1. Who did John have an unpleasant conversation with?
2. What was this person like?
3. What did this person ask from John?
4. What was this person’s reaction to John’s answer?
5. What three questions did this person put up?
6. What was this man’s reaction to John’s last answer?
7. What did Emily advice to John and why?
8. What did John do?
9. What did Graham Norton (interviewer) ask and how did Emily react to this question?
10. Why did Emily say that their children were semi-American?

source (video and picture): Emily Blunt Wishes John Krasinski Would Be Less American, The Graham Norton Show, Youtube

keys/megoldások: 1. a Customs agent; 2. He was about John’s age and he seemed a bit grumpy.; 3. He asked if he was an actor and what he knew John from.; 4. He said strike one. (Strike one is the first. If someone makes some kind of mistake, you can say Strike 1, meaning they have two more chances to do the right thing. It can be kind of a joke.); 5. He asked who John was visiting, what he knew John’s wife from and what her name was.; 6. He said “You” in total disbelief and stamped his passport with fury.; 7. She advised him to stop wearing a baseball cap because it makes him look so American, he should blend in.; 8. He bought a tweed flat cap and walked down the street.; 9. He asked if their children were American and Emily noted that he said it with kind of sneering her.; 10. Because her oldest daughter became quite British sounding during the year that Emily was there for Mary Poppins and she was sort of saying things like bath and water in British pronunciation.

Number 1. Posh Takeaway. Fast doesn’t have to be synonymous with fried, and there are numerous outposts in England that make that quite evident. From ruby mackerel served withlentil salad to pork chili with apples, carryout restaurants like Leon in London close the gap between quick service and gourmet eats.

Number 2. Savory Pies and Pasties. It’s unclear why meat and veggies enveloped in a buttery, flaky crust never made it big on the US fast food scene, but that’s not Britain’s problem. That nation is overflowing with them. Notable sellers include Square Pie, West Cornwall Pasty Company, and Greggs.

Number 3. Curry. Brits drop a great deal on takeout, and quite often the money is spent on curry, one of the country’s most popular dishes. There’s no shortage of places to get it on the fly. A Yelp search for curry joints that serve food hot and fast pulls up over 3,000 results for London alone.

Number 4. Bacon Rolls. So simple, yet so brilliant. Delicious bacon nestled between two doughy slabs of bread. Sauce is standard, but which one is up to the person eating it. The sandwich is so popular in the UK even McDonalds and Burger King have it on their menus.

Number 5. Battered Sausage. Why have a corn dog when battered and deep fried sausage is an option? The only downside is they’re served without a stick, but you could always bring your own.

Which British fast food do you find most mouth-watering?

Which one is which? Can you match the food with their definition?

Key: 

1. d.

2. e.

3. a

4. b.

5. c.

When many of us in the US hear the word saloon we think of an old-timey bar with large swinging doors and ragtime music playing in the background. But in the UK, if you ask to be taken to a saloon, you might be guided to what we in the States refer to as a sedan car that seats four or five people. If this outcome is disappointing, remember it’s the perfect opportunity to ask for a ride to the pub.

Pants 

Proceed with caution when disclosing any information regarding your pants to a Brit because in British English, the word pants means “underpants.” If you must discuss the heavenly breathability or superior fabric grade of your new slacks, consider using the term trousers to ensure it translates accurately.

Jumper 

In the US, the word jumper refers to a person or thing that jumps.  But in the UK, jumper has the softer, cozier meaning of “sweater.” This sense of the word can be traced back to the now-obsolete definition of jump as a short coat worn by men in 1600 and 1700s.

Muppet

Jim Henson is credited with coining this term in the US to refer to his beloved part-puppet, part-marionette creations, but in Britain the word muppet has taken on a colloquial sense to refer to an incompetent or ineffective person–an idiot. No doubt Ms. Piggy would take umbrage at this less-than-flattering derivation.

Biscuit 

When many of us think of biscuits, we think of soft, flaky baked buns slathered in butter or gravy. But US tastebuds be warned: in British English, the word biscuit refers to what we might call a cookie. The word derives from the Latin biscoctum panem which means “twice-baked bread.”

