Divided by a Common Language Trivia Quiz

Answer: cookies

The Oxford Dictionary of Etymology defines 'biscuit' as 'crisp dry bread in a thin flat cake'. It derives from the French for 'twice baked'. The American 'cookie', on the other hand, derives from the Dutch 'koekje', meaning small cake. Obviously it was those first settlers in Nieuw Amsterdam (now New York) who introduced cookies into America. Dagwood, by the way, is an American comic strip who has a wife named Blondie, a son named Alexander and a daughter named Cookie. I just hope that's a nickname, rather than her legal name!

Answer: anorak

The original anoraks were worn by the Inuit (no, they're not Eskimoes, which is a rude Cree word meaning 'raw fish eaters'!) Inuit anoraks were - and are - made of sealskin. They come to just below the waist, unlike the larger parkas, also made from sealskin, which reach below the knees.

Answer: Bonnets, boots and wings

American hood = British bonnet (covers engine, usually at front)
American trunk = British boot (storage area, usually at the back)
American fender = British wing (covers the wheel)
American bumper = British fender (on the front to absorb collision impact)

I have absolutely no idea why British cars have bonnets, boots, and wings, they just do. Hoods are a bit of a mystery, too, although trunks surely derive from the fact that in the stagecoach days in the U.S., passengers' trunks were strapped on to the back of the vehicle. In fact, some models of early cars had an actual trunk attached on a rack at the rear of the car. The fender of an American car is the part that covers the wheel (which the British would call a wing), although many confuse it with the bumper, sometimes called the bumper bar, which is on the front and/or rear, and is designed to absorb the impact in a minor collision.

Answer: scones

Interestingly enough, scone was introduced into the English language by the Scots, but they'd have a hard time recognizing what the English call scones as anything like the round flat griddle cakes that are scones in Scotland. On the other hand, the Germanic tribes would see an English scone as resembling their schonbrut - 'fine bread'. If anyone knows why Americans call them biscuits, please let me know! (Of course, Brits would have a hard time recognizing what Americans call muffins as anything but teacakes, and nothing like muffins at all!) The Stone of Scone is a large rock on which Scottish kings sat to be crowned.

It was purloined by the English in mediaeval times, and parked under a throne in Westminster Abbey, so that English kings and queens could be crowned on it.

However, it has now been returned to the Scots. I don't know what they do with it nowadays. Maybe they'll lend it to Westminster when the next British monarch is crowned. Are you as confused as I am?

Answer: spend it

For aeons (or eons if you're an American), the British referred to first gold sovereigns and then pounds as 'quids' - derived from the Latin 'quibus', meaning 'the wherewithal'. A quid in the U.S., however, is a chunk of chewing tobacco, and chewing tobacco was a nasty habit indulged in by old-time baseball players and ranch hands (which is why all those saloons in the Westerns came equipped with spitoons, for the tobacco juice. Ugh!) Evidently, a plug of chewing tobacco is called a quid based on the fact that it is chewed, like cud.

Answer: Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs

Different governments, different names, but it still means we end up paying! Americans shorten Internal revenue Service to IRS, while Brits commonly refer to Inland Revenue, but it all means that we pay our dues for services rendered by our governments. HM has been paying tax on her personal income (which is considerable) since 1992, the first British monarch ever to do so. You might remember the slight conflagration at Windsor Castle (some say it was caused by one of the royal brood leaving an electric fire turned on near the curtains).

There was quite an uproar among the Brits when it was intimated that the bill for repairs should be footed by the tax payers. That's when the Queen agreed to pay income tax. You just have to light a fire under some folks, don't you?

Answer: cinema

The first films were called moving pictures, which, in the States was shortened to 'movies', and in the sceptred isle to 'pictures'. The Brits also used to refer to going to a movie as going to the flicks, presumably because those old silents flickered across the screen. Americans go to movies in theatres (spelled theaters in the States), while the Brits go to the cinema.

Answer: beach

Of course, it depends on which side of the States one lives - on the West Coast, they go to the beach and on the East Coast, they go to the shore.

Answer: Mister or Mr. or Miss

A British doctor spends six years earning his or her B.M.ChB, and is then address as Doctor. Then, if he or she puts in several more years to earn an FRCS (Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons), he or she reverts to plain Mr., Mrs. or Miss. How's that for daft? Americans call all physicians Doctor, regardless of their specialty, and chiropractors, natureopaths, homeopaths, dentists and vets get the title, too.

Answer: estate car

I don't know why either one is called by its name, but doesn't estate car sound so much more grand than station wagon?

Answer: economy

Coach sounds much more impressive than economy, doesn't it? When the British travel by coach, they're travelling on a large 'bus from one city to another (it's only in cities that buses are called buses in the U.K.). Americans travelling between cities either drive, fly or go by 'bus - usually Greyhound.

Answer: sidewalks

Pavements used to be called flagways in Britain, because they were paved with flagstones (the streets were paved with cobble stones, which made for a pretty bumpy ride in the coach, I would imagine). Americans obviously decided that since the pedestrian walkway ran alongside the paved street, it should be called the sidewalk. Makes sense to me.

Answer: motorway

I question the term freeway since every freeway I've ever driven on has a string of toll booths every few miles, and one has to fork over cash to go the next few miles. Motorway is much more descriptive. Did you know that it's against the law in Britain for cyclists or pedestrians to be on the motorway?

Answer: spanner

I assume that spanners (or wrenches) were invented around the same time as nuts and bolts, which would have come along during the Industrial Revolution. The first wrench (or spanner) was patented in 1835 by Solyman Merrick, but I have no idea as to which side of the Big Pond Mr. Merrick was on when he came up with the idea for this handy tool. Have you noticed that American English and British really start differing when it comes to things invented since the American Revolution? Note to Americans: Don't try buying pantyhose in the U.K. Ask for tights.

Answer: Managing Director

The owner or president of a company is usually called the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) in the States, while in the UK, the equivalent term is Managing Director.