Hello and welcome to Mansion Interviews, a podcast which gives me an excuse to talk to interesting people while at the same time improving your English.

Danny

Today I’m speaking to a good friend of mine, Danny. I’ve known Danny for many years and he happens to be North American which is good news for you because many listeners have been asking me about the differences between American and British English.

So Danny jumped on Skype and we compared vocabulary differences between US and UK English.

Acually, I tested him to see how much British English vocabulary he knows. So what do you think? Did he pass the test? More importantly, do you know these vocabulary differences? Let’s see!

There are no comprehension questions becuase this isn’t an interview listening practice, but you will find a complete list of the vocabulary we talk about at inglespodcast.com/danny.

Where do you live and where is your accent from?

Danny has a mid-western accent from Detroit, Michigan. He now lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Test your British-American English vocabulary. Do you know the American word for the following common British English vocabulary?

We’ll start off easy to warm you up. I say the British English word, you say the American English word

lift (UK) – elevator (US) (asensor)
flat (UK) – apartment (US) (piso, apartamento)
holiday (UK) – vacation (US) (vacaciones)
autumn (UK) – fall (US) (otoño)
a queue / to queue up (UK) – a line / to stand in line (US) (cola / hacer cola) – to stand/wait ‘on line’ on the East Coast of the USA.
bill (UK) – check (US) (cuenta)
quid (UK) – buck (US) (50 quid – 50 bucks / a 50-pound note (UK) – a 50 dollar bill (US) – billete)
shopping centre (UK) – shopping mall (US) (centro comercial)

CLOTHES
trainers (UK) – gym shoes/sneakers (US) (zapatillas de deporte)
tights (UK) – panty hose (US) (medias)
knickers (UK) – panties (US) (bragas)
vest (UK) – undershirt/T-shirt (US) (chaleco)

ALCOHOL
barman / barmaid (UK) – bartender (US) (barman)
stag night / hen night (UK) – bachelor/bachelorette party (US) (despedida de soltero/a)
pub crawl (UK) – bar hop (US) (ir de chateo, ir de copas, recorrido por bares)
beer mat (UK) – coaster (US) (posavasos)

BABIES
nappy (UK) – diaper (US) (pañales)
dummy (UK) – pacifier (US) (chupete)
pram (UK) – baby buggy / baby carriage (US) (cochecito de niño)

FOOD
crisps (UK) – (potato) chips (US) (papas)
take-away (food) (UK) – carry-out (food) (US) (comida para llevar)

IN THE HOUSE
cooker (UK) – range, stove (US) (cocina (los fuegos)
tap (UK) – faucet (US) (grifo)
rubbish bin / dustbin (UK) – garbage can / trash can (US) (cubo / contenedor de basura)
estate agent (UK) – real estate agent / realtor (US) (inmobilario/a)
post code (UK) – zip code (US) (codigo postal)
torch (UK) – flashlight (US) (linterna)

IN THE STREET
pavement (UK) – sidewalk (US) (acera)
zebra crossing (UK) – pedestrian crossing / pedestrian crosswalk (US) (paso de cebra)
roundabout (UK) – roundabout / traffic circle (US) (rotonda)
car park (UK) – parking lot (US) (parking)
petrol station (UK) – gas station (US) (gasolinera)
motorway (UK) – highway, freeway, expressway (US) (autopista)
flyover (UK) – overpass (US) (paso elevado)
busker (UK) – street performer (US) (músico callejero)
skip (UK) – dumpster (US) (contenedor)
lorry (UK) – truck (US) (camión)
cash point (machine) (UK) – ATM (US) (cajero automático)

WORK
CV (UK) – resumé (US) (curriculum)
to sack (UK) – to fire (US) (despedir)
redundancy (UK) – layoff (US) (desempleo) / to make (s.o.) redundant (UK) – to lay (s.o.) off (US)
public limited company (plc) (UK) – LLC / incorporated company (inc.) (US) (sociedad anónima (s.a.)

Feeling confident? Now they get harder!

anorak (UK) – raincoat / windbreaker (US) (anorak)
rubber (UK) – condom or eraser (US) (goma)
wellies (wellingtons) (UK) – rubber boots (US) (botas de goma)
wally (UK)  – jerk, idiot (US) (tonto)
off licence (UK) – liquor store (US) (bodega)
fish slice (UK) – spatula (US) (paleta)

SLANG
brolly (UK) – umbrella (US/UK) (paraguas)
loo, bog (UK) – john (US) (lavabo, water)
toilet (UK) – restroom (US) (baño, lavabo)
knackered (UK) – tired, whipped, exhausted (US) (agotado)
mate (UK) – friend, buddy, pal (US) (amigo)

Many thanks to to my good friend, my old mate, my long-time pal, buddy and all round good guy Danny from Detroit, Michigan. Thanks, man!

And thank you for listening. If you have any comments or questions, or if you just want to say ‘hi’ you can send an email to [email protected] or send me a voice message at speakpipe.com/inglespodcast.

There’s a detailed list of American and British English Vocabulary with Spànish translations at mansioningles.com and there is a link to this on the website at inglespodcast.com/danny.