Page 3 | Americanisms

Differentforgirls · 2026-04-06T17:12:21+00:00

Is “pay check (not cheque for some reason) to pay check” a thing in the UK now. I keep seeing this on here. Surely it’s “payslip to payslip” or “wage to wage”. Context is being skint. So you live wage to wage. AIBU to think we’re losing our language to Americanisms?

CalishataFolkart · 06/04/2026 22:23

Also, cancel the check.

I’m hilarious.

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Differentforgirls · 06/04/2026 22:23

NamelessNancy · 06/04/2026 21:55

Typical Uk usage: pissed = drunk; pissed off = annoyed. American usage: pissed= annoyed.

ETA example: "DH was really pissed when I got home late last night" has two possible meanings.

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Oh yes 🤣.

Up here we say “pished” to mean drunk.

In fact we use it to mean many things. “ It was pishing down today”( raining heavily) “ did you watch that documentary - it was a load of pish”, “you’re talking pish” (if you disagree with someone), “I’ve never heard as much pish in my life” (if you really disagree with someone) “that guy talks a load of pish” (when you think someone someone is telling tall tales”)

It’s like a catch all word.

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CalishataFolkart · 06/04/2026 22:23

I find I’m turning into Hamlet as the verb “to be” is vanishing.

I know it’s a dialect thing in Scotland to say e.g. something “needs washed” instead of “needs to be washed” but the online marketplace usage of “needs gone” has spread it.

I frequently read posts on here where someone not Scottish does it and have to mentally insert the missing, “to be.”

AliceNotInChains · 06/04/2026 22:08

Differentforgirls · 06/04/2026 22:05

A bunch of replies 😬

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Yeah she’d posted on local Facebook group looking for an item she lost (after accusing me of stealing it 🙄)

Besafeeatcake · 06/04/2026 22:07

Overtheatlantic · 06/04/2026 21:59

My lunch is lunch and my dinner is dinner? 😆 I actually like the phrase “eating tea” because it still sounds very odd to me but in a nice way. I don’t think I’ve ever met an American who dislikes British-isms or English-isms. Many Americans, oddly, think you’re all superior.

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Ummmm no there are a lot of British isms I dont like think certainly don’t find the British superior. But hey I’m Canadian so that might explain it - even though I have lived in the UK for decades.

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Differentforgirls · 06/04/2026 22:05

AliceNotInChains · 06/04/2026 21:54

What makes me angry is when people say “a bunch of” about something that doesn’t make sense to be thought of as a bunch.

Eg. “I had a bunch of replies”
“I’ve got a bunch of work to do”
“they took a bunch of kids”

urgh!! My sister started saying it a few years ago and I pull her up on it every time.

A bunch of replies 😬

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Besafeeatcake · 06/04/2026 22:04

Differentforgirls · 06/04/2026 21:58

One of my favourite series of books of all time is the “Anne of Green Gables” series. But reading them as a wee girl, I had no idea what “bangs” were and had to ask my similarly addicted Aunty who explained it was a fringe. 🤣

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Yeah I have to admit fringe does make more sense! I just looked it up…

Bangs are called "bangs" because they are cut straight across, or "bang-off," which is a 19th-century term derived from grooming horse tails, known as a "bang-tail". This hair-related term shifted from equestrian use to humans, referring to hair that hangs over the forehead abruptly. The style is commonly called a "fringe" outside of North America.

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Differentforgirls · 06/04/2026 22:01

Besafeeatcake · 06/04/2026 21:16

Well how about when you greet someone and say ‘are you alright’ because to a North American it mean ARE YOU ALRIGHT???? as in has something happened?

And Brits will say Hoover which is a brand not what they are doing. How about ‘can’t be arsed?’ What does that have to do with you arse? Slag someone off - well slag does have a different meaning so….etc etc

My point is there are things that are said on both sides of the pond that may not make sense in the same language but it doesn’t make them wrong.

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I say hoover. “Whose turn is it to hoover?” My answer is always “yours”.

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Overtheatlantic · 06/04/2026 21:59

Differentforgirls · 06/04/2026 21:35

Here’s the thing about that. Do you call lunch you’re dinner and your dinner you’re tea?

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My lunch is lunch and my dinner is dinner? 😆 I actually like the phrase “eating tea” because it still sounds very odd to me but in a nice way. I don’t think I’ve ever met an American who dislikes British-isms or English-isms. Many Americans, oddly, think you’re all superior.

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Differentforgirls · 06/04/2026 21:58

Mixerfixer · 06/04/2026 21:15

Language evolving and changing is fine. But there's absolutely no need to exchange a British English word for an American word when they mean exactly the same thing. Doing that adds to value to the English language and actually reduces the number of words.

For example: film-movie, fringe-bangs.

