News1 min ago
"I'm stuffed."
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If someone was sitting with you at the dinner table and blurted out, "I'm stuffed," would you immediately know he was talking about a full stomach? Or would a sexual connotation cross your mind?
I'm American and was told an anecdote about another American saying this at a table full of his Australian in-laws and then having to explain to the now silent table what he meant.
Is the "I'm full" intepretation so common in the U.K. that saying "I'm stuffed" in this context wouldn't make anyone giggle?
I'm American and was told an anecdote about another American saying this at a table full of his Australian in-laws and then having to explain to the now silent table what he meant.
Is the "I'm full" intepretation so common in the U.K. that saying "I'm stuffed" in this context wouldn't make anyone giggle?
Answers
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I just found two Australian sites (on koalanet.com and Aussieslang.com) that says it means I'm tired. I bet the person who told me the anecdote (saying she heard it directly from the mispeaking American himself) recalled the wrong offending word altogether.
I've read that in Britain, knocked up can mean something put together hastily or even the act of knocking on a door when going to visit. Don't know if the American meaning of made pregnant is common in the U.K. or at least familiar if the movie of that name was shown there, but trying to use knocked up in terms of building or visiting would definitely elicit a giggle in the U.S.
Basically, I was trying to find some term that is innocuous in the U.S. that would be eyebrow-raising in the U.K. (need it for a story I'm writing.)
I've read that in Britain, knocked up can mean something put together hastily or even the act of knocking on a door when going to visit. Don't know if the American meaning of made pregnant is common in the U.K. or at least familiar if the movie of that name was shown there, but trying to use knocked up in terms of building or visiting would definitely elicit a giggle in the U.S.
Basically, I was trying to find some term that is innocuous in the U.S. that would be eyebrow-raising in the U.K. (need it for a story I'm writing.)
If you are looking for something specifically relating to a pregnant woman, here are some British phrases for that state...
1. She's up the stick.
2. She's up the pole
3. She's up the duff.
4. She's got a bun in the oven.
5. She's in the pudding club.
There are others, of course, but would any of those be innocuous in the US of A?
1. She's up the stick.
2. She's up the pole
3. She's up the duff.
4. She's got a bun in the oven.
5. She's in the pudding club.
There are others, of course, but would any of those be innocuous in the US of A?
"I'm stuffed " could only mean 'full, replete, had a sufficiency" at table in Britain. Otherwise it means "Now I'm in trouble", "I've got a big problem now". On the other hand 'Get stuffed!" is not an invitation to eat too much! It's said to men and women .It is not taken to mean "Go and get pregnant !" or "Go and have sex!" It means "Go away!" and may ,or may not, be meant as a hostile or angry 'request': it can be a robust , but friendly, expression of disbelief or of a wish to be left in peace. In these instances 'stuffed' is most likely a reference to taxidermy than to anything sexual.
'Knocked up' can mean pregnant here but 'to knock someone up' means to wake. We say e.g."Would you knock me up at seven" for Will you wake me at seven?". It's a reference to someone knocking on the door or window to wake someone. Years ago, in textile towns, the employers employed someone to go down the streets where the workers lived, knocking on doors and windows to wake the workers in time for the start of their shift at the textile mill. That person was called 'the knocker up'.
"Hello, I'm Randy" is may be the cause of a smile. Randy is not a common name in Britain. 'Randy' means 'sexually promiscuous' here ! And 'broads' for 'women' is not used. The Norfolk Broads are not women in a county of England, Norfolk, but a series of inland waterways and lakes (called 'Broads').So saying to an American man "Have you tried the Norfolk Broads? They are beautiful and free to visit and you'll have a great time" may be misunderstood !
And parking places by the side of main roads are called 'lay bys', which may puzzle Americans
'Knocked up' can mean pregnant here but 'to knock someone up' means to wake. We say e.g."Would you knock me up at seven" for Will you wake me at seven?". It's a reference to someone knocking on the door or window to wake someone. Years ago, in textile towns, the employers employed someone to go down the streets where the workers lived, knocking on doors and windows to wake the workers in time for the start of their shift at the textile mill. That person was called 'the knocker up'.
"Hello, I'm Randy" is may be the cause of a smile. Randy is not a common name in Britain. 'Randy' means 'sexually promiscuous' here ! And 'broads' for 'women' is not used. The Norfolk Broads are not women in a county of England, Norfolk, but a series of inland waterways and lakes (called 'Broads').So saying to an American man "Have you tried the Norfolk Broads? They are beautiful and free to visit and you'll have a great time" may be misunderstood !
And parking places by the side of main roads are called 'lay bys', which may puzzle Americans
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