Words index  Vivian Cook

Test of American or English words

Is the speaker of each sentence English or American? Answers below

1 The corpse was put in the boot US   UK
2 Ginger, you’re barmy                          US   UK
3 She was digging in the dirt                  US   UK
4 The room contained a large credenza US   UK
5 My car’s muffler was faulty                   US   UK
6 The man was sitting in the bleachers  US   UK
7 She received a postcard in the post US   UK
8 The baby was wearing a diaper        US   UK
9 I called him on my mobile                    US   UK
10 He was busking loudly in the street    US   UK
11 The pylon towered above the house     US   UK
12 They were mowing their yard    US   UK
13 I had grits for breakfast             US   UK
14 Under his shirt he wore a vest   US   UK
15 This garage has the best price for gas US   UK
16 My wife is visiting Paris in the fall        US   UK
17 I’ve lost the pants from this suit US   UK
18 The rocket salad was very tasty         US   UK
19 The baby had a dummy in its mouth     US  UK
20 They carried him on a gurney    US   UK

Different words for (approximately) the same meaning (UK one first)

waistcoat/vest, exhaust/muffler, autumn/ fall, rocket/arugula, mobile/cellphone, terrace/bleachers, crisps/chips, earth/dirt, dummy/pacifier, nappy/diaper

Same word, different meaning

Braces, suspenders, gravy, pants, gas, rubber, biscuit, diner, hood, trunk, pylon, bugger, pants, vest, yard, post, pavement, dirt, muffin, boot

Words unique to one language

UK  barmy, busk

US gurney, grits, credenza, arugula, pacifier, bleachers

 

Answers

1. boot  UK  (US  trunk)      6. bleachers US  (UK terraces of a stadium)   11. pylon UK (US ????        16. fall US  (UK autumn)  
2. barmy UK (US crazy)   7. post UK  (US mail)  12. yard US  (UK garden)   17. pants US  (UK trousers)  
3. dirt US  (UK earth)   8. diaper US (UK nappy)   13. grits US  (UK coarsely 18. rocket UK (US arugula)  
4. credenza US  (UK sideboard)   9. mobile UK (US cellphone)   14. vest UK (US undershirt
            ground maize)  
19. dummy UK (US pacifiers) 
5. muffler US  (UK exhaust)  10. busking UK (US  ???)   15. gas US  (UK petrol)      20. gurney US (UK ?wheeled stretcher)