UK/US different terminology

Now that I've lived here a couple of years, I've heard a lot of things said by Brits that you just wouldn't say in the US. And vice versa...things people say in the US, but would be weird to say here. I don't mean like different spelling or different terms for things, but just certain contexts.

Examples:
People really like having little nicknames for things here. You would never hear an adult man in the US say anything like, "Let's go for a spot of brekkie!" as a way to say "Let's go get some breakfast." Or "I could go for a chokkie b!" to mean chocolate biscuit. It cracks me up.

Another one I noticed recently... It being Halloween soon, the British use of the word "spook," just sounds inappropriate to my American ears. It brings to mind an old racial slur. And it just seems to be used in contexts that good people wouldn't in the US. Like my work had a party recently where the theme was listed as "Beer and Spooks" on posters everywhere, and it made me cringe. It just sounded wrong. "Spooky" sounds ok, but not "Spook."

Anyone have any that they've noticed? Or have you ever said something that got weird looks from the Brits?

There has been lots and lots (and lots!) of discussion of this topic.  Here are a few threads:


http://talk.uk-yankee.com/index.php?topic=24040.0
http://talk.uk-yankee.com/index.php?topic=19901.0
http://talk.uk-yankee.com/index.php?topic=25051.0
http://talk.uk-yankee.com/index.php?topic=48738.0
http://talk.uk-yankee.com/index.php?topic=39918.0

I know historyenne just posted links to other similar threads, but I was about to post this when I realised her reply was there...

It being Halloween soon, the British use of the word "spook," just sounds inappropriate to my American ears. It brings to mind an old racial slur.

Maybe that's why they changed the name of the BBC show 'Spooks' to MI-5 when it aired in the US? Although, when I looked up 'spook' in an online dictionary just now, it said that the usage of the word to refer to a spy was chiefly US and Canadian .

Anyone have any that they've noticed? Or have you ever said something that got weird looks from the Brits?

This is going the other way, but I got an odd look and a laugh from a guy in the US when I used the word 'wonky' in conversation (to refer to a dog with 'wonky' ears) .

There has been lots and lots (and lots!) of discussion of this topic.  Here are a few threads:


http://talk.uk-yankee.com/index.php?topic=24040.0
http://talk.uk-yankee.com/index.php?topic=19901.0
http://talk.uk-yankee.com/index.php?topic=25051.0
http://talk.uk-yankee.com/index.php?topic=48738.0
http://talk.uk-yankee.com/index.php?topic=39918.0

Oh, thanks! Entertaining stuff.

This is going the other way, but I got an odd look and a laugh from a guy in the US when I used the word 'wonky' in conversation (to refer to a dog with 'wonky' ears) .

That's a good one. I accidentally called my resume "a CV" when I was talking to someone in the US. I got a weird look, and was asked if a CV was a type of car.

That's a good one. I accidentally called my resume "a CV" when I was talking to someone in the US. I got a weird look, and was asked if a CV was a type of car.

"CV" is used in the States.  I knew the term there, but it's usually used in academic circles--like the special resumes that a uni professor would use--much longer than your standard resume and much more detailed.

"CV" is used in the States.  I knew the term there, but it's usually used in academic circles--like the special resumes that a uni professor would use--much longer than your standard resume and much more detailed.

That's true, actually, I have heard it before in the context you mentioned once or twice. But generally people wouldn't refer to your basic resume that way, as you do in the UK.

Well I don't know if this is something that is said in the US or not, but I had never heard of it.  Once in a work meeting, I was talking about how we should be 'grooming' certain employees (to help train them for a better role (a promotion) eventually), and people were spitting out their coffee & saying they couldn't believe I just said that.  And I had no idea what they were on about. 

What about words specific to a particular job or field?  Working in UK libraries I got used to "curved" brackets (parentheses) vs. "square" brackets (brackets) and full stops (periods).  Then there was the "issues counter" (circulation desk) and so on. 
But then, libraries are hardly libraries anymore now anyway 

My sister gets moody with me when i use UK terminology. She hates it when I talk about pavements or bin lorries (it took me about 15 minutes to come up with the US term for this one day!) It's really quite annoying since she's the one who spelled 'color' 'colour'

I was so happy one day when someone else at work called a pavement a sidewalk and I could give the blame for the american word to someone else!

Chatting to my former boss in the US I referred to a suspicious email as "dodgy".  He chuckled and said something about my new vocabulary.  :-)
We would get the occasional customer from the UK and one gentleman (a semi-regular) used the word "gobsmacked" one day, I was the only one who knew what he was talking about.  :-)

My sister gets moody with me when i use UK terminology.

I just went through the same thing with my sister last week.  I can't remember what it was I was telling her about, but it must have been something to do with things happening at my fiance's house, because whatever it was, I used the UK term for it.  She just stopped cold, and said something to the effect of 'what, you're British now?  American words aren't good enough?' 

I used wonky back in the US before moving here, didn't know it was UK specific.

I can't say I've changed that much though, some stuff crept in but for the most part, I speak the same as before.  I probably say shop instead of store more, and lift instead of elevator, but that's about it.  (Not that shop is UK specific, but I feel like people go more to the "shops" than using the term "stores".

I've been here 11 + years and one of my favourite differences is:
Fanny Pack   vs
Bum Bag
 
I was warned about this difference BEFORE i moved here so fortunately never had that faux paus
 
 HOWEVER
I made a good one about two years ago.. I am a nurse and was working night shift Its usually two nurses on night shift and a auxilliary.
Anyways the other nurse was a lovely younger male nurse named Fraser. I was really knackered and said to Fraser .. "hey Fraser you might need to poke me several times during the night to keep me awake " and it wasn't till it was out of my mouth and I saw his poor face go scarlett that I realised what I had said..
 
Never made that mistake again roflmao

What about words specific to a particular job or field?  Working in UK libraries I got used to "curved" brackets (parentheses) vs. "square" brackets (brackets) and full stops (periods).  Then there was the "issues counter" (circulation desk) and so on. 
But then, libraries are hardly libraries anymore now anyway 

apologies if this is very off topic, but as a fellow librarian, I'd be really interested to hear what you meant by "Libraries are hardly libraries anymore"