as opposed to American.
I say ‘That was nice’ when I eat something yummy.
I ask ‘What is she called’ when told about new baby.
I say something is quite, i.e. ‘my hands are quite bad today’.
Things are ‘good fun’.
I use wanker and bollocks for swearing.
I also speak a bit of Irish as I definitely say ‘craic’ on a regular basis!
When my family tease me or call me on it I say ‘I live here. Of course I try to speak the language. Just as I would if I lived in a country that didn’t speak a form of English.’
They concede I have a point!
When I first moved here, I spoke British English (since that’s what I was taught at school). I got puzzled looks for asking for a “return ticket” for the train (instead of a “roundtrip ticket” and for going through a “roundabout” instead of a “rotary” (and I’ve since learned that the latter is actually a local/regional term and not even used throughout the US). You’re absolutely right, you speak whatever is spoken around you.
And my daughter has now started calling me “mum.” Go figure. 🙂
See, that’s what’s funny. I am British, married to an American, living in England. And I use ‘Americanisms’ all the time, picked up from living in a US military family for nine years. So I tell my friends what I’m fixin’ for dinner, I ask for a soda, and I use y’all.
My daughter is just mixed up. 😉