earthwalker

I've spent ages enjoying this thread....we have loads of different ways to describe stuff in Australia and as my fellow Aussies have said, they vary from state to state.

Here's a few:
We have biscuits not cookies, scones not biscuits, we wear thongs on our feet not flip flops and g-strings further up...not thongs and we have bums not butts.

My husband came to Australia from Sicily when he was a young adult...he finds English maddening, difficult and often mangles the language. He has us in fits with some of his sayings...some of his best ones are "It's raining cats and pigs" or "Do you think I came down with the last sheep?" and constantly confuses the word kitchen with chicken.

sak658

My mom from east Texas would say, "He's walking around like dead lice in falling off him" Now imagine that, must have meant he's walking slow. Reckon??

popover

I didn;t see anything wrong with it. Odd.

ljptexas

My DGKs get tickled at some of my sayings - have to explain. "over yonder".
I have an old yellow round dial desk phone & they asked "how does this thing work?" Tell them about we shared line with others... They just CANNOT conceive of not having internet, cellphones. b/w tv.
I've said "Cursive handwriting is a lost art! One day it could be used as a secret code!!!
I can remember my Dad's mom (Mam Maw) saying 'waist" for blouse...

popover

Which is where the term "shirtwaist" for a certain dress style came from.

Trisher

This is a long thread from long ago... so I haven't read it all! But here are a few things we (Canadians) say:

sofa - chesterfield
soda - soft drink or pop
coffee with 2 milk and 2 sugar - double double
dollar - loonie
two dollars - toonie
knitted beanie - toque
sneakers - runners
napkin - serviette
hot wheel cars - dinky toys
Kraft mac and cheese - Kraft Dinner
bathroom - washroom
trash disposal - garburator
check - cheque (write a cheque to pay for something)

and the list goes on!

popover

This is fun to read. Glad it got bumped up!

Boston1954

Lightning bugs, hot mats, fried dog food

That's what I call fireflies, pot holders, and hash

Trisher

DH's mom was from Great Britain. Here are some of her sayings:

pay a penny - use the restroom
are you peckish - are you hungry
baby looks so solid - baby looks so tired
a blind man on a galloping horse would be glad to see it - not quite sure what she meant
chuffed - proud
drink pills - take pills or swallow pills
fell pregnant - became pregnant

notmorecraft

Laughing aloud reading this, I'm from West of Scotland and there are loads of variations even in local towns of things,
well at herself- slightly rounder lady, biscuits-cookies, scones-biscuits, gutties- tennis shoes, pockies-mittens, living room-lounge, bog-toilet, no wonder they say English is one of the hardest languages to learn