This is a list of American words not widely used in the United Kingdom.

* Words with specific American meanings that have different meanings in British English and/or additional meanings common to both dialects (e.g. pants, crib) are to be found at List of words having different meanings in British and American English. When such words are herein used or referenced, they are marked with the flag [DM].

* Asterisks (*) denote words and meanings having appreciable (that is, not occasional) currency in British English, but nonetheless distinctive of American English for their relatively greater frequency in American speech and writing. Americanisms are increasingly common in British English, and many that were not widely used some decades ago, are now so (e.g. regular in the sense of "regular coffee").

* American spelling is consistently used throughout the article, except when explicitly referencing British terms.

Contents

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Top of page — See also — External links
0–9

101
(pronounced "one-oh-one") used to indicate basic knowledge, e.g. "Didn't you learn to sweep the floor in housework 101?" (from the numbering scheme of educational courses where 101 would be the first course in a sequence on the subject).

401(k)
(pronounced "four-oh-one K";) an employer-sponsored retirement plan in the United States.

411
(pronounced "four-one-one"; colloquial) information about something (from 4-1-1, directory assistance number) (UK: 118xxx or 192)

5-0
(pronounced "five-oh", often "the five-oh"; colloquial) the police (from Hawaii Five-O, an American television series)

86
(pronounced "eighty six"; colloquial) to abandon or reject something, e.g. "Let's eighty six the whole thing." Similar to "Deep Six"

9-1-1
(pronounced "nine-one-one") the US emergency telephone number (UK: 999)

A

acclimate
(verb) (UK usually: acclimatise)
acetaminophen (or Tylenol)
(UK: paracetamol)
addicting
(UK and US: addictive)
affirmative action
providing opportunities in education or work based on (e.g.) race or gender (UK: positive discrimination)
airplane
fixed-wing aircraft. Alteration of UK aeroplane, probably influenced by aircraft
alphabetize
(verb) (UK and US: sort alphabetically)
aluminum
(UK: aluminium)
amtrac
Landing Vehicle Tracked, military vehicle used in World War II (not to be confused with Amtrak, the passenger railroad corporation)
arroyo
a usually dry creek.
arugula, rugola
the herb also known as rocket or garden rocket. Borrowed from southern Italian dialect in the early 1960s ("Ask Italian greengrocers for arugula, rucola or ruccoli; ask other markets for rouquette, rocket salad or, simply, rocket." — The New York Times, May 24, 1960, in OED).

B

baby carriage
pushable vehicle for transporting babies, also called stroller, buggy or regionally baby coach (UK: perambulator (old-fashioned or formal), pram, or, for the type that an older baby sits rather than lies in, pushchair)
backhoe
a piece of excavating equipment (UK usually digger, mechanical digger, excavator, or JCB, genericized trademark)
ballpark
a baseball stadium; a range of approximation or accuracy ("in the ballpark"; "a ballpark figure") *
Band-Aid *
(trademark) bandage for minor wounds, (UK: Elastoplast (trademark), plaster [DM]); also, a makeshift solution
bangs
front part of the hair cut to hang over the forehead (UK: a fringe)
barrette
hair slide
baseboard
skirting board
bayou
(from Louisiana French) an often marshy slow-moving minor watercourse, usually located in a low-lying area (as in the Mississippi River delta region of the southern United States)
bedroom community
a commuter town or suburb (UK: dormitory town [DM])
Bear claw
A kind of sweet pastry served throughout the United States.
bell pepper
a mild (not spicy) red or green pepper or capsicum in Australian English and Indian English
bellhop
a hotel porter
beltway
a ring road, or orbital motorway found around or within many cities.
blacktop
a road surface [DM] composed of asphalt concrete; also a verb ("to blacktop a parking lot") (UK: compare tarmac)
blinders
(on a horse) (UK: blinkers)
blood sausage
black pudding
boardwalk
a walkway usually made of planking, typically along a beach (as that of Atlantic City)
bobby pin
hair grip, Kirby grip
booger
(slang) a piece of nasal mucus (UK: bogey)
bookmobile
a large vehicle housing a mobile lending library (UK: mobile library)
boombox
a large portable stereo, syn. with ghettoblaster, which is also American in origin but is common in the UK.
boondocks
(also the boonies) rough country; a very rural location or town; backwoods; the "sticks". Sometimes refers to rough, poor neighborhoods in a city. From Tagalog.
boondoggle
slang term for a scheme that wastes time and money; also scoubidou, a knotting and plaiting craft
Botts' dot
see raised pavement marker (UK & US: cat's eye)
brah
from brother (alternative to 'bro'; see bro)
breadbox
a box for keeping bread (UK: usually bread bin)
broil
to cook food with high heat with the heat applied directly to the food from above (UK: grill) [DM]. Apparently first used by Chaucer.
brownstone
a type of residential building found in New York City and other large cities
buddy, bud
a friend; also used as a term of address (UK similar: mate)
bullhorn
a megaphone
burglarize
to carry out a burglary (UK: burgle; burgle is very rare in US, and burglarize virtually nonexistent in UK)
busboy
junior restaurant worker assisting waiting staff, table clearer, water pourer etc. (UK: busser; runner)
busyness
hustle and bustle
butte
an isolated hill with steep sides and a small flat top

