BRITISH FAMILY REACT | TOP 10 THINGS AMERICANS SAY THAT THE REST OF THE WORLD DOESN'T!

[@beegee1960]

The full story behind John Hancock’s signature was that when they were signing the Declaration of independance, someone remarked that if the British ever caught them everyone who signed would be hung. John Handcock said he would sign his name big enough that the British could not miss it. And that is what he did.

[@annajosullivan]

Actually John Hancock had a price on his head and after he signed he said, there John Bull can read my signature without any spectacles, he may double his reward.

[@CheshireCatFun]

Precisely. He was first to sign and was making a statement, especially at a time where there might be a bit of a temptation to make one's signature rather small and somewhat illegible. Hancock's signature was indeed the proverbial "line in the sand."

[@Alexp36500]

I heard a totally different story. Don't we love American history. It's never actually correct 🙄🙄

[@robertgifoy3390]

He was making a statement knowing he would face hanging from the British at the time for rebellion.

[@angusrocks939]

i was gonna say that but...... thank you. us Americans are a proud bunch.

[@janetd4862]

“Tennis shoes” does sound silly when I never actually play tennis. However, I’m not “training” for anything, either, so it’s silly to call them “trainers”!

[@djbeezy]

I absolutely hate when people call shoes sneakers though. I don't know why but that drives me insane.

[@SherriLyle80s]

Or sneakers 😂 Because I'm not always stalking around behind corners lol

[@SherriLyle80s]

​@@djbeezy oh boo

[@djbeezy]

@@SherriLyle80s lol. I see we think alike ha ha ha!!

[@SuperDrLisa]

SNEAKERS

[@antoineporche-rideaux4841]

it's called the ground floor because it's the only floor that's on the ground and the others above it are called by #'s .

[@rahulmadhusudan6223]

Yeah but you can’t walk straight out from a (US) ground floor, can you??? You’ll still have to go to the lobby which indeed proves there’s a floor below leading to the streets which indeed is the real ground floor!!!

[@o.joei.b9929]

Shotgun term is actually one of history. Wells Fargo banks back in the day....transporting valuables and goods, there were 2 escorts the on the stagecoach. The driver and the passenger who was armed with a shotgun.

[@o.joei.b9929]

"Passengers" keyword. Armed with a shotgun. Where this came from "riding shotgun" is slang for newer generation that you obviously know of

[@o.joei.b9929]

​@matt5539 jus a fun/random fact. I always wondered why we yell shotgun!

[@beegee1960]

And the person riding shotgun always sat beside the driver, hence the modern equalivent is riding in the front seat beside the driver.

[@beegee1960]

Tennis shoe s were the first athletic shoes.

[@annfrost3323]

@O.Joel B. Only there were not Wells Fargo banks then. In 1845, Henry Wells and William Fargo started a messenger service in the Midwest. In 1850 the news of finding gold in California started a large migration of people looking for riches. In 1862 Wells and Fargo expanded services to the Pacific Coast. They expanded freight services moving valuables with armed guards in their wagons. In 1868 Wells founded a college for women in New York; he died in 1878. Fargo was mayor of Buffalo during the Civil War; he helped the troops and sent packages to the soldiers. He died in 1881. As a financial services company Wells Fargo started in California in 1983.

[@Mtndude76]

I usually just call them by their name, Nike, Converse or so on.

[@allendever949]

I can understand the confusion with "tennis-shoes" but I believe it you run the words together, like tenna shoes or tenny shoes, it completely changes the meaning to something like trainers. We also say Gym shoes. Workout shoes. It reminds me of an episode with Stephen Frye, he was traveling across the US and had this television program. He visited Tennessee or kentucky and met this banjo playing group, who were introduced to him as something like the Mountain Pickers. Stephen, realizing this man had a thick accent, repeated the name in his properly enunciated accent as oh, "Mount-ten" Pickers? The man, without missing a beat said 'No, not Mount-Ten, it's Mount-nnnnn" Pickers. lol

[@chimchimbiasedwreckedbyjin4056]

I think one of the reason we say first floor instead of ground floor is we utilize basements in America a lot and obviously depending n the age of the building sometimes instead of first floor it will say ground floor but a lot of Americans consider the ground floor the be the basement or underground parking and in some elevators it is marked as g though to clear that up they mark parking as p

[@elliottgatehouse6568]

Converse tennis shoes (black with white trim) were called "whitewall get-a-ways" after whitewalled tires.

