An American woman living in London with her three children has taken to TikTok to express her frustration with three common British phrases that she says she “cannot stand”. Annie, who posts under the handle @Anniepawlowicz, said that despite English being her first language, she still struggles with certain expressions.
The first phrase that confuses her is “you alright?”. She explained that when someone says it, she initially thought she looked distressed. “I literally thought that it looked like something was wrong,” she said. She added that she still does not know how to respond and finds it “so awkward”.
Another phrase she dislikes is “unwell”. In the US, she says, it is used for serious illnesses, but in the UK it is used for minor ailments like a cough or cold. “Like truly I would say unwell if my kid had a very serious diagnosis or long term illness,” she said, adding that using it for a child with a cough feels “so so strange” and makes her “uncomfortable”.
The third term that baffles her is “lollipop man” or “lollipop lady”, the UK name for a school crossing guard. She said: “They’re the cutest like sweetest people, I just absolutely adore them but like why do we have to call them the lollipop man?” She acknowledged that the name comes from the lollipop-shaped sign they hold, but said it “feels strange to call an adult a lollipop man”.
Her video has been viewed almost 50,000 times and attracted hundreds of comments. One user advised: “I normally just reply to ‘you alright?’ With ‘yeah, you?’ And move on.” Another explained the difference in usage of “unwell”, saying: “We use it in place of when you guys say he’s sick cos we only really say someone is sick if they’ve physically vomited.”
