Americanisms...is it just me that finds them irritating?

meritaten

Gloomendoom wrote: »

Are you sure she doesn't cook with liquor?

and she carmelises apples! Car a mel! why do they miss the middle 'a' out?
oh and 'erbs. There is an H in the word- right at the beginning, hard to miss it - but do Americans pronounce it? no! Herbs its bloody 'H'erbs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

meritaten

as for Americans having no idea of the geography of Britain........I live in the South Wales Valleys and was at a bus stop one day when this car pulled up (its not unusual - I am always being asked for directions by lost tourists on THAT road), and a plaintive American voice says 'Hon, are we on the right road for Ireland'? I was tempted to give the Irish response 'Yes, but I wouldn't start from here'! but, after I stopped laughing I told him to pull in at the garage (service station) and buy a map! to then drive to Swansea and take the ferry to Cork. he looked at me in amazement and then said 'We have to cross a RIVER'?

lostinrates

meritaten wrote: »

and she carmelises apples! Car a mel! why do they miss the middle 'a' out?
oh and 'erbs. There is an H in the word- right at the beginning, hard to miss it - but do Americans pronounce it? no! Herbs its bloody 'H'erbs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, herbs is without the h in French, where we, and many Americans, got it from . (Via that pesky Latin again)

meritaten

Just cos the French don't speak English is no excuse! lol - joke!

piglet74

meritaten wrote: »

as for Americans having no idea of the geography of Britain........I live in the South Wales Valleys and was at a bus stop one day when this car pulled up (its not unusual - I am always being asked for directions by lost tourists on THAT road), and a plaintive American voice says 'Hon, are we on the right road for Ireland'? I was tempted to give the Irish response 'Yes, but I wouldn't start from here'! but, after I stopped laughing I told him to pull in at the garage (service station) and buy a map! to then drive to Swansea and take the ferry to Cork. he looked at me in amazement and then said 'We have to cross a RIVER'?

Love it!! And the Irish response u were going to give.. Brill.. Exactly what I would have said! Tho I don't know if that's because I am Irish.. Or because I am sarcastic :-)

I also hate the way they say, "Dublin Ireland" and "London England"..even " Dallas Texas".. Maybe its because their country is so big there's always more than one place with the same name?

And.. Its 10 after 4, for 4.10pm.. Etc.. So not awesome :-)

Kynthia

I hate people saying 'kids'. Kids are baby goats, we have children!!!!

Gloomendoom

meritaten wrote: »

and she carmelises apples! Car a mel! why do they miss the middle 'a' out?
oh and 'erbs. There is an H in the word- right at the beginning, hard to miss it - but do Americans pronounce it? no! Herbs its bloody 'H'erbs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

One that amuses me is the way that apple sauce (or any other kind of sauce) is pronounced as if it is one word... applesauce.

Gloomendoom

Kynthia wrote: »

I hate people saying 'kids'. Kids are baby goats, we have children!!!!

I remember reading an autobiography of a woman who emigrated to Canada in the 1950's. She was initially welcomed by the community that she moved into but then ostracised after her neighbours asked how her kids liked their new house. A bit confused, she had replied that they had never been allowed in the house and were kept in the barn.

Richard53

Personal irritants:

Ten after four (4.10)
It lacks ten of four (3.50)
I could care less (so you care a bit, then?)
Beginning anecdotes with "So ..."
One time, two times (once, twice)
Date format of month/day/year (the European day/month/year is more logical)
Stop it already (from Yiddish, and it should stay there)
OhmyGaaaaaad

However ... I really like Fall (for Autumn), which is very expressive. Like 'gotten', it is from 17C English, and is found in Shakespeare, so it has some pedigree.

Having said all that, those are just personal taste. The Americans can speak English any damn way they want to, and I won't argue. I think the OP's point (which I agree with) is that so many US terms are creeping into British English (thank you, Hollywood, TV sitcoms and Microsoft) and changing the way we speak over here. There is so much American stuff on TV these days that sometimes I have to consciously listen for distinctive markers (such as the vocalised 'r' in 'car') before I can say whether a programme I am watching is UK or US. American accents seem almost more common than our own.

True story:

So, I was standing on Petergate in York behind an elderly American couple who were doing the tourist thing. They were staring at York Minster, and she said to him "Gee, Elmer*, that thing must be two hunnert years old!"

*I made that bit up.

Before anyone thinks I am anti-American (I am not), I can truthfully say I never met an American I didn't like. But I also like our distinctive British culture and language, and I think it is in danger of being overwhelmed.

lostinrates

Richard53 wrote: »

Personal irritants:

Ten after four (4.10)
It lacks ten of four (3.50)
I could care less (so you care a bit, then?)
Beginning anecdotes with "So ..."
One time, two times (once, twice)
Date format of month/day/year (the European day/month/year is more logical)
Stop it already (from Yiddish, and it should stay there)
OhmyGaaaaaad

However ... I really like Fall (for Autumn), which is very expressive. Like 'gotten', it is from 17C English, and is found in Shakespeare, so it has some pedigree.

Having said all that, those are just personal taste. The Americans can speak English any damn way they want to, and I won't argue. I think the OP's point (which I agree with) is that so many US terms are creeping into British English (thank you, Hollywood, TV sitcoms and Microsoft) and changing the way we speak over here. There is so much American stuff on TV these days that sometimes I have to consciously listen for distinctive markers (such as the vocalised 'r' in 'car') before I can say whether a programme I am watching is UK or US. American accents seem almost more common than our own.

True story:

So, I was standing on Petergate in York behind an elderly American couple who were doing the tourist thing. They were staring at York Minster, and she said to him "Gee, Elmer*, that thing must be two hunnert years old!"

*I made that bit up.

Before anyone thinks I am anti-American (I am not), I can truthfully say I never met an American I didn't like. But I also like our distinctive British culture and language, and I think it is in danger of being overwhelmed.

I've to
D a story many times on mse about the english couple I inadvertatantly followed through Venice who were horrified the canals were not all fences off then suddenly came to the horrific realisation they hadn't seen any children. It doesn't make all British people water phobic idiots who don't realise children go to school on term time on a school day

There are some very strongly Anglophilic, and europhilic Americans, a strange but not insignificant group, who do more to engage in British culture when they are here than most of us do and are passionate about it.