American English to British English Dictionary

P - T

Panhandler

An aggressive beggar who approaches people asking for money.

Pants

Trousers, not underpants.

Park

A park can be a small park in a town or city, or a huge National Park.

The word "park" is also used sometimes to mean a large, flat valley surrounded by mountains or hills. This meaning is often applied in place names.

Parkway

Pavement

In American English the pavement is the road itself, which vehicles drive on. The path alongside the road where pedestrians walk, that the British call the pavement, Americans call the sidewalk. The road sign "Pavement Ends" means that the road you are on is about to change to an unpaved surface.

PED XING

This seemingly mysterious road sign doesn't indicate that you're approaching Chinatown! In fact, it means "Pedestrian Crossing".

Penny

A one cent coin.

Pilot Car

A vehicle, most commonly a pickup truck, which other vehicles must follow through a road construction area.

Pinto Beans

A Mexican food item.

Pinto beans, often just called pintos, are a type of baked bean served as a paste which can be used as a dip.

Pit

Seen in expressions such as "sirloin pit", meaning a sirloin restaurant. The word presumably indicates the method of cooking.

Po' Boy

A long sandwich on French bread, usually filled with oysters, shrimp or roast beef. A dressed po' boy comes with mayonnaise, lettuce and tomato, A variant on the submarine sandwich theme. 

Pollock

A fish of the cod family, which looks and tastes somewhat similar to cod. I'm not sure whether "Alaskan Pollock" is exactly the same or not.

Posted

The word "posted" normally refers to a notice having been displayed in public, put on a notice board, etc. The word "mailed" is normally used to mean that a letter has been sent.

Pre-Columbian

Prior to the discovery of America by Columbus.

PTA

Public Lands

In the USA, the term "public lands" refers to land owned by the federal government, other than the National Parks, the National Monuments and other National Park Service areas, the National Forests, the National Wildlife Refuges and a few other areas. The Bureau of Land Management is responsible for the administration of public land, which amounts to some 425,000 square miles. Most of this land has never been privately owned, and most of it is in the west and in Alaska.

Public School

In the United States the term "public school" refers to a state school. In Britain it means the exact opposite, a private school.

Quarter

Twenty-five cents. A quarter is roughly the same shape and colour as a nickel but has a milled edge.

Quebec

To avoid any ambiguity, it is best to clearly distinguish between Quebec City and the Province of Quebec.

Radio Shack

A chain of electronics stores in the USA and Canada, owned by the same company and carrying many of the same lines as the very similar Tandy chain in Europe.

Rain Check

A note provided by a supermarket when goods on special offer are out of stock, enabling you to purchase the goods at the reduced price when they do become available, even though the special offer may then have terminated. The term comes from the practice of supplying a note permitting entry to a sporting event which is postponed due to inclement weather.

Ramada

A combined sun-shade and bench for sitting on, perhaps with a table suitable for picnics. Also the name of a relatively expensive motel chain.

Rapid Transit

A public transport system in a city, for example a bus service or a subway (underground railway), or a subway (underground railway) between terminals at an airport.

Real Estate

Land and buildings.

Realtor

A person who works in an estate agency.

Realty

An estate agency. 

Red Hots

Red Hots are a spicy candy about the size of a jelly bean and loaded with cinnamon. They can certainly make your tongue tingle and leave you wanting a drink very quickly. It isn't too clear if Texas Red Hots are the same thing or something different.

[Many thanks to John Hayes (jnhayes@austin360.com) for contributing this entry.]

Refried Beans

A Mexican food item.

Refried beans are similar to baked beans in appearance but rather darker. They have a somewhat stronger flavour, and are served with a Mexican flavour sauce instead of tomato sauce. 

"Regular or Decaff?"

This question is an enquiry as to which type of coffee you would prefer.

"Decaff" is decaffeinated coffee - coffee with the caffeine removed. The idea is that caffeine in coffee causes you to feel tense and stressed, I believe. Some people also believe that caffeine can be a cause of cancer and birth defects, although this theory doesn't appear to have any scientific basis.

Just almost every source of coffee in the USA and Canada will offer you the choice between regular and decaffeinated.

