any brothers or sisters? AmE - It is important that she be told. * BrE - It is important that she is told. AmE - The jury has not yet reached its decsion. BrE - The jury have not yet reached their decision. AmE - Go get your book. BrE - Go and fetch your book. AmE - He dove into the water. BrE - He dived into the water. AmE - You must come visit me real soon.

BrE - You must come and visit me really soon. * AmE is much more likely to use a subjunctive form than BrE. Quiz 5 - Usage This was a trick question because in fact all of the sentences are more likely to be said or written by an American than a Briton! Here they are again with their English equivalents: AmE - I'll try and visit you on the weekend. BrE - I'll try to visit you at the weekend. AmE - Please write me when you arrive. BrE - Please write to me when you arrive. AmE - Call me as soon as you get there. BrE - Ring me (phone me) as soon as you get there. AmE - Most everyone has a telephone and a refrigerator these days. BrE - Almost everyone has a telephone and a fridge these days. AmE - If you make a mistake, you'll just have to do it over. BrE - If you make a mistake, you'll just have to do it again. AmE - He was born 3/27/1981. BrE - He was born on 27/3/1981.

AmE - The soccer team won two to nothing (2-0). BrE - The soccer team won two-nil (2-0). AmE - She arrived at twenty of two. BrE - She arrived at twenty to two. AmE - The secretary said, "Mr. Clinton will see you soon." BrE - The secretary said: "Mr Clinton will see you soon." The difference in the last two sentences is in the punctuation. † Note that the differences listed on this page are generalisations (or generalizations, if you prefer the AmE spelling). It should certainly not be inferred that all AmE or BrE speakers will use the varying language features ascribed to them here. American Words/ British Words ESL Programs American Words/ British Words As you know, even though North America and Great Britain share the same language, some words are completely different. Here are some of the most common differences. American Word British Word Flashlight Torch Gas Petrol Soccer Football Cookie Biscuit Diaper (on a baby) Nappy (of food) Elevator Lift Truck Lorry Hood (of a car) Bonnet (of a car) Eraser Rubber Check Your Understanding Can you fill in the blanks without looking back? 1.

In North America, a person drives a truck down the road. In Great Britain, a person drives a . 2. In Great Britain, the front of a car is called a bonnet. In North America, the front of a car is called a . 3. In North America, the back of the car has a trunk. In Great Britain, the back of the car has a . 4. In Great Britain, people put petrol in their cars to make them go. In North America, people put in their cars. 5. In North America, babies wear diapers before they learn to use the toilet. In Great Britain, babies wear . 6. In Great Britain, food can be bought in tins. In North America, food is bought in . Car hood vs. car bonnet Car hood vs. car bonnet Goto page 1, 2 Next #1 ( permalink ) Wed May 06, 2009 13:39 pm Car hood vs. car bonnet How does the term 'car bonnet' sound to Americans and how does 'car hood' sound to British people? I mean how familiar are you with those words?

Thanks, #2 ( permalink ) Wed May 06, 2009 13:54 pm Car hood vs. car bonnet Good afternoon Torsten, Car bonnet is the only reference you will ever hear in England, Same with car boot .. never car trunk. Bill. Location: ESSEN, Germany, (but English.) In this story you'll learn everything about the passive voice English grammar exercises  improve your English knowledge and vocabulary skills Are you a native speaker of English? Then you should read this ! Read these English anecdotes and maybe smile today? Subscribe to free email English course #3 ( permalink ) Wed May 06, 2009 13:58 pm Car hood vs. car bonnet We only have car bonnets and car boots here in Ireland, too. For a long time I was puzzled when I read the term car trunk somewhere. To me a trunk is a large suitcase. :) _________________ #4 ( permalink ) Wed May 06, 2009 14:00 pm Car hood vs. car bonnet Hi Bill, Thanks a lot for your quick response.

What if you watch an American movie or TV show and the word 'hood' or 'trunk' is mentioned? How do British people react to that? Regards, #5 ( permalink ) Wed May 06, 2009 14:13 pm Car hood vs. car bonnet When Americans hear "car bonnet", it sounds like the Amish somehow started allowing their adherents to drive cars, or that it's a term derived from some part of a horse-drawn buggy. If Americans hear "car boot", it's likely to sound like a tire boot, one of those weights the police lock onto the wheel of your car to prevent you from driving it away. However, any American who knows anything about cars will understand those terms, but he will probably imagine the driver to be a grey-haired man in a tweed coat and a green cap that's squashed down in the front. If you google "car hood" asking for only UK sites, you will see that in Britain the term means the soft roof of a convertible.

