Understanding Brits
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I obviously watch way too much public T.V. here in the United States (the home away from home for
the BBC). I can understand almost everything written on this site. At least as well as I could the
girls from AbFab!
well thats impressive, since i dont understand most of it!
panda (a brit)
"Jerry Neuburger" <gneuburg@pacbell.net> wrote in message
news:WWLia.52$Li1.24@newssvr16.news.prodigy.com...
> I obviously watch way too much public T.V. here in the United States (the home away from home for
> the BBC). I can understand almost everything
written
> on this site. At least as well as I could the girls from AbFab!
"Jerry Neuburger" <gneuburg@pacbell.net> wrote in message
news:<WWLia.52$Li1.24@newssvr16.news.prodigy.com>...
> I obviously watch way too much public T.V. here in the United States (the home away from home for
> the BBC). I can understand almost everything written on this site. At least as well as I could the
> girls from AbFab!
After long exposure to American TV we've all learned to speak English.
--
Dave...
"Jerry Neuburger" <gneuburg@pacbell.net> wrote in message
news:<WWLia.52$Li1.24@newssvr16.news.prodigy.com>...
> I obviously watch way too much public T.V. here in the United States (the home away from home for
> the BBC). I can understand almost everything written on this site. At least as well as I could the
> girls from AbFab!
I didn't know AbFab made it to PBS. Last I remember it was just on Comedy Central.
People make too much of this 'divided by a common language' nonsense, anyway. Nothing that a little
sensitivity and attention can't solve.
but then, I haven't seen anybody from Alabama try to talk to a Geordie, either.
-Luigi neither here--nor there but a stranger everywhere
>but then, I haven't seen anybody from Alabama try to talk to a Geordie, either.
Noo pet, if yer from Geordieland, bonnie laad, then iffereebody taalks proppur like.
Hawaay the laaads.
Cheers, helen s
~~~~~~~~~~
Flush out that intestinal parasite and/or the waste product before sending a reply!
Any speeliong mistake$ aR the resiult of my cats sitting on the keyboaRRRDdd
~~~~~~~~~~
In article <308301c1.0304030409.41363e16@posting.google.com>, Luigi de Guzman
<luigi12081@cox.net> writes
>"Jerry Neuburger" <gneuburg@pacbell.net> wrote in message news:<WWLia.52$Li1.24@
>newssvr16.news.prodigy.com>...
>> I obviously watch way too much public T.V. here in the United States (the home away from home for
>> the BBC). I can understand almost everything written on this site. At least as well as I could
>> the girls from AbFab!
>
>I didn't know AbFab made it to PBS. Last I remember it was just on Comedy Central.
>
>People make too much of this 'divided by a common language' nonsense, anyway. Nothing that a little
>sensitivity and attention can't solve.
>
>but then, I haven't seen anybody from Alabama try to talk to a Geordie, either.
I have seen a Glaswegian trying to hold a conversation with a guy from the Deep South, with no
success. Luckily there was a Dutchman available to translate between the two :-)
ttfn
Martin
--
'Ambition is a poor excuse for not having enough sense to be lazy.' Steven Wright
Martin Harlow martin@freedonia.demon.co.uk
Divided by a common language! Have you ever been on a US 'plane when, on landing, the cabin service
director informs the passengers that the doors will open "momentarily". The Brits immediately
panic, assuming that the doors will open FOR a moment, whereas the Americans assume that they will
open IN a moment.
The Americans have "gotten" things, whereas we have "got" them. But we have "forgotten" things,
whilst the Americans have "forgot" things.
I love it.
"wafflycathcsdirtycatlitter" <wafflycathcs@aol.comtapeworm> wrote in message
news:20030403071731.04594.00000203@mb-fr.aol.com...
> >but then, I haven't seen anybody from Alabama try to talk to a Geordie, either.
>
> Noo pet, if yer from Geordieland, bonnie laad, then iffereebody taalks
proppur
> like.
>
> Hawaay the laaads.