Caffeine is also present in tea and cola.

Res

Restroom

Toilet (even on a plane or a bus!)

Résumé

Pronounced "rez-ooh-may" (in American mock French). A résumé is a C.V. (curriculum vitae), in other words a brief summary listing of a person's educational and employment history supplied to a potential employer as part of an application for a job.

Ride Sharing

See Car Pool

Roast Beef Sandwich

Numerous very thin slices of roast beef, in a bun.

See Roast Beef Sandwich in the Restaurants section

Rockhound

An amateur or professional geologist; someone who is interested in or who collects precious or semi-precious stones.

Root Beer

A type of carbonated (fizzy) soft drink with a very distinctive taste which most people either love or hate. One of the best known brands of root beer is A and W, which is also the name of an associated fast food chain.

RTD

Rapid Transit Department, i.e. the public transport authority.

RV

Recreational vehicle, in other words a motorhome.

S and L

See Savings and Loan Association. 

Sandwich

The word "sandwich" can have a variety of meanings: a sandwich as we in Britain know it (two slices of bread with something in between), a hamburger, a roast beef sandwich or a submarine sandwich.

Sasquatch

The Canadian equivalent of the Himalayan Yeti (Abominable Snowman), with the same pseudo-scientific status. Called Bigfoot in the USA. A supposedly ape-like creature, heavily built, hairy, and capable of communicating only by means of grunts and cries. 

Savings and Loan Association

A financial institution which performs a somewhat similar function to a British building society. In New England Savings and Loan Associations are called Cooperative Banks; in Louisiana they are called Homestead Associations. For smaller loans, a Credit Union is often used.

Season

Series, as in television series. For example "Babylon 5 has been renewed for a fifth season" means that its production company has got the go-ahead from the relevant television network to make a fifth series.

Senior

SF

Shaved Ice

Shaved Ice is just that, shaved ice. Blocks of ice are scrapped over a blade which shaves off the ice. The ice which has been shaved off is scooped up like ice cream into a plastic cup or cone, and then a flavour syrup is poured over the ice. Some establishments have many different flavours to choose from but most are tropical fruity in nature. They are very good on a hot day.

[Many thanks to John Hayes (jnhayes@austin360.com) for contributing this entry.]

SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome)

Cot death.

Sidewalk

The path alongside a road, where pedestrians walk. What the British would call the pavement - but in American English the pavement is the road surface where vehicles drive.

Significant Other

Husband, wife, partner, boyfriend or girlfriend.

SIL

Sister-in-law.

Skillet

Frying pan.

SLA

See Savings and Loan Association.

Slush Puppy

A Slush Puppy, also known as an Icee, a Slushie, or a Slurpie, is basically flavoured liquid ice or slush. The machines which make these products keep the ice from forming a solid block by constantly circulating it around. The most popular flavours are probably cherry and coke. Most convenience stores have at least one of the machines that make them.

[Many thanks to John Hayes (jnhayes@austin360.com) for contributing this entry.]

SO

Significant Other, i.e. husband, wife, partner, boyfriend or girlfriend.

Soda Pop (or just "Soda")

Fizzy soft drink.

SOHO

Small Office/Home Office. Mainly a term used in relation to computers. Not to be confused with the sleazy area of London, England with the same name.

SP

State Park.

Speed Zone

A section of road subject to a lower than normal speed limit.

Spelunker

Someone who explores caves; a pot-holer.

Splice

A brand of soft drink, with a lemon and lime flavour.

Sprite

A brand of soft drink, similar to 7-Up.

Spur

See Hubs and Spurs.

Station

The word "station" can refer to a railroad (train) station, bus station, or to a gas (petrol) station. This last meaning can sometimes be confusing in directions, as in those found in motel directories. For example "turn left at Sinclair station" might lead you to look out for a train station of that name but in fact refers to a gas station, Sinclair being the brand name.

Skillet

My British English dictionary defines a skillet as "a small, long-handled pan". The word is in fairly common use in the USA, where I think it means a frying pan.

Static

White noise, the noise you hear between stations on a radio or television set.

Switch

Points on a railway line.

