You may think that knowing a foreign language is a trouble-free way to express your thoughts to foreigners. You may also believe that knowing a certain language perfectly, guarantees you that you will understand your foreign friends. But... the same language doesn't always mean that it's the same all over the world - unfortunately.
British English and American English is a classic example of this: when it comes to vocabulary and different mindsets between the two. It is said that American people are rather sociable whereas British people seem to be more withdrawn and reserved, but should we really rely on this stereotypical view? Maybe Americans are more courageous when it comes to achieving professional success. They are more self-confident and believe that they can achieve whatever they set their mind simply by working hard.
But look at such Brits as actress Emilia Clark who plays Daenerys Targaryen - one of the main characters in the well-known series "Game of thrones", or comic Rowan Atkinson – famous for his role as Mr. Bean. They aren‘t boring or cool, are they? :) But even stereotypical aspects don't always seem to fit. There is a lot of truth in the belief that it can be difficult for Brits and Americans to understand each another. It's often because of different vocabulary, pronunciation or... slang.
As you can see in the interview below, it can sometimes be a great source of fun. So, let's see what kind of slang words Hugh Laurie and the famous TV personality Ellen DeGeneres served to each other.
FLOSSING (AmE) – it's showing off
CHINWAG (BrE) – to chat
BADONKADONK (AmE) – it's an extremely curvaceous female behind
CHUFFED TO BITS (BrE) – to be really pleased, excited
SHAWTY (AmE) – veeery veeery attractive girl ;)
So, it's quite funny and sometimes astonishing especially when it comes to every-day use of the same language. However, slang is slang so it has the right to be different and sophisticated. But what will you say if you find out that there are over 21 various accents all over the world? You can listen to them just in video below (you can start from 0:30):
So it's good to become familiar with various accents to be able to understand people using English in all corners of the world. But the most "difficult" thing is definitely the vocabulary.
As you can see, learning a foreign language is something perpetual. But as we wrote here www.directlanguagelab.blogspot.com on our blog, there are many ways to make it easier. So, don't waste your time. Start improving your English (or any other language) so you can communicate clearly with both Americans and Brits! :)
