Adapting to a "new" language

• jetta

  6 Mar 08, 01:17

  It's funny how English is so different in so many countries.

  I'm reading this novel by an Aussie author. Interesting story peppered with many Aussie terms like doona (blanket? comforter?). Which got me thinking, what are the new words and phrases you've encountered living outside of Sg?

  . Here are some I've come across (so far) in this book I'm reading: Rhona, Brey and all you Aussies, help?

  Removalist - Moving company

  Texters - Markers.

  Chiko roll?

  Sav? - Some sort of fish?

   

  Here in San Diego, with the strong Spanish influence, the names of many of our roads here aren't English. When we first got here, we had to learn how to pronounce these names. We also have American Indian names too. Try pronouncing some of these street names and I'll let you know if you have it correct?

  Jamacha.

  Calle Del Verde

  Camino Real

  Viejas

  Vallejo

  Sycuan

   

   

   

   

• littlestream

  6 Mar 08, 21:56

  the most important WORD you need to know here is

   

  EH?

   

   

• littlestream

  6 Mar 08, 21:59

  okay okay......how about this for joke?

   

  this was like in mid 90s, i tink early '95, a friend visited us.  although he stayed with us, there were days when he was on his own.  so, one day, he went to mac's for lunch.  after making his order, the lady behind the counter asked "to stay or to go?"

  guess his response?

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

  response : "oh, i'm just visiting."   

• seotiblizzard

  6 Mar 08, 22:01

  HAHAHAHAHA!

• udontknowme

  6 Mar 08, 22:15

  my guess is that Calle Del Verde up to Vallejo is pronouced as Spanish. and im guessing the last one is and 'american indian' name..? not sure about the first one. so how do u pronounce the first and last one....????

  and try reading robert mclellan.

• Fatum

  7 Mar 08, 01:58

  this is a real street name from toon town .... try pronouncing it ....

  idylwyld avenue

  I'm not kidding .... it's real ! ...

• LatecomerX

  7 Mar 08, 02:05

  Originally posted by Fatum:

  this is a real street name from toon town .... try pronouncing it ....

  idylwyld avenue

  I'm not kidding .... it's real ! ...

  Well, it's just like the fact that there is a village in Austria named "Fucking".

• Arapahoe

  7 Mar 08, 04:30

  idylwyld avenue

   

  is it a local indian dialect?

   

   

• Arapahoe

  7 Mar 08, 04:33

  For street name i thought kay Poh road was the most engaging name i ever come across in singapore.

• breytonhartge

  7 Mar 08, 05:22

  try this for a road name, my friends live at Ding Dong Road.

  a chiko roll is a chicken roll, its famous in aussie, and I think just last week there was something on the TV about them finding a new chiko girl spokesperson, there was a nationwide hunt.

  sav? in what context?

   

   

• ben1406

  8 Mar 08, 03:46

  alot of my friend's use the word chesterfield for a sofa.. oregeno is pronounce different too.

• skid

  8 Mar 08, 04:39

  Originally posted by udontknowme:

  my guess is that Calle Del Verde up to Vallejo is pronouced as Spanish. and im guessing the last one is and 'american indian' name..? not sure about the first one. so how do u pronounce the first and last one....????

   

   

  Jamacha is pronounced: ham-a*-shaw...the a* is short, an 'uh' sound

  Sycuan is pronounced: suh(like the)-kwan(like gone)

• Arapahoe

  8 Mar 08, 06:11

  I thought it is more of "Ha"m "a" "Cha "r"  since Ch is "chay" more than "Shay"

• Fatum

  8 Mar 08, 13:55

  Originally posted by Arapahoe:

  idylwyld avenue

  is it a local indian dialect?

   

  I suspect someone just didn't know how to spell ...

  it's pronounced "idle-wild" ....

• jetta

  9 Mar 08, 15:10

  Originally posted by breytonhartge:

  try this for a road name, my friends live at Ding Dong Road.

  a chiko roll is a chicken roll, its famous in aussie, and I think just last week there was something on the TV about them finding a new chiko girl spokesperson, there was a nationwide hunt.

  sav? in what context?

   

   

  Sav as in "a battered sav". That's the entire sentence.

  How long did it take you to learn Aussie words and phrases?

• Meia Gisborn

  9 Mar 08, 22:08

  Originally posted by Fatum:

  this is a real street name from toon town .... try pronouncing it ....

  idylwyld avenue

  I'm not kidding .... it's real ! ...

  John. F. Kennedy International Airport in New York was, up until 1963, named Idlewild Airport.

  Same pronunciation?

   

• LatecomerX

  10 Mar 08, 06:21

  Originally posted by Fatum:

  I suspect someone just didn't know how to spell ...

  it's pronounced "idle-wild" ....

  Hmm. Just treat the 'y's as 'i's and one will be able to get the pronounciation right, I suppose.

• VSE

  11 Mar 08, 04:12

  A reversed situation...

  1. while in SG this past feb, I asked for chicken rice to go. Vendor asked "Aiyo, where is your chicken rice going?"

  2. trip to a fruit stall in Chinatown and I pointed at the display and asked "Auntie, can I have the jello?". She scolded me for being vague. "What you want? What 'lo'?Oh, you want jelly, next time say jelly and stop wasting my time."

   

• Arapahoe

  11 Mar 08, 06:08

  ooi 1 Jelly !

• jetta

  12 Mar 08, 04:32

  Originally posted by VSE:

  A reversed situation...

  1. while in SG this past feb, I asked for chicken rice to go. Vendor asked "Aiyo, where is your chicken rice going?"

  2. trip to a fruit stall in Chinatown and I pointed at the display and asked "Auntie, can I have the jello?". She scolded me for being vague. "What you want? What 'lo'?Oh, you want jelly, next time say jelly and stop wasting my time."