The most British word

[eagle]

What do you think to be the most British word? The word that best sums up our culture.

Some might say that "quintessential" is a good runner, but my money is on "reasonable".
What are your thoughts?

[Senethro]

tea

[RandomMusings]

"alright"

used as a greeting, a message of how one feels, a symbol of why not, something that's ok...... the list goes on. And more to the point, it is a word uttered by the most uneducated grunt right up to the bourgeoisie and everyone in between.

[Robert E. Lee]

CLAIM?

[elyettoner]

I second tea.

[Senethro]

centuries from now people will remember the British tea ceremony

[the Empress]

'quite' or 'typical'

I drink vast amounts of coffee. I say bah! to your tea.

[jollytiddlywink]

I would agree with 'quite', not only for its (stereotypical) connotations of posh people sitting on verandas drinking pink gin and saying, 'Oh yes, quite!' but also for its use as an adverb... 'It was quite nice,' etc. The use of 'quite' in that sense really sets Brits apart from Americans, who are much more likely to say 'It was really nice' or 'It was awful.' It's the subtlety and the comparative unwillingness of Brits to potentially offend people. Just like Brits spend a lot of time saying sorry or excuse me, they tend to qualify lots of statements with 'quite' as a way of not stepping on other people's toes if they feel differently. It also means that 'really nice' carries that much more weight of conviction when it is actually used to describe something.

[Ruru Hedgehog]

I don't understand the question, tbh.
Is it which word sums up Britain best? Which word is most effectively used in Britain? Which word fits with the "British" stereotype?
It are confuzzle me... =(

Still... Can't go wrong with tea. =D

[munchingfoo]

CLAIM?

I second CLAIM!

[Power Metal Dom]

CLAIM?

I second CLAIM!

Oh buggeration

[Lid]

I have a few Swedish friends, and whenever they want to put on a British accent, or emphasise something's Britishness, they will add 'terribly' or 'marvellous'.

[macgamer]

Rather

[Duggeh]

Pardon.

[eagle]

I don't understand the question, tbh.
Is it which word sums up Britain best? Which word is most effectively used in Britain? Which word fits with the "British" stereotype?
It are confuzzle me... =(

Still... Can't go wrong with tea. =D

It's a question asking for your opinion. "What do you think?"
It's not a difficult question, so feel free to have a bash at answering it in any way you see fit. Interpret it however you like.

[Craig]

Not exactly a word, but surely the 'tut' is one of the most British sounds there is.

[RedCelt69]

Most of the offerings thus far are distinctly English, not British. Much as some would like to think it otherwise, English and British are not synonyms.

My vote goes for... Pint. Whether it be a pint of beer, milk or blood... any other unit of measurement just doesn't sound British. One of the reasons that there's such staunch opposition to the strengthing of anything as vaguely European as a litre.

On the same note (almost literally)... Quid.

And finally... Fuck. Admittedly, our American cousins have taken this one to heart, but it isn't used to quite the same degree of utility as it is in Britain.

So, if you overhear someone say "3* quid a fucking pint!?" you know (with a great deal of certainty) which country you are in.

* replace 3 with 5 (or whatever it is these days) and you can even narrow it down to London.

[Frank]

I think RedCelt has hit on it. Folks really wouldn't use words like 'marvellous', 'quite', 'pardon' or 'tea' if they were intent on conveying anyone of stereotypically Welsh, Irish or Scottish persuasion. Of course, it's perhaps precisely that reasoning that leads to folks thinking I'm not Scottish, but nevermind that.

"3 quid for a fucking pint?!" is a remarkably British phrase. It might not be the stereotype, but it has a degree of instant recognisability which gets the whole 'all of Britain' feel much more than 'quite' or others.

'Tut' is also a good one, despite it being a noise rather'n a word.

[RandomMusings]

"Fish & Chips twice, please love"

[Ruru Hedgehog]

'Tut' is also a good one, despite it being a noise rather'n a word.

Well, if we're expanding this to "The most British onomatopoeic sound", then we're gonna have a hard time...

I don't understand the question, tbh.
Is it which word sums up Britain best? Which word is most effectively used in Britain? Which word fits with the "British" stereotype?
It are confuzzle me... =(

Still... Can't go wrong with tea. =D

It's a question asking for your opinion. "What do you think?"
It's not a difficult question, so feel free to have a bash at answering it in any way you see fit. Interpret it however you like.

In this case, I'd agree with RedCelt; but I would also add that there isn't really a specific word that can be deemed as "British" in anyway... It's a phrase that really clinches it.