At street level, people call car parts whatever they have always called them, but working with the automotive industry, I can see that many of the specifically American terms have become international and have to be "translated" specifically for UK consumers. #6 ( permalink ) Wed May 06, 2009 15:54 pm Car hood vs. car bonnet Torsten, we do understand the terms, but we choose never to use them. Similarly " tire " is to wear down. ( with work ) Trust the Americans! If you don't have a language of your own, invent one, or easier yet, steal one. _________________ Location: ESSEN, Germany, (but English.) #7 ( permalink ) Wed May 06, 2009 17:19 pm Car hood vs. car bonnet More like, perfect one, save it from obscurity, and make it predominant the world over. No need to thank us, we did it for us, not you limeys. You just get a free ride on our coattails. Come to think of it, we should probably charge Britain a licensing fee or something. _________________ Plan to be spontaneous tomorrow.

*** Did you hear they arrested the Energizer Bunny on battery charges? *** Location: Not-quite exact central USA #8 ( permalink ) Wed May 06, 2009 17:41 pm Car hood vs. car bonnet Kitosdad is really funny in his anti-American obsession, or as the famous French writer Jean-Franï¿½ois Revel called it in his great book, "le syndrome anti-amï¿½ricain". And he's really out of his depth when he starts pontificating and moralizing on linguistic issues. The English drove large numbers of people from their own country, either through oppression or exile. These people were originally largely monolingual English speakers, and they planted their own native language on the American continent. Despite the facts of history, you now get British subnormals who seem to think that Americans originally spoke Esperanto, Volapï¿½k, Tokpisin, Igbo or some other obscure language, or maybe no language, until they one day decided to heist the language the British were speaking. You see, languages can be "stolen", just like the wallet out of your pocket, and the "thieves" are guilty criminals.

But oddly enough, after someone "steals" your language, you still have it. It's the first theft in history in which the victim remains in possession of what has been stolen. These are irrational emotions typical of some citizens of eclipsed empires, and they're not that different from the opinions propagated by the Ku Klux Klan or the neo-Nazis. They have their source in similar psychic pain. Location: ESSEN, Germany, (but English.) #10 ( permalink ) Wed May 06, 2009 18:03 pm Car hood vs. car bonnet Yeah, it's fun to tweak his nose. You'll note he never attempts to castigate the Irish, Scots, or Aussies for their uh, ("bastardization", I believe was the exact term he used) of the English language? Personally, I suspect he was denied a residency visa, and is having a case of sour grapes. Or else he hates himself for wanting to move here, and attacks us in some kind of Freudian subliminal attempt to reconcile his true feelings with what he wishes to hide from the world. Wouldn't be the first time somebody has attacked Americans out of jealousy.

What say, Kitosdad? Need a citizenship sponsor? Learn some proper vocabulary, and maybe I could put in a good word for you with INS. Probably be less work teaching you English than it is my students. And I've got a couple of older students too, so the slower learning pace won't hamper us at all. _________________ Location: Not-quite exact central USA #11 ( permalink ) Wed May 06, 2009 18:15 pm Car hood vs. car bonnet Sorry, any American who knows about cars understands that the automobile was invented in several different places at the same time. The Americans were simply the first to manufacture cars on a production line. I have recently read an advertisement from Scotland claiming that TV was invented there. And it certainly was, but not the TV that was finally adopted for use. A Scot invented a mechanical TV system -- I believe it was even color TV -- but when he went to an exposition in the US and saw electronic TV, he realized his mechanical TV had no future, and he gave it up. Many Americans think that the telephone was invented by an American, but it was first invented by a German.

The German academy of sciences laughed him out of the hall and told him not to waste their time with such a useless invention. Then a Scot invented his version of it in the US, and it was the Americans who saw and developed its potential. Once a Brazilian told me that a Brazilian was the first person to build and fly in an airplane. When I told her that the Wright brothers had flown a couple of years before him, she snapped, "BUT NOBODY SAW THEM!" A Russian once claimed to me that a Russian had invented the first airplane, and that it was steam powered. I looked up the information and found that this Russian had indeed invented a steam-powered plane, but it wouldn't fly unless you dragged it up a mountain and pushed it off. How to Understand British Terms: 8 Steps (with Pictures) - wikiHow Be aware that certain food items are called by different names: Chips are thick fries, and french fries are the thin fries. Crisps are potato chips . A biscuit is a cookie. A British person would only call chocolate-chip biscuits a 'cookie'. Scones are a baked item made of firm dough.

