English Words That Are Different in the UK and USA

^ Isn`t tomato sauce the stuff they put in spaghetti? :XD

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^ Isn`t tomato sauce the stuff they put in spaghetti? :XD

In England we tend to say ketchup is tomato sauce.
Or I do, anyway :file:.

The stuff you put in spaghetti would be.. tomato sauce aswell? :don:
I don't know really, I've always called that pasta sauce :lmfao.

Passata is the sauce that you put into spaghetti. Or tomato puree.

I call the sauce you put on pasta... "pasta sauce" :file:
And ketchup = tomato sauce. I come from Australia, so we don't really use the word 'ketchup'.
Plus we have a lot of the British names and words for things, like 'loo' or 'mobile phone' or 'rubbish'.
What's weird though is that over here in Australia we use 'soccer' instead of football, like Americans. I guess it's because we've got the AFL, which is what we call football.
So it's a bit of both types of slang I guess.

I just thought of the easiest one. We call "fall" Autumn and cookies are biscuits. And they are not sweaters they are jumpers.
What you call jelly we call jam, and what you call jello we call jelly. Confusing much?

adjacent.justice:

Pisses me off. When he starts using Britain terms when we talk on the phone.

Why would it piss you off? :shifty

ChemicallyImbalanced:

Where does the word 'ketchup' even come from?

I don't know, but there is a type of Indonesian soy sauce called Ketjap Manis.
Which might be a totally unrelated. But 'ketjap' and 'ketchup' are similar-looking words. xD

In America you guys say cops but we say police.
Or coppers if you're cockney :file:

incarcerate.:

In America you guys say cops but we say police.
Or coppers if you're cockney :file:

Or "The Old Bill." Or "Bobbie"

It's not tomato sauce on spaghetti.
You use tomato sauce to make spaghetti sauce. And other things.

ChemicallyImbalanced:

Where does the word 'ketchup' even come from?

Your answer lies in here I think.
But it was boring and dull so I didn't read the whole damn thing.

lochnessmonster:

cookies are biscuits.

But cookies and biscuits are completely differnet things because we have cookies and biscuits.

The whole pants being trousers confuses me.

the neon handshake:

The whole pants being trousers confuses me.

In what sense?

Those, to me, are pants or trousers. Both mean the same thing.
Whereas I understand 'pants' in America can mean underwear too.
Which is where it gets confusing, because 'pants' can also be short for 'underpants' in Britain. I'd say pants mainly refers to the image above, though.

Bloodraine:

the neon handshake:

The whole pants being trousers confuses me.

In what sense?

Just in the sense that if it's mentioned in American programmes and I'm not quite paying attention, if it's said pants as in trousers, I always take it for underwear, which doesn't fit the context.

the neon handshake:

lochnessmonster:

cookies are biscuits.

But cookies and biscuits are completely differnet things because we have cookies and biscuits.

The whole pants being trousers confuses me.

We do but in America they don't say biscuits. They're all cookies.
We only adopted cookies because of Maryland :XD

Bloodraine:

Whereas I understand 'pants' in America can mean underwear too.

I don't think I lot of people say "pants" as undies. I mean, I've never heard it. On the rare occasion I'll hear word 'underpants'. But generally it's just underwear, panties, boxers, briefs, thongs, etc. Underwear mostly.

Maybe it's a stereotype then?

Maybe it's a conspiracy to confuse us all :shifty

^That made me laugh. :tehe:

The only one I know is 'fag'.
Derogatory term here, cigarette in Britain.

the neon handshake:

But cookies and biscuits are completely differnet things because we have cookies and biscuits.

The whole pants being trousers confuses me.

What do you consider 'biscuits' then?
Because the things you guys call 'cookies' are called biscuits over here. As in, "choc chip biscuits", for example.

acid bath:

the neon handshake:

But cookies and biscuits are completely differnet things because we have cookies and biscuits.

The whole pants being trousers confuses me.

What do you consider 'biscuits' then?
Because the things you guys call 'cookies' are called biscuits over here. As in, "choc chip biscuits", for example.

Biscuits aren't sweet here.
They're like a dinner roll, but more... dense, I guess?
"In American English, a "biscuit" is a small bread made with baking powder or baking soda as a leavening agent rather than yeast." (the evil wiki definition)