Quiz – Do you speak American?

This is the game board for Parcheesi. This American spelling is a brand name, derived from the Hindi pachisi—from which the game derives. In Britain, it’s called Ludo (from the Latin for 'I play').

Mono, short for mononucleosis, is what the British call glandular fever.

An American jumper is what the British would call a pinafore dress. What the British call a jumper is what Americans would call a sweater. Many clothing names have evolved in different directions because the clothing itself has evolved since colonial times. Originally, a jumper was a kind of outer jacket or shirt, and similarly modern jumpers in both countries are worn over other clothes.

Rutabaga is an old Swedish dialect word for the type of turnip that the English call swedes (aka Swedish turnips).

British English doesn’t have a specific word for this specific type of painful cramp in the back of the calf. Ouch!

Often heard in its longer form, Hail Mary pass, it’s now used metaphorically for any kind of hopeless last-ditch effort to remedy a bad situation

From soup to nuts means ‘completely; from start to finish’.

American English has many slightly (or not-so-slightly) disparaging expressions for rural places or people. American in the sticks, with a similar meaning, is now heard in Britain too.

Drink-driving is a normal way to say it in British English, but not American.

A color guard often accompanies a marching band, moving large flags in patterns that accompany the music. A less-specifically-American meaning of 'colo(u)r guard' refers to flag carriers at a military parade or other event.