C

caboose
a train car attached usually to the rear mainly for the crew's use (UK: guard's van' or brake van'); also (colloquial) the buttocks
Canadian bacon
Ham, usually pressed and sliced back bacon.
candy apple*, candied apple
toffee apple
candy
[UK: sweets]
canola
a trademarked variety of rapeseed
careen
(of a vehicle) to travel fast and out of control, usually swerving or cornering (UK: career)
carhop
someone serving food at a drive-in, often on rollerskates
catercorner
(or catercornered, catacorner, kitty-corner, catty-corner, etc.) (adverb) diagonally, diagonally opposite ("The house looks catercorner to mine"). Cater Corner is the original form (from the French ‘quatre’ and English 'corner' = four + corner), but the forms kitty corner and catty corner (folk etymology) are usual in speech, the latter especially in the North and West, while the former in the Midland and South. Sometimes (dialectal, regional) also kitty/catty wampus/wumpus (unclearly derived), which can also mean "awry".
catsup
alternative spelling of ketchup that rarely sees use in the UK.
cell phone
(short for cellular telephone) a portable telephone; UK: mobile phone, often abbreviated to mobile
central air
central air conditioning
ChapStick *
(trademark, sometimes used generically) a lip balm - trademark Lypsyl is common (UK: Lip Balm * )
checkers
a popular board game (UK: draughts)
charge account
in a store or shop (UK: credit account)
checking account
the type of bank account used for drawing checks; distinguished from savings account. (UK: current account or cheque account)
cilantro
coriander leaf, while in the US, coriander refers only to the seed.
cookout
informal meal cooked and eaten outdoors, a cross between a picnic and a barbecue or a cooking competition taking place outdoors
co-ed, coed
female student at a coeducational college (e.g. "He saw the party as an opportunity to meet co-eds."); any group of people with members from both genders (e.g. "My soccer team is co-ed.")
condo
Condominium
copacetic
fine and dandy; good; well; A-OK; cool. Creole, perhaps from the French "Comme c'est sympathique".
cooties
fictional disease, a term used by children (UK: germs, lurgy); also a term for lice
costume party
party where costumes are worn (UK: fancy-dress party)
cotton candy
spun sugar often sold at fairs (UK: candy floss)
counterclockwise
(UK: anti-clockwise)
coveralls
a one-piece outer protective garment (UK: overall, boiler suit)
critter
(informal) a creature; an animal (as a horse in the South or a bull in the North); often used jocularly (as in "congresscritter", a congressperson); sometimes a term of endearment
crapshoot
risky and uncertain venture; from craps, a dice game

