List of British Words Not Widely Used in The United States - F

F

faff

to dither, futz, “I spent the day faffing about in my room”. Also related noun ("That's too much faff"). Mainly found in the North of England, but also popular in South Wales.

fag end

cigarette butt

fairing

a gift, particularly one given or bought at a fair (obsolete); type of cookie (biscuit) made in Cornwall

fairy cake

a small sponge cake (US and UK also: cupcake)

fairy lights

Christmas lights

feck

(vulgar) mild expletive employed as an attenuated alternative to fuck (including fecker, fecking, etc.) (originally Hiberno English and popularized by the television series Father Ted).

fiddly

requiring dexterity to operate ("the buttons on the tiny mobile phone were too fiddly")

fire brigade

fire department

fiscal

short for Procurator Fiscal, name of the public prosecutor in Scotland (US: District Attorney, state prosecutor etc.)

fish fingers

(US: fish sticks)

fiver

five pound note (bill)

fizzy drink *

carbonated soft drink (US: soda, pop, coke depending on the region)

flannel

washcloth (US)

flat

(US: apartment); also derived from are the British terms block of flats (US: apartment block), or high flats (to describe a high-rise apartment building - see also Tower Block below)

flex

electrical lead (UK); electrical cord (US)

flyover

a road crossing over another road (US: an overpass)

footie

(slang) football (US: soccer)

foot-path, footpath

path that is only for use by those on foot that may or may not be alongside a road. Not usually used for paved or widened path that directly abuts the road at a kerb, which is referred to as pavement(US: Sidewalk).

fortnight *

a period of 14 days (and nights) or two weeks

freephone

a telephone number where the caller is not charged for the call (US: toll-free number)

French letter

(slang) condom

fringe

bangs, as in describing collective strands of hair covering part or all of the forehead

funfair

a travelling fair with amusements, stalls, rides etc. (US: carnival or traveling carnival)

full stop

(US: period)