British > American Glossary | C
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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 |
---|---|
café, caff [colloq.] | coffee shop or small eatery |
cakehole [slang] (mouth) | trap [slang] |
calico (plain white cotton cloth) | muslin |
call box | telephone booth, phone booth |
Calor™ gas | bottled gas |
camiknickers (camisole + knickers) | teddy, chemise (one-piece women's undergarment) |
camper van, camper | motorhome |
camping site, campsite | campground |
camping stove | camp stove |
canoe | kayak, canoe |
canoodle [colloq.] | smooch [calloq.] |
candyfloss | cotton candy |
car manufacturer | auto maker |
car park | parking lot |
caravan | trailer, mobile home |
caravan site | trailer park, trailer camp, trailer court |
caravanning | trailer camping |
card index | card file |
carer | caregiver |
caretaker | janitor |
carpet (v.) [colloq.] | harshly criticize or reprimand someone |
carriage (on train) | passenger car, railroad car |
carrier bag | disposable shopping bag of paper or plastic |
carsy [slang] | john [slang], lavatory, outhouse |
cash on delivery (COD) | collect on delivery (COD) |
cashier | checker
(supermarket); teller (bank) |
cashpoint, cash dispenser, cash machine | ATM (automated teller machine) |
casket | small
box for cremated ashes; small ornamental box for jewelry, letters or valuables |
caster sugar, castor sugar | finely granulated white sugar |
casualty (department, ward) | emergency room (ER) |
catapult (type used for shooting small stones) | slingshot |
Catseye™, cat's eye | reflector built into center of road to aid night driving |
cattle
grid (grid over ditch to allow vehicles but not sheep or cattle to pass) |
Texas gate |
caught short [colloq.] | inopportunely in urgent need of visit to the restroom |
cement mixer, cement lorry | cement truck |
central reservation (on motorway, dual carriageway) | median
strip (on freeway or divided highway); island (on regular road) |
chairman (of a company) | president |
champers [colloq.] | bubbly [colloq.], champagne |
changing room (at gym or sporting venue) | locker room |
chap | guy, fellow |
char [slang.] | tea |
char, charwoman [both colloq.] | cleaning lady |
chat show (TV) | talk show |
chat up | talk flirtatiously to a female |
chav [slang.] | stereotypical white anti-social or delinquent juvenile |
checked pattern | check pattern |
Cheerio! [colloq.] | Bye! |
Cheers! [colloq.] | Thanks! |
cheese biscuit (unsweetened) | cracker |
chemist (licensed to sell and prepare medicines) | pharmacist, druggist |
chemist, chemist's | pharmacy, drugstore |
cheque | check |
cheque account (old name for 'current account') | checking account |
cheque book | checkbook |
chest of drawers | bureau, dresser |
chief constable | police chief in English county or other region |
chief executive (managing director) | chief executive officer (or CEO) |
chief financial director (finance director) | chief financial officer (or CFO) |
chief technician (Royal Air Force) | technical sergeant (U.S. Air Force) |
chinwag [slang] | friendly chat or gossip |
chipolata | small thin sausage |
chippie, chippy [colloq.] | fish and chips shop |
chips (of potato) | French fries, fries |
chop [colloq.] (as in 'he was given the chop') | dismissal from employment |
chopping board | cutting board |
Christmas box | small Christmas gratuity to milkman, trashman, etc. |
Christmas season | holiday season |
chuck it in [colloq.] (give up one's endeavours) | quit, throw in the towel, throw in the sponge |
chuffed [colloq.] (as in 'I was quite chuffed about it!') | pleased or delighted |
chum | pal or buddy, especially a school friend |
chunter [colloq.] | mumble monotonously and usually complainingly |
cinch [colloq.] (very easy task) | snap, breeze [both colloq.] |
cinema | movie theater; the movies |
circle, dress circle (first balcony in theatre) | mezzanine |
City, the | London's financial district (compare Wall Street) |
city centre | downtown |
civvy
street
[colloq.] (as in 'it's great to be back on civvy street') |
normal civilian life away from the military |
clamp stand (in science lab) | ring stand |
clanger (n.) [slang] (as in 'to drop a clanger') | clinker, howler, boner, blunder |
clapped out [slang] | worn out (esp. of machines) |
cleg | horsefly |
clever
dick, clever clogs [colloq.] (a person who annoys others by never hesitating to show how smart he is) |
smart aleck |
cling film | plastic wrap |
clinker (n.) [colloq.] | something excellent or outstanding |
clippie [slang] | formerly a female fare collector on city bus |
cloakroom (in hotel, restaurant or theatre) | checkroom |
cloakroom [euph.] (especially in a public building) | restroom, lavatory |
cloakroom attendant | coat check girl, hat check girl |
clobber
[colloq.] (belongings and clothing one has with one) |
gear [colloq.] |
close (n.) | cul-de-sac, blind alley, dead-end road |
clot [colloq.] (foolish person) | blockhead [colloq.] |
cloth ears (n.), cloth-eared (adj.) [colloq.] | describes someone who hasn't heard or understood what is said to them, probably through inattention |
clothes (esp. when sold in shop) | apparel |
clothes basket, laundry basket | hamper, laundry hamper |
clothes peg | clothespin |
coach (long-distance bus with extra comfort) | bus |
coach (railway carriage) | passenger car, railroad car |
coat hanger | hanger |
cobblers
(from rhyming slang 'cobbler's awls' for 'balls') |
baloney, claptrap [both colloq.] |
cock (adult male chicken) | rooster |
cock something up [slang] | bungle something; do something badly or clumsily |
