Do you ever talk to someone from another state and think, “WHAT did you just say?!” If people from other parts of the US sound so different to us, imagine how Megan McGlinchy feels landing in an entirely different English-speaking country!
They’ve got their own spin on common idioms…
We say: Raining cats and dogs
They say: Throwing cobbler’s knives
We say: Pulling your leg
They say: Codding ya
We say: Not all there (as in, a little crazy!)
They say: Not the full shilling.
They’ve got some very expressive words that make ours seem…bland.
Our word: Flabbergasted
Their word: Gobsmacked
Our word: Exhausted
Their word: Knackered
Our word: dirty, gross, otherwise repulsive
Their word: Manky
Our word: Nap
Their word: Kip
Oh yes, the Irish have some very expressive language indeed.
We call them public restrooms.
They call them bogs (yikes!)
We say skipping school or work, playing hooky.
They say you’re bunking off!
You could say a very long time.
But the Irish say donkey’s years.
Megan McGlinchy hears lots of this type of talk while getting Lost In Ireland, but this little cheat sheet should help you keep up!
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