Agony aunt

The term agony aunt, may conjure a family member who pinches her relatives’ cheeks a little too hard, squeezes them a little too tight, and gossips about their marriage prospects (or lack thereof) a little too fervently. But in the UK, this term refers to an editor of what is called an agony column, or what US readers might know as an advice column. The writers of Dear Abby and Ask Ann Landers are examples of agony aunts.

Braces

For many of us, the word braces conjures middle-school memories of metal-clad mouths and trips to the orthodontist. For the Brits, braces can also refer to suspenders, as in straps that hold up trousers. Both of these meanings can be traced back to the Old French word brace or braz, meaning “arms,” and its verb form bracier meaning “to embrace or to render firmly or steady by tensing.”

Boot and bonnet

Boots and bonnets are not items that we commonly associate with cars, but in the UK, boot refers to a caSr’s trunk, and bonnet refers to its hood. Be it with boots, bonnets, or hoods, it’s clear that people like to dress their cars in clothing terminology on both sides of the pond.

Pudding 

If you want what we in the States know as pudding–a soft, thick gelatinous treat–while traveling in Great Britain, you might have to get more specific with your terminology. Across the pond, pudding can refer to any sort of dessert course or to a stuffed entrail or sausage. This broader meaning explains the rise of everyone’s favorite pudding-related proverb, The proof is in the pudding, or as it was originally phrased, All the proof of the pudding is in the eating.

source: dictionary.com

Do you remember the British-American pairs from the text? Can you make pairs?

Key:

1. c.

2. a.

3. d.

4. b.

5. e.

The British have many delightful and colorful expressions that often make no sense to those of us on this side of the pond. Here are a few of our favorites.

1. LOAD OF COBBLERS

This phrase, which means “a lot of rubbish or nonsense,” has its origin in rhyming slang. The full phrase is “a load of cobbler‘s awls,” and awls rhymes with … well, you can probably figure that out. So, don’t use this one around anybody respectable.

2. HOW’S YOUR FATHER?

Brits are all about keeping things proper, so they’ve come up with many fantastic slang terms for referring to stuff that would be considered untoward in polite company. “How’s your father?” is one of these phrases. This turn of the century phrase was probably coined by comedian Harry Tate, who used it to change the subject when something he didn’t want to talk about came up. Eventually, it became slang for sexual activity.

3. ALL MOUTH AND NO TROUSERS

Hailing from the north of England, this phrase is “used to describe a man whose sense of self-importance is in inverse proportion to his actual relevance,” The mouth refers to brash talk; trousers, of course, are pants.

4. BOB’S YOUR UNCLE

It means “and there you are!” or “it’s that simple!” It’s thought to have originated in the late 1880s, when Arthur Balfour—nephew of the Victorian Prime Minister Robert Cecil—was appointed to be the Chief Secretary in Ireland though he had no qualifications. “So he got the job purely because Bob was his uncle,” A nice theory, and no one has come up with anything convincingly better.

5. BY HOOK OR BY CROOK

A very old phrase meaning to use any means possible and bearing no relation to criminals. First used in the 14th century, it refers to peasants pulling down branches for firewood using either a bill-hook or a shepherd’s crook.

6. ON THE PULL

Another British slang term for something considered rude to talk about in plain terms. If you’re out at the pub and someone tells you they’re “on the pull,” it means they’re looking for someone to hook up with. Saucy!

7. SPEND A PENNY

This slang phrase for a visit to the bathroom comes from the old practice, literally, of having to put a penny in the door of a public bathroom to use it. It’s only appropriate for informal settings, so don’t use it to ask where the restrooms are in a restaurant!

8. SWEET FANNY ADAMS

It means, essentially, f*** all, and though it sounds delightful, it has a dark historical origin: Fanny Adams was a real person, a child who was murdered and dismembered in 1867; she was nicknamed “Sweet Fanny Adams” during her murderer’s trial and execution because of her youth and innocence. Not long after, the Royal Navy introduced tinned meat rations, which the sailors referred to as Sweet Fanny Adams, a reference to the crime. Eventually the expression spread into wider use as meaning something of little or no value, and was commonly shortened to Sweet FA. In modern usage the phrase has become crossed with another, more impolite FA, which also means ‘absolutely nothing.’

source: Mentalfloss

Match the meaning with the expression.

Key:

1. e.

2. a

3. h

4. g

5. c.

6. b.

7. d.

8. f.

