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Getting
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onestopenglish.com
|
by Susan
Stempleski
Second
in a series of articles on differences
between American
and British English
Transport vs transportation
Getting into and around
town
Taking the train
Parts of a car
Types of motor vehicles
Types of roads
Things on or near
a road
A final note
Next in the series
Some of the most obvious differences between American
and British English are in vocabulary related to transport, or,
as we Americans would say, transportation. Speakers of American
and British English both use the same verb, transport, to mean
to move people or things from one place to another, but when it comes
to talking about the business of moving people around, the corresponding
noun forms are different. What the British call transport
travel by rail, plane, coach, bus, ferry, metro and tram is called
transportation by the Americans.
This is especially true for areas of transportation that
developed during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. For example,
the vocabulary related to cars and other motor vehicles varies significantly.
An American car has a hood, whereas a British car has a bonnet,
and what the British call a lorry we Americans call a truck.
This article takes a look at some of the major differences in vocabulary
and usage related to automotive and rail transportation and travel.
top
When British speakers arrive in the U.S. by plane, they
need a different vocabulary just to get into town. Whereas in Britain
people often have the option of taking a coach into town, in the
U.S. they would take a bus. And if you want to get into town faster
in America, you take the subway, whereas in Britain you take the
Underground. If you are planning to use public transportation to
travel around an American city, the following terms will be useful.
downtown and uptown
The word downtown refers to the center of a town or city, especially
the business or shopping areas. Its opposite, uptown, refers
to the areas of a city that are farthest away from the center, and which
are often residential areas.
local and express
A local bus or train stops at all the regular stopping places
on its route. If you want to get to your destination faster, you take
an express.
Metrocard
In big cities like New York and Washington, D.C. you can pay your bus
or subway fare with a Metrocard, a ticket that you buy from machines
located in subway stations.
token
In some cities, you can pay your fare with a token, a small coin-shaped
piece of metal that you buy at a token booth.
transfer
A transfer is a special ticket that allows you to change from
one bus or another without paying more money.
trolley (or streetcar)
In a few American cities, San Francisco for example, you can still ride
a trolley or a streetcar, an electric vehicle that moves
along metal tracks in the middle of the street. Speakers of British
English call this type of vehicle a tram and use the word trolley
to describe the large basket on wheels that you push around a supermarket,
something Americans call a shopping cart.
top
Because of the great distances to be covered in the U.S.,
flying is a very popular way of getting around the country. However, some
Americans prefer to go from city to city by train or railroad -
the American equivalent of the British term railway. Here are some
examples of American and British differences in vocabulary and usage related
to travel by train.
American |
British |
baggage car |
baggage van |
baggage cart |
luggage trolley |
café car |
buffet car |
engineer |
engine driver |
one-way ticket |
single ticket |
round-trip ticket |
return ticket |
railroad car |
railway carriage |
schedule |
timetable |
train station |
railway station |
Note that the terms one-way and round-trip
are sometimes used in Britain, but they are not as common as single
and return.
top
While there are differences between American and British
English in all areas of transportation and travel, the most striking ones
are in the vocabulary associated with the parts of a car. Listen to Americans
describe their cars, and you'll hear an amazing number of differences.
Here is a list of the most common ones:
American |
British |
backup light |
reversing light |
dimmer switch |
dip switch |
fender |
wing |
gas pump/fuel pump |
petrol pump |
generator |
dynamo |
hood |
bonnet |
license plate |
number plate |
parking light |
sidelight |
sideview mirror |
wing mirror |
spark plug |
sparking plug |
stick shift |
gear stick |
tail light |
tail lamp/tail light |
trunk |
boot |
windshield |
windscreen |
windshield wipers |
windscreen wipers |
top
There are also differences in the words speakers of American
and British English use to describe different types of motor vehicles.
The following is a list of examples in which different words and expressions
are used for the same type of vehicle.
American |
British |
intercity bus |
coach |
motorcycle |
motorbike |
sedan |
saloon (car) |
station wagon |
estate (car) |
truck |
lorry |
top
Some styles of American motor vehicles, however, are described
by names for which there are no exact British equivalents. This is the
case with the following terms:
A sport utility vehicle or SUV is a large
road vehicle with four-wheel drive that is designed to be driven on
rough ground.
A recreational vehicle or RV is a large
road vehicle that people can live in.
top
Americans use a wide variety of terms to describe the
many different types of roads that are part of the national and state
highway systems in the U.S. In only a few cases are there direct British
equivalents for the American terms. The following is a list of examples
in which the American and British English use different terms to indicate
essentially the same type of road.
American |
British |
divided highway |
dual carriageway |
superhighway/expressway |
motorway |
Sometimes, however, there are no exact British equivalents
for the American terms, as is the case with the following:
The word highway is the most general term for
a road in American English. It is used to refer to any road built for
fast travel between towns and cities: We drove along the Pacific
Coast Highway.
An interstate (highway) is a wide road with several
lines of traffic going in each direction and built for travel from state
to state as part of the U.S. National Highway System: Driving on
the interstate, I decided to exit at the city of Ormond.
A freeway is a large divided highway that is
usually in or near a big city and does not cost anything to use: The
Santa Monica Freeway passes through business and residential areas.
A parkway is a wide road with an area of trees
and grass on both sides and sometimes along the middle of the road:
The hotel is located near the Grand Central Parkway.
A tollway is a long wide highway that you have
to pay to drive on: Take the North Dallas Tollway north and exit
at West Park Boulevard.
A turnpike is a highway in the eastern part of
the U.S. that drivers must pay to use: The Massachusetts Turnpike
is the main highway leading through Boston.
top
There are a few things found on or near a road that have
the same names in American and British English. For example, the terms
parking meter, pedestrian and traffic are shared
by both varieties of English. However, there are a number of other things
that have different names in American and British English. Here is a list
of the most common ones:
American |
British |
crosswalk |
pedestrian crossing/zebra crossing |
detour |
diversion |
gas station |
petrol station |
overpass |
flyover |
parking lot |
car park |
rest area |
lay-by |
sidewalk |
pavement |
stoplight |
traffic lights |
taxi stand |
taxi rank |
traffic circle/rotary |
roundabout |
top
Note that while American and British English show significant
differences in vocabulary related to motor and rail transportation and
travel, vocabulary concerning more recently developed means of travel
transportation aviation and rocket science are relatively
minor.
top
The next article in this series will discuss American
and British differences in clothing and shopping terms.
top
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