British > American Glossary | O
Smoothing and improving transatlantic communication
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 |
---|---|
OAP (old-age pensioner) | retiree, senior |
oblique stroke / | forward slash / |
off [colloq.] (as in: 'Sorry dear, it's off!') | any unavailable U.K. restaurant menu item is 'off' |
off-licence | liquor store, package store |
off one's rocker [slang] (bonkers, crazy) | out to lunch [colloq.] |
off-the-peg (ready-to-wear items in clothes shop) | off-the-rack |
Oi! (exclamation to call attention) | Hey! |
old moon | last quarter |
on holiday | on vacation |
on sale | for sale, available for purchase |
on the cards [colloq.] (likely or probable) | in the cards [colloq.] |
on the dole [colloq.] | living on welfare for the unemployed |
on the game [slang] | involved in prostitution or thieving |
on the wagon, on the water wagon | teetotal, abstaining from alcohol |
on tick [colloq.] | on credit |
opencast mining | open-pit mining, open-cut mining |
operating theatre | operating room |
opposite | across from |
optician | optometrist |
orbital bypass or motorway | road encircling city or town |
Ordinance Survey, the | UK government mapping agency |
ordinary seaman (Royal Navy) | seaman apprentice (U.S. Navy) |
ordinary share (investment) | common stock |
orientate [v.] | orient [v.] |
out tray | outbox |
outdoor lavatory | outhouse |
outhouse | shed or smaller building in house grounds |
outside lane, fast lane (of motorway) | passing lane, fast lane, left lane (of freeway, highway) |
oven glove | oven mitt, potholder |
overall | loose-fitting protective smock over other clothes |
overleaf (referring to next page) | P.T.O. (please turn over) |
overtake, overtaking (in traffic) | pass, passing |
own-brand product, own-label product | private brand, store brand |
Oxbridge [portmanteau word] | Oxford and Cambridge universities, England's oldest and most prestigious (compare Ivy League) |
Oxo™ cube, stock cube | bouillon cube |
Oxonian | relating either to Oxford or its university |