>
> Cheers, helen s
>
>
> ~~~~~~~~~~
> Flush out that intestinal parasite and/or the waste product before sending
a
> reply!
>
> Any speeliong mistake$ aR the resiult of my cats sitting on the
keyboaRRRDdd
> ~~~~~~~~~~
al_Mossah wrote:
> Divided by a common language! Have you ever been on a US 'plane when, on landing, the cabin
> service director informs the passengers that the doors will open "momentarily".
Not noticed that, but am always struck by being expected to "deplane". The biggest difference I
usually notice is verbing nouns like that, aside from obvious pronunciation changes: once asked to
get some bayzil and erraygenno from the erbs section in a shop had me a bit baffled at first!
Verbing nouns only bothers me when it comes as part of management-speak. We're now expected to
action things where we used to just do them which grates a bit, but trashing stuff is just fine...
Pete.
--
Peter Clinch University of Dundee Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Medical Physics, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK net p.j.clinch@dundee.ac.uk
http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/
"al_Mossah" <peterkmossnospam@nospambtopenworld.com> wrote in message
news:b6hait$hp$1@titan.btinternet.com...
> Divided by a common language! Have you ever been on a US 'plane when, on landing, the cabin
> service director informs the passengers that the doors will open "momentarily". The Brits
> immediately panic, assuming that the doors will open FOR a moment, whereas the Americans assume
> that they will open IN a moment.
>
> The Americans have "gotten" things, whereas we have "got" them. But we
have
> "forgotten" things, whilst the Americans have "forgot" things.
>
> I love it.
While the Germans were modifying the rules of spelling and grammar recently (well, within the last 6
or 7 year) I was asked, in all seriousness, at a party who controlled the English language. They
thought my initial laugh somewhat rude. I never did know if they fully appreciated the concept of
anarchy that reigns supreme.
Anyway, I have less problem with Americans than with my teenage nephew & niece -- who seem to speak
a completely different argot.
T
In message <b6hbg7$52id3$1@ID-161007.news.dfncis.de>, Tony W <tonyREMOVE@chapmore.co.uk> writes
>Anyway, I have less problem with Americans than with my teenage nephew & niece -- who seem to speak
>a completely different argot.
Well, if you go round using words like 'argot' an element of mutual incomprehensibility is
understandable.
--
Michael MacClancy
In article <3E8C30A7.9010609@dundee.ac.uk>, p.j.clinch@dundee.ac.uk says...
> al_Mossah wrote:
> > Divided by a common language! Have you ever been on a US 'plane when, on landing, the cabin
> > service director informs the passengers that the doors will open "momentarily".
>
> Not noticed that, but am always struck by being expected to "deplane".
The guard on a broken down Virgin train I was on invited the passengers to detrain. Ugh.
Colin
On Thu, 3 Apr 2003 14:35:58 +0100, Colin Blackburn <colin.blackburn@durham.ac.uk> wrote:
>> > Divided by a common language! Have you ever been on a US 'plane when, on landing, the cabin
>> > service director informs the passengers that the doors will open "momentarily".
>>
>> Not noticed that, but am always struck by being expected to "deplane".
>
>The guard on a broken down Virgin train I was on invited the passengers to detrain. Ugh.
Come on now - on a Holts battlefield tour in Belgium we "de-bus" when alighting from the coach!
--
Hiram Hackenbacker
In article <3e8c3baa.30094824@news.claranews.com>, brains@sky.com says...
> On Thu, 3 Apr 2003 14:35:58 +0100, Colin Blackburn <colin.blackburn@durham.ac.uk> wrote:
>
> >> > Divided by a common language! Have you ever been on a US 'plane when, on landing, the cabin
> >> > service director informs the passengers that the doors will open "momentarily".
> >>
> >> Not noticed that, but am always struck by being expected to "deplane".
> >
> >The guard on a broken down Virgin train I was on invited the passengers to detrain. Ugh.
>
> Come on now - on a Holts battlefield tour in Belgium we "de-bus" when alighting from the coach!
