Aberrant: Quantum Zero - FAQ for Slang

[archer]

As I sit here watching Shaun of the Dead for the third or fourth time, a thought sprang to life. Considering ProfPott's and Knave's predilection for confusing most of us poor Yanks with what I can only assume to be British idioms and slang ::confused(Hunter, anyone?), I thought it might be helpful if our friends across the pond could post some of the more common things people in different parts of Great Britain might say.

This would be especially helpful in the areas like the Truth and Justice thread, where at least a few characters(mine included) are actually British! One thing I have a very hard time with when writing for Shaun(notice a similarity to above?) is trying to figure out how he talks, exactly. Having dealt with a fair number of Brits in person over the years, I've not only noticed different accents, but different slang too.

I've picked up some bits, like 'bin' for garbage can, and 'brolly' for umbrella. 'Fannypack' means something decidedly different as well. ::sly

And to be fair, I'm sure there's some pretty weird stuff coming from the American side too. I know there are quite a few expressions I've used that have puzzled Ex-Pats I've met, and the use of y'all throws 'em sometimes. ::biggrin

What does anyone else think?

[ezekiel]

Found an online source:

http://www.cockneyrhymingslang.co.uk/

[ProfPotts]

Of course, the difficulty there is that we Brits speak 'English'... how are we meant to know which words & phrases you Yanks have butchered over the years? ::sly

As Aquaman once said, 'American English' is insane: you park on the driveway & drive on the parkway?! ::tongue

I've picked up some bits, like 'bin' for garbage can, and 'brolly' for umbrella. 'Fannypack' means something decidedly different as well.

See what I mean: a 'bin' is a 'bin', why would we expect it to be anything else? Without being an expert on US idioms, how can a Brit know which true English words needs translating? It's a 'six of one, half a dozen of another' situation at best. In fact, you'd be better off either asking for clarification on specific words, or asking your fellow US citizens which differences have cropped up in their own experience with us speakers of the Queen's English (don'tcha' know) ::laugh .

I do know that what you call a 'Fannypack' is a 'Bumbag' in English - but they also haven't been in fashion for a while, so I doubt it'll crop up. A 'fanny' in English slang is, of course, a... ahem... 'lady's front bottom' as I've heard it explained to Americans before... ::blush ::biggrin

'Suspenders' in English hold up lady's stockings, 'braces' hold up men's trousers (as well as going on your teeth)... but I hardly think these things are going to be that important in a game context... ::unsure

In English the bottom floor of a building is the 'ground floor', the next floor up is the 'first floor' - I understand that in American the ground floor is the 'first floor'? I guess stuff like that may have some minor impact at some point...

As for Hunter & Guy... well, I'm pretty sure that neither Knave or I speak that way in real life (& I doubt that too many Londerers do either... unless they're doing it for the tourists) - the Cockney bit is just to make the characters interesting - it's meant to be a little confusing. Actually it's mostly pretty simple word-replacement stuff, with the context of use giving a good hint as to what the meaning is. E.g. when Hunter said 'bubble & squeak' he meant 'week'... In any case, I always planned to reduce the amount of slang Hunter uses over time - it's only funny in moderation, after all ::wink .

[Heritage]

Most of the language gulf occurred during the Industrial Revolution, which was more or less taking place at the same time as the Colonies breaking away from the Motherland. This is why we share so much of the same language for basic things like verbs (other than spelling), but divide sharply on nouns, especially modern invented things like the automobile, which I think the only shared word might be 'wheel', and that's only because it predates the internal combustion engine! And you will go nuts on snack food items, i.e the ice cream treats Drumstick and Cornetto, though they're not quite the same.

