An English teacher has shared a useful guide revealing the difference between British, American and Australian slang. YouTuber Lucy Ea...
An English teacher has shared a useful guide revealing the difference between British, American and Australian slang.
YouTuber Lucy Earl, 25, from Hertfordshire, vlogs under the name 'English With Lucy', which has amassed 4 million subscribers since January 2016.
With the help of Australian blogger Emma and American YouTuber Vanessa, Lucy has released a guide, which shows how the same words can have very different meanings across UK, US and Australia.
Some of the words proved more confusing than others, such as the British word for 'crisps' which is the same as the American word 'chips' while Australians use the word 'chips' to describe both potato chips and hot chips.
Different words and vocabulary in the UK, US and Australia
British English
Crisps
Chips
Biscuits
Lorry
Fringe
Swimming costume
The woods
Toilet or bathroom
Flat
The shops
Duvet
Peppers
Wellies
Flip flops
Petrol station
Off licence
Trousers
Pavement
Motorway
Wife beater or vest
Others include words which are different in each language, for example the British word 'duvet' is 'dooner' in Australia, and 'comforter' in American English.
Lucy explains that pronunciation and vocabulary are different in English, because it is not always a phonetic language, encouraging her viewers to read books in their native language while listening to them in English.
'We may all speak the same language', says Lucy, 'but we speak with different accents and different vocabulary, so this video is perfect for improving your vocabulary.
'English Isn't a strictly phonetic language the way a word is written in English may not give you an indication at all as to how it's pronounced in english.'
YouTuber Lucy Earl (left), 25, from Hertfordshire, who vlogs under the name English With Lucy shared a useful guide revealing the difference between British, American and Australian slang and vocabulary with the help of vloggers Emma (middle) and Vanessa (right). The British word 'duvet' is 'dooner' in Australia and 'comforter' in American English
Meanwhile the Brits say 'toilet' or 'bathroom', while in America the correct term is 'restroom'.
And, confusingly, the British word flip-flop means 'thong' in Australia, while a thong is underwear in America.
Elsewhere the British word 'off-licence' is Bottle shop or bottle-o in Australia, and ABC store in America.
And while we may wear 'wellies' to festivals in Britain, in Australia the term is 'gumboots' and in America the term 'rain boots' is used.
Australian English
Chips
Hot chips
Biscuits
Truck
Fringe
Togs or swimmers
Forest
Bathroom
Apartment
Supermarket
Doona
Capsicums
Gumboots
Thongs
Petrol station
Bottle shop or bottle-o
Pants
Footpath
Highway Freeway
Singlet
American English
Chips
French Fries
Cookie
Tractor Trailer
Bangs
Swimsuit or bathing suit
Forest
Restroom or bathroom
Apartment
Grocery store
Comforter
Bell peppers
Rain boots
Flip flops
Gas station
ABC store
Pants
Sidewalk
Highway Interstate
Wife beater
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