You alight. It's a perfectly good word. To bus is to move people about by bus, it isn't "to get on a
bus", so I have no idea what debus, unbus or rebus mean. Perhaps you deboarded? De-unalighted?
Colin
On Thu, 3 Apr 2003, Colin Blackburn wrote:
> > Come on now - on a Holts battlefield tour in Belgium we "de-bus" when alighting from the coach!
>
> You alight. It's a perfectly good word. To bus is to move people about by bus, it isn't "to get on
> a bus", so I have no idea what debus, unbus or rebus mean. Perhaps you deboarded? De-unalighted?
A rebus is a word-puzzle, representing the sign by the thing signified, as any fule kno. And you
missed out "zebus".
From a bus, as from any other vehicle, you disembark. It's a slightly illogical term, if you're not
aboard a bark (or vessel) to begin with, but no more so than for us cyclists to dismount.
In message <MPG.18f64fae2c2a44349898b2@localhost>, Colin Blackburn
<colin.blackburn@durham.ac.uk> writes
>I have no idea what debus, unbus or rebus mean.
Rebus - a puzzle consisting of pictures, symbols, etc., representing syllables and words; a heraldic
device that is a pictorial representation of the name of the bearer.
Thought you might want to know that. On the other hand perhaps not! ;-)
--
Michael MacClancy
Colin Blackburn <colin.blackburn@durham.ac.uk> wrote:
>The guard on a broken down Virgin train I was on invited the passengers to detrain. Ugh.
I've a nasty suspicion they were addressed as "customers", too.
--
David Damerell <damerell@chiark.greenend.org.uk> Kill the tomato!
In article <l8f*-cXOp@news.chiark.greenend.org.uk>, damerell@chiark.greenend.org.uk says...
> Colin Blackburn <colin.blackburn@durham.ac.uk> wrote:
> >The guard on a broken down Virgin train I was on invited the passengers to detrain. Ugh.
>
> I've a nasty suspicion they were addressed as "customers", too.
Yes, and he wasn't a guard either, he was the Customer Services Manager, apparently. He also wasn't
popular since the detraining and subsequent retraining on a following service meant three trains
worth of customers were crammed onto one customer translocation vehicle.
Colin
On Thu, 3 Apr 2003 15:04:09 +0100, Colin Blackburn <colin.blackburn@durham.ac.uk> wrote:
>> >> > Divided by a common language! Have you ever been on a US 'plane when, on landing, the cabin
>> >> > service director informs the passengers that the doors will open "momentarily".
>> >>
>> >> Not noticed that, but am always struck by being expected to "deplane".
>> >
>> >The guard on a broken down Virgin train I was on invited the passengers to detrain. Ugh.
>>
>> Come on now - on a Holts battlefield tour in Belgium we "de-bus" when alighting from the coach!
>
>You alight. It's a perfectly good word. To bus is to move people about by bus, it isn't "to get on
>a bus", so I have no idea what debus, unbus or rebus mean. Perhaps you deboarded? De-unalighted?
I think the American's on the coach feel we "exited" the bus.
--
Hiram Hackenbacker
In message <Pine.LNX.4.50.0304031520160.8066-100000@pac-man.maths.ox.ac.uk>, Henry Braun
<braun@maths.ox.ac.uk> writes
>From a bus, as from any other vehicle, you disembark.
Not really. The etymology of 'embark' is via French from Old French and comes from barca, barque for
boat so is normally applied only to boats and, for some reason, planes. You get on and off a bus or,
possibly, board it and alight from it. Dismounting a bike makes perfect sense if you were previously
mounted on it. How do you ride yours?
--
Michael MacClancy
In message <MPG.18f657cc719a7d69898b5@localhost>, Colin Blackburn
<colin.blackburn@durham.ac.uk> writes
>I would, perhaps, have been clearer saying, "I have no idea what de-bus, un-bus or re-bus mean."
Yes, although according to my dictionary 'de-bus' would be wrong. It defines 'debus' as 'to unload
(goods, etc.) or (esp. of troops) to alight from a bus'.
--
Michael MacClancy
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