In Britain, the importance of staying close to your grandparents is a big deal for family life. Not to suggest that this isn’t also the case in other countries, but I think it’s fair to say that the British have a unique relationship to their … Read more
Wherever you go in the world, money is what makes the place move. Everyone uses it at every level of society, for every single aspect of their lives. Money is bound up so tightly with our everyday lives that, again no matter where you go … Read more
Depending on who you ask, you may get a very different answer about whether the British are polite people. Most agree they are, and I think it’s fair to say that it’s never really helpful to judge people as a whole, based on a few … Read more
Australia is a country with an almost unimaginably large “countryside.” Endless deserts and tropical regions populate every part of the country, and though these fringes are largely uninhabited, there is naturally a very large rural population. In the U.S., these are called rednecks—but how are … Read more
In Mexican slang, immigration and customs enforcement is colloquially referred to as la migra. This literally translates simply to “immigration”, but is not meant in the broader context of the word here. It specifically refers to the U.S. border officials and enforcement offers, such as … Read more
Slang terms for crazy in the 1920s included words like “goofy” as a general term for crazy or unusual things, “bing” for a crazy person, and a variety of other terms such as “off one’s chump”. These were the most widely used slang terms for … Read more
Common slang terms for nonsense used in the 1920s included terms like “baloney” or “phonus balonus”. Many other common terms you’ll still hear today either got started or were already used in the 1920s, such as balderdash, hooey, drivel or blather. Which ones you would … Read more
Australian English is in many ways one of the most subtly bombastic of all regional English dialects. Whether that’s a reality or simply a perception of the somewhat more muted British and American English speakers, one thing that Australians do excel at is slang words … Read more
Canadians have a variety of slang alternatives to yes, including generic things such as yeah, uh-huh, yep, and even something like “OK”. Canadians are particularly fond of the phrase “Oh yah, no, for sure,” and also in general prefer “yah” to “yes” in many regions … Read more
Whether deserved or not, the British have something of a reputation for being a bit uptight. Broadly, of course, they’re really no more relaxed and no more uptight than any average population. With that said, they do have more than a few slang terms for … Read more