Switchback

Hairpin bend. Tight hairpin bends as encountered on the Alpine passes of Europe are very rare in the USA and Canada except on a few minor roads over mountain passes.

Subway

Sunny Side Up

One choice for specifying how you want eggs cooked. A fried egg which is not turned over, so the yoke (the sunny side) is on top or "sunny side up". The yoke is usually runnier than eggs cooked over easy.

[Many thanks to John Hayes (jnhayes@austin360.com) for contributing this entry.]

Switch

Points, on a railway track. 

Taco

A Mexican food item.

A taco consists of a fairly large crisp edible corn tortilla shell containing minced beef, shredded lettuce and grated cheese and maybe sauce, sour cream, etc.

Tacos can come in various sizes. For a light snack try two tacos. For a meal you'll need maybe four, five or six. This means that a party can very conveniently share a number of tacos between them according to their different degrees of hunger.

A taco salad is a large edible crisp flour "bowl" containing lettuce, cheese and multiple other ingredients of the salad. One taco salad is a large meal.

TBA

In television schedules printed in newspapers and magazines, "TBA" isn't the name of a programme. It actually means "To be announced".

Tea

More often than not, "tea" means iced tea in the USA.

Teeter-totter

See-saw (the children's play apparatus).

Territory

In both the USA and Canada, a territory is a partially self-governing region which has not yet achieved statehood (USA) or become a province (Canada).

Territories in the USA are the District of Columbia, American Samoa and Guam. Puerto Rico is a commonwealth. Alaska and Hawaii were converted from territories to states in 1959.

Territories in Canada are the Northwest Territories and the Yukon, and from 1999 Nunavut.

I believe that the qualification for a territory to become a state or province is based largely if not wholly on population figures.

Texas Red Hots

See Red Hots

Texas Toast

Toast made with very thick, very airy bread so as to make an extremely light and crisp toast. Texas toast is sometimes served in steak restaurants as an alternative to a roll. Texas toast is also used in the form of two rounds with various fillings to make breakfast sandwiches in some fast food chains, particularly Hardee's. Bread for making Texas Toast can be purchased in supermarkets.

Tic Tac Toe

Noughts and Crosses.

Tie

A railway sleeper - the block of wood or concrete on which the rails rest.

Toonie or Tooney

A slang expression for the Canadian two-Dollar coin, which by the way is made from two different metals - silver-coloured on the outside and gold-coloured in the middle. The name toonie comes from the nickname of "loonie" for the one-Dollar coin, which in turn comes from the drawing of a loon (the bird) on one of that coin's sides.

Tortilla

Pronounced "tor - tee - ya". An essential feature of many types of Mexican food. A tortilla is a round "pancake" usually wrapped, rolled or folded around its contents. Tortillas can be made from corn and be crisp as in tacos and tostadas, or made from flour and be soft as in burritos, enchiladas and fajitas.

Tostada

Another Mexican food item, with a flat crisp tortilla which has its "contents" on top instead of inside.

Transmission

The gearbox of a car. Often used in expressions such as automatic transmission and manual transmission.

Truck Lane

Crawler lane for slow moving vehicles up a hill.

Trunk

Boot (of a car).

Tube

Electronic valve. Now an almost totally historic term, of course. Also vacuum tube.

Tubing

Floating down a river with the aid of an inflated inner tyre. You occasionally see roadside establishments hiring tyres for tubing and organising transport to or from the starting or finishing place. Tubing can be dangerous.

Turf And Surf

A description of a restaurant which offers both meat and fish (or seafood) dishes.

Turnpike

Toll road.

TVA

Tennessee Valley Authority - the body responsible for the administration of the numerous dams on the Tennessee River and its tributaries. 

Two bits

A slang expression meaning 25 cents. You never hear of any number of bits other than two.

"Two bits" is also used as an adjective to mean virtually worthless, for example "Are you still driving that two bit car?". Thus a "two bit computer" is a reference to its perceived worth, not its word length.

Typos

You might think that a "typos" was a type of university degree, or perhaps a dissertation or research paper. Far from that, it is in fact the plural of the word "typo", meaning a typing error. 
Language Differences

Home | States/Provinces | Subjects