When people from Scotland travel to the United States, they may encounter some hiccups in communication, and not just because of the accent. Scots and Americans may both speak English, but that doesn’t mean they’re always saying the same things with the same words.
The X account Scottish Banter shared a “Scottish-American travel dictionary” to help “keep the Tartan Army out of trouble in the United States.” Right in time for Scotland to return to the World Cup after a 28-year absence.
Let’s start with an example. The word “piece” can mean a lot of things, but in the U.S., it’s a pretty common slang term for a gun. In Scotland, it’s a common slang term for a sandwich. One can see how Homeland Security might take issue with someone saying they “packed a piece” for the flight.
Here are 12 other Scottish-American travel dictionary terms you may want to know, especially if you’re in Boston for the World Cup:
Messages, football, spunk, and ride
When we Americans talk about getting messages, we’re talking about texts, voicemails, emails, and the like. When wee Scots talk about getting messages, they’re referring to going shopping.
And, of course, we all know that football in the U.S. is not the same as football everywhere else in the world, including Scotland.
In the U.S., if you tell someone they’ve got a lot of spunk, it means they have a courageous, audacious feistiness to them. Usually, it’s a compliment.
Considering the fact that “spunk” means semen in Scotland, you probably don’t want to tell someone they have a lot of it. Or any of it. Or mention spunk at all.
Asking someone for a ride in the U.S. means asking them if they can drive you somewhere in a car. Sometimes, depending on context, a “ride” could have a sexual connotation for Americans. In Scotland, the sexual connotation of “ride” is much more common.
Tea, greet, randy, and fanny
“Tea” in the U.S. means actual tea, the leaves or herbs steeped in water and drunk. In Scotland, tea refers to the entire dinner meal. If you tell an American you haven’t had your tea yet, they will only offer you actual tea. For a meal, you have to say dinner or supper.
This one is surprising for Americans. “Greet” means to say hello to someone in a warm, welcoming way. In Scotland, greet means to cry.
“Randy” is generally known as a name in the U.S., either as a standalone or as short for Randall. However, the word “randy” is actually used here the same way it is in Scotland, just perhaps not as often. Randy in Scotland means “in the mood,” if you catch my drift.
“Fanny” can also be a name, but as a word, fanny means buttocks or backside in the U.S. It’s seen as actually a cute and innocent term for a butt. In Scotland, it doesn’t mean backside, but rather…frontside. The part that generally doesn’t get mentioned in public.
Scheme, shag, john, and rubber
The word “scheme” has a devious connotation in the U.S., meaning a sneaky sort of plan. In Scotland, it’s a housing estate. So a “get rich quick scheme” would have very different meanings in each country.
Thanks to movies like Austin Powers, many Americans already know that “shag” means sex in the United Kingdom. Here in the U.S., it refers to a carpet from the ’70s or a haircut.
“John” is one of the most common names in English-speaking countries, so it’s a name in both Scotland and the U.S. But Americans also use “john” in place of toilet, which might confuse a Scot if they get asked where the john is.
As a noun, “rubber” in the United States most often means condom. In Scotland, it’s just an eraser. So if a Scot asks an American if they have a rubber, it’s not a sexy proposition. They just made a mistake they need to correct.
Language differences can cause hilarious miscommunications or genuinely off-putting problems. We love to talk to our friends across the pond, but we definitely want to avoid any genuine offense or confusion when we can help it. Hopefully, knowing some of these Scottish-American language pitfalls can keep us all out of trouble.
