British > American Glossary | B
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P Q R S T U V W X Y Z | Americanisms |
 British
term or expression |
 American
equivalent, or explanation |
|---|---|
| back to front (as in 'he wore his cap back to front') | backward |
| backbencher | non-senior U.K. member of parliament (MP) |
| backchat [colloq.] | cheeky or impudent replies to someone |
| backcomb | make hair seem thicker by combing it toward the top of the head |
| backhander [colloq.] | kickback, bribe, sweetener |
| backwards (adv.) | backward |
| bad patch [colloq.] | rough time |
| bag (v.) [colloq.] | grab or get something ahead of anyone else |
| bag [disparaging] | unpleasant or unattractive female |
| bags [colloq.] | pants |
| bags [colloq.] (as in 'Bob's got bags of money') | a large amount |
| bail (as in 'she was released on £10,000 bail') | bond (as in 'he was released on a $10,000 bond') |
| baking tray | cookie sheet, baking sheet |
| balaclava (helmet) | wool cap for head, most of face and neck |
| balcony (seats in a theatre) | mezzanine |
| balls [slang] (nonsense) | bullshit, crap [both slang] |
| ball something up [slang] | bungle, make a mess of something |
| bang on [colloq.] | exact, accurate, precise |
| banger [colloq.] | sausage; old car in poor condition |
| bank cashier | bank teller |
| bank holiday | legal holiday, public holiday |
| banknote | bill |
| bap | soft, flattish bread roll; hamburger bun |
| bargee | person in charge of or working on a barge |
| barmy [colloq.] | nutty [colloq.], crazy, irrational |
| barney [colloq.] | noisy argument |
| barrack | a spectator's noisy shouting or jeering |
| barrier (at railway or underground station) | turnstile, gate, ticket gate |
| barrister | attorney granted the right to plead before the bar in higher courts |
| bash (as in: 'I had a bash at bungee jumping') | go, attempt, try |
| bath | bathtub |
| bath chair | type of old-fashioned hooded wheelchair |
| Bath Oliver | unsweetened or savory cracker eaten with cheese |
| bathroom cabinet | medicine chest, medicine cabinet |
| battle bus (for election candidate) | campaign bus |
| be at a loose end | have nothing to do |
| be sick (vomit) | throw up |
| beach hut | cabana |
| beak [slang] | magistrate; school principal |
| beano, beanfeast [colloq.] | a party or celebration, or an outing for that purpose |
| bed and board (at hotel, etc.) | room and board, American plan |
| bedside table | night table, nightstand |
| bedsit, bedsitter, bedsitting room | studio apartment |
| beefburger | hamburger |
| beetle [colloq.] (as in 'he beetled off home at 4 pm') | scurry away or go somewhere quickly, like a beetle |
| beetroot | beet |
| bell push | electric doorbell button |
| Belt up! [colloq.] (meaning 'Be quiet!') | Shut up! [colloq.] |
| bend (in road) | curve |
| bender [colloq.] | pub crawl |
| bender [slang] (homosexual man) | fag, faggot [disparaging] |
| berk [from rhyming slang 'Berkshire hunt' for 'cunt'] | jerk [slang], foolish or awkward person |
| bespoke (made to order or measure) | custom made |
| bickie [colloq. for 'biscuit'] | cookie |
| big dipper | roller coaster |
| big wheel | Ferris wheel |
| bill (in restaurant) | check, tab [colloq.] |
| billiards | English billiards |
| billy, billycan | light metal camp cooking pot |
| bin | trash can, garbage can; wastebasket |
| bingo | beano [colloq.] (esp. bingo using beans as markers) |
| bird [slang] | chick (girl), broad or dame (woman) [all slang] |
| Biro™ | ballpoint (pen) |
| biscuit | cookie
(if sweet); cracker (unsweetened) |
| bit of all right, a [slang] | a pleasing thing or an attractive person (usually female) |
| bit of crumpet/skirt/stuff, a [all slang] | a sexually desirable female |
| bit on the side, a [slang] | infidelity |
| bits and bobs [colloq.] | odds and ends |
| bitter (as in 'a pint of bitter') | dark, bitter-tasting beer with a strong taste of hops |
| black economy | underground economy |
| black tie
[colloq.] (as in 'the dinner was a black tie event') |
formal evening dress |
| black treacle | molasses |
| blackboard | chalkboard |
| blackleg [derogatory] (strikebreaker) | scab [derogatory] |
| blag
[colloq.] (as in 'the uninvited guest tried to blag his way into the party') |
wheedle or sweet-talk someone into doing or giving you something |
| blanket bath (body wash for a bedridden person) | sponge bath |
| bleeper [colloq.] (pager) | beeper [colloq.] |
| blighter [colloq.] | an annoying or disliked man or boy |
| Blimey! [slang, corruption of 'God blind me!'] | Good grief! Good God! |
| blind (especially the roller type) | window shade |
|
blinder [colloq.] (as in 'Roger Federer played a blinder in the final') |
ace sporting performance |
| blinkers (horse equipment) | blinders |
| block of flats | apartment building, apartment house |
| bloke [colloq.] | guy, dude [both colloq.], fellow |
| bloody [slang] | damned, darned [colloq.], mighty |
| bloody-minded [slang] | hell-bent on opposing the wishes of others |
| blooming [colloq.] (as in 'It's blooming cold today!') | darned, blasted, blessed [colloq.] |
| blow the gaff [slang] | blow the whistle [colloq.], give the game away |
| blower, the [slang] (telephone) | horn, the [slang] |
| blub [colloq.] (weep loudly) | blubber |
| board and lodging (at hotel, etc.) | room and board, American plan |
| boarder (boarding school pupil) | resident |
| Bob's your uncle! [colloq.] | Et voilà! That's all it takes! It's as easy as that! |
| bobby [colloq.] | male police officer |
| bobsleigh | bobsled; bobsledding |
| bodge, bodge up | botch, botch up |
| bodice-ripper [humorous] | historical romance novel with plenty of sex |
| boffin | scientific expert who is fanatic about his subject |
| bog [slang] (lavatory) | john [slang] |
| bog roll [slang] | toilet roll |
| bog-standard [colloq.] | no-frills, basic, rudimentary |
| boiler suit | coveralls |
| bollard | metal, concrete or plastic pillar or post in the middle of a road to delimit traffic |
| bollocks
[slang] (testicles) Bollocks! (used as expletive or to mean 'nonsense') |
balls
[slang] (testicles) Damn it! Bullshit! [slang] |
|
bomb [slang] (as in: 'It's going like a bomb!'