[@MamaBe1963]

Y'all is definitely for those of us down south!

[@johnalden5821]

In the U.S., "college" is a generalized term for post-secondary education. But you can go to either a college or a university to obtain an undergraduate degree (a B.A. or B.S. degree). Generally, colleges are smaller and offer fewer degree programs. Also, full universities are more likely to offer multiple layers of degrees, such as masters (M.A.) or doctorates (Ph.D.). Also, universities tend to have professional schools for law, medicine, pharmacy, business, etc., where colleges don't. Also, my understanding of the British education system is that it doesn't necessarily match the four-year high school or undergraduate college timeline. Secondary schools in the UK start at age 11 roughly and go for six or seven years (I think). So you would have 1st Form up through lower and upper 6th form, then the student would go either to a professional college or university. Also, I think that some universities award undergraduate degrees after three years. So, it would be hard to determine who would be a freshman or a senior in all of those cases.

[@jimmiegiboney2473]

Mark 15:21. Hmm. Yeah, in the early to mid-1970s, my classmates and I, had to deal with that. When people would wear their, Tennis Shoes, off court, rather than change to, street shoes. They had a specific look to them, that included the word, "Tennis", with a picture of the game/sport equipment on them. Sometimes a human silhouette was included. But then, it caught on to how comfortable those rubber soles are, and other types of shoes began to be made with them. (Guys that got, cleats, and girls that got taps, thought it was fun to clank or tap, but the teachers reprimanded them for the noise, and the custodians would, for the damage to the floors.) Those of us with, horses, wore our, "cowboy boots", even when not riding. They make their own noise on hard wooden school floors! But, those sports shoes, when they didn't squeak loudly, you learned that you were sneaking up on people, intentionally or not. 😁.

[@Taekwonjoe75]

Fun fact: Lawyers are NOT allowed to just mosey out past the benches into the area in front of the judge without permission to approach the bench (as seen at 4:20). They would be told to return to their bench. If a plaintiff or defendant did that, the bailiff would tackle them.

[@EmmaChihuahua81]

They didn't do a good job of explaining "pleading the 5th". It just isn't for court rooms. It applies to the police as well. If you are under arrest and plead the 5th that can't be held against you in a court of law. They aren't supposed to even bring up your not answering questions by the police in court. You can also do it when testifying before Congress.

[@moorek1967]

Yes and if your wife catches you cheating....

[@AFMountaineer2000]

In an episode of Red Dwarf, CAT told Lister to "pleaed the fifth"

[@thegamerchef7220]

soda/pop/soda pop/coke is one we use, if i recall brits call it fizzy drinks or something of that nature.

[@lisahumphries3898]

On the west coast, we tend to always say tennis shoes. As a kid, I thought the word was teneshoes.

[@taratimblin5150]

We southerners appreciate ya'll!

[@irishbearman1044]

Definitely not nationwide but,my favorite term for athletic shoes comes from my late Mother mixing "tennis shoes" and "running shoes". Hence the phrase Tenny Runners came into my vocabulary.

[@chriswhite4999]

Your mom sounds like she was super cute! Tenny Runners is brilliant!

[@randy4768]

So long means goodbye nothing to do with distance.

[@hippiemama52]

Here's a saying, that as far as I know, is only said in New Jersey. "Down the shore" is said by New Jersians if they are going to the beach or seaside. I've never heard it said anywhere else.

[@christined6321]

The say it in PA too or at least in Philly.

[@hippiemama52]

@@christined6321Interesting. I can see that the saying might migrate across the river.

[@phillychick4196]

On the East Coast (Boston, NY, Philly)we wear SNEAKERS. The West Coast wears Tennis Shoes😂 We’re a little more RAW here in the Northeast.😊

[@NWFBOY]

Mid west we got play shoes in gym shoes

[@beverlyshane8433]

I’m a Philly girl and call them sneaks or sneakers. Yeah never called them tennis shoes.

[@stephanosrey]

Sneakers i believe came from California. When I worked as the night security on Alcatraz (the island penitentiary) I heard this explanation. the inmates used to be able to hear the guards coming to check on cells and sometimes it was difficult to trek the terrain on the wet island. In order to change this, the guards replaced or covered hard leather soles with rubber. Which the inmates called sneakers.

