If you think they refer to umbrellas as bumbershoots in the UK, think again. The word bumbershoot actually originated in the United States; in Britain, it’s more likely a brolly. You’ll learn that and much more about the differences...
In the US, if you step on a piece of Lego, you scream bloody murder; in the UK, you step on a piece of Lego and scream blue murder. Also, in the US, you eat scrambled eggs; in the UK, it’s scrambled egg. This is part of a complete episode.
The Prodigal Tongue: The Love-Hate Relationship Between American and British English by linguist Lynne Murphy is a trove of information about differences between these two versions of English. Murphy’s blog, Separated by a Common Language, is...
If you’re in England and want some cream cheese to go with your bagel, ask for Philadelphia. This is part of a complete episode.
If you’re not feeling quite right, you might describe yourself as awvish. This dialectal term used in parts of Northern England may derive from a local pronunciation of the word half. This is part of a complete episode.
A listener in Two Rivers, Wisconsin, was surprised to learn that in England the word marrow refers to zucchini. This is part of a complete episode.