Americanisms that will never, ever cross over into the UK

Oh yeah I forgot! And yet, if you google "on the weekend" you get plenty of hits from the New York Times etc where it is patently the same meaning as the British "at the weekend"

I can't see people in these islands ever dropping the words "street" and "road" from the names of, er, streets and roads when they give directions.

why weren't Pavement called Sidewalk?

hahaha you guys think the weekend is a place
boy are you gonna be disappointed when you try to drive there

So,

British: "Are you going out at the weekend?"
US: "Are you going out over the weekend?"

Latter seems a bit clumsy

Sidewalks are made of pavement.

"Are you going out this weekend?"

j/k

g-kit, for the US "sidewalk" is the strip you walk on, "pavement" is the general term for the stuff covering a spot that's been paved

My English mother-in-law does an impression of me that sounde like a total valley girl and is peppered with "like." I swear I don't sound like that but sadly I probably do say like too much and to her that's very American sounding.

The TV thing surely comes from the fact British TV shows tend to have shorter runs than American ones. Most sitcoms only used to have a run of 6 or 7 whereas American ones run for about 24. 24 weeks is pretty much a season or two, in the mertological sense, but 6 weeks clearly isn't. I thought that was where it came from.

Also, MM is right. We would definitely say, ""Are you going out this weekend?"

"Are you going out this weekend?"

Well, yes, that works all over!

ave not avenue

"Mean" for cruel and/or unkind

I think Americans use "on the weekend" in a general sense and "over the weekend" in a specific sense.

For example:

"What do you usually do on the weekend?"
"What did you do over the weekend?"

"On the weekend" is similar to "at night" in this usage.

"boogerman"

Hold on, Americans here claim they've never heard anyone say "on the weekend"! (xp)

someone remind me what the French would say for 'at/over/on the weekend'

"On the weekend" is similar to "at night" in this usage.

Or "at the weekend"!

'this weekend' solves all problems

You people say "pressies" and "soz,"

no

xpost I've never heard "on the weekend" in the context implied here. As Jaymc used, yes.

mean meaning cruel as one of its meanings is here in uk and has been ever since i can remember

herb as nerd made popular by famed "herb the nerd" an ill-fated 1985 burger king ad campaign:

http://www.tvacres.com/images/herb_nerd_small.jpg

rapping ensued.

I say pressies and soz

like the time I was going to give 696 a Littlejohn-signed copy of the Daily Mail as a birthday pressie. but then decided he did not deserve it and had to say soz.

i think the dropping the street/road from a street/road name has come in a little bit, but it depends on the road (ie, will work for kingsland or balls pond, but not upper or city)

xpost I've never heard "on the weekend" in the context implied here. As Jaymc used, yes.

Which is exactly the context I meant it to be in!

What context did you think it was in?

jello is it me you're looking for

in fact we call him Jelly Biafra as a matter of principle

Oh wait, I think I get the weekend thing -- it's the article that's throwing it off. E.g., Jaymc's sample up there would more commonly be phrased as "what do you usually do on weekends," wouldn't it?

Anyway, I didn't say "never" -- just saying it's not really the dominant phrasing. You'll usually find it when there's a date involved: "on the weekend of July 16th." But mostly you will hear "over" (since it's a span of time) or just, you know, "this."

US = "What do you usually do on the weekend?" or "What do you usually do on weekends"
UK = "What do you usually do at the weekend?" or "What do you usually do at weekends"

What context did you think it was in?

"I'm going to a party on the weekend." No. "I'm going to a party on Saturday." Yes.

Milquetoast. See this often enough in American journalism. Never see it in Britain. Actually I don't even know what it means exactly.

i used this only last week (and i is a BritXor)!

i don't stick to one thing re weekend talk, i rotate 'this/at the/on the/over the' in turn and without pattern deviation like so much Victorian clockwork.

<i>Milquetoast. See this often enough in American journalism. Never see it in Britain. Actually I don't even know what it means exactly.

i used this only last week (and i is a BritXor)!</i>

I stand corrected!

Milquetoast is DEFINITELY not a standard Americanism altho I see that it orginated from a comic strip in a New York newspaper! Maybe it is like fall-the-season and has had better success migrating across the pond.

Herbet!!

As in "you bleeding herbet"! He's a right herbet he is - although I imagine that in quite a strong cockney so the "h" is removed and we get "erbet" - I imagine that to be a 40sish saying. "You little Herbet", that sort of thing, akin to "you blinking p0nce" I guess but a bit more affectionate than I WILL KICK YOUR HEAD IN NOW YOU W00FTER.

"Fanny" for "arse"

> Druthers. Don't think I've ever heard a British person say druthers.

me! mike's mrs used it once and i got her to explain it to me. then, like two days afterwards, stephen king used it on the tv. have been using it, albeit mostly in my head, ever since.

Britishers use fanny all the time!

"ass" for "arse"

not as "arse"

xpost

http://www.raw-tcsd.com/rolling%20fr509684.jpg

When Britishers use fanny they mean vag!!

Exactly

There is a store in the Boston area called "Frugal Fanny's" which cracks my husband up when he hears the commercials.

oh my bad. sorry pic is so big!!!

also: Britishers will never say my bad, I predict

Along those lines you'd never here anyone in the UK say "Fannypack."

They say bumbag!

What the flip is a "baby shower"?