[@EricaGamet]

I grew up in New Hampshire and when I was 12 we moved to Colorado... people kept saying "tennies" and I had NO idea what they were on about.

[@shanti5816]

Colorado Native here, we say Tennis shoes and you guys.

[@gregcable3250]

Tennis shoes (or Tenners for short) for a non-specific athletic shoe (basketball shoes were, well, basketball shoes) where I group up in Pittsburgh--other side of the state in Philly and up the East Coast it is sneakers (don't get that at all). "Trainers"? Those are humans who train you. LOL

[@spookyskelly5276]

When I was a kid in the 90s many of the hotels we stayed in on vacation in Myrtle Beach SC had ground floor represented by a star, then first floor. Come to think of it a lot of buildings in SC are like that. I always say tennis shoes instead of sneakers.

[@Tacodude001]

Johnny Cash! Legendary musician!

[@karlamackey4675]

The Man in Black! I was probably the only two year old to have a scrapbook of Johnny Cash. And, yes, the scrapbook was black 🤣

[@ExUmbra117]

Even in the US there’s places that list it as a starter & main course is interchangeable with entree. We’ll know what you mean when using all of the above.

[@justme-xq5ml]

Gym shoes. Is used often as well for sneakers.

[@carrieflood4265]

I grew up in California. Here all athletic shoes are tennis shoes or "tennies", even if they aren't for tennis. 😀

[@bradmcwilliams2976]

Riding shotgun refers to old west stagecoach protective assistance for the stage coach typically carrying a double barrel shotgun

[@Evan-lr8nq]

I live in Upstate NY on the border of Canada and we call it University. Very def a regional thing in the US.

[@LancerX916]

John Hancock is not really said that much anymore. The reason he wanted his signature so large was because he wanted to make sure the King of England could see it. Here in California, we tend to call them Tennis shoes and not sneakers. It's a regional thing, pretty much.

[@antoineporche-rideaux4841]

no black people across america called them basketball shoes since we usually by them to play basketball

[@veronicatoothpaste8576]

here in ohio sneaker/tennis shoes are interchangable

[@LancerX916]

@@antoineporche-rideaux4841 I guess my black friends did not get the memo, since they also call them tennis shoes.

[@HistoryNerd808]

Grew up in Virginia and currently live in Texas. It's always been tennis shoes where I've lived, not sneakers.

[@JPMadden]

1) After signing the Declaration of Independence, John Hancock said, “There, John Bull can read my name without spectacles, he may double his reward, and I put his at defiance.” I thought this story was apocryphal, but it's on the website of the National Archives, a federal agency which preserves historical documents. 2) Out of all the little differences between the U.S. and the UK that I've seen in videos like this, the British/European custom of calling the floor one level up the "first floor" is the only one I find inexplicable. Visitors to the U.S. are likely further confused when using the elevators of buildings on hills. I've been to a number of office buildings where the ground floor for the front door is the second floor and the first floor is the ground floor for the back door. Elevators in these buildings might have a star next to the "2" to remind you what floor you should get off when leaving. 3) The word 'y'all" is definitely regional. You never hear it here in New England.

[@EricaGamet]

And add to that many buildings don't have a 13th floor! I mean, they DO, it's just not numbered as such.

[@renx81]

Y'all is more of a dialect thing, isn't it, whereas this comparison was about idioms. I wouldn't think dialects and accents really fit into this context, there's a bunch of separate videos looking at those.

[@kristi4113]

I was actually watching Dazed and Confused on television one day many years ago and my Dad came home from work. I didn’t think anything about it, but he had stopped in the doorway and was peeping it, too. He was convinced that movie was from the 70’s, because everything those older boys were doing is what he and his buddies did back then.

[@karenbliss8719]

I’m from Arkansas USA and I’ve always called them tennis shoes and I’ve never played one game of tennis.😂😂😂. And when we’d call “shotgun”, we’d also play a game called Chinese fire drills. Usually at night, when you get to a red light, everyone jumps out, runs around the car and jumps back in. Lol!! It can get really boring in a small town in Arkansas!!!

[@denp54z]

In the USA the first common "sports" shoe was the tennis shoe that could be worn on or off court. Football & track shoes were only worn at the game cause of the cleats, same for Golf shoes as well. The basket ball shoe are "high tops" style sports shoe. Most made by " Keds" company. That all got changed When the running/jogging shoe rage started with "Nike" shoes.