D

deplane
meaning disembark from an aeroplane
diaper
An absorbent undergarment (UK: nappy)
dime
a 10-cent coin. Derived from the Latin word for ten decem. A variant on Disme, the original spelling. Five-and-dime, dime store, a store selling cheap merchandise; a dime a dozen, so abundant as to be worth little; on a dime, (slang) ten dollars, in a small space ("turn on a dime") or immediately ("stop on a dime"); nickel-and-dime, originally an adjective meaning "involving small amounts of money" and then "insignificant", also a verb meaning "to rip-off via many seemingly insignificant charges". (The nickel [DM] is the 5-cent coin.) In Britain, the old sixpence, a small coin worth the equivalent of 2.5p, was formerly used in similar expressions before decimal currency was introduced in the early 1970s.
direct deposit
a method of payment by bank transfer, similar to European giro, almost exclusively used for deposits of pay checks or government benefits
dishrag
a cloth for washing dishes (UK and US: dishcloth)
dish towel
a towel for drying dishes (UK: tea towel)
divided highway
a road with a highway median (UK: dual carriageway)
docent
a university lecturer; also a volunteer guide in a museum or similar institution
doohickey
word used for an unknown item. Also a slang term for a penis. (a thingamajig, thingamabob, or just a thingy) (UK: wotsit)
douche
device for rinsing the vagina; also douchebag is used as an insult
downspout
pipe for carrying rainwater from a gutter to the ground (UK & US: drainpipe)
downtown
(noun, adv., adj.) (in, to, toward, or related to) either the lower section or the business center of a city or town—compare (UK city centre) uptown, see article for New York City usage; (noun) in basketball, far from the basket (as outside the three-point line)—used of a shot; (adj., adv., noun) a euphemism to describe oral sex, the act of performing oral sex, or to refer to genitalia
driver license, driver's license
(UK: driving licence)
drugstore
a pharmacy, or a store selling candy, magazines, etc. along with medicines (UK approx.: chemist or "corner shop" [DM])
druthers
preference of one thing over another derived from a contraction of "I would rather" or "I'd rather" (e.g. "if I had my druthers, I'd...")
drywall
gypsum board, plasterboard, or any process that builds interior walls without the use of water (UK: plasterboard)
dude
A male or a farm hand at a horse ranch. Americans often use this as the combined equivalent of the British usage of "mate" and "bloke", or, even closer, as the equivalent of Caribbean "man/mon". Dude has become more common in the UK because of television, movies, etc.[citation needed]
Dumpster
(trademark: might be becoming genericized) large trash receptacle (UK approx.: skip [DM]); to dumpster-dive, to rummage through a Dumpster
dweeb
a boring, studious or socially inept person (a nerd, a geek or a "drip" an old-fashioned mild pejorative for someone exceptionally eccentric or lacking in social skills)

E

eggplant
the plant Solanum melongena (UK: aubergine); "eggplant" is common in the Commonwealth outside the United Kingdom.
Elevator
(UK: Lift)
Emergency brake
brake in motor vehicle operated by a lever used to keep it stationary. Also referred to as an "E-brake". (UK: handbrake)
eminent domain
the power of the government to take private property for public use (similar to UK compulsory purchase)
English muffin
(UK: "muffin", "hot muffin") (for more, see article)
envision
to Envisage
eraser
(UK: rubber)
expiration
As in expiration date (UK: expiry)
expressway
A type of multi-lane divided highway (UK dual carriageway)
exurb
The ring of prosperous rural communities beyond the suburbs, see Commuter town

F

fanny pack
pouch-like bag that ties or snaps around the wearer's waist (UK: bum bag). See also fanny in [DM].
faucet
water outlet (UK and US: tap [DM])
feedlot *
animal feeding operation used for finishing livestock, notably beef cattle, prior to slaughter
fire
to be released from work; also: let go (UK: sack)
flack
a publicist or press agent; sometimes also an alternate spelling of flak "negative commentary", which is used in the UK. Although flack "press agent" was first recorded just one year after flak "Flugabwehrkanone", the two are likely unrelated.
flashlight
portable battery-powered electric lamp (UK: torch)
flatware
knives, spoons, and forks (as opposed to holloware); (UK usually cutlery [DM], although flatware is used in the UK antiques trade as a specialist word)
freeway
(see article) (UK motorway)
French press
Device for making coffee (UK: cafetière)
freshman *
a first-year student in college or high school (also fresher in UK)
French fries (or fries)
pieces of potato that have been deep-fried. Originates from Belgian style of cooking potatoes (UK chips e.g. fish and chips or pie and chips)
frosting
A confection applied to cakes (US and UK: "icing")

G

garbage
(UK: rubbish)
gasoline
(esp. in the past also spelled gasolene; abbreviated gas) (UK: petrol)
gee-whiz
as an interjection, a euphemism for "Jesus"; as an adjective, denotes something characterized by or meant to cause excitement or sensation ("gee-whiz technology"; "a gee-whiz attitude")
general delivery
(UK: poste restante)
green thumb
(UK: green fingers)
grifter *
a con artist, transient swindler, or professional gambler (UK: con man); also grift can mean an act of thievery or trickery
gotten
Archaic in most of the UK except Yorkshire where it is widely used.
grits
A maize (sweetcorn) porridge common in the southern U.S. and unknown in the UK
grunt
Slang for infantryman : (UK: squaddie)

