Episode 95
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Two weeks ago, we started with a series of vocabulary differences between American and British English. Today we will continue this series, although we’ll focus on food vocabulary differences.
And with a point of view story, you’re going to compare the different grammar points. It’s the perfect way to learn grammar and new vocabulary without memorizing.
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Ok! Let’s start!
1)Zucchini
Maybe you aren’t familiar with this word.
It’s a long, thin vegetable with dark green skin. It looks similar to a cucumber, but it’s larger, and we don’t eat it in a salad.
Yes. I’m talking about a vegetable called zucchini. I love zucchini noodles and zucchini soup! You should try that out because it’s simply delicious!
In the United Kingdom, people use the word courgette, which comes from French.
American-zucchini
British- courgette
2)I’m sure you know the meaning of the following word.
I’m talking about the word cookie. Everybody loves chocolate cookies!
But do you know the meaning of the word biscuit?
That’s right. Biscuit has the same meaning as "cookie," though it’s used in the UK.
American-cookie
British- biscuit
3) There’s a purple vegetable, similar to an egg. Can you guess?
Exactly! An eggplant!
What do you think? Personally, I don't think eggplants look like an egg.
In British it’s called aubergine. It sounds funny because it’s also a word that comes from French.
American-eggplant
British- aubergine
4) Have you ever heard of jacket potatoes?
No. It’s not a potato that’s wearing a jacket.
In American English, we call them baked potatoes, but in British, it’s called jacket potato.
Therefore, baked or jacket potatoes are usually well cooked, so they have a fluffy interior and a crisp skin.
American-baked potatoes
British- jacket potato.
5) And even though I love baked potatoes, I also eat fries from time to time.
Do you know what they call them in the UK?
Yep, in the UK, they're called chips.
American-french fries/ fries
British-chips
6)Let’s see if you can guess this one.
It’s one of the most popular plants in the States.
It’s a tall vegetable with yellow and white seeds. We often cook the seeds or made them into flour or feed them to animals.
Yes. The correct word is corn or maize. The word maze is used in the UK.
American-corn
British- maize
7) Try guessing the next word. It's also straightforward:
Think of sweet food made of sugar or chocolate.
That's right! Candy.
In the UK, they call them sweets.
Candies come in all shapes and textures. They are made using sugar, chocolate, artificial, or natural sweeteners.
Sometimes we use sweeteners instead of sugar because they have fewer calories.
American-candy
British- sweets
8) And how about something sweet and icy?
Ice cream would be a perfect guess here though in this case, I was thinking about a popsicle.
A popsicle is a refreshing dessert that is often made out of frozen fruit juice. I love preparing my own ice-cream at home, but I prefer sherbet instead of popsicles. Sherbet is an ice cream made of fruit. I buy frozen fruits like strawberries or raspberries and then mix them with yogurt - you have to try it! It's delicious, refreshing, and very healthy.
In British English, they call it "ice lolly,"
American-popsicle
British- ice lolly
9) The last word is also a delicious dessert. It is very popular nowadays, and almost anyone can prepare it.
I was talking about a cupcake.
A cupcake is very similar to a muffin, but it is always sweet and often covered with frosting.
Muffins, on the other hand, are generally considered healthier than
cupcakes. They are usually made with whole wheat flour and loaded with fruit.
I prefer muffins over cupcakes because I find them healthier.
In British English, they are called a fairy cake.
American-cupcake
British- fairy cake
Speaking Practice
POV Story: Grammar in Context
Read the same story from different points of view and notice how grammar changes naturally.
First version
Jack’s Point of View · Past Tense
When I was 8, my mom threw me a birthday party and invited my friends.
She was very worried about what I ate, so she prepared a healthy meal for the party as well.
We kids love to eat fries and all kinds of unhealthy snacks, but instead, my mom made a dish of baked potatoes with eggplants and zucchini.
I asked her the day before to bake some cupcakes or some cookies, although she figured it would be better if my friends and I ate some blueberry muffins instead.
And yes, the party was a disaster. I became upset because my friends wanted to leave.
Fortunately, my mother was always resourceful, so she had made some orange popsicles.
Everyone loves her orange popsicles. I don’t know why exactly.
Apparently, she makes them with freshly squeezed organic oranges.
Second version
Mother’s Point of View · Past Tense
When my son Jack was 8, I threw him a birthday party and invited his friends.
I was very worried about what he ate, so I prepared a healthy meal for the party as well.
Kids love to eat fries and all kinds of unhealthy snacks, but instead, I made a dish of baked potatoes with eggplants and zucchini.
My son asked me the day before to bake some cupcakes or some cookies, although I figured it would be better if he and his friends ate some blueberry muffins instead.
And yes, the party was a disaster. My son was upset because his friends wanted to leave.
Fortunately, I'm a resourceful mother, so I had made some orange popsicles.
Everyone loves my orange popsicles. Do you know why? I make them with freshly squeezed organic oranges.
Thanks for listening, and I’ll see you in the next episode.
Review
Vocabulary from This Episode
Review the most useful words and expressions before listening again.
01 zucchini / courgette
a long green vegetable.
05 fries / chips
thin pieces of fried potato.
02 cookie / biscuit
a small sweet baked food.
06 corn / maize
a cereal plant with yellow kernels.
03 eggplant / aubergine
a purple vegetable with soft flesh.
07 candy / sweets
sweet food made mainly from sugar.
04 baked potato / jacket potato
a whole potato cooked in its skin.
08 popsicle / ice lolly
a frozen flavored treat on a stick.
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