I sat next to a woman at a meeting the recently who lives in New Brunswick, in the Canadian Maritimes. She started a list of words that are pronounced differently in Canada and the United States, and words that are spelled differently. Words like tire/tyre. She said when she first started traveling to the USA for meetings, the pronunciation differences really threw her off.
One of the joys of travel, is learning how common things are different. Sometimes it is differences in a shared language. Sometimes it is common objects, electrical current, electrical connections. My travel bag has adaptors and power cords for things that work on universal power (110-120-220-230.) I often have to get out the jewelers loupe (magnifier) to read the fine print on a computer power supply to see if it works on multiple power levels (most do.)
I was surprised by the shape of the fire hydrants in Reykjavik. Not that they are all the same around the world, but these seemed skinny, probably made to fit a particular set of engineering needs.
Routine things, that are different
I thought I knew most US words that are spelt differently, until I began to blog. Some really got me and I thought may have been misspelt. One that comes to mind is mold instead of mould. Hmm, even my spell checker does not like mold. Actually is mold what grows on walls but you use a mould for casting something? Here you will see gaol spelt both ways. Me being of a certain age grew up with spelling it gaol.
ReplyDeleteI hadn't run into the moldy difference
DeleteWe use mold for both, though I seem to recall seeing "mould," but that might have actually been in a British source. I think it was Ben Franklin's idea to drop what he thought were needless u's, specifically to create a distinct American form of English. (BTW, when I went to Italian school in Florence, I was told I did not speak Inglese, I spoke Americano. They are seen as different languages.)
DeleteThis is a fun subject. I had the hardest time finding a mailbox when we moved to Spain, until I saw one from the correct side showing the word CORREOS (mail).
ReplyDeleteNot post or poste?
DeleteNope. Correos. I’ve never seen post or poste used here.
DeleteI always find it interesting when we have the same things buy call them by different names or uses. Like french fries. In UK they call them chips. Or gravy is sauce. Our coffee house here means something completely different in Amsterdam.
ReplyDeleteI took my ex into a coffee shop in Amsterdam in 1991, just to watch the reaction. I had a brandy and we left.
DeleteTo be fair, English, American English, is one of the hardest languages to learn because so many words lookalike but don't sound alike and some groupings of letters sound different in different words.
ReplyDeleteThought.
Though.
Through.
Enough.
Drought.
For example.
I loved that I Love Lucy episode, Bob.
DeleteMy brain and spelling, that is a whole year's worth of ramables
DeleteI recently met an American woman who moved here to Canada and she was confused by people referring to "serviettes" until she realized we meant "napkins."
ReplyDeleteMistress Maddie, Canadians call french fries "chips" too. Imagine my surprise the first time I was in the States and ordered a hamburger with chips and it came with potato chips, not fries. WTF?
The chips issue gets even more confusing here. In English restaurants we know to ask for chips or crisps, depending. But in Spanish, they’re both known as papas or patatas fritas. And sometimes it’s a crap shoot as to which will arrive.
DeleteHe would have been really surprised if the restaurant brought him a nappy.
DeleteDebra, Australia has it right on napkins and serviettes. Serviettes are paper and napkins are linen. But chips here are a nightmare. Crisps, chips or french fries. You just have to guess at the time.
DeleteWhen we were in Italy, we befriended an English couple and soon found out that our countries are divided by a common language. We had fun with our comparisons and idiomatic expressions.
ReplyDeleteIt is always best if we see fun and not frustration
DeleteI think I'll put the groceries in the boot and when I get home I'll hoover the floor. :-)
ReplyDeleteDon't forget to check under the bonnet - like cars wear hats
DeleteThat is quite the piercing this hydrant has.
ReplyDeleteI hadn't noticed that shadow, I have never seen one of those in person
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