There are many regional British and American accents, so the terms “British accent” and “American accent” are gross oversimplifications. What a lot of Americans think of as the typical “British accent” is what’s called standardized Received Pronunciation (RP), also known as Public School English or BBC English. What most people think of as an “American accent,” is the General American (GenAm) accent, sometimes called a “newscaster accent” or “Network English.”

When English colonists established their first permanent settlement in the New World at Jamestown, Virginia, in 1607, they were sounding very much like their countrymen back home. By the time we had recordings of both Americans and Brits some three centuries later (the first audio recording of a human voice was made in 1860), the sounds of English as spoken in the Old World and New World were very different. We’re looking at a silent gap of some 300 years, so we can’t say exactly when Americans first started to sound noticeably different from the British.

As for the “why,” though, one big factor in the divergence of the accents is rhotacism. The General American accent is rhotic and speakers pronounce the r in words such as hard. The BBC-type British accent is non-rhotic, and speakers don’t pronounce the r, leaving hard sounding more like hahd. Before and during the American Revolution, the English, both in England and in the colonies, mostly spoke with a rhotic accent.  

Around the turn of 19th century, not long after the revolution, non-rhotic speech took off in southern England, especially among the upper and upper-middle classes. It was a signifier of class and status. This posh accent was standardized as Received Pronunciation and taught widely by pronunciation tutors to people who wanted to learn to speak fashionably. Because the Received Pronunciation accent was regionally “neutral” and easy to understand, it spread across England and the empire through the armed forces, the civil service and, later, the BBC.

Across the pond, many former colonists also adopted and imitated Received Pronunciation to show off their status. This happened especially in the port cities that still had close trading ties with England — Boston, Richmond, Charleston, and Savannah. From the Southeastern coast, the RP sound spread through much of the South along with plantation culture and wealth.

After industrialization and the Civil War and well into the 20th century, political and economic power largely passed from the port cities and cotton regions — New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Chicago, Detroit, etc. The British elite had much less cultural and linguistic influence in these places, which were mostly populated by the Scots-Irish and other settlers from Northern Britain, and rhotic English was still spoken there. As industrialists in these cities became the self-made economic and political elites of the Industrial Era, Received Pronunciation lost its status and fizzled out in the U.S.  

Of course, with the speed that language changes, a General American accent is now hard to find in much of this region, with New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Chicago developing their own unique accents, and GenAm now considered generally confined to a small section of the Midwest.

As mentioned above, there are regional exceptions to both these general American and British sounds. Some of the accents of southeastern England, plus the accents of Scotland and Ireland, are rhotic. Some areas of the American Southeast, plus Boston, are non-rhotic.

source: Mentalfloss

Let’s go through the main points of the story again but now you have to provide the missing words from the original text.

The language the first British …………… (1) spoke in America was not really different from the English spoken in the Old World. After 300 years, when the first audio recordings were made, however, American English was …………… (2) different from British English. One of the main differences is that Americans …………… (3) the r in words like hard while British people don’t. This …………… (4) accent was used mainly by the upper classes and it soon …………… (5) across England. It was also …………… (6) by Americans to …………… their status (7) but later as the British elite had less cultural and linguistic …………… (8) on America and with the rise of the new …………… (9) American elite it lost its status and fizzled out. There is a wide variety of American accents as well and General American accent is only spoken in a small …………… (10) of the Midwest.

Key:

1. colonists

2. noticeably

3. pronounce

4. posh

5. spread

6. adopted / imitated

7. show off

8. influence

9. self-made

10. section

1. “I’m so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers” – Anne Shirley did love fall, didn’t she?