[@emmef7970]

Yes, in the 70's in CA it was tennis shoes. Back then girls only wore tennis shoes in gym class or if we were playing sports. To this day, I still don't wear tennis shoes if I'm not doing some kind of recreational activity. I have never even worn them to an amusement park, camping, etc. I think it's an aesthetic thing for me, just don' like them. To me, they just make women's feet look bigger & bulkier than they actually are, Don't know any other woman that feels that way though. They must exist though! lol.

[@johnalden5821]

My mother used the word "Keds" to mean sneakers/tennis shoes. Mind you, by the 1970s, we would not be caught dead wearing actual Keds around other kids, for fear of the teasing. By then (at least where I lived), you needed to be wearing something like Chuck Taylors (or eventually Pumas or Adidas) to avoid accusations of wearing "fish heads" or "may-pops" for shoes. There was even a little ditty kids would sing at kids for wearing "uncool" shoes: "May-pops, they make you slip and slide; May-pops, a dollar forty-nine. . ."

[@denp54z]

@@johnalden5821 That is until "Keds" came back into style while not as pricey they still became popular again with girls.

[@denp54z]

@@emmef7970 😃 You like what you like.

[@KelsaRavenlock]

The floor numbering in buildings in the US isn't fixed but changes depending on the age of building and area. The entrance floor is always denoted with a star or raised dot though.

[@obgmugen]

Love the 3 office blokes and i love this family version. Hey daz....u should have the family react to the bill burr philly rant. 🤣🤣🤣 I'd love to see that although i know its not for family viewing

[@EagleFang74]

Going up to get to the 1st floor will never sound right to me.

[@danieldeanmasterfinisher4715]

Other thing’s different Ball Pitch we call it a playing Field , chips and fry’s , potato chips and crisps Yard and garden we have a front yard side yard or a back yard , a garden is normally in the back yard a designated place where we plant fresh vegetables 🥦🥒🍅🥬🫛🫑🌶️

[@bobbimccain2385]

Y’all started from “ you all” when talking to a group.. It was shortened In the North East as “youse guys”, and on The West Coast it is “you guys”.

[@killzy707]

Football was a category of sport played on foot with a ball, as opposed to a sport played on horseback. Each region then referred to its most popular form of football as “football.” This is why American football is still football despite the ball rarely touching feet.

[@stevenj2380]

I find 'your' term "Uni" to be an annoying. I first saw it used in user forums on a photography web site. US site with lots of international users. People digging for information they could use for classes, sometimes mentioned going to "Uni".

[@Uatu-the-Watcher]

Sometimes, rarely, the 1st floor has any the “ground floor”. There are times where the building’s ground-level floor is the second or third floor in the US.

[@jlpack62]

If you have a 2 storey house in the UK, is it 3 floors? ...or is it a 1 storey house (ground + 1st floor).

[@jlpack62]

@@user-ss2zo2yu9tSo, a two storey house does not have a second floor?

[@mickeyd6444]

In the US, "University" generally refers to larger institutions offering both undergraduate and graduate programs. "College" refers to community, technical, and liberal arts schools. But in conversation I found "college" more commonly used. And yes, I agree that "entree" for main course is weird.

[@Andres64B]

I don't even say college, I say School. Anything other than College I would say High School, or middle school, or Elementary school.

[@LisaCupcake]

No, college is just college. Most people specify if they're going to a community college or tech school. Since the internet, when young people started hearing people outside the country say "Uni", it's gained popularity here.

[@l.t.1305]

Some colleges are larger than some universities

[@Rebel9668]

I say tennis shoes for about any sort of athletic type shoes except for the kind with spikes or cleats. It's just what I grew up hearing them called so that's what I call them too.

[@senseibison6237]

Australia, Japan, New Zealand, South Africa, the US, Canada, Ireland, The Philipines and the Pacific Islands all primarily use the term Soccer for the sport.

[@codygates7418]

South Africa also calls it it “Soccer” 😂

[@Deanstanley]

So does Canada and I believe Australia, also.

[@NotFearfulofFacts]

In U.S. academia, a university is a 4-year institution and larger than a college. Also, a university is comprised of several colleges. They are often referred to as "schools of..." at the university. Also, a university typically only awards Bachelor, Master, and Ph.d degrees. A college is smaller than and more specialized than a university and typically awards only Bachelor degrees and nothing higher than a Master degree. Typically a college will be classified as a liberal arts, education, or science/ technology. A community and junior colleges are two-year institutions that only award associate level degrees. The difference between a community and junior college is that a junior college usually has on-campus residences. Both usually have transfer agreements with the 4-year colleges/universities within the respective states. Also, many institutions have been dropping the "junior" from their names due to the connotation that they are "less-than" or substandard. So, most of them are just known as "whatever" college.