H

half bath
a bathroom [DM] that lacks a shower or bathtub (i.e., a bathroom which lacks a place to actually bathe.) Equivalent to a British W.C. or Cloakroom
heavy cream
double cream (UK)
hella
typically used to augment another word: "That's hella cool." Finds its origins in northern California.
hickey
a bruise on one's skin resulting from kissing or sucking; (UK: love bite * )
highball
(see article)
ho
The word "whore", synonymous with tramp (harlot) or slut and often used as an insult. The spelling is associated with African-American English, though it does no more than reflect a non-Rhotic pronunciation of the standard word, similar to what can be heard in Boston ("haw" or "ho-wuh") or Australia.
hobo
tramp (BrE); subculture of wandering homeless people,[1] particularly those who make a habit of hopping freight trains. Becoming more popular in the UK
hominy
processed maize, see also grits
hood
engine compartment cover of front-engine automobile (UK: bonnet)
play hooky
to play truant from school; to cut class (UK also: skive, bunk off or playing wag or wagging off or mooching)
horseback riding
simply "riding" or horse riding in the UK
howdy
(short for how do you do) casual greeting that originated in the Southern States. (UK How do?)
hush puppy
a deep-fried pellet of cornmeal mush commonly eaten with Southern American seafood.
HVAC
Heating + Ventilating (or Ventilation) + Air Conditioning (used in technical circles in the UK)
I

intimate apparel
lingerie; used mainly in advertisements.

J

jack off, jerk off *
(slang) to masturbate; UK usage would be "to wank". If used as a disparaging noun, as in "that guy is such a jackoff [or jerkoff]", the UK equivalent would be "that bloke is such a wanker (or a "tosser")". In this sense, sometimes written "jagoff". (It is generally not considered as vulgar or insulting as "wanker" is, however.) Can also mean to delay, stymie, thwart, or cause confusion, sometimes with the intent to defraud ("I've waited an hour to be served; they're jerking me off,"; "They say I never returned the car- I left it in the lot. I'm getting jerked off here.") In the latter sense, may also be "jerked around".
jackhammer
(UK: pneumatic drill)
Jane Doe
See John Doe.
jeez
minced oath for "Jesus", sometimes spelled geez
Jell-o
(trademark) gelatin dessert (UK: jelly [DM])
john
(slang) a toilet; also, the client of a prostitute
johnson
(slang) penis ( UK : "willy" )
John Doe
unnamed defendant or victim (as in a lawsuit), or a person whose identity is unknown or is intended to be anonymous; also, an average man ; compare John Q. Public (UK equivalent is Joe Bloggs, or John Smith). The female equivalent is Jane Doe, or less frequently "Jane Roe" as in Roe v. Wade. Also Baby Doe.
John Hancock
a signature (from the name of the President of the Second Continental Congress, who was the first signer of the United States Declaration of Independence and who also wrote his signature the largest) -- "put your John Hancock here" (UK "put your moniker here"). "John Henry" is also seen, using Hancock as a perceived homophone of "Hank", a common nickname of Henry.
John Q. Public
the common man, typical member of the general public. Also stated as Joe Public, Joe Blow, Joe Schmoe, Joe Six-Pack, Eddie Punchclock, or Joe Lunchbucket. (UK: Joe Bloggs)

K

kitty-corner, also catty-corner
see catercorner
L

ladybug
a red, black-spotted beetle (UK: ladybird)
laundromat
a public place to wash laundry (UK: laundrette)
learner's permit
a restricted license for a person learning to drive, who has not yet passed the necessary driver's test (rules vary from state to state); also called driver's permit (UK: provisional driving licence)
left field *
a source of unexpected or illogical questions, ideas, etc. ("that proposal came out of left field"); for the baseball sense see left fielder; see English language idioms derived from baseball (now becoming more common in the UK)
license plate, license tag
vehicle registration plate (UK: number plate)
lye
caustic soda (sodium hydroxide) or potassium hydroxide (archaic in UK)
M

