list of differing terms in dialect:

[hope]

edited 5th august
new or edited entries in italics

american first, australian second:

jelly = jam
candy = lollies (brit: sweets)
pop = soft drink
soda = soft drink
pepper = capsicum
hot pepper = chilli
jumper = pinafore
sweater = jumper
subway = train (brit: generally 'underground'? tube)
sneakers, tennis shoes = runners, trainers
cell phone = mobile phone
diapers = nappies
binder = folder
purse = hand bag
cookies = biscuits
convenience store = milk bar
store = shop
mall = shopping centre
CENTER = CENTRE
mom = mum
pop = grandpa, sometimes 'poppa'
college = university
grades = marks
math = maths
sharpie = permanent marker
american = yankee, yank
pumps = high heels
aluminum = aluminium
drug store = chemist (or pharmacy)
diner = cafe
stockings = socks
cool! = grouse
grousing = whinging
antsy = pissed off
drunk = pissed
vulva = fanny
fanny = arse
ass = arse
ass = bum
fanny pack = bum bag
(um, that was us brainstorming around the room and degenerating into giggles)
prom = formal
sofa = couch
bathroom = toilet
going steady = going out
trailer = caravan
gas = petrol
trunks, swimsuit = bathers, swimmers, togs
parking lot = car park
thong = g-string
flip-flops = thongs
wife-beater = singlet
tank = singlet top
undershirt = vest
thermals = long johns, thermal underwear
cops = police
cop = policeman
panties = knickers, undies
kleenex = tissue
jeans jacket = denim jacket
nightstand = bedside table
pinafore = apron
tunic = pinafore
trunk = boot [car]
fall = autumn
trousers = pants
faucet = tap
wrench = spanner
duvet = doona
comforter = doona
jello = jelly
bangs = fringe [FRODO DOES NOT HAVE 'BANGS'!!1]
lemonade = home-made lemonade
sprite = lemonade (the generic name - "sprite" is a brand of lemonade) note: in Australia, sprite isn't lemon-lime flavoured, it's clear and is essentially heavily sugared carbonated water. Do you have an alternative in the US?
report card = report
coke = soft drink
popsicle = icy pole
pacifier/binkie = dummy
retainer = plate
gas station = service station
biscuit = scone
eraser = rubber


i must go to bed now, but add more in the comments if i've left them out and i'll edit them into the entry when i can :)

Comments

[katiger.livejournal.com]

car trunk = boot
trunks = swimmers

Thats all I can come up with off the top of my head but I'm sure there are more.

[katiger.livejournal.com]

fall = autumn

[trianne.livejournal.com]

Underground would be right but too formal - we'd say tube.
I didn't realise Australians called flipflops thongs: here a thong is only an item of underwear (or more unusually a fastening) but we wear flipflops on our feet. At least here up north, no accounting for what the southerners call things...

An American friend took exception to me having Elijah wear a jumper, cos he thought it meant he was in kiddies clothes (pinafore). And this is the problem, cos I had never heard of jumper used like that, so why would I bother to check it (though of course, now I know I use the word "sweater", instead)? I mean, yes, pants for trousers and trunk for boot and faucet for tap... but some words are just under the radar, really. Like flipflops :)

[singeaddams.livejournal.com]

Southerners say Flip Flops! Here in the mid-west they're also called rubber sandals. (Gah.)

Southerners also say coke=soft drink. Coca Cola is a major industry and a cultural icon in the South (where I was born and raised) so 'coke' has become the generic name for all things sweet and carbonated.

"What kind of coke do ya'll want?"

"A Pepsi, please."

[anneheart.livejournal.com]

I'm always partial to the spanner, but only because of that drunken conversation I mentioned a few posts back. :-)

[hope]

what's the american word? 'wrench'?

[mirorelle.livejournal.com]

Correct me if I'm wrong [which I probably am ...] but aren't jelly and jam two different things? Jam usually has fruit in it [i.e. random strawberries, blueberries, etc.] while jelly is more gooey and contains no fruit at all?

[sheldrake.livejournal.com]

Dunno about anywhere else, but here in England we have to call it all jam, because jelly is the wobbly dessert elsewhere known as jello. This, therefore, giving us the 'jam doughnut (or donut) ', the goo inside of which has probably never seen a strawberry in its life.