[@Catherine.Dorian.]

We do not call fish chicken of the sea, that’s a literal just brand of tuna fish, a name. We have a TON of fish here and we order it by the name, like flounder or salmon or whatever. We have so many choices for fish that we don’t eat some fish others do cause we deem it dirty, like carp.

[@bintheredonethat]

Dirty Like Carp Recipe (Serving, 2) Ingredients; 2 carp fillets, 1/2 stick butter, 1/4 cup lemon juice, Old Bay Seasoning, 4 6 penny nails, 1 1 & 1/2 foot long 2x4. Combine melted butter, lemon juice, 2 tbl spoons Old Bay Seasoning. Brush carp & 2x4 with butter, lemon, seasoning melt. Nail carp to 2x4. Bake in oven at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Remove carp from 2x4 and discard carp. Eat 2x4. Yummy ;o)

[@thumper7047]

In football - the ball is approximately 1 foot long. Think of it that way and it won't be so frustrating, I guess. 1st floor" vs "Ground floor" - True that the 1st is usually on the ground, but if you were outside looking at a building, the FIRST set of windows are not "Ground Windows" (unless they fell out and were now laying on the ground), It's the 1st row, so everyone else in the world calling the second row the 1st floor seems strange calling the second set of windows the "first floor". a "3-Story" Building would have 3 stories, or 3 floors. Makes sense. a 3-story building have 2 floors makes no sense. Whenever you count anything in the world, you start with "One", not "Zero or "ground or anything else, the first floor would be the very first one. Again, standing outside and looking at a 5-story building, we would count them as "1, 2, 3 ..." - Not "Ground, 2, 3 ..." that is like counting zero "Tennis Shoes" vs "Trainers" - If you would "only refer to shoes purchased only for the purpose of playing tennis, wouldn't the same apply to "Trainers"? That would only be for shoes specifically purchased for the sole purpose of training. *shrug* - Side note - were would call ponds on private property that we wanted to fish, "Sneaker ponds" as you had to sneak onto the property. I think the idea behind the name of "sneakers" is that they are soft soled and more easily quiet, as compared to a dress shoe or loafers. (not true if they are wet and making squeaking noises I guess)

[@kimzwolinski9919]

Since I started watching the Office Blokes I noticed that you use the word reckon a lot. I live in Northern Michigan and reckon is known for being something people in the southern states say. I just found it a bit interesting 😊

[@Deanstanley]

I've always lived in the south (Texas, Georgia, Florida) and I always thought reckon was something that cowboys said. I've never heard anyone use it in normal conversations

[@kimzwolinski9919]

@@Deanstanley My mom was born in Ft Payne Alabama and eventually moved to Michigan. Most of her family still lives in Alabama and some in Georgia and they all say “reckon “ Ft Payne is by Look out Mountain maybe it’s a Mountain people thing 😂

[@EricaGamet]

Brits and Australians use it. My guess is that it's originally from Britain, with the southern states holding on to their British heritage more than most.

[@Fatblue246]

makes sense, the south is more anglo-american in influence than the north historically speaking. their accents aren’t that far off from my understanding either, as far as like how their mouths move to make sounds etc. watched an accent coach talk about it in a video once i think

[@josepholszewski2565]

I use the term ya'll all the time ! From Michigan with love

[@alittleaccurate3080]

Tennisshoes in one word is a big thing in the south.

[@wendynorris7061]

I live in the U.S. and the ground floor/first floor confuses me too. I think most buildings call the ground floor the first floor. It seems that hospitals use the ground floor more than anyone else.

[@tjcuillier7024]

Freshman, Sophomore, Junior & Senior have been terms owed in the US forever... Maybe even from the beginning, IDK. Yeah, I use both sneakers and tennies as well as appetizer & entrée. As far as ground vs first floor, it depends on the elevator, you have to look when you first get on, so you know which you need to return to.

[@JustMe-dc6ks]

A lot of US college stuff was adapted from elite English universities of the 17th and 18th centuries. Looks like sophomore might’ve been a corruption of sophister.