mail carrier
a person who delivers mail to residences and businesses; also letter carrier (UK & US: postman, postwoman, although some encourage the use of postal worker so as to remain gender-neutral.)
mailman
see mail carrier
mailbox
(UK: post box, letter box, pillar box)
mass transit
(UK: public transport)
math
mathematics (UK: maths).
maven
expert, guru; from the Yiddish
midsize
medium size
Miranda
(Miranda warning) the warning (usually "You have the right to remain silent. If you give up that right, anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law." etc.) given to criminal suspects when arrested; (Miranda rights) the right of a criminal suspect when arrested, as established in the United States Supreme Court case Miranda v. Arizona; hence mirandize, to recite the Miranda warning to (a criminal suspect). In the UK this is referred to as "reading rights" or "cautioned as to his rights" (not to be confused with a police caution).
mohawk
a type of haircut (UK: mohican)
mama, mamma, momma
mother (UK often: mum[my]',mam,ma')
mom-and-pop
single-family operated small business ("a mom-and-pop store") (UK: corner shop/store/off-licence/offy)
mono / mononucleosis
(UK: Glandular fever)
mortician
(UK & US: undertaker, funeral director)
movie
(UK: film)

N

narc
law enforcement narcotics agent; but 'to narc on' someone is to inform on them to an authority figure, used also as a noun labeling a person who does such (UK: Grass) (This term is also used in New Zealand)
New York minute
(colloquial) quickly
nightstand
encompassed by bedside table
normalcy
normality. Used, although not coined, by President Warren G. Harding ("a return to normalcy")

[edit] O

obligated
(UK: "obliged")
off-the-rack
of clothes, etc. (UK: off-the-peg)
oftentimes *
often (archaic in Britain but colloquial in America, especially clause-initially)
ornery
irritable, crotchety, cranky, troublemaking (from ordinary)
ouster
ousting, overthrow ("the ouster of a regime"; "the ouster of the CEO")
outage *
temporary suspension of operation ("a power outage", UK: powercut); the amount of something lost in storage or transportation [DM]
overpass *
(UK: flyover)

P

pacifier
(UK: dummy [DM], comforter [DM])
pantyhose
(UK: tights, a term used for similar non-sheer garments in the U.S.; "pantyhose" refers only to sheer or semi-sheer nylon-based tights)
paper route
a regular series of newspaper deliveries (UK: paper round)
parking garage
multi-storey car park
parking lot
a usually outside area for the parking of automotive vehicles (UK: car park)
penitentiary
prison; gaol/jail.
penny-ante
(adj.) petty, insignificant—from penny ante, poker played for a very low ante
Popsicle
A trademarked brand of frozen juice, or flavored ice on a stick. The term is widely used to describe all such confections without regard to brand. (UK: ice lolly)
plastic wrap
polymer material for sealing food items (UK: cling-film)
plumber's butt or plumber's crack
buttock cleavage, also called the working man's smile (UK: builder's bum, brickie's bum or builder's cleavage)
plushie, plush toy
soft toy (UK: cuddly toy)
powdered sugar
(UK: icing sugar)
pre-authorized payment/withdrawal
(UK: direct debit (variable amount)/standing order (fixed amount))
public holiday
(UK: bank holiday, although public holiday is also used, more formally, when referring to New Year's Day, Good Friday, Christmas Day and Boxing Day). See Federal holiday

R

rad
short for "radical", different or interesting, exceptional; synonym for cool
raincheck
The metaphorical raincheck is used in the US to indicate that the person "taking the raincheck" regretfully cannot accept the current invitation but would like to be invited to a future event. In the UK the person "taking the raincheck" may attend an event, but is warning the host that there is a possibility that they may not be able to make it. Both usages are becoming more common in UK English, particularly amongst office workers.
raised pavement marker
commonly called reflector, Botts' dot or cat's eye (UK: cat's eye)
rappel
to descend on a rope (UK: abseil)
Realtor (trademark)
member of the National Association of Realtors; as a genericized trademark, any real estate broker or real estate agent (UK: estate agent)
recision
a cancellation ("This bill would authorize the recision of the adult day health care license"). Now rare in the UK; a different word from rescission
restroom
a toilet, particularly a public one.
roil
to render muddy by stirring up the dregs of; as, to roil wine, cider, etc., in casks or bottles; to roil a spring; also, to disquiet or disturb (also rile in the sense of "to anger", riled up for "angry")
roustabout
an unskilled laborer, especially at an oil field, at a circus, or on a ship
rowhouse
(UK: terraced house)
Rube Goldberg
Absurdly complex machine (see Heath Robinson).
rutabaga
the turnip Brassica napus napobrassica (UK: swede)
RV (recreational vehicle)
see article for usage of the terms RV, motor home, and the British camper [DM] and caravan [DM]
RV park
(UK: caravan site or less usually caravan park)
S

