Ten Americanisms

Talli Roland - a Canadian living in the UK - has posted an affectionate list of her ten favourite British words over on her wonderful blog. It's an entertaining read.

As a Brit currently on holiday - sorry vacationing - in the USA, I thought I'd post a list of some Americanisms that have caught my eye by way of a gentle riposte. Some I like a lot; some, I have to say, make me wince. I wonder if you can tell which?

1. Gas. An obvious one. American for petrol, of course, and petrol is, you know, kind of a liquid at normal temperatures. I know, I know, it's short for gasoline, but even so I find it amusing when the guy asks How much gas do you want? I'm always tempted to hold up my hands and say About this much.
2. Apparel. Clothes shops (sorry, stores) don't sell clothes, they sell apparel. I guess it sounds a bit grander. Same with saying Entrees and not Starters at restaurants.
3. Winningest. The team or player who has won the most is sometimes referred to as the winningest. Problem is, I can't actually think of a better word to use instead ...
4. Rotary. The first time I came across a road sign saying this I thought, briefly, that it was maybe advertising some sort of spit-roast or barbecue or something. Not sure why. Then I realised I'd driven onto a roundabout. They do call them roundabouts too, though.
5. Restroom. A weirdly elliptical way of saying toilet. Sometimes bathroom too. But I don't want a rest, or a bath, I want ...
6. Pissed. Much scope for misunderstanding. In America, if you're pissed, you're angry, not drunk.
7. Thru. Let's face it, actually a much more sensible way of spelling through.
8. Liberal. Seems to mean dangerously radical in the USA, which will be amusing to anyone British.
9. Vegetarian. The USA is one of those countries where they can't believe you actually mean it when you say you're a vegetarian. A bit like France. They generally offer you just a bit of chicken or tuna or something to add ...
10. Live Free or Die. The slogan of New Hampshire, which is where we're staying. New Hampshire is about the most polite and lovely place you can imagine, but it's motto sounds like something from a Hell's Angels chapter ...

I could go on! Any others you like?