[@UnbiasedRemarks]

Y’all and Yaw is definitely countrywide.

[@williamcahill2462]

You'll at best get a sideways glance, and at worst a beating if you say y'all in the northeast. From someone who has lived all over, I can state for sure y'all is a southern and rural thing. Few city folks use that term, unless you are in the south.

[@marydavis5234]

Not true, those words are Southern and ;no one in the NE area says either one and they are not said on the West Coast either

[@UnbiasedRemarks]

@@marydavis5234 It is true🤦🏿‍♂️ we say it here in Pittsburgh and they say it in Harrisburg and I’m from Pittsburgh. I’ve also heard people from the DMV use yall. So how is it now true my friend?

[@UnbiasedRemarks]

@@williamcahill2462 Not true. I’m from Pittsburgh Pennsylvania and everyone says y’all 😂😂 a lot of the time we pronounce it Yaw. You guys must be old old.

[@marydavis5234]

@@UnbiasedRemarks NEWSFLASH , I stated in NEW ENGLAND STATES and the West coast nether one is said, and Pennsylvania is not on the West coast or a New England State so you first comment saying it is countrywide is NOT TRUE.

[@QuestionableLifeChoices]

i have always called them gym shoes and so did everyone i knew growing up lol. im from chicago

[@dannyjoe3343]

Me too. In Ohio.

[@jeffreyphipps1507]

A college is an institution of specific study (like the college of engineering) within the university. I teach at a university within the college of computer science.

[@StevePaur-hf4vy]

John Hancock's signature is at the top center of the Declaration of Independence because he was the President of the Continental Congress who adopted it. It is said that when he was asked why he made his signature so large his reply was "so fat King George can see it all the way in England!"

[@jlpack62]

Aluminum is both spelled and pronounced differently from aluminium.

[@annfrost3323]

It is said that John Hancock said he made his signature large to make sure King George would see it clearly.

[@lisas572]

I live in the Northeast and I've only heard all my life sneakers. I watch another British KZbinrs and they call them tennis shoes.

[@charlieeckert4321]

Regarding ground floor/first floor: in an office building in the U.S., or in hotel rooms, individual office suites or rooms are numbered in the one hundreds on the street level, two hundreds on the next floor above, and so on. Is it the same in the U.K.?

[@seanhunter4297]

You 3 are funny & good natured. Love your reaction videos

[@ESUSAMEX]

Tennis shoes is an older term used by parents and grandparents in the 40s to the 70s. I say sneakers most of the time. Running shoes would be said by people who use running shoes to go on a run.

[@user-fv8uo8zl1b]

We say tennis shoes in Michigan all the time.

[@beverly.alford]

We say *tennis shoes* here in Texas-regardless of age and/or sport.

[@dougadkins7006]

@@beverly.alford I didn't know Michael Jordan wore tennis shoes on the basketball court? lol Nike website list the footwear as sneakers. Depending on the region of the country, how you refer to the footwear gives you an idea of where that person lives.

[@beverly.alford]

@@dougadkins7006 Absolutely. There are exceptions. I was speaking on the collective. 👍👟🙂

[@antoineporche-rideaux4841]

the word kicks comes from black people in amereica because when we want to tell somebody to leave we tell then "to kick rocks'

[@jartstopsign]

I have a friend in Sweden named Chelsea, her dad named her after the football club and it drives her up the wall whenever I call it soccer. It's all in good fun but it's strange how one word can set off so many people when describing a sport

[@sassycatz4470]

Grew up in New Jersey. It's sneakers.

[@Miblive]

The interesting thing is that it was a name created by the Brits, but they get upset when Americans say it.

[@davidcosta2244]

But soccer came as a British abbreviation for association football.

[@DustinAxelson]

That sounds like a her problem. A whole country isn't going to stop calling it soccer because it triggers some Swedish girl.

[@dalemoore8582]

It was called soccer all over the world when I was growing up in the 1970s

[@brianlewis5692]

"I plead the fiff"🤣 I always say 'tennis shoes'. To me 'sneakers' are tennis shoes for young children. Growing up, I never associated tennis shoes with tennis, because we pronounce it as 'tennishoes' (all merged together) rather than as 'tennis' + 'shoes'. I remember in grade school learning how to spell it, and was amazed that it actually was "tennis" + "shoes".