I'm sure both sides of the pond have heard the other's speech butchered enough that we can overlook the inevitable slips, as long as an attempt is made to sound authentic. The litmus test I use is to try and imagine a Brit saying a word or phrase; if I have a hard time picturing it, I tend to avoid it, but then again I always hear the dialog in my head and then merely transcribe it, and I know not everyone writes that way. This is also why I tend to 'cast' my characters in my head, using a specific person as the basis for comparison; in time, once I know the character better, they will develop their own voice and I don't need the crutch anymore

By the way, my favorite linguistic difference is 'aluminum' vs 'aluminium'; the US and Canada both drop the second 'i', which removes an entire syllable and radically changes the pronunciation and where the emphasis hits (a-LU-min-um vs. a-lu-MI-ni-um). It's believed a series of misspelled manufacturer's fliers circulating in the 1890s are what led to the change over here, and it's since stuck. ::smile

[archer]

Alright, let's try for some specifics then. Prof raises a good point.

Lorry = Truck

Biscuits = Cookies?

Pranged = ?

Slice of fried gold = ?

Garage = Gas Station

Boot = Trunk

Those are some of the few I know. But! I just found a wonderful website that I think will be very helpful in the future.

http://www.effingpot.com/index.shtml

Check it out!

[archer]

Something I just noticed about that site as I read through it...Dr. Effingpot is pretty good at translating English to American, but he doesn't seem to always know the equivalent meaning of certain slang terms in the U.S.

For instance:

Getting off - This seems to be the objective of most teenagers on a big night out. Getting off with someone means making out or snoggingh them.

In the U.S. 'getting off' means something else entirely(though it could be related, I suppose). Here it means reaching orgasm; so 'get yourself off' generally means to go masturbate.

[SkyLion]

Of course, the difficulty there is that we Brits speak 'English'... how are we meant to know which words & phrases you Yanks have butchered over the years? ::sly

As Aquaman once said, 'American English' is insane: you park on the driveway & drive on the parkway?! ::tongue

,,,,

Touche! ::laugh

,,,,

In any case, I always planned to reduce the amount of slang Hunter uses over time - it's only funny in moderation, after all ::wink .

,,

Just don't reduce it too much...Hunter has me is stitches!!! ::biggrin

[SkyLion]

Heres some Queen's Good English for ya! ::laugh

[Expendable]

A British rubber is an eraser, not a condom.

Biscuits are cookies. Digestives are sort of like a whole-grain cookie. Hob Nobs are to die for. You pour the tea first, then add the milk. French put the milk in first and scald it adding the tea. Don't be French.

Pranged is smashed

I think all the street lamps now are electric but when they gas, you'd have street lighters who had a long pole they'd used to turn on the gas and light it - then turn it off in the morning. Because they were up early, people would ask if the street lighters would wake them up - most lived above the shop so the street lighters would bang next to the window to "knock you up". Now it just means any wake up call. Stateside it means making a girl preggers. Lots of confusion there. I've been waiting for Hunter to say it so he'll get slapped for something innocent.

The pharmacy is the chemist's, which is where you go to get a condom or batteries.

Tesco is a grocery store chain. So is the local Co-Op.

The DIY is where you go to get wood, hammer and nails.

Major appliances don't come with plugs, you buy them separate because your house might be wired differently. They have a fuse in them.

The corner store is the newsagent.

A chippie is a fish and chips shop. Many kinds of fish but you can also get a beefburger or a lump of sausage - but it'll be dipped in batter and fried with the fish. Chips are usually thck, white and soft, not thin overcooked golden brown fries.

A Chinese takeaway is where you get Chinese food you're taking home.

To stand in line, you stand in a queue.

A Flake 99 is a cup of ice cream with a short stick of flaky fudge stuck in it.

A Yorkie is a british chocolate bar.

Smarties are M&Ms, slightly larger and more colors. Comes in a tube.

Pear drops are a hard candy you can get from a newsagents or sweet shop in a small paper bag by the quarter pound. Small sweets such as toffees, chocolates and hard candy are also sold this way.

Quality Street is a small tin full of chocolates and caramels. I'll take a 5 lb. tin any day.

A jumper is a sweater in the US.

The sunday joint is a cut of meat, not drugs.

[SkyLion]

As I sit here watching Shaun of the Dead for the third or fourth time, a thought sprang to life. Considering ProfPott's and Knave's predilection for confusing most of us poor Yanks with what I can only assume to be British idioms and slang ::confused (Hunter, anyone?), I thought it might be helpful if our friends across the pond could post some of the more common things people in different parts of Great Britain might say.

