Britishisms for the American-born Author
Because the copy editing struggle is real...
Hello from the copy editing cave!
I am currently going through (slogging through?) copy edits for my 2025 historical novel The Dressmakers of London,1 and as always this is bringing several things to light:
The focus required for copy editing is very different than that for writing first drafts or developmental edits. For me, copy edits are tedious but intense and are often performed on a book that I have read approximately 40,0002 times already.
Grammar is hard, and sometimes I like the break the rules of grammar selectively in order to get a point across. Copy editors generally don’t like this, which I completely understand because their job is to keep authors on the straight and narrow of language.
Being an Anglo-American author who writes books set in the UK but was born and raised in the US brings its own set of challenges.
Over the years, I’ve built up an arsenal of words that are different in British and American English I automatically look for while copy editing or proofreading my books because either a) I have messed them up in the past or b) I have lived in the UK long enough that even I get confused about which ones are the American and which are the British meanings.
I thought that today, I would share a small selection of my danger words (British usage first and then American):
Words and phrases that are just different in the UK & US
Railway station instead of train station
Pavement instead of sidewalk
Fire engine instead of fire truck and fire brigade instead of fire department
“Any joy?” instead of “Any luck?”
Lorry instead of truck
Hob instead of stove
Loo or toilet instead of bathroom
Bin instead of trash can and rubbish instead of trash
Boot instead of trunk when speaking about a car and bonnet instead than hood
Lift instead of elevator
GP surgery instead of doctor’s office and similarly GP instead of primary care physician (if you want to be all technical about it)
Public school instead of private school and state school instead of public school
Words or phrases that have completely different meanings and can potentially cause enough confusion that I will sometimes try to eliminate them entirely from a manuscript:
Graft — In British English, graft means hard work. In American English, it means dishonest activity. Pretty different, wouldn’t you agree? My father has a real-world example of this. He attended a business meeting between American and British team members. When one of the Brits said, “We’ve put in a lot of hard graft,” the Americans blanched because they thought that the Brits had done something underhanded and possibly illegal. Fortunately, he was there to clear things up
Tabled — “To table” something has frustratingly opposite meanings in British and American English. In British English, it means to begin considering something. In American English, it means to set something aside for the time being. This was so, so confusing in my first job in London
Quite —Ahhh…a tiny word the can completely alter the meaning of a sentence depending upon who you are speaking to. I still have trouble with this one, but from what I understand, saying that something is “Quite good,” in American English means that it’s very good. However, to say something is “Quite good,” in British English can mean it’s very average bordering on a bit rubbish.3 However, it can also change with intonation which means that, according to my brother-in-law, quite can me “anything”
Braces — This one is particularly difficult because braces in the UK mean suspenders in the US. However, if you say suspenders in the UK, the person you are speaking with will assume you mean a garter belt which very much changes the meaning
Ground floor instead of first floor — This causes me no end of annoyance for me when I’m writing because I generally don’t know if, when I describe something as being on the first floor, a reader is going to think of the first floor in Britain, which is second floor in America or vice versa
Pants instead of underwear and trousers instead of pants — Ah, the word that strikes fear in the hearts of every American expat. Pants are underwear here in the UK. Trousers are American pants. At some point, you will mess this up and you will receive child-like sniggers in return even though everyone understands what you’re saying4
“That’s pants” instead of “That’s rubbish” — On a related note to the entry above, if you hear someone say “That’s pants,” it basically means that something is of very poor quality. Not so helpful in my historical novels but good to know in general
British English words and phrases I particularly enjoy:
Faff — Such a great word. A faff (noun) can be something that is a lot more effort than its worth, or you can faff about (verb), which means making a fuss over nothing
Squiffy — Meaning slightly drunk! It is incredible the number of words we have for states of inebriation in British English…
Bloody — The best all-purpose emphatic word. “That form was a bloody faff.” (Some people still consider this a swear word so know your audience.)
Moreish — Something so good that you can’t stop eating it is moreish. Pringles are moreish, and so are salt and vinegar anything
“Grasp the nettle” — My husband says this all the time and it tickles me every time. It basically means forcing yourself to do something that is difficult or unpleasant in a determined way
I am hoping to have more information like a cover and preorder link for this title soon!
Only a small exaggeration.
I put this down to the fact that, as Americans, we can sometimes show unfailing enthusiasm about things much to the bemusement of our British counterparts. Or maybe that’s just me…
I made this mistake while out for drinks with colleagues at my old job and I think I said, “Oh, come on! You all know what I mean!” which only made them laugh harder. Coincidentally, there was a time when my sister called them “trouser-pants” to avoid further confusion. Her Scottish husband loves this, and it has entered his own vocabulary.