a) American

b) British

2. I need to call the surgery and get an appointment.

a) American

b) British

3. My phone doubles as a flashlight.

a) American

b) British

4. The milk is smelly. I’m sure it’s gone off.

a) American

b) British

5. The mailman always rings twice.

a) American

b) British

6. The dustman is so friendly, we have a chat every week.

a) American

b) British

7. I’d love to have a walk-in closet for all my stuff.

a) American

b) British

8. It’s so nice that your new house has a garden in the back too.

a) American

b) British

9. If I were a rich man, I’d have gold faucets in my bathroom.

a) American

b) British

10. The main storage compartment in a vehicle is called the boot.

a) American

b) British

11. Can I put all your groceries in the trunk?

a) American

b) British

12. It’s so hot today, can I have a popsicle?

a) American

b) British

13. My grandmother made the most delicious jam.

a) American

b) British

14. All I could find is some green jello, would you like to have that?

a) American

b) British

15. Put courgettes on your shopping list too.

a) American

b) British

16. This was a good Halloween, I have lots and lots of sweets.

a) American

b) British

17. Can I find a phone box somewhere close?

a) American

b) British

18. My son likes Thomas, the Tank Engine, but Finley, the Fire Engine is his absolute favourite.

a) American

b) British

19. The crossing guard in front of the school is a nice older lady. She helps us cross the street.

a) American

b) British

20. I put the baby in the crib when she fell asleep.

a) American

b) British

———————————————————————————————————–

answers:

1-a, 2-b, 3-a, 4-b, 5-a, 6-b, 7-a, 8-b, 9-a, 10-b, 11-a, 12-a, 13-b, 14-a, 15-b, 16-b, 17-b, 18-b, 19-a, 20-a

1. Can you buy me some aubergine when you go to the market?

a) American

b) British

2. I left the cookie sheet at my mother’s place, so I can’t start baking now.

a) American

b) British

3. Can I have the check please?

a) American

b) British

4. Can you draw the blinds?

a) American

b) British

5. Suspenders are fabric or leather straps worn over the shoulders to hold up trousers.

a) American

b) British

6. Was it easy to find your car in the parking lot?

a) American

b) British

7. Can I have some French fries with my hamburger?

a) American

b) British

8. I love crisps, but I know they are quite unhealthy.

a) American

b) British

9. I also love playing draughts, I think I’m quite good at it.

a) American

b) British

10. Can you take out the garbage can?

a) American

b) British

11. My daughter’s favourite food? Fish fingers!

a) American

b) British

12. Helen refused to eat fried eggplant.

a) American

b) British

13. We finally decided to buy the flat in the new building.

a) American

b) British

14. My hen night was the party of the year.

a) American

b) British

15. Peter’s bachelor party ended up being a flop.

a) American

b) British

16. If you ever plan to motor west, travel my way, take the highway that is best.

a) American

b) British

17. I need to buy a new pram for this new baby.

a) American

b) British

18. They searched him on the sidewalk.

a) American

b) British

19. We need to stop for petrol.

a) American

b) British

20. You have to submit your postcode if you want to buy that dress online.

a) American

b) British

—————————————————————————————————-

answers:

1-b, 2-a, 3-a, 4-b, 5-a, 6-a, 7-a, 8-b, 9-b, 10-a, 11-b, 12-a, 13-b, 14-b, 15-a, 16-a, 17-b, 18-a, 19-b, 20-b

a) American

b) British

2. You have to stir the dough counterclockwise.

a) American

b) British

3. Oh, I left my daughter’s plimsolls at home again!

a) American

b) British

4. Aidan is the best football player in school, but he always forgets about his sneakers.

a) American

b) British

5. I need to buy more nappies, I haven’t brought enough for my baby.

a) American

b) British

6. Would you like a biscuit with your tea?

a) American

b) British

7. I ran 10k today, I deserve pudding after lunch!

a) American

b) British

8. Have you cleaned the windshield?

a) American

b) British

9. All the boys were playing soccer.

a) American

b) British

10. Hedvig hurt her wings, can you give me a plaster?

a) American

b) British

11. There is a line, so please be patient.

a) American

b) British

12. I’m knackered.

a) American

b) British

13. Monday is bank holiday, let’s do something fun.

a) American

b) British

14. Lily wanted to buy cotton candy, it reminds her of her childhood.

a) American

b) British

15. I’m going to the chemist right now, I have a splitting headache.

a) American

b) British

16. Jean was in her bathrobe when the police came.

a) American

b) British

17. I’m out of diapers and I can’t find her pacifier.

a) American

b) British

18. Can you see that small ladybird on the windowsill?

a) American

b) British

19. My grandfather prefers using the lift.

a) American

b) British

20. Can I use my mobile phone in here?

a) American

b) British

————————————————————————————–

answers:

1-b, 2-a, 3-b, 4-a, 5-b, 6-b, 7-b, 8-a, 9-a, 10-b, 11-a, 12-b, 13-b, 14-a, 15-b, 16-a, 17-a, 18-b, 19-b, 20-b