Saran wrap
(Saran is a trademark) plastic wrap (UK: cling film)
sawbuck
sawhorse; also a ten dollar bill
scads
great amounts of something
scallion *
also used in Ireland; also known as spring onion in Great Britain and the US
scalper
ticket tout
scosh
a little bit (also scotch)
scuttlebutt
gossip, rumor; originally meant water fountain (UK: rumour)
sedan automobile
(UK: saloon)
self-rising flour
self-raising flour

shill *
A shill is a person who is supposed to appear like a member of the general public who usually attempts to lend credibility or excitement to a confidence scheme e.g. a person who claims to have received benefit from snake oil. Recently popularized by eBay ("shill bidding" or bidding to drum up excitement with no intention of buying). The UK equivalent to a shill would be a "plant", from having someone "planted" in an audience or amongst bystanders. The term "plant" is equally used and understood in the United States.
shredded cheese
grated cheese
shuck
the husk of an ear of corn (maize), an oyster shell, etc.; used in plural to mean something worthless or as an interjection ("shucks!"); (verb) to remove the shuck; also, to discard, get rid of, remove ("I shucked my coat")
Shyster
A lawyer or accountant of dubious ethical standards. This phrase commonly indicates a person with no ethical restraints. (From German Scheister)
sidewalk
usually paved path for pedestrian traffic, often constructed of paving slabs (either of concrete or less usually of stone) (UK: pavement [DM], footpath [DM]). A sidewalk superintendent is someone spectating a construction or demolition job - UK: bystander (but no specific term)
skim milk
(UK: skimmed milk)
s'more
(usually pl.) A camp fire treat consisting of a roasted marshmallow and a slab of chocolate sandwiched between two pieces of graham cracker. Contraction from "some more"
sneaker
(usually pl.) a form of footwear, also called tennis shoe or "gym shoe"—see regional vocabularies of American English (UK: trainer, plimsoll, regional dap,pump, [DM])
snuck
(Past Tense and Past Participle) form of "Sneak" ) (UK: Sneaked)
soccer
a sport better known as association football (UK: "Football")
soda fountain
(see article)
sophomore
a second-year college or high school student (Trinity College Dublin has sophister in this sense); (adj.) the second in a series (as in, an athlete's "sophomore season", a band's "sophomore album") From the Greek: Sophos - Wise; and Moros - Fool, Moron (UK: undergraduate has this extended sense)
specialty *
(UK: speciality, though specialty is used in law and medicine)
spyglass
a telescope or set of lenses used to observe subjects at distance
(Once common in UK usage, but now only in dialect.)
station wagon
automobile with extended rear cargo area (UK: estate (car))
steam shovel
a large mechanical excavator (UK:digger or JCB )
stickshift, stick
(car with) manual transmission, as opposed to an automatic (UK: gear stick or gear lever for the stick; manual for the car)
strep throat
a sore throat caused by Streptococcus
stool pigeon, stoolie
police informer (UK: grasser) (From the use of captive birds as hunting decoys)
stoop
A small porch, platform, or staircase leading to the entrance of a house or building. Chiefly Northeastern U.S.
streetcar
vehicle on rails for passenger transportation [DM] usually within a city; also called trolley [DM] or trolley car if electrically powered by means of a trolley (UK: tram)
stroller
vehicle for baby transportation featuring the child in a sitting position, usually facing forward (UK: pushchair, buggy [DM])
suck
A phrase expressing distaste or disapproval
SUV *
Sport-Utility Vehicle. Often referred to as a 4x4 ("four by four") in the UK; in the US "4x4" usually refers to a four wheel drive pickup truck
sweatpants
(UK: track bottoms)