[mcee.livejournal.com]

ooh, ooh, what do you call a duvet again? a doona? i love that.

i find that my own vocabulary is a nice concoction of american/british/australian, but that might be mostly from learning my english from people from around the world.

[hope]

yep, doona :) is a duvet the same thing as a comforter? if not, what the shit is a comforter?

[novanumbernine.livejournal.com]

ooh! let me add the english versions!!

jelly = jam - jam
candy = lollies (brit: sweets) - sweets, as you say!
pop = soft drink - soft drink, fizzy drink (and, confusingly, "pop" in northern england)
sprite = lemonade (the generic name - "sprite" is a brand of lemonade) - lemonade or sprite specifically
soda = soft drink - soft drink, fizzy drink, pop
pepper = capsicum - pepper
hot pepper = chilli - chilli pepper
jumper = pinafore - ?? a pinafore (like a "pinafore dress") is a kind of tunic thing in england
sweater = jumper - jumper
subway = train (brit: generally 'underground'?) - tube/underground (but peeps in cities other than london may refer to their "metro" system. the "tube" is the london underground specifically).
sneakers = runners, trainers - trainers, trainees (northern england)
cell phone = mobile phone - mobile phone, moby
diapers = nappies - nappies
binder = folder - folder
purse = hand bag - handbag
cookies = biscuits - biscuits
convenience store = milk bar - corner shop
store = shop - shop
mall = shopping centre - shopping centre
CENTER = CENTRE - haha! centre
mom = mum - mum, or mam in northern england
pop = grandpa, sometimes 'poppa' - grandpa, pops, grandad
college = university - university
grades = marks - marks
math = maths - maths
sharpie = permanent marker - marker pen
american = yankee - hahaha. usually, "stupid yank". sorry, US peeps.
pumps = high heels - high heels. court shoes, if they're not actually, er, high.
aluminum = aluminium - aluminium
drug store = chemist (or pharmacy) - chemist, pharmacy
diner = cafe - cafe
stockings = socks - socks
cool! = grouse - "cool" as in "good"? we would say "cool" also
grousing = whinging - we whinge *and* grouse!
antsy = pissed off - pissed off, mardy/got a cob on (northern england)
drunk = pissed - pissed
vulva = fanny - fanny
fanny = arse - arse
ass = arse - arse. or donkey. hee.
ass = bum - arse
fanny pack = bum bag - bum bag. NEVER a fanny pack, lordy no
(um, that was us brainstorming around the room and degenerating into giggles)
prom = formal - formal. the only "proms" english peeps know are a summer season of classical concerts ("last night of the proms") or a seafront walkway (promenade).
sofa = couch - settee, sofa, couch occasionally
bathroom = toilet - toilet, loo, lavatory, WC, powder room, smallest room, khazi - oh god there have been books written on this
going steady = going out - going out
trailer = caravan - caravan
gas = petrol - petrol
trunks = bathers - swimming trunks
parking lot = car park - car park
thong = g-string - thong is now more usual
flip-flops = thongs - flip-flops
wife-beater = singlet - vest top
tank = singlet top - tank top(?)
thermal tank = vest - vest
thermals = long johns, thermal underwear - long johns, thermals
cops = police - police, bizzies (northern england), er, pigs is also extremely common and is often said with no real malice
cop = policeman - policeman, bizzy, pig
panties = knickers, undies - knickers, panties, undies, smalls (we also used to call them "skanks")
kleenex = tissue - tissue
jeans jacket = denim jacket - denim jacket

n.x :)

[shanalle.livejournal.com]

this is really cool! i did want to add on the kleenex/tissue and sharpie/permanent marker bit - those are just brand names that are most widely used here, and marketing has taken over a lot of our venrnacular, but tons of people say tissue or permanent marker here, as well. there's also the xerox/photocopy example, which are both used commonly here.

also, i was talking to a british friend of mine the other night and she called bangs 'fringe.' (as in, the hair cut short across your forehead). i thought that was an interesting difference in words, too.

[undone27.livejournal.com]

G-strings here are a very abbreviated form of a thong- they don't cover much more than the fanny, where a thong has more of a normal-looking front and a narrow strip in the back.