This would be especially helpful in the areas like the Truth and Justice thread, where at least a few characters(mine included) are actually British! One thing I have a very hard time with when writing for Shaun(notice a similarity to above?) is trying to figure out how he talks, exactly. Having dealt with a fair number of Brits in person over the years, I've not only noticed different accents, but different slang too.

I've picked up some bits, like 'bin' for garbage can, and 'brolly' for umbrella. 'Fannypack' means something decidedly different as well. ::sly

And to be fair, I'm sure there's some pretty weird stuff coming from the American side too. I know there are quite a few expressions I've used that have puzzled Ex-Pats I've met, and the use of y'all throws 'em sometimes. ::biggrin

What does anyone else think?

Just wanted to point out Archer, if you didn't already know, that Cokney and Rhyming slang is (as I understand it, corrext me Potts or Knave if I'm wrong) a dialect primarily spoken in the East-End of London.

Somehow I don't picture Shaun as being from the ghetto (though with Novas, you never know...)

Also, here are fascinating articles on both Cockney in genral and the Rhyming Slang...

[archer]

Just wanted to point out Archer, if you didn't already know, that Cokney and Rhyming slang is (as I understand it, corrext me Potts or Knave if I'm wrong) a dialect primarily spoken in the East-End of London.

Somehow I don't picture Shaun as being from the ghetto (though with Novas, you never know...)

Also, here are fascinating articles on both Cockney in genral and the Rhyming Slang...

Yeah, I know. That's part of the reason I started this thread. Just like here, there are lot of regional dialects in England and the rest of the U.K. Shaun is from Northumberland, pretty much right on the Scottish border. I fudged things bit though, by having him spend many years of his life going to University in southern and central England. That, plus his many travels, have softened his accent and changed the way he speaks a bit.

[SkyLion]

I understand that the subtleties of the dialects are such that a native speaker can tell where a person is from, as well as their "station" or "class" merely from hearing them speak, and that some people change their accents on purpose for this reason (much how many people in the US try to rid themselves of a southern, Boston, or Jersey accent (Dont ask me why...I love accents...roight!)...).

[Expendable]

We lived in West Yorkshire, around Harrogate. Whatever accent I had I've lost. If you want to sound working-class, drop your "h's". "'Ello Mum!" "'Ere! Wot's going on?" "'Ow's that?"

[archer]

We lived in West Yorkshire, around Harrogate. Whatever accent I had I've lost. If you want to sound working-class, drop your "h's". "'Ello Mum!" "'Ere! Wot's going on?" "'Ow's that?"

I was wondering where you picked up all that daily use slang, Ex. I've no idea where that is without Google Earth, but it sounds like a cool place to live.

[Bahamut810]

So you know "a piece of fryed gold" was a phrase that was supposedly (from what I read on IMDB) coined by the guys who made "Shaun of the Dead". It mearly means something that is totally awesome.

And speaking of a 'Flake 99', Ithink they have the *GREATEST CANDY EVAR* in them...convieniently called 'Flakes'. I LOVE THEM!!

As an aside...I dont think I ever had problems understanding any of the brits in here, but then I was raised by one. I grew up watching BBC with my mum who came from a town west of London.

[Expendable]

I was wondering where you picked up all that daily use slang, Ex. I've no idea where that is without Google Earth, but it sounds like a cool place to live.

James Harriot who wrote "All Creatures Great and Small" worked as a vet in Yorkshire. It's a bumpy, hilly place.

[knave]

I understand that the subtleties of the dialects are such that a native speaker can tell where a person is from, as well as their "station" or "class" merely from hearing them speak, and that some people change their accents on purpose for this reason (much how many people in the US try to rid themselves of a southern, Boston, or Jersey accent (Dont ask me why...I love accents...roight!)...).

If you've been to a top university you generally sound like you've been to a top university -regardless of what you sounded like going into it.

However, most kinds social climbing is largely frowned upon/aren't really possible in Britain.

[phoenix]

I enjoy James Harriet.