[@aidenbustos8625]

Same but I mainly call them tennis (pronounced ten-knees) rather than adding the shoes. Also sneakers sounded more like a brand rather than a type of shoe.

[@bethany8734]

I smash them too. To me, they are Tenna-shoes :)

[@kevinprzy4539]

I've never said tennis shoes, I've always referred tennis shoes/trainers as just "shoes".

[@Uatu-the-Watcher]

“Drop the rifle, kid” was Johnny Cash. :-)

[@ohslimgoody]

Dave Chappelle had me crackin up

[@davidowens1132]

"Riding Shotgun" is from when the western part of the United States was being settled in the 1800's. Transportation was either by foot, wagon, horse or stagecoach. Army pay wagons, mine wagons carrying the day or weeks worth of refined ore, or Stagecoaches carrying affluent passengers were all subject to being stopped and robbed at gun point or attacked by American Indians. While the driver, who sat on the left, had his hands full of the reins with which he steered the horses and controlled their speed, he couldn't protect himself or the people or contents of the wagon. Thus, a guard was added that sat on his right hand side and carried a Coach Gun aka a shotgun or scattergun. Sometimes more than one. A long barreled shotgun for distance and a short version for up close encounters. Most shotguns were double barreled so that they could shoot more than once if needed. Hence, riding shotgun was a place of responsibility...and danger because the person riding shotgun was the obvious target to take out first in any fight. Companies like the Pinkertons or Wells Fargo, would hire people to specifically ride the wagons and stagecoaches for that purpose alone. They were paid more than the driver. When a Stagecoach came into a town or stagecoach relay stop, often their would be more than one person there, waiting to relieve the arriving "Shotgun". So, calling out "Shotgun" first, was the way to make sure that you got the now open spot. These people had to stay extremely alert during their entire stage or stages of the travel route, and had to stay hyper alert day and/or night, and in every kind of weather. The horse teams had to be changed out at remote stage depos about every twenty miles, and when the horses were being changed out was one of the prime times to attempt a robbery or an attack. Attrition was high due to injury, death and stress.

[@Andres64B]

It's probably just because I grew up here, but I think the way the US does it makes more sense. Think of a two-story building. If you are on the top floor, you would be on the second story/floor.

[@johnalden5821]

I once ran into a building (not literally) overseas that had multiple floors that included four floors at or above ground level and three underground. The underground ones were labeled -1, -2, -3, and there was a "Floor 0" then 1, 2, and 3. To me, of course, every time I would hit "1" I was expecting to be at the ground level, not on the second floor. Because how can you have a "Floor 0"? Is that some Twilight zone of the multiverse? It exists, but it doesn't exist?

[@grizzlycountry1030]

I think only restaurant people say entrée here in United States. Rest of us just say "What are you going to eat?"

[@Ed9870]

"Ridin' Bitch" is another phrase, which refers to sitting in the middle of the front seat. Often when three men ride in a pick-up truck and one unfortunate male must by necessity sit between the other two men.

[@lindas5200]

If you are in an elevator in the US and there is a floor below the ground / first floor it will be referred to as the basement

[@RyanLBC]

not sure if this slang is only local to where i'm from in long beach/la county but when ever some one has the shotgun seat or passenger seat - who ever gets the backseat rides "bitch" lol.

[@RexFuturi]

Grew up in Ohio. I heard sneakers, tennis shoes, gym shoes, and basketball shoes used. I think gym shoes was most common when I was young. Basketball shoes became more common as the cost of the shoes coincidentally went up. But I was more likely to hear my older siblings talking about their Chucks, because they wore nothing but Converse.

[@danpals7678]

There are rules for calling shotgun. You have to be able to see the car before you can call shotgun. My g-kids used to go crazy over this. I just sat in back and chuckled.

[@willyburtz7299]

The last one was weird. Im from Chicago, and mostly we call them Gym Shoes.

[@dannyjoe3343]

Me too. Cant believe there are so many people claiming they say tennis shoes or sneakers. I grew up in Ohio. It's gym shoes dammit!

