British > American Glossary | B
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Index of Briticisms |
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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 |