T

taffy
a type of chewy candy; see taffy (candy)
tailpipe
exhaust pipe
takeout
(UK: takeaway; Scotland & US also: carry-out)
teeter(-totter), teeterboard
a seesaw
telecast
to broadcast by television
teleprompter
(see article) (UK: compare autocue)
thru
Through. An abbreviation mostly used in the fast food industry, as in Drive Thru. Also used in traffic signs ("Thru Traffic Keep Left", i.e. traffic that is continuing through an interchange rather than exiting should keep to the left) and occasionally road names ("New York State Thruway") and sometimes in newspaper headlines. Absolutely not considered acceptable spelling in other contexts.
thumbtack
short nail or pin with a large, rounded metal head (UK: drawing pin)
track and field meeting *
(UK usually athletics meeting [DM]); see also track [DM]
trackless trolley
a trolleybus; see trolley in [DM]
trashcan
(UK: dustbin, rubbish bin)
travel trailer
caravan
trunk
storage space usually over rear wheels of an automobile (excepting some) (UK: boot)
turn signal
direction-indicator lights (UK usually indicators or flashers[DM]; US and UK also blinkers [DM])
two-bits
literally, worth 25 cents or a quarter (a bit is an eighth of a dollar); figuratively, worth very little, insignificant (informal). In UK the phrase "two bob"' exists although this far more common in London and the south-east. Likewise mickey mouse.
two cents, two cents' worth
an opinion, a piece of one's mind (as in, "I'm gonna go down there and give him my two cents") - (UK similar: two pence, two penneth, two penn'orth or tuppence worth)

U

undershirt
an upper undergarment with no collar, and with short or no sleeves, worn next to the skin under a shirt (UK: singlet, vest [DM], semmit in Scotland and Northern Ireland [1])
upscale
relating to goods targeted at high-income consumers (UK: upmarket)
uptown
(noun, adj., adv.) (in, to, toward, or related to) either the upper section or the residential district of a city; e.g. in Manhattan, New York City the term refers to the northern end of Manhattan, generally speaking, north of 59th Street; see also Uptown, Minneapolis; Uptown, Chicago; Uptown New Orleans; compare downtown. Often has implications of being a desirable or upscale neighborhood. However, in Butte, Montana and Charlotte, North Carolina, "Uptown" refers to what would be called "downtown" in most other cities.

V

vacation
an individual's earned time off from work: usually 1 to 4 weeks (UK: holiday)
vacationer
someone taking a vacation [DM] (UK: holidaymaker)
vacay
informal shortening of vacation (comparable to UK hols)
variety meats
offal (UK: sweetbreads)
varmint or varmit
(from vermin) pest which raids farms, rather than infesting them
W

washcloth
(UK: flannel, UK often & US less frequently facecloth; US less frequently also washrag)
washrag
See washcloth.
wastebasket
synonym for trash can, especially one intended for light waste (UK: dustbin; wastepaper basket is an interior object for waste from each room.)
weatherization
weatherproofing of buildings
windshield
the front window of an automobile (UK: windscreen)
wiseguy
a mobster; also smartass (e.g. "hey, wiseguy...") (UK: a "know-it-all")
woodsy
abundant in trees, suggestive of woods; woody, wooded

Y

Y'all
(regional — Southern American, African-American, and Appalachian) contraction of You all, used as second-person dual or plural pronoun. Also all y'all, comparable in meaning and register to north-English, Northern Irish and Scottish "youse, yous".
yellow light
as in the color at a stoplight (q.v.) or traffic lights. In the UK, this is referred to as an amber light (though railway signals are a different shade, and are referred to as yellow, not amber). In the UK, the red and amber light together immediately in advance of the green (giving a light sequence of 1.red, 2.red and amber (together), 3.green, 4.amber (alone), 5.red). In the USA, pressing the walk button often activates a combination of red and yellow lights for stopped traffic, especially when no "walk signal" specifically for a pedestrian's viewing is present as part of the traffic signals.
Yinz, yunz, you'uns
(Western Pennsylvania, especially Pittsburgh) plural you; derived from you ones. Likewise youse in New York City.

Z

zinger
a witty, often caustic remark; something supposed to cause surprise or shock
ZIP code
(for Zone Improvement Plan) the postal code used by the United States Postal Service composed of 5 digits as in 90210, sometimes a suffix of 4 digits after a hyphen is used. (UK equivalent: postcode or post code or rarely postal code)
zipper *
(UK usually zip [DM])
zucchini
the plant Cucurbita pepo, also zucchini squash. (UK: courgette)