In the US, jelly is a clear fruit spread, jam has fruit bits and chunks in it. Jello is also just called gelatin.

Sprite is a carbonated lemon-lime drink, and doesn't taste anything like lemonade, which is lemon juice, sugar, and plain water (I don't know if what you call lemonade there is the same as ours, obviously)

Thermals are long johns here if they are a one piece.

[singeaddams.livejournal.com]

Long Johns are also called 'flannels' especially in the west, like Montana and thereabouts.

(Damn, this is interesting!)

[elenlilta.livejournal.com]

Oh, now I'm all nostalgic! I just spent the last two and a half months with four Kiwis and a Brit, so looking through the list was really fun.

Do Australians call Brits "poms" (or pommes, however it's spelled)? Cause our Kiwis were calling the Brit that all summer.

Also, swimsuit = togs (in NZ, at least).

[elenlilta.livejournal.com]

Do y'all use "sweet-as" to describe stuff? Or just use the "-as" added on to words? Cause that's something I picked up over the summer, but in an American accent, it somehow just doesn't sound the same. :)

[shirehobbit2002.livejournal.com]

actually, a lot of places dont call "soft drinks" pop in America--only certain spots. i always call it soft drink. but w/e :)

[shehasathree]

ooh, what's this for? uni? or purely fannish? either way is good. humble offering:

report card = (school) report

[hope]

just fannish, and personal interest!

[tvillingar.livejournal.com]

Others have already talked about the jelly-jam thing but as far as I've understood it, they're two different things (in Finnish, too). Also, when I look at your list I find that I've misunderstood many meanings of the words. The Australian equivalent is closer to what I've learned at school (we obviously use Brit English as the norm) and I haven't paid much attention to the nationality of the writer. This also cleared up some words I've been wondering about (sharpie).

[mirabile-dictu.livejournal.com]

This is terrific, and I will save to memories. I do hope you'll continue to add to the list.

A couple of things I find amusing: There are actual maps of where in the US people say "soft drink," "pop," or "coke" to mean a carbonated beverage. And oddly, just yesterday I had a conversation with a co-worker about the difference among flip-flops, thongs, and zorries -- they all mean the same thing, a type of rubber sandal, but I grew up in the southwestern part of the US where we said thongs (and never meant that dental flossy underwear) and he grew up in Los Angeles where he said zorries. Neither one of us ever heard of flip-flops until a few years ago.

Fascinating stuff. My favorite? "Jumper" for a pullover sweater. A friend from Australia tells me the term comes from "woolly jumpers," i.e., the sheep who produce the wool for the sweater. I use it in my own writing when I'm trying to write from Dom's or Billy's POV, but in my head? They're frilly little aprons worn over dresses.

Love that image!

Thank you again. Great post, and a great service.

[mirabile-dictu.livejournal.com]

Because I suffer from OCD, I had to find that map. Here you go:

http://www.popvssoda.com/

[salwood.livejournal.com]

Here's one!

You call trousers - pants. Pants are items of underwear over here int he UK - knickers is another word.

I always chuckle when I hear trousers referred to as pants!

[cheeriomonkey.livejournal.com]

This is a bit weird, because I'm a Yankee, and I don't use or even recognize a few of the American terms there. Pop I know of but I actually always thought that was a European name for it - we call it soda in New Jersey. Does anyone else? o_o

And yeah, a jumper here is like a dress that goes on over a blouse; I wore one in elementary school. Not sure what you mean by pinafore, though...

[emiwenis.livejournal.com]

I call it soda, and I grew up in urban Maryland (i guess that's kinda the south, but not really), but my family was from chicago, so of COURSE they said pop or sodiepop. But I recognize all things (soda, soda pop, soft drink, carbonated drink...) as the same type of drink. Except 'coke.' If somebody asked me what kind of coke i wanted at a restaurant i'd either say 'cherry' or ask them 'what? I don't want coke.. i want orange soda~' or something.

[thepsychicclam.livejournal.com]

a lot of americans, especially in the south, call sneakers "tennis shoes". everyone i know says that instead of "sneakers".

pocketbook is also used regularly with "purse".

most people also seem to say "high heels" or "heels", because i think pumps usually refer to closed toed heels that were popular in the 80's and for proms.

and word on the coke thing.

