DiscoverGrammar Girl Quick and Dirty Tips for Better WritingWhy Brits eat biscuits and Americans eat cookies. Why brands keep nouning everything. Hamster alert.
Why Brits eat biscuits and Americans eat cookies. Why brands keep nouning everything. Hamster alert.

Why Brits