Aeroplane or airplane?

[facthunter]

Jeez, I've never eaten an aeroplane jelly pudding. Though you can have fried ice cream. PASS.. nev

 

 

[facthunter]

Douglas Bader wouldn't want to try to dress me down. On most issues he wouldn't have a leg to stand on. Nev

 

 

[fly_tornado]

I am also OK with people wanting to use the term monoplane if appropriate.

 

 

[turboplanner]

Aeroplane is the British term, Airplane is the American term - they are two different sovereign countries with two different vocabularies.

 

I work for Americans so if I'm talking to them about fuel I'll use the term gasolene, if we're trying to lighten a truck, I'll be talking about aluminum, and if I'm going to be doing something shortly, I'll tell them I'll do it momentarily.

 

It's just a matter of learning the differences and only a matter of respect for the country you are in.

 

We get a lot of American literature, softeware etc, and a lot of people are lazy or didn't receive good schooling.

 

Interestingly, American is the older language, remaining relatively pure from the early 1600's when the British colonised North America, In those days the British spelt centre as "center" etc.

 

It was the British who changed the language, influenced by the French etc, and greater mixing in Europe compared to the US citizens who were isolated out in the wilderness pinching squirrels off the Indians.

 

 

[damkia]

I am also OK with people wanting to use the term monoplane if appropriate.

As in a areoplane with a left and a right wing with a non-lifting body in the middle AND a two or three fin tail at the other end?A true monoplane would be a weightshift kite style with a single uniterrupted wing above you.

 

 

[Guest ozzie]

When i was young my parents would drive past Bankstown Aerodrome and i'd point out to the 'eppyplanes' but i prefer the term aircraft these days. Airplane and aeroplane are a bit to box kite era for me

 

 

[damkia]

Aeroplane is the British term, Airplane is the American term - they are two different sovereign countries with two different vocabularies.I work for Americans so if I'm talking to them about fuel I'll use the term gasolene, if we're trying to lighten a truck, I'll be talking about aluminum, and if I'm going to be doing something shortly, I'll tell them I'll do it momentarily.

 

It's just a matter of learning the differences and only a matter of respect for the country you are in.

 

We get a lot of American literature, softeware etc, and a lot of people are lazy or didn't receive good schooling.

 

Interestingly, American is the older language, remaining relatively pure from the early 1600's when the British colonised North America, In those days the British spelt centre as "center" etc.

 

It was the British who changed the language, influenced by the French etc, and greater mixing in Europe compared to the US citizens who were isolated out in the wilderness pinching squirrels off the Indians.

It was also Websters(?) dictionary that in its early years decided to rationalise (rationalize?) their spelling to a more consistant phonetic form, creating an "American Standard Spelling".Thank god they didn't try it with Welsh.....

 

Soon txt spk will t8k ovr the wrld

 

 

[Yenn]

Air or aer, may come from the greek or whatever, but where did plane come from? Was it a level playing field or maybe a tree. Forget the roots of the word, just use whichever keeps you happy. In my case aeroplane.

 

 

[rgmwa]

You have no doubt also noticed that we have started to follow the US in doing away with ordinal numbers when referring to dates, which clearly makes no sense, so we now have things like films starting at the cinema on "July 12" instead of July the 12th. CheersNeil

Not to mention another irritation - `it was so fun', when they mean `it was so much fun'.

 

rgmwa

 

 

[M61A1]

Generally, I use "aircraft", but if I have to write it (I have to write it a lot at work) I use A/C. I do use the term "aeroplane" at times, mainly for irritant value, as certain people at work hate referring to helicopters as such.....they still got wings, so they plane.

 

 

[rgmwa]

I notice that they often refer to the 'air'-plane as a "ship".

Yes, they'll refer to `flying a five ship aerobatic formation'. They're also quite fond of choosing an aircraft designed to fit a particular `mission profile'. At least the RV crowd does.

 

rgmwa

 

 

[winsor68]

I think a lot of it has to do with the modern advent of "spell checker" software... Often depending on the online environment using the term "aeroplane" will put a red line under the word due to the site using US grammar.

 

 

[Guest Howard Hughes]

*click* English UK

 

 

[Tomo]

Aeroplane, aircraft work... airplane is just... not complete somehow.

 

By the way, Nev is on a roll tonight, or would that be a plane?

 

 

[rgmwa]

Aeroplane, aircraft work... airplane is just... not complete somehow.By the way, Nev is on a roll tonight, or would that be a plane?

A higher plane, I think.