cocktail cabinet | liquor cabinet |
cock-up [colloq.] (disorder caused by incompetence) | goof-up, botch-up, screw-up [all colloq.] |
codswallop [slang] (nonsense) | baloney (or boloney) [slang] |
coffin | casket [euphemism] |
cold table | a selection of cold food dishes |
collar (of meat) | piece of meat rolled up and tied |
collar stiffener | collar stay |
college | fee-paying
high-school; institution providing vocational training after the U.K. basic school-leaving age of 16 |
collywobbles, the [colloq.] | stomach discomfort caused by nervous apprehension |
colour sergeant (Royal Marines) | sergeant
major > master gunnery sergeant (U.S. Marine Corps) |
colour supplement | free magazine included with Sunday newspaper |
combine harvester (farm machine) | combine |
comforter (baby's dummy) | pacifier |
commercial traveller | traveling salesman |
common or garden [colloq.] | ordinary, everyday |
common seal | harbor seal |
conductor (on city bus, etc.) | fare collector |
conker (the hard core of a horse chestnut) | buckeye |
conscript (person forced by law into military service) | draftee |
conscription (compulsory military service) | the draft |
consultant (medical) | senior specialist doctor who places and bears overall responsibility for patients in hospital |
consumer durables | durable goods |
container (for large-scale refuse disposal) | Dumpster™ |
continental quilt | comforter |
convenience [euphemism] | public lavatory or restroom |
conveyancing [legal] | transfer of property ownership |
cooker | kitchen stove with oven and grill |
cookery book | cookbook |
cool box | cooler |
cop shop [slang] | police station |
copper [slang] | cop [slang], police officer |
Cor!
[slang] (interjection expressing admiration, disbelief, wonder or surprise) |
Wow! Gee! Gee whiz! |
Cor blimey! [slang; corruption of 'God blind me!'] | Good grief! Good God! |
core time (in a British flexitime system) | central part of work day when all personnel, even those on flextime, are expected to be present |
corker [slang] | something or someone outstandingly good |
corking (adj.) [slang] | remarkably large or splendid |
corn | In the U.K., corn is the grain of any available plant that can be used to make flour, such as wheat, barley, oats or maize. |
corn on the cob | sweet corn |
cornet | ice-cream cone |
cornflour | cornstarch |
corporal (British Army) | corporal > specialist 4 (U.S. Army) |
corporal (Royal Air Force) | airman 1st class (U.S. Air Force) |
corporation (of city, town or borough) | municipal authorities, municipal government |
cos lettuce | romaine |
cot | baby's bed or crib with high sides |
cot death, sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) | crib death |
cotton (a reel of cotton) | thread (a spool of thread) |
cotton bud | cotton swab |
cotton on to something [colloq.] | begin to figure out, become wise to |
cotton wool | cotton, cotton balls, cotton batting |
council
estate, council flats (low-cost housing for the less affluent) |
housing project |
counterfoil, cheque stub | check stub |
courgette | zucchini |
courier | messenger |
court card (king, queen or jack in deck of cards) | face card |
court shoes | pumps |
covenant (finance) | formal commitment to pay fixed amount regularly, usually to charity |
cover (insurance) | coverage |
cover note [legal] | temporary certificate of insurance coverage |
covering letter (accompanies CV) | cover letter (accompanies résumé) |
cowboy [colloq.] | unqualified repairman or tradesman who can undercut true professionals thanks to cheap materials, shoddy workmanship, or non-payment of taxes |
cowboy film | cowboy movie |
cracker [colloq.] (highly attractive female) | honey, peach, stunner, goddess, knockout |
crackers [colloq.] | crazy |
cracking [colloq.] (as in 'a cracking good time') | awesome [colloq.], outstanding |
craft knife | utility knife, box cutter |
crash barrier | guardrail |
crayfish | crawfish |
cream bun | bun filled or topped with cream |
cream cracker (unsweetened cracker for cheese) | soda cracker |
cream tea | traditional English afternoon tea with scones, jelly and clotted cream |
crèche | day nursery for pre-school kids |
creditors (in accounting) | accounts payable, payables |
creek | small bay or inlet narrower than a cove |
Crikey! (euphemism for 'Christ!') | Gosh! (euphemism for 'God!') |
crisps | chips, potato chips |
crocodile [colloq.] | line of children walking in pairs |
crocodile clip | alligator clip |
cross-ply tyre | bias tire, bias-ply tire |
crossroad, crossroads | intersection |
crotchet (in music) | quarter note |
Crumbs! (exclamation of worry or surprise) | Gosh! Wow! |
crumpet [slang] ('She's a nice bit of crumpet!' ) | women seen as objects of male desire |
crush bar | bar serving drinks during theater intermissions |
crush barrier | barricade erected for crowd control |
cup tie | eliminating game between teams, esp. in soccer |
cupboard | cabinet, closet |
cuppa [colloq.] (as in 'I could do with a cuppa!') | a cup of tea |
curate's egg | something that has both good and bad qualities |
current account | checking account |
currently, right now | presently |
curriculum vitae, CV | résumé, resume |
curtain | drape, drapery |
cushy
number [colloq.] (as in 'He's got himself a cushy little number!') |
pleasant, undemanding job situation or sinecure |
custom (as in 'we appreciate your custom') | business patronage |
cutlery (eating utensils) | silverware, flatware |
cycle lane | bike lane, bicycle lane |
cycling, to cycle | bicycling, to bicycle |
cyclist |
bicyclist |