[pedx.livejournal.com]

Some of those are regional words, not words everyone uses, which I'm sure you know because you're smart and not enthrocentric like us. Pop, for instance, gets me ridiculed heavily in the south where I live. I learned it when I lived in the north and I can't make myself ask for soda. The supermarket signs are labelled differently depending on how far north you get.

My vulva is less my fanny and more my tender bits! Ahahahah. Thermal tank -- wtf, never heard this before. That's a riot. But I live where it's hot, so the word thermal is a foreign thing to us anyways.

Popsicles = ice lollies

This is a highly amusing list. I know so many Australians online that I'm familiar with most of these, but milk bar was a new one.

[ex-thewayout304.livejournal.com]

To my understanding, it's a bit of a touchy thing to accidentally call someone who is Welsh or Scottish "English", and likewise it is quite insulting to call someone from the South a "Yankee". That's not an exact comparison, because England is indeed its own country, but it's as good as.

I also really think American dialects are hard things to consider when making a list like this (as I'm sure there are broad UK and Australian dialects as well), which makes compiling such a list very complicated. Both hot pepper and chilli are used here, as well as binder/folder, purse/handbag, store/shop, I don't think I've ever heard someone call their grandpa "pop", sofa/couch, cop/police, and um, so on. Both of the words in these cases are used equally in the United States, so I don't know if they're really translations, so to speak. Unless you mean to say that one word is used explicitly instead of the other in British English.

[sarahthesleuth.livejournal.com]

binder/folder

Well, I use both of those terms, but not interchangably - a binder typically has three metal/plastic rings to put in hole-punched papers, and a folder usually just has two pockets in which to put papers, sometimes with some brads in the middle to hold a small amount of hole-punched papers.

[emiwenis.livejournal.com]

I think flip flops and sandals are interchangable, and you'd get a funny look asking for thongs in a dollar store. Nobody really says pumps. high heels. I say couch, actually. I don't think i've ever said sofa, but i know other people who do.
And I think somebody already mentioned, but lemonade = lemon juice, sugar, water, and ice, while Sprite is a lemon-lime soft drink. they're really really very different and both exist in america.

And drunk has LOTS of synonyms. I can only think of smashed and hammered and trashed off the top of my head.

What do you guys call infant's pacifiers? they're sometimes called that or binkies in america.

[novanumbernine.livejournal.com]

pacifiers? dummies in england.

n.x :)

[msallegro.livejournal.com]

Adding to the posts that say a lot of these things are regional within the US as well, especially what we call soft drinks (I've always said soda) and how we refer to our parents and grandparents (Mom and Dad, Gramma and Grampa here.) I also say couch, thongs (for flip-flops) and marker, usually. I grew up saying tennis shoes, these days it's athletic shoes or sneakers, depending on what kind of shoe it is (sneakers are usually thought of as the Keds-style flat soled shoe, rather than something specifically used for sports.) Some of it is also a class issue, too. A lot of classier people won't use the brand-name shortcuts for certain things (band-aids, xerox, kleenex, etc) and some people use brand names for almost everything. Cough syrup is always Robitussin, convenience stores are always 7-11, etc. And the number of regional and class-different words for drunk, sex, dating and various body parts is in triple digits.

We use both diner and cafe, but they refer to different kinds of places. A cafe is usually a small place, primarily focusing on coffee, and small breakfast and lunch meals. More elaborate full meals aren't usually served. Diners are larger, with larger, usually traditionally American meals.

As someone mentioned, pumps are a specific type of shoe (one of a variety of high heels, or simply heels) Stockings are the thigh-high variety, secured with garters. Pantyhose/nylons are a different thing, and socks are the short cotton things, rather than the sheer things women (and drag queens) wear.

Oh, and antsy isn't usually used to mean angry. It means twitchy, nervous, unstill.