or 'He's making a bomb!') |
a
resounding success; a lot of money |
| bonk [slang] (have sex) | ball, hump, screw [all slang] |
| bonkers | crazy |
| bonnet (of a car) | hood |
| boob tube [colloq.] (a tight, low-cut, strapless top) | tube top |
| book (v.) | make a reservation |
| book in | check in at a hotel, etc. |
| book up | buy tickets, vacation, etc. in advance |
| booking | reservation |
| booking clerk | ticket sales clerk |
| booking hall | area in a larger train station where tickets are sold |
| booking office | ticket office |
| boot (of a car) | trunk |
| boot, the [colloq.] (as in 'he was given the boot') | dismissal from employment |
| boozer [slang] (a public house or pub) | bar |
| bottom
drawer (the clothes, linen, etc. which a young woman traditionally collects for use after she is married) |
hope chest |
| bounder [jocular colloq.] | ill-bred, disreputable, unprincipled person |
| bovver [slang] (threatening or violent behavior) | hooliganism |
| bovver boots [slang] | heavy boots suitable for kicking someone in a fight |
| bovver boy [slang] | youth looking to stir up trouble or start a fight |
| bowler, bowler hat | derby |
| bowls | lawn bowling |
| box, telly [both colloq.] (TV set) | tube, boob tube [both colloq.] |
| box spanner | box wrench |
| Boxing Day | December 26 (public holiday in Great Britain) |
| boxroom (extra room or space for storage) | lumber room |
| bracelets [slang] | handcuffs |
| braces | suspenders |
| brackets (this text is in round brackets) | parentheses |
| brainwave (sudden clever idea) | brainstorm |
| brass [slang] (money) | dough, bread [both slang] |
| brassed off [colloq.] | pissed [slang], annoyed; bored, fed up |
| brawn (cooked and pressed meat from pig's head) | headcheese |
| bread bin | bread box |
| break up (from school) | end the school semester |
| breakdown truck, breakdown van | tow truck |
| breeches (trousers ending just below the knee) | britches |
| breeze (insect) | gadfly |
| breeze block | cinder block |
| brick [colloq.] (decent and reliable person) | good egg [colloq.] |
| brickie [colloq.] | bricklayer |
| bridge roll | hotdog bun |
| bridging loan (kind of short-term bank loan) | bridge loan |
| brigadier (British Army & Royal Marines) | brigadier general (U.S. Army & U.S. Marine Corps) |
| bright
spark [colloq.] (as in 'some bright spark left a ladder behind in the prison') |
refers to someone who comes across as annoyingly intelligent or, if used sarcastically, quite the opposite |
| bristols [slang] (female breasts) | hooters, jugs [both slang], boobs [colloq.] |
| broad bean | fava bean |
| broadsheet (cf. tabloid) | regular, full-size newspaper |
| brock | badger |
| brolly [colloq.] | umbrella |
| brooch | pin |
| brown off (as in 'Her tardiness browns me off') | cause someone to lose interest/become annoyed |
| B.Sc. (Bachelor of Science degree) | BS (which also stands for 'bullshit' in the U.S.) |
| bubble and squeak | cabbage and potato leftovers mixed and fried, sometimes with meat added |
| bucket | pail, bucket |
| budgerigar, budgie | parakeet |
| bugger [slang] (an awkward person or thing) | jerk [slang] |
| bugger about or around [slang] | fool or mess around |
| bugger about or around with someone [slang] | deliberately mislead someone |
| bugger all [slang] | nothing at all |
| Bugger off! [slang] (Go away!) | Beat it! Get lost! |
| building society | housing loan company/corporation |
| bum [colloq.] (posterior) | fanny, butt, buns [all slang] |
| bumbag | fanny pack |
| bumf, bumph [colloq.] | unwanted or uninteresting printed information |
| bung [n.] [colloq.] (closing device) | stopper, plug |
| bung [n.] [slang] | bribe |
| bung [v.] [slang] (as in: 'Just bung it in the box.') | to throw or toss |
| bungalow | ranch house |
| bunk off, do a bunk [slang] | play hooky [colloq.], abscond |
| bunk up with [slang] | shack up with [slang] (sleep or cohabit with a lover) |
| bunk-up
[colloq.] (as in: 'Give me bunk-up so I can see what's on the other side of this wall.') |
physical support provided to someone seeking to climb up or over a high wall or similar |
| bureau (furniture) | a writing-desk with a lift-down flap and drawers |
| burk [from rhyming slang 'Berkshire hunt' for 'cunt' ] | jerk [disparaging], foolish or awkward person |
| business year | fiscal year |
| butcher's
[rhyming
slang 'butcher's hook' for 'look'] (as in: 'Let's have a quick butcher's!') |
look, peep |
| butter bean (large, flat, creamy yellow bean) | lima bean |
| butter muslin | cheesecloth |
