United Kingdom Terminology |
U.S. Terminology
– Explanation |
£ |
Symbol for a British
pound. The pound coins are in denominations of £1 and £2; paper pound notes range from
£5, £10 and £20 (they may go higher; however, we don't know) |
| Airing Cupboard | Closet housing hot water
storage tank, usually shelved to store laundry or linen |
| Bedsit | A one room apartment
with light cooking facilities but without private bath |
| Bungalow | One story ground floor
house |
| Cloakroom | Ground floor toilet and
hand-wash sink |
| Curtains/Nets | Drapes/sheers |
| Cupboard | Closet |
| Council Tax | Local tax levied by
local council to fund local services expenditure |
| Cowboy | Slang term for a repair
man that carries out a poor quality job at a high price |
| Direct Debit | Your bank pays your
monthly utility bills on fixed dates |
| Dosh | Money |
| En-suite | Bathroom adjoining main
bedroom |
| Flat | Apartment |
| Flatlet | Small apartment, usually
within a house or annexed to it |
| Freehold | Absolute ownership of a
building and the plot of land on which it stands |
| Garden | Yard, usually a grassed
area with trees and flowers fenced at rear and sometimes at front |
| Garden Flat | Basement or ground floor
flat with garden – term loosely used, garden may not exist |
| Gazumping | Acceptance of higher
offer on property purchase prior to exchange of contracts – unethical professionally,
but not illegal |
| Ginea | Equates to £1 (one
pound) plus 1 shilling (£1.1) |
| Giro Credit | You pay your utility
bills directly to a British Post Office |
| Hall | Lobby leading from front
entrance door |
| Housing Estate | Sub-division |
| Landing | Lobby area at top of
stairs outside the bedrooms |
| Lime Scale | Water in the London area
is "hard", good for your health but bad for electrical appliances |
| Link Detached | House joined on both
sides by others but staggered at an angle to give the appearance of being detached |
| Loo | Slang term in common
usage meaning toilet, perfectly okay to use anytime, and place |
| Lounge | Living room, general
purpose dayroom |
| Lounge Diner | Living room with dining
area |
| Maisonette | A flat on two or more
floors |
| Mews House | Converted house downtown
originally the servants residence for a large family house – often small but
attractive and expensive |
| Monkey | 500 pounds
(£500)sterling |
| Open fire | Coal or log burning
fire; in most areas only Real fire smoke-free fuel may be burnt e.g. "Coalite" |
p |
Symbol for a British
pence; coins are in denominations of 1p 2p 5p 10p and 20p
|
| Pavement | Sidewalk |
| Pence | equates to our cents
i.e. 20p = 20 pence which is equal to £0.20, just as 20 cents is equal to $0.20 (although the pence here are worth more than the cents in the U.S.) |
| Pied-a-terre | Small flat with minimum
facilities |
| Pony | 25 pounds (£25)
sterling |
| Pound | equates to our dollar
bill; currently it takes $1.45 to equal one pound, but the market fluctuates |
| Power Point or | Electrical outlet, 240
volt amp max. per Power Socket outlet |
| Quid | equates to £1 (one
pound) |
| Reception Room | Any room other than a
bedroom, kitchen or bathroom, i.e. living room, dining room, etc. |
| Semi-detached | Duplex house |
| Shilling | Not sure, but we think
it's equivalent to 10p (ten pence) |
| Sink | The sink is in the
kitchen only; all bathroom sinks are termed basins |
| Sofa or Settee | Davenport |
| Solicitor | Lawyer |
| Standing Order | Your bank pays your
monthly rent on a fixed date |
| Studio Flat | Small self-contained one
room apartment with own entrance and bathroom |
| Tap | Faucet |
| Terraced House | House in a row joined to
others on both sides |
| To Let | For rent; the landlord
lets, the tenant rents |
| The Bill | A policeman |
| Wardrobe | Freestanding cabinet
style furniture for clothing storage |
| Way Out | Exit (not slang from the
60’s) |
| WC | Toilet (water closet)
usually termed WC in a public place |
| Yard | Concrete or dirt area, not a garden but may be part of one – often a work type area |