"Americanisms" that Brits hate

Is that an attempt at cockney? I'm not English, let alone a Londoner.

 

Nomads weren't big on building edifices.

 

No, it refers to the Welsh as well. You're not significant enough to warrant a slur of your own. You'll have to make do with sharing that one.

 

Ummm ... I hate to be picky, but a couple of small corrections needed. The customary usage is -

"Taking the Mickey", or "Taking the Mick" (the Bliss is omitted).

"Slagging off", not "Slagging".

And it's usually "Chuck a wobbly".

 

Just thought it was worth mentioning at this point that Dick Van Dyke's portrayal of cockney in Mary Poppins should not be taken as an accurate reflection of speech in any part of the UK.

Nobody really says 'cheery bye'!

 

LOL, yes I wondered about that, but I didn't want to be too picky, and I thought maybe Cockneys said that in the 19th century. Dick Van Dycke's characterisation in Mary Poppins should not be taken as an accurate portrayal of anything - animal, vegetable or mineral. It plumbed new depths, even for Hollywood.

 

Thank you, oh well-named one. I think you know f-all about the matter.

 

You seem...angry. Cheer up, sunshine!

I'm sure Wales will become significant at some point and warrant a slur all their own...just give it another millennium or so. I mean, if the Irish could manage it, you can't be too far behind. Until then you'll just have to continue to ride the coattails of the English. Surely you're used to it by now.

 

Well,,I'm gonna have a dad an' dave put on my best bag o'fruit then me an' me trouble and strife are gonna hit the frog n' toad!

 

You're going to shave your whiskers, put on your best suit of clothes, and then you and your spouse are going to leave and go somewhere?

How close am I?

 

Shave, put on a suit, and take your wife and hit the road.

 

No real cockneys were harmed in the making of this travesty.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ak5vYS0tvg"]QI: Cockney Rhyming Slang: A Lesson with Stephen Fry - BBC - YouTube[/ame]

 

Pretty good Tom.

Just to add,, Aussies also have their own version of rhyming slang similar to the East Londoners.

 

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GvGHIW3GQv8"]Cockney Star Trek Funny Sketch | Channelbee - YouTube[/ame]

 

I can say Boot and Lorry and Bangers and Mash with the best of them.. Or how about ... She nicked my umbrella??

Relax....

 

More and more I hear the phrase 'reach out' used as a substitute for 'calling' someone. It's PC corporate jargon used to satiate socialist do-gooders that have to do nasty things. Recently my boss 'reached out' to me and 'terminated my position.' Luckily the idiot was not within my 'reach.' There, now I have 'closure'...Thanks for letting me 'reach out.'

 

Does this really need to be said. Some Americans are really so ignorant and stupid?

Non native English speakers today usually speak with a pronunciation far closer to British English than American English. They usually in my experience use American vocabulary like "regular" and "trucks" and "elevators" which is wise because Americans have problems understanding "standard", "lorries" and "lifts". But the grammar they learn is usually British.

Britain ruled its empire by learning foreign languages. But those elements of the native populations who rose to the top learned English and were educated in English or British run schools. This had nothing to do with the USA. In the nineteenth century Britain was far more powerful economically than the USA internationally.

It's changing. In a hundred years time the lingua franca will be putonghua. "Putonghua" means lingua franca. English will co-exist mainly because of places like India which certainly got their English from Britain.

Isn't American exceptionalism so vulgar?

 

So you were fired by your "socialist" boss? Is this a word that to you has no real political meaning but is just something you use as a term of abuse?

Isn't ait a bit silly of a capitalist enterprise to have bosses who are socialists? I thought socialists were against capitalism.

You weren't working in the public sector were you? You socialist you!

And he said he was "reaching out" to you as you did it?

Can you not see how what you have written here is just not credible in the slightest?

If you were really fired, we may have just got some insight into why.

 

It's whistle and flute in cockney. Do you drop the second part and just say "whistle"?

Sky(rocket) = pocket
Joe(Baxi) = taxi
apples (and pears) = stairs

Tarra then me old china.

 

Then of course there's Weegie (Glaswegian) which even some fellow Scots can have trouble with. For example "Seisapunnaburrafurramurra!" can be heard in the dairy.

"Seisa" (see-us-a) give me a "punna" pound of "burra" butter "furra" for my "murra" mother.

 

Its due to the remnants of the British gene pool that some Americans continue to be afflicted with.

 

Okay - because someone has already posted the Cockney Star Trek - here it is
"Taysiders in Space"

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Khrpy4V0-U4"]Scottish star trek - YouTube[/ame]

 

Since we're going down that road:

***WARNING - EXTREME BAD LANGUAGE/PROFANITY CONTENT***
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2GceEurBJY"]TAFF WARS PART 1[/ame]

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fmrzCyMyook"]TAFF WARS PART 2[/ame]

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cR15P-cora4&NR=1"]TAFF WARS PART 3[/ame]

 

No, not really, as I was already aware of all that (and, indeed, acknowledged all that). All that, however, doesn't change anything that I've stated. English wouldn't be the global lingua franca if it weren't for the US. By all means, feel free not to take my word for it; I'd be happy to direct you to some of the seminal works by the esteemed linguist Nicholas Ostler (who is an Englishman, no less... or, rather, no more).

No doubt earlier on, but by the end of the 19th century the US had easily surpassed Britain.

Yet you certainly seem to be one of the larger proponents of Union Jack waving on these boards.

Isn't English vanity so tiresome, especially in this modern age? Anachronisms seem to be your national fare, for whatever perverse reason. The Empire's gone and it would really behoove you to stop conducting yourselves as if it weren't. Luckily, your politicians, at least, have recognized and accepted their place in the world: at America's feet.

 

Most large corporations are socialist by nature and run by rich liberals who consider themselves more than a cut above the 'working' man. Using terms like 'reach out' are meant to deflect other liberals from identifying them as 'capitalist pigs.' Have you noticed that even the large energy corporations (BP for instance) are touting 'renewable energy' now?

NOPE... If I were, I could claim 'discrimination' probably and get a pile of money. LOL

I wasn't fired, try actually reading my post before shoving your foot in your mouth.

You missed the point...the term 'phone call' has been supplanted by 'reach out' which is a liberal, socialist, touchy-feely term. This is because socialism is running rampant in this country and around the world causing stupid people to say stupid things.