Throwing something in the back of the car can get confusing when you’re not sure if it’s a car part or a shoe. Plus, one’s a lot harder to fit the luggage into. And just to make things more confusing, the trunk/boot is called a dickie in English-speaking parts of South Asia.
While we’re looking into cars, the name for the front is also under contention. They both kind of make sense when you think about it, as bonnets and hoods are both a type of hat for the car. In England though, hood actually refers to the fabric cover over the passenger compartment, aka the top of a convertible in the U.S.
Last driving-related term, I promise. But it’s such a weird one, it felt wrong to leave it out. When driving down the street in America, you’d be pretty alarmed if you encountered a robot directing traffic. But in England, along with South Africa, among other places, robots are just your standard red, yellow, and green traffic lights. Makes you wonder what they think are actually inside of them.
Get ready for a history of language lesson, folks. “Truck” most likely comes from the Latin word trochus, meaning “iron hoop,” or the Greek trokhos, meaning “wheel.” Whereas “lorry” was used to refer to a freight car in the railway industry in the 1800s, or the verb lurry, meaning to pull or tug. It’s not entirely clear why they went such different ways, but interesting nonetheless!
If the lights go out, you’ll need to grab one of these (and hopefully you stocked up on extra batteries). But if you hear somebody calling for a torch, no need to fear the pitchforks – it’s just a flashlight, replete with ghost-story-telling, fuse-box-finding capabilities.
Now this is an important one (I’ve been burned before by this). If you’re ordering in a restaurant, be sure to remember that chips are actually the deliciously fried potatoes known as French fries, or freedom fries to the more stubborn.
…You’ve got to order crisps to get potato chips! It makes sense, I suppose, as potato chips are known for the crispiness, but still. Or you could avoid the confusion and pick the healthy route and order a side salad instead, but who actually does that?
Everyone loves a holiday, regardless of what it means, but where a holiday gives you time off work to take a vacation in the States, it’s the vacation itself in the U.K.. It also lends itself to becoming a verb. You can “holiday” in exotic locales.
Honestly, you can’t really go wrong here. If you get mixed up, you’ll either end up with a flaky, delicious pastry or a chewy, chocolaty (if you pick right) cookie. So don’t stress when ordering, it’s a win-win!
Get your head out of the gutter when somebody asks you for a rubber. They’re just asking for a harmless eraser! Although nobody really uses pencils after the age of 14, so this may be a moot point.
