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British-American
Glossary
Smoothing transatlantic
communication |
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Index
of Briticisms |
A
B C D E
F G H
I J
K L M N
O P Q
R S T
U V W
X Y Z
| American-British |
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B |
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British
|
American
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| backbencher |
non-senior MP (Member of Parliament) |
| backchat
[colloq.] |
cheeky or impudent replies to someone |
| backcomb |
make hair seem thicker by combing
toward top of head |
| bad patch
[colloq.] |
rough time |
| bag
[slang] |
unpleasant or unattractive woman |
| 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') |
| 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 up
[slang] |
bungle, make a mess of |
| banger
[slang] |
sausage; old car |
| 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 |
nutty [colloq.],
crazy, irrational |
| barrack |
spectator's noisy shouting or jeering |
| barrister |
attorney
granted the right to plead
before the bar in higher courts |
| bash (as in
'I once had a bash at bungee jumping') |
go,
attempt, try |
| bath |
bathtub |
| bath chair |
type of old-fashioned hooded wheelchair |
| Bath Oliver |
kind of savory cracker eaten with cheese |
| bathroom cabinet |
medicine chest/cabinet |
| battle
bus |
campaign
bus (for politician running in election) |
| beach hut |
cabana |
| beak
[slang] |
judge |
| beano,
beanfeast [colloq.] |
party
or celebration, or outing for this purpose |
| bedside table/cabinet |
night table |
| bedsit,
bedsitter,
bedsitting room |
studio apartment |
| beefburger |
hamburger |
| beetroot |
beet |
| behind |
in back
(of) |
| bell
push |
electric
doorbell button |
| Belt
up! [slang] |
Shut up!
[colloq.] Be quiet! |
| berk
[from rhyming
slang 'Bershire 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 (e.g. in restaurant) |
check,
tab
[colloq.] (as in 'pick up the tab') |
| billiards |
English
billiards |
| 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] |
pleasing thing
or attractive person (usually female) |
| bit of crumpet/skirt/stuff,
a [all slang] |
sexually desirable female |
| bit on the side,
a [slang] |
infidelity |
| bits and bobs
[colloq.] |
odds and ends |
| bitter |
bitter-tasting beer with strong taste of hops |
| blackboard |
chalkboard |
| black tie
[colloq.] |
formal evening dress |
| black
treacle |
molasses |
| blackleg
(one who continues working during a strike) |
scab |
| blanket bath (given to
bedridden person) |
sponge bath |
| bleeper
[colloq.] (pager) |
beeper
[colloq.] |
| Blimey!
[slang,
corruption of 'God blind me!'] |
Good grief! Good God! |
| blind
(esp. roller type) |
window
shade |
| block of flats |
apartment
building/house |
| bloke
[colloq.] |
guy,
dude [both colloq.], fellow, |
| bloody [slang] |
damned, darned
[colloq.] |
| bloody-minded [slang] |
hell-bent on opposing the wishes
of others,
often unreasonably |
| blooming
[colloq.] (as in 'It's blooming cold today!') |
darned
[colloq.] |
| blow the gaff [slang] |
blow
the whistle [colloq.], give the game
away |
| blower,
the [slang] (telephone) |
horn,
the [slang] |
| boarder (boarding
school pupil) |
resident |
| Bob's your uncle!
[colloq.] |
That's all it
takes! It's as easy as that! |
| bobby
[colloq.] |
male police officer |
| bobsleigh |
bobsled; bobsledding |
| bog [slang] |
john [slang]; lavatory |
| bog-roll [slang] |
toilet roll |
| bollard |
metal, concrete or plastic pillar or post on road to
delimit traffic, esp. on traffic island |
| bollocks
[slang] |
balls
[slang] (testicles);
Damn it! [expletive];
bullshit [slang] (nonsense) |
| bomb [slang]
(as in 'It's going like a bomb!') |
success |
| bonk
[slang] (copulate) |
ball,
hump, screw [all slang] |
| bonkers |
crazy |
| bonnet
(of a car) |
hood |
| boob
tube [slang] |
woman's tight, low-cut, strapless top |
| book
(v.) |
make a reservation |
| book in |
check
in at hotel, etc. |
| book up |
buy tickets, vacation, etc. in advance |
| booking
clerk |
ticket
sales clerk |
| booking
hall |
area
in larger train station where tickets are sold |
| booking
office |
ticket
office |
| boot,
the [colloq.] (as in 'he was
given the boot') |
dismissal from employment |
| boot
(of a car) |
trunk |
| boozer
[slang] (public house, pub) |
bar |
bottom
drawer (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,
the [colloq.] (as in 'I saw it on the
box') |
tube/boob
tube, the [both slang], TV |
| box
spanner |
box
wrench |
| Boxing Day |
December 26 (a public
holiday in Great Britain) |
| boxroom |
small room
or large cupboard for storage of boxes
or other disused or bulky items |
| bracelets
[slang] |
handcuffs |
| braces (to hold up men's trousers) |
suspenders |
| brackets
(esp. round brackets) |
parentheses |
| brainwave
(sudden clever idea) |
brainstorm |
| brass
[slang] |
money |
| brassed off
[slang] |
pissed
[slang], fed up |
| bread
bin |
bread
box |
| break up
(from school) |
end the school semester |
| breeze
(insect) |
gadfly |
| breeze
block |
cinder
block |
| bridge
roll |
hotdog
bun |
| Brigadier (British Army &
Royal Marines) |
Brigadier General (U.S. Army
&
U.S. Marine Corps) |
| bristols
[slang] (female
breasts) |
hooters,
jugs [both slang], boobs [colloq.] |
| broadsheet
(cf. tabloid) |
regular, full-size newspaper |
| brolly
[colloq.] |
umbrella |
| brooch |
pin |
| brown
off (as in 'Her tardiness really browns me off') |
cause
someone to lose interest or become annoyed |
| B.Sc. (Bachelor of
Science) |
BS
(Caution:
BS 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
(or budgie) |
parakeet |
| bugger
[slang] |
jerk [slang],
awkward person or thing |
| bugger about/around
[slang] |
fool or mess
around; mislead |
| bugger all
[slang] |
nothing |
| Bugger off!
[slang] |
Beat it! Get lost! Go away! |
| building society |
housing loan company/corporation |
| bum
[colloq.] (buttocks) |
fanny,
butt, buns [all slang] |
| bumbag |
fanny pack |
| bung
[slang] |
throw, 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.] (e.g. 'Give me bunk-up so I can see
what's on the other side of this wall.') |
help
in climbing |
| bureau |
writing-desk with lift-down flap & drawers |
| burk
[from rhyming
slang 'Bershire hunt' for cunt] |
jerk
[slang], foolish or awkward person |
| butcher's
[rhyming
slang 'butcher's hook' for look] |
look (have a butcher's = have a look) |
| butter
bean (large, flat, creamy, yellow bean) |
lima
bean |
| butter
muslin |
cheesecloth |
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A
B C D E
F G H
I J
K L M N
O P Q
R S T
U V W
X Y Z
| American-British |
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