[@jimmiegiboney2473]

Mark 8:07. Howdy! 🤠. "Stag Party", was still a thing in the late 1960s, all of the 1970s, and maybe the early, 1980s. I remember it well. I don't know the precise moment of the transition though, but I recall the cause. (Ahem.) A magazine publisher used the word, "Stag", as part of the title. The magazine featured pictures of girls being sexy. It was not as classy as, "Playboy Magazine", by the way. Somehow, well, the people that refer to all soft drinks as, "Coke", also referred to all magazines with sexy girls in them as, "Stag magazines"! That's not good for trying to make your publication successful and stand out from the competition, when it becomes genericized! Before, home video technology, there was home MPF technology. You could rent a, "Stag", movie to show at your, "Stag Party"! Well, one day, perhaps it was, Martha Stewart, or Oprah Winfrey, someone with major influence, decided that women should have fun too! The terms that were used by men, fell into disuse, as being "sexist". Hence the better terms, "bachelor" and "bachelorette". What you said about people over there just using terms without knowing their meaning, just because they heard someone else say it, doesn't help brand names and trademarks! 😁

[@jeromebraden7364]

"Why call 'em 'tennis shoes' if you aren't playing tennis?" Why call them "trainers" if you aren't training? 🤷‍♂

[@evgenykondrat1987]

Why call it football if you don’t play the ball with the foot lol

[@raymondsmith5054]

I guess his talking in the Midwest they say tennis shoes big cities they are. Call sneakers u newer head no one said tennis shoes in NY

[@controlZchannel]

You wouldn't call them sneakers if you're not sneaking.

[@bobcload8943]

In Chicago, we called sneakers gym shoes.

[@NapTownKid410]

The worst thing is when a building here in the States uses a foreign floor count, but doesn't make the adjustment on the elevators.

[@CheshireCatFun]

"Football" wasn't "football" because you kicked the ball with your feet. "Football" was "football" because you played on foot, vs on horseback, as you do in Polo.

[@James-yg4xu]

US football is called that because the game starts with a kickoff also when turning the ball over to the other side

[@NotFearfulofFacts]

I've always found it annoying whenever people say "tennis shoes". Your Jordan's, running shoes, and etc., are not tennis shoes. If an athletic shoe is not a tennis shoe, then its not a tennis shoe. Hearing people call soda, "pop" is equally annoying. On top of that, if the soda one is drinking is not an actual Coke, don't call it a coke.

[@karlamackey4675]

The soda bubbles "pop", so I call it pop

[@dannyjoe3343]

Hearing people refer to soda as 'soda' is annoying. It's pop. And gym shoes.

[@susanstein6604]

We do say stag sometimes but we we would call it a stag party not a stag do and we would never say hen party.

[@scrapperiam463]

lthough I've heard this and know what it means it is not used in common conversation. All the t.v. and movie references are not that common in normal conversation. Pleading the fifth is pretty common as it is used not only in court but also as a comeback to someone asking a question that might be embarrassing

[@MrThankman360]

I think one big reason we say ground floor is bc we have a lot of basements here.

[@william2085]

Trainers? Trainers? What are you training for? Are you training yourselves to walk? Oh, I know. You're trying to train yourselves to run. That would make sense because most Brits do not know how to run. Just about every Brit I have seen on TV or in movies has a spastic running style. Kinda like Pee Wee Herman, with arms and legs flailing about in all directions. I remember an episode of "The Sweeny" that had a foot chase scene. My brother and I died laughing at the criminal trying to run away.

[@mintjulius275]

I'm a new Englander but I've said yall my whole life. Its just an awfully convenient contraction. And maybe having half my family in the south contributed

[@jxstified7558]

I say yall all the time being raised in the south you cant avoid it.

[@JordanJMyers]

I remember working at Kroger in the office and a customer needed to sign a check. So he said oh you need my John Henry?? Lol I laughed cause I thought he was joking. Nope dead serious lol

[@beverly.alford]

John “Hancock” 😊

[@JordanJMyers]

@@beverly.alford what about him

[@bengilbert7655]

He confused two famous names. John Henry was a steel-driving man according to the folk song.

[@moorek1967]

@@JordanJMyers John Henry was a steel driving man.

[@JordanJMyers]

@@moorek1967 Yes I know lol hence why I laughed at the guy who was serious about it.

[@danielleeverhart9423]

If your from the Midwest they're called Gym shoes for Gymnasium).

[@1stsharkb8]

In Texas we say "tennyshoe". Yes! One word! Lol

[@christophiluslovingchristb5441]

Although I would know what a ohn Handcock is, I never actually use the phrase. I merely ask for their signature. I think the phrase is a little bit outdated.

[@PenelopeFrank]

John Hancock usage has diminished the past decade or so. As a 50 year old, it was used often in my youth.