Differences between food names in American and British English. Part 1.
The UK and the US are two countries that share the English language. Paradox? Yes and no. There is a fairly large flexible dictionary that is used exclusively in the UK or only in the USA. For example the, the previously mentioned Autumn and Fall.
But sometimes the difference between the words that are used in both countries is so subtle that errors in usage cannot be avoided. As an example, have you ever wondered what’s the difference between – Biscuit and Cookie?
Biscuit
In the UK, Biscuit is a product, sometimes covered in chocolate, with cranberries added to the dough when baked. It is served with tea for sweets. Since the biscuits are quite hard, they can be dipped in tea or coffee.
In the US, “biscuit” is a type of pastry that can be served as a sandwich base, on top of which, for example, a bacon omelette can be placed. These “biscuits ”with a piece of chicken are a great dish for dinner.
You can find the following definitions in dictionaries. For example, in the Oxford English Dictionary you will find two definitions. According to one of them, the word "biscuit" comes from the Latin "bisotum (panem)", which means "double-baked bread." Hence the consistency of British biscuits - they are hard and crunchy.
American “biscuits” are more like a kind of pastry, which in the UK is called "a scone" (bun with raisins or cranberries), while in the US “scone” is a kind of flatbread. The pronunciation is also different. Compare - Br. E. /skəʊn/ and Am.E. /skɒn/. It remains unclear how two different kinds of pastries have the same name. We can only assume that this happened under the influence of the French language in the southern United States.
Cookie
The word Cookie has a similar story. In the UK, "cookies" are soft and non-dry biscuits. It is usually more nutritious and high in calories than what the British call "biscuits". The sweet dessert, which the Americans call "cookies", simultaneously combines what the British call "biscuit" and "cookie". The word comes from the Dutch "koekje" - a small cookie. Presumably, we owe the appearance of "cookies" to immigrants from Holland who settled in the United States.
Well, did you see the difference? Simply put, the British "biscuit" is the American "cookie", and the American " cookie " is what the British also call " cookie ". And the American "biscuit" is the British scone pastry
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