 

rgmwa

 

 

[Neil_S]

People in aeroplanes may do aerobatics; without aeroplanes, they merely manage acrobatics.Kaz

Absolutely! Pedants rule....

 

 

[Neil_S]

I work for Americans so if I'm talking to them about fuel I'll use the term gasolene, if we're trying to lighten a truck, I'll be talking about aluminum, and if I'm going to be doing something shortly, I'll tell them I'll do it momentarily.

.

But sadly, if you do something momentarily, you do it FOR a short time, not IN a short time (check any dictionary) - which the Americans I work for don't understand....They simply use it wrongly. I am very tempted to take them literally and when they say "Can you call me momentarily?" say "yes" call them, say "Hi" and then put the phone straight down......

 

But I need to keep my job, so maybe not....

 

Cheers

 

Neil

 

 

[ahlocks]

chicken....

 

 

[fly_tornado]

tell them its a fortnightly check and watch them scratch their heads. I was in Reno and asked for a serviette, took me a while to realise my mistake, young guy serving thought it was a funny word.

 

 

[sfGnome]

I work for Americans so...

I too work with Americans, and in a field where colour/color is very important. We decided years ago that while we couldn't change the world to fit us, there was no need for us to change (too much) to fit them, so in all our documentation colour is spelled 'color', and everything else is spelled the Aussie (Brit) way.

(Having said that, I tend to use 'aircraft' or 'A/C' simply because it is quicker to type than aeroplane. Don't like to use 'airplane' though - it's just not my language).

 

 

[pudestcon]

Buggar it!!! You guys have still got me agonising over terminology.

 

Now I'm going with 'aircraft' and 'airfield'. Now will you 'airheads' go find something else to do??

 

Pud

 

 

[Old Koreelah]

Interestingly, American is the older language, remaining relatively pure from the early 1600's when the British colonised North America, In those days the British spelt centre as "center" etc.

It was the British who changed the language, influenced by the French etc, and greater mixing in Europe compared to the US citizens who were isolated out in the wilderness pinching squirrels off the Indians.

Interesting perspective, Turbs. It always irritates me when the dominant (US) version tends to take over (my pet hate is "4x4" rather than 4WD). Perhaps the yanks are sometimes more true to the original version. There are parallels in several other languages. German linguists come to the Barossa to hear 19th century pronunciation and I believe that Shakespeare would have sounded more like the New England accent than modern British.

 

 

[Deskpilot]

Lets face it, when it comes to speech and writing, the Yanks are bloody lazy. As said previously, they will drop as many letters as possible to get round the fact that so many of them can't spell anyway (yes, I saw yesterdays spiel about Australian's not being literate as well) All the dumb arse street talk originates in the U.S. and, unfortunately, the world follows. My guess is that if we could come back in 50 years time, we won't understand a word they say. I wonder if they are trying to hide their origins as though they are ashamed to have, once upon a time, been English, Irish, European or African.

 

 

[eightyknots]

tell them its a fortnightly check and watch them scratch their heads. I was in Reno and asked for a serviette, took me a while to realise my mistake, young guy serving thought it was a funny word.

You were looking for a table napkin, F-T.

 

Conversely, napkins (or nappies as we generally call them now) are known as diapers. Sugar bowls are sugar basins. Footpaths are sidewalks and toilets are bathrooms!! When I asked an American guy who, by then had lived in Brisbane for a couple of years, why Americans persist in calling toilets bathrooms. He explained that for many decades every bathroom in the USA always contained a toilet. Therefore, going to the bathroom is legitimately going to the toilet [toilet itself is considered a vulgar or impolite word, he told me]. I said that in Australia many homes have a separate little room with a toilet in it. He told me that this was increasingly the case in the USA too. To avoid using that vulgar toilet word, Americans refer to a toilet-only room as a "half-bathroom". Go figure.

 

Every year when I renew my subscription to Kitplanes magazine, I always have to give them my "expiration date" of my credit card. When I said to them last year: "do you mean my card's expiry date?" they appeared to be horribly confused.

 

 

[turboplanner]

Old Koreelah

 

More intriguing, I'm not sure where 4x4 originated but is it the more specific description, for example

 

4x2 - 4 wheel groups, 2 driving

 

4x4 - 4 wheel groups, 4 driving

 

6x2 - 6 wheel groups, 3 driving (then a confusion, either a lazy axle, pusher axle or twin steer)

 

6x4 - 6 wheel groups, four driving

 

6x6 - 6 wheel groups, all driving