One of my favourite series of books of all time is the “Anne of Green Gables” series. But reading them as a wee girl, I had no idea what “bangs” were and had to ask my similarly addicted Aunty who explained it was a fringe. 🤣

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SantiagoShaming · 06/04/2026 21:58

Differentforgirls · 06/04/2026 21:44

See, I would just say “thank god we’re getting our wages today.

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I’ve always said ‘my pay’ or ‘thank goodness it’s payday’ I think.

My father always used to say ‘wages’ so maybe it’s just a term that’s fallen out of fashion or evolved into something else. His wages did literally come in a little brown envelope, though!

NamelessNancy · 06/04/2026 21:55

Differentforgirls · 06/04/2026 21:50

What’s the difference? Genuinely.

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Typical Uk usage: pissed = drunk; pissed off = annoyed. American usage: pissed= annoyed.

ETA example: "DH was really pissed when I got home late last night" has two possible meanings.

AliceNotInChains · 06/04/2026 21:54

What makes me angry is when people say “a bunch of” about something that doesn’t make sense to be thought of as a bunch.

Eg. “I had a bunch of replies”
“I’ve got a bunch of work to do”
“they took a bunch of kids”

urgh!! My sister started saying it a few years ago and I pull her up on it every time.

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Differentforgirls · 06/04/2026 21:53

SantiagoShaming · 06/04/2026 21:41

Breakfast, lunch and dinner for me. I grew up in Wales.

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I’m the same but when I was a child we got “school dinner”. So it can be confusing.

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Differentforgirls · 06/04/2026 21:52

YerMotherWasAHamster · 06/04/2026 21:34

When I was a kid we'd say im going t'park, im going t'shop. And often even the t' was replaced by a sort of gug in the throat. So it would be ahm goin (weird throat thing) park.

So when I hear people say im going ... and they miss out the word to the, I hear it anyway. Its an accent thing.

Maybe im missing the point but I think what matters in language is being understood. A worldwide language (mentioned by pp above) would be great imo. The world is getting smaller and smaller. It'd be nice for everyone to properly understand each other.

I would say “tae” the park.

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Differentforgirls · 06/04/2026 21:50

NamelessNancy · 06/04/2026 21:31

Pissed/pissed off is the one that annoys me. Pissed has a meaning in the UK which is different and distinct from its US usage.

What’s the difference? Genuinely.

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Differentforgirls · 06/04/2026 21:44

SantiagoShaming · 06/04/2026 21:18

I live in the US and the “paycheck” is the deposit of the money, as opposed to the accompanying document. That’s called the earnings statement or pay statement where I live.

I’m sure it is just a lingering thing from when people were paid with actual cheques. Pay slip to pay slip does sound weird, I haven’t had a physical pay slip for about 20 years, just log into an HR system and there the statements are. Payday to payday makes more sense to me.

See, I would just say “thank god we’re getting our wages today.

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HoppityBun · 06/04/2026 21:42

NamelessNancy · 06/04/2026 21:31

Pissed/pissed off is the one that annoys me. Pissed has a meaning in the UK which is different and distinct from its US usage.

Yes. A woman giving a presentation kept saying that she was pissed. I wasn’t the only one to be distracted by hilarity

SantiagoShaming · 06/04/2026 21:41

Differentforgirls · 06/04/2026 21:35

Here’s the thing about that. Do you call lunch you’re dinner and your dinner you’re tea?

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Breakfast, lunch and dinner for me. I grew up in Wales.

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Differentforgirls · 06/04/2026 21:39

Mixerfixer · 06/04/2026 21:09

Cheques

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❤️

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Differentforgirls · 06/04/2026 21:37

Notmyreality · 06/04/2026 21:05

The question is why doesn’t matter to you?

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Whit?

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Differentforgirls · 06/04/2026 21:35

Overtheatlantic · 06/04/2026 20:47

Ah well, you still eat your tea!

Here’s the thing about that. Do you call lunch you’re dinner and your dinner you’re tea?

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YerMotherWasAHamster · 06/04/2026 21:34

When I was a kid we'd say im going t'park, im going t'shop. And often even the t' was replaced by a sort of gug in the throat. So it would be ahm goin (weird throat thing) park.

So when I hear people say im going ... and they miss out the word to the, I hear it anyway. Its an accent thing.

Maybe im missing the point but I think what matters in language is being understood. A worldwide language (mentioned by pp above) would be great imo. The world is getting smaller and smaller. It'd be nice for everyone to properly understand each other.

Original poster

Differentforgirls · 06/04/2026 21:33

Brollo · 06/04/2026 20:45

I find it annoying because I think it’s an indicator of people consuming huge amounts of American media. It’s true that language evolves but also true that people are sad when they lose their language. We see this in efforts to preserve dialects and endangered languages like Cornish.

Thank you! This is what I mean.

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NamelessNancy · 06/04/2026 21:31

Pissed/pissed off is the one that annoys me. Pissed has a meaning in the UK which is different and distinct from its US usage.