[marginalia.livejournal.com]

yeah, a lot of the stuff is regional in the states. and even more micro-distributed than that, considering i spent 30 minutes on the bus yesterday listening to a couple of folks discussing the PO-lice.

and i'm apparently not supposed to say soda because i'm from seattle, but i do anyway. and loads of other differences from this list. *shrug*

there was a study i took part in a while back, that was looking to pin down regional dialect distributions in the states - everything from meaning to usage to pronunciation. i think that stuff is fascinating, but i get concerned when it turns into judgment. i prefer fluidity of language and richness of meaning. the link is here (http://hcs.harvard.edu/~golder/dialect/maps.php), though, which might be of interest. i clicked through one definition and found NINE different terms common in the us.

(and personally, i find the term "wife-beater" wholly offensive. but that might just be me.)

[ex-thewayout304.livejournal.com]

and personally, i find the term "wife-beater" wholly offensive. but that might just be me.

Word. I call them undershirts, myself.

[inbetweens.livejournal.com]

I realize that not even Americans consider Southern American a form of English, but just for the record: "Yankee" is used in the American south to refer to American northerners (or, if you really live in the middle of nowhere, anyone from a city). I wouldn't be insulted if someone called me a Yankee, but I would certainly laugh for quite a while. Call an older/more traditional southerner a Yankee and you just might get slapped, though. I shudder to think what my grandpa would do to y'all.

Also, I've grown up understanding "pop" as a synonym for "father," not "grandfather." I've never actually heard anyone say "convenience store," it's just "gas station" if there are gas pumps in front of it or "drugstore" if there aren't. I've heard "drugstore" for stores without pharmacies quite often. I've never heard "tank," only the longer "tank top." And by "stockings = socks," what kind of stockings do you mean? In The South, these (http://www.frilzandlace.com/jpegs3/9750-lace-top-stockings.jpg) are stockings, these (http://www.jenniferm.com/shop/media/5029l.jpg) are hose/pantyhose (dear god, looking for an image of those was a little scary), and these (http://www.minus33.com/socks.jpg) are socks. Which of these are socks down there?

In Louisiana, pepper/capsicum must be specified as "black pepper" and you get a lot more bastardized French, but I know for a fact that no one will stand by my claim that it resembles English. Sigh.

[i-smile.livejournal.com]

(Here through the fandom newsletter.)

"Milk bar" might be regional--here, in Perth, I've only ever heard "convenience store", "store" or the specific name of the place.

Others:
pen = biro
marker = texta
bangs = fringe

[stimpson.livejournal.com]

One that's always befuddled me: biscuit = scone (i think?)

Also, is 'wag', as in 'wagging school', an Aus-centric term?

I've also heard people refer to permanent markers as 'Nikkos' here in Australia, i'm not sure what's up with that phenomenon.

It's a great list, dude. (I had to resist the will to add t.v. = telly!). The only one i'm not too sure about is the American = Yankee one; although there's the great 'septic tank' rhyming slang, i'm not sure if 'yank' is used too much nowadays to refer to Americans.

[danamaree.livejournal.com]

'Nikkos'

I always called them that up until recently when I moved to the city, Niko or Nikkos is a brand name. Now I call them markers. (I come from Northern Australia, Qld)

It took me a long time to get used to the word sharpie, I don't think I'll ever use it in casual conversation.

[cupiscent.livejournal.com]

pinafore? grouse?? Dude, I haven't heard anyone but my mother use "grouse" in ten years. *G*

Also, the cookie/biscuit argument is one that actually raged fierce in our household at one time, but has been solved. See, "biscuit" derives from "biscotti", which the Italian boy says means twice-cooked, because hard biscuits are - they're boiled and then baked or something. Cookies are soft; cooked only once. So that's how we delineate in our household.

Alsoalso, beware regional variation in Australia. Like "togs" for bathers, and my school formal has always been called the prom, and this one: convenience store = milk bar... dude, I've never called anything a milk bar in my life. It's the "corner shop" where I come from. *G*

[danamaree.livejournal.com]

There are even variations in Australia, I originally come from North Queensland, now in Brissy.

sharpie = permanent marker- A niko pen. Niko.

sneakers = runners, trainers- In school we called them sand shoes.

sofa = couch- Lounge chair or sometimes lounge.

trunks = bathers- Togs

In school we called our bags 'ports' used to confuse the teacher from South Australia who was like "you have alcohol out in the port racks" I don't think it's so much that these days.