How posh are you?
Cats: Uncategorized, words|Rumour has it that the Prince William and Kate Middleton bust-up has to do with class. He’s a royal; she’s a middle class gal who uses the word “toilet” which is considered very middle class.
Well, everyone, including the royals, has a bladder and everyone occasionally has to empty it. But what do you call the room where you go to do your business? Everyone does not answer this question in the same way and the word you use says a lot about who you are.
A. The toilet - widely used except in America where the word not a room but a fixture; considered middle class.
B. The loo - British, working class.
C. The lavatory - British, posh.
D. The water closet or WC - widely used in Europe and internationally, but not in America
E. The bathroom- standard American* (As non-Americans often say, “are you going to have a bath?)
F. Restroom - American restaurantese (Are you going to have rest?)
G. Can - American slang
My personal favourite term for this room is the fouling suite.
What are some other words for this room?
*Canadian usage is the same as American
April 19th, 2007 at 5:38 am
Looks great!!I’ll spend more time on it soon.
Lots to amuse myself.
I do like your take on the bathroom.
Let’s do drinks soon!
April 19th, 2007 at 5:41 am
You can’t forget the John!
April 19th, 2007 at 6:07 am
I like to ask for the Powder Room.
April 19th, 2007 at 6:50 am
We call it “the” Toilette. Also, the Library or the Reading Room. The Throne Room.
April 19th, 2007 at 6:52 am
I like to use ’shitter’… especially first thing in the morning;). When I’m feeling polite I’ll ask where the ‘little boys room’ is. Not sure where I got that one from.
My wife once asked where the ’salle de bain” was when in France, only to be lead to a room where there was no shitter, just a sink and a bath. I don’t know the French for shitter. In Quebec it would probably be “La place de poo”.
April 19th, 2007 at 8:41 am
How about “the smallest room in the house?” Used by a British author (can’t recall name) who replied to a critic: Dear Sir, I am in the smallest room of the house and your letter is before me. Very soon it will be behind me.
April 19th, 2007 at 5:13 pm
How about “The Porcelain God”?
April 19th, 2007 at 7:34 pm
Weird, I just posted about a ‘toilet’ in London. And now I know even more!
April 20th, 2007 at 6:46 am
I forgot about the ‘great white telephone’, but that is usually reserved for vomitting.
April 20th, 2007 at 9:29 am
For vomitting purposes we call it “Ralph”. How did we get on this subject again??
April 20th, 2007 at 10:49 am
What about Washroom? Are you going to Wash? I should hope so!!!
I love it when you are visiting someone’s house and you think they really have it going on and then you visit their “facilities” and they have their toilet plunger proudly displayed next to the porceline bowl. Even worse is when they use it to hold those extra rolls of toilet paper!!! Though creative, it does give me the willies knowing that it is used that often— it tells you a little bit about what they’ve been eating!!!
AB
April 20th, 2007 at 4:32 pm
ok if we’re talking about rooms for vomiting, the Romans used to have the vomitorium or vomitoria after their great epicurean feasts.
April 21st, 2007 at 5:42 pm
I heard somewhere that in acient Roman times,”Vomitorium” was the same as “exit” and that no puking was actually involved.
April 22nd, 2007 at 5:06 am
We have one of the truly dryist and funniest (though not widely known) commentators, Austin Fletcher of Eastbourne, Dorset, UK for the Oh-so-British ‘ Fouling Suite’
April 22nd, 2007 at 8:35 am
Aussies say ‘toilet’
I usually say loo, but then, that’s my working-class british background coming out
April 22nd, 2007 at 4:46 pm
You are soooo from Sunderland, Meg.
April 22nd, 2007 at 4:50 pm
No, not the plunger to hold the toilet rolls, AB. I prefer the half-doll, half-toilet roll (forming the hoop of the skirt) little arrangements you used to see on the back of toilets in certain counties I have known.