John Cletheroe's
USA and Canada Holiday Hints
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Miscellaneous Ambiguities And Confusions
Introduction
In most cases no citizen of the USA would confuse the ambiguities listed on this page. This information is intended mainly for visitors from other countries who might be confused.
9/11 and 911
- 9/11 means the 11th of September in US date format (mm/dd). 9/11 is increasingly being used as a shorthand to refer to the terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington DC which took place on 11-Sep-01.
- 911 is the telephone number in the USA and Canada for contacting the emergency services such as the police, fire department and ambulance. Like the equivalent 999 number in Britain, it must only be used in a real emergency.
American War Of Independence and American Civil War
- American War Of Independence (1775 to 1783), fought between the thirteen British colonies and Great Britain, with the result that the colonies became the separate country, the United States Of America. Also known as the American Revolution.
- American Civil War (1861-1865), fought between the Union and the eleven Confederate States, according to most descriptions over the question of slavery (although some would say that this is too simplistic a description). Also known as the War Between the States.
Arby's, Hardee's, Harvey's and RV's
- Arby's is a national fast food chain. Their major menu items include various types of roast beef sandwiches.
- Hardee's is a large fast food chain which operates throughout the eastern and mid USA.
- A Harley is a Harley-Davidson, a make of motorbike.
- Harvey's is a regional fast food chain which operates in some parts of Canada. Harvey is also a boy's name.
- An RV is a recreational vehicle, in other words a motor home.
If you want to be really confused then try this: "Harvey rode his Harley behind an RV from Arby's to Hardee's."
Block
- See Block System.
- H And R Block, a major national accountancy firm in the USA which specialises in taxation matters, especially personal income tax.
Bus
The word "bus" is used for both short distance bus services within a town and for long distance services (what would be called coach services in Britain).
The abbreviation "Bus" or "Bus." or "B.R." refers to a Business Route.
Cajon And Cajun
For Cajon, see Spanish Place Names.
For Cajun, see Acadia And The Cajuns.
Dates
- In the UK and many other countries dates are written dd/mm/yy, so the Fourth of July 1998 would be written 4/7/98.
- In the USA dates are written mm/dd/yy, so the Fourth of July 1998 would be written 7/4/98. Dates in American motel directories indicating which rates are applicable during different periods are written in the mm/dd/yy format.
- I'm told than Canadians tend to use the UK date format.
- When specifying dates yourself, I suggest you use the dd-mmm-yy format, for example 4-Jul-98, to avoid any confusion.
Herbert Hoover and J Edgar Hoover
- Herbert Hoover (1874-1964), thirty-first president of the United States (1929-1933).
- J Edgar Hoover (1895-1972), Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation for 48 years from 1935.
Indian
- Native American, North American Indian, "Red Indian".
- A person from the country of India.
Mother's Day
- In Britain, Mother's Day is on the fourth Sunday of Lent and therefore its date varies, depending on the date of Easter.
- In the USA, and also in Australia and many other countries, Mother's Day is on the second Sunday in May.
Nachos and Natchez
On
In directions, such as those often included in motel directories, the word "on" means "onto". For example, the instruction "turn left on 53rd Street" means "turn left onto 53rd Street".
Road Number Geographical Direction Suffixes
Road number geographical direction suffixes (North, South, East or West) on signposts and highway marker shields, and in instructions giving directions to destinations, always refer to the direction of travel. For example, "I-15 North" means I-15 northbound. Those not familiar with the system might possibly think that a geographical direction suffix in instructions to destinations referred to that part of a town or city.
Theodore Roosevelt and Franklin Delano Roosevelt
- Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919), twenty-sixth President of the United States (1901-1909).
- Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882-1945), thirty-second President of the United States (1933-1945).
Sports Matches
In the USA, the away team is quoted first, the opposite to Britain. Wording such as "Houston at Denver" means that Houston will be playing away and Denver at home. By the way, the word "fixture", in the sense of a sports match, is probably not generally understood in the USA.
Station
The word station can mean a gas station (in other words, a petrol station), not a railway station. For example, in directions the instruction "turn right at Sinclair station" would almost certainly mean that you should turn right at a Sinclair gas station.
Street Number Geographical Suffixes
In large towns and cities street numbers sometimes have geographical suffixes, for example 34th Street SW, or 16th Street NE. These are very important, since 34th Street SW would almost certainly be a very considerable distance from 34th Street NE.
Subway
In a small town, a prominent "Subway" sign is far more likely to indicate a location of the Subway submarine sandwich fast food chain than an underground railway station.
Thanksgiving Day
- Throughout the USA, the Thanksgiving Day public holiday is observed on the fourth Thursday in November.
- Throughout Canada, the Thanksgiving Day public holiday is observed on the second Monday in October.
Visa
- The endorsement to a passport, allowing the holder to enter a certain country. See Immigration.
- The brand of credit card.
Wal-Mart, etc
None of these are connected to any of the others.
- Wal-Mart, the national discount store chain founded by Sam Walton. External link verified Apr-04.
- Waldenbooks, the national bookshop chain. Their locations can be found in most shopping malls. External link verified Sep-02.
- Walgreens, the national drug store chain. External link verified Sep-02.
- Wall Drug, a large old-time general store and tourist attraction in the town of Wall, South Dakota.
- Wall Street, the financial district of New York City.
- The Waltons, the 1970's television series, set in the Blue Ridge Mountains in the 1930's.
Ambiguities
American English To British English Dictionary
Words, Phrases And Abbreviations With Different Meanings In American English And British English
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As with all the other pages on this personal web site, all the information on this page is solely the opinion of the author, who has no connection whatsoever with any of the companies and organisations mentioned other than as an actual or potential customer.
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Most recently modified 30-Apr-04