When Aussies 'visit' they don't necessarily mean 'talk'
By Judy Evans
@JudyEv (341752)
Rockingham, Australia
September 9, 2018 9:53am CST
The photo has nothing to do with the text. It’s a somewhat unusual Aussie word which supposedly means ‘plenty of water’.
From time to time there is discussion in the posts/responses/comments about the different words used in, say, America and Australia. A thong means something different in each country, a chook is unheard of in America and ketchup is mostly called tomato sauce in Australia.
Another one I’ve noticed involves the word ‘visit’. My American friends speak of visiting friends or relatives. Perhaps they’ll share a meal then ‘visit’ some more. Australians will go to visit someone but will then chat or converse or have a conservation but we don’t use ‘visit’ in the sense of chatting to another person. For us, to visit is the physical act of going to meet a person usually at their home. Then we’ll talk or chat or maybe even ‘chew the fat’- another phrase which means the same thing.
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18 responses
@ptrikha_2 (47064)
• India
11 Sep 18
@JudyEv "mob" - well that word can make some feel nervous or even scared.
Perhaps "Group" or "Gathering".
What do you say?
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@ptrikha_2 (47064)
• India
13 Sep 18
@JudyEv and here we mostly have mob in a negative sense. You could find news reports like :
The mob went on a rampage
Or violent mob
Or Mob violence
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@snowy22315 (181991)
• United States
9 Sep 18
Chew the fat is used here too. But no, we would never call ketchup tomato sauce.
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@snowy22315 (181991)
• United States
9 Sep 18
@JudyEv It works both ways.queue is being used here now. An aussie friend told me line is being used there now.
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@JudyEv (341752)
• Rockingham, Australia
10 Sep 18
@snowy22315 I hadn't thought about that one. I would have said we use both. Certainly we use queue and 'to jump the queue'.
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@allknowing (137589)
• India
10 Sep 18
There will be no end to different countries having different meanings to words. Talking of the English language I was just thinking of the word 'sanction' Sanction is to permit and yet when they say there is a sanction in a particular country then it means a kind of ban. Very funny this English language (lol)
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@ptrikha_2 (47064)
• India
10 Sep 18
@allknowing and in India, we often use Prepone for advancing a meetibg (opposite of postpone- which is mostly the case) and prepone is not used in standard English in US or UK.
And Gas is used for Petrol in US.
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@rebelann (112962)
• El Paso, Texas
9 Sep 18
I've noticed lately that the English spoken on the east coast of the US is slightly different than the English I usually hear in this part of the country. It seems that each region of the US has a unique influence by whatever immigrants have settled there, here it's mostly south Americans who speak a variation of Spanish which then is mixed with English to form Spanglish.
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@ptrikha_2 (47064)
• India
11 Sep 18
@JudyEv
and we have Indian English + Hindi - English mix with sentences like :
"Tumne clothes ko washing pe laga diya? "
(Have you put clothes on washing - normally for washing machines)
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@rebelann (112962)
• El Paso, Texas
11 Sep 18
It's probably most common in border cities @JudyEv but I would suppose anywhere where the population is a mix of cultures there will be a mix of languages .... using hand gestures helps me communicate with my neighbor who doesn't speak much English.
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@JudyEv (341752)
• Rockingham, Australia
9 Sep 18
And apparently in England the areas are even smaller with sometimes the accent differing slightly just from suburb to suburb. But that's the accent. I don't know about the terms differing but perhaps they do. And Singaporeans speak Singlish which is a mix of languages too.
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@ptrikha_2 (47064)
• India
11 Sep 18
@Kandae11
In India we normally say "Going to meet them".
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@ptrikha_2 (47064)
• India
10 Sep 18
@JudyEv
yes same language and words, but different meanings !
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@just4him (317249)
• Green Bay, Wisconsin
9 Sep 18
Chew the fat is a common expression here as well. Your definition of 'visit' would be the same as mine. Good to know about the difference between ketchup and tomato sauce. Here tomato sauce is thin and used in soups, stews, chili, and other foods, while ketchup is a condiment used on hamburgers and hot dogs. Probably on other foods as well, but those two are the most common.
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@JudyEv (341752)
• Rockingham, Australia
9 Sep 18
Our tomato sauce is a condiment. We have tomato paste which is thicker and used in recipes or if you wanted something thinner you might use a tin of tomato soup or tomato juice. Some people drink the tomato juice too. My Mum loved it chilled on a really hot day.
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@ilocosboy (45156)
• Philippines
9 Sep 18
I'm still analysing the difference he he. Sounds like the same. A person going to meet a person in their house is visit. That's it, isn't it? Sorry for my ignorance.
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@JudyEv (341752)
• Rockingham, Australia
9 Sep 18
I can understand your confusion. In Australia, we visit someone but we don't sit and 'visit'. We would say sit and talk or sit and chat. Some Americans say they visit someone then sit and 'visit' meaning talk or chat. Hope that helps and you're not ignorant at all. Have a great day.
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@dgobucks226 (35718)
•
13 Sep 18
So, if I am following you Americans use visit and chat interchangeably and Australians separate the two terms, right?
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@arunima25 (87855)
• Bangalore, India
9 Sep 18
That is an interesting post. Though I can not see the picture.
The same word gets different usage and meanings in different cultures.
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@arunima25 (87855)
• Bangalore, India
10 Sep 18
@JudyEv Now I can see it. Maybe yesterday my network was slow and it didn't get uploaded.
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@ptrikha_2 (47064)
• India
10 Sep 18
Yes the same term can mean different to different people and cultures.
Here we could call a Ketchup as Sauce or Ketchup or chutney (Hindi word).
Visits by guests are less and less now a days.
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@ptrikha_2 (47064)
• India
10 Sep 18
@JudyEv coconut chutneys are there in Australia?
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@louievill (28851)
• Philippines
9 Sep 18
In the Philippines, when somebody is coming to visit, get ready with food and drinks lol! Anything goes after that, talk chat whatever you think of doing during and after the visit.
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@JohnRoberts (109846)
• Los Angeles, California
24 Sep 18
Try pronouncing that word real fast!
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@JudyEv (341752)
• Rockingham, Australia
25 Sep 18
@JohnRoberts I didn't think of looking up at the sign.
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@JohnRoberts (109846)
• Los Angeles, California
25 Sep 18
@JudyEv No, that word on the sign.
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@Starmaiden (9311)
• Canada
9 Sep 18
Pretty much the same concept but taken under a different context. Thanks for the refresher. 
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