They are neither soft like bread or crisp like a cookie or a biscuit but are somewhere in between. They can be sweet or savoury and are eaten topped or filled as appropriate. Jelly is a gelatin dessert (Jello), the type given with ice cream in hospital; fruit preserves are jam. 2 Learn the different terms for parts of a building: The ground floor is the same as the American first floor. The first floor is the one above this, and other numbers follow as normal. A lift is an elevator. A flat is the general term for an apartment. A bedsit is a one-room flat (efficiency apartment) that serves as a bedroom and a living area. 3 Study these terms for when you are on the move: The boot is the trunk of the car. A trunk in Britain is a kind of old-fashioned large suitcase. The wing is the fender of the car. The bonnet is the hood of the car. The "windscreen" is the windshield as goes for the wipers. However, a trunk call, is a long-distance (on a trunk-line) phone call but the term is not associated with automobiles at all as one might be lead to believe.

Trunk call is not used in modern British English. A roundabout is a traffic circle. The colours of traffic lights are called red, amber (not yellow) and green. A lorry is a truck (not necessarily a "pick-up truck"). They are, more often than not, the type that carry goods. The sidewalk is called the pavement or the footpath (unpaved walkway). Petrol is gasoline (e.g., "Can we stop at the petrol station?"). 4 Avoid embarrassment of not understanding these differences: A bum is a derrière/posterior, not a homeless person. Spell and pronounce ass as "arse", bearing in mind that an "ass" may also be four-legged or even a more derogatory synonym for a two-legged "twit". Do not call your "bum" your fanny. In the U.K., a "fanny" is a word meaning the female, external genitalia (vulva)! A "fag" is a cigarette.

(The British are well aware of the American meaning.) While thanks to American culture, "faggot" is sometimes used as the derogatory name for homosexuals (avoid in polite company), in UK "fagot/faggot" can be used to mean "a cigarette, bundle of firewood, a chopped meatball," or "a bundle of anything", though this is an obscure usage. [1] The "loo", "bog", "WC/water closet", or just "toilet" is the American English "bathroom" (e.g. "Where's the loo?"), though if you say you're going to the bathroom, people will get the idea. A rubber is a pencil eraser, as well as meaning a condom. "I'm stuffed" means "I'm full". The word stuffed can also be interpreted in a negative or insulting manner depending on context (e.g. "Go get stuffed." is a bit more polite than "F**k off.", having roughly the same meaning). 5 Remember when throwing something away that: Rubbish is garbage or trash and goes in the rubbish bin if it is inside, or a dustbin if you mean the large outside receptacle.

A trash bag is called a bin liner or bin bag. 6 Use these terms when talking about clothing: Trainers are sneakers, Wellingtons (Wellington boots, wellies, boots) are calf-length rubber (or plastic) waterproof boots and have nothing to do with beef. They are named after the Duke of Wellington. Pants in England are worn underneath your trousers or jeans, just like American panties. While the British may understand what you mean, due to the invasion of American culture, they will likely find the mental image this conjures amusing and may call you out on it, also called "knickers". Tights, are pantyhose with two legs, "stockings" is the term used for pantyhose that have two separate garments, just like socks. 7 Finally, study these terms which may cause confusion: The phrases "taking the mickey", "taking the Michael" and "taking the piss" mean making fun of or teasing. The phrase "on your knees" means to show respect, beg, or even plead, To ring is to call on the phone (e.g. "I'll ring you later"). A pram or buggy is a baby stroller.

A trolley is a shopping cart used for shopping in large shops such as supermarkets. A dummy (short for "dummy teat") is a pacifier. A lolly is a contraction of "iced lolly", a popsicle. A mobile or mobile phone is a cellphone. A bodge or botch is a poor job (or repair) that just about works. A brolly is short for an umbrella. Very occasionally called a "gamp" after a character in a Dickens novel. Going on "holiday is a vacation. A torch is a flashlight. Maths is the shortened mass noun for mathematics, American "math". Washing-up liquid is dish detergent. An aerial is a TV or radio antenna. Anti-clockwise is counter-clockwise. The phone is engaged means that the phone line is busy. Punt in the UK refers to a flat-bottomed boat with a square-cut bow, designed for use in small rivers or other shallow water. Punting refers to boating in a punt. In America, especially in American Football, a punt is when you clear the ball down the field. That was the joke used on Emma Watson by David Letterman ("Here, we do that on 4th and long").

The English equivalent is a drop kick, but the mechanics are different. A punt in rugby is a kick in which the ball is hit BEFORE touching the ground. It's also slang for 'a bet' or a gamble, as in 'I took a punt on it not raining tonight', 'I had a punt on a horse race'. "Football" is soccer. The American game is called American football, and is viewed as a second-rate version of rugby. 8

Question: Americans call it a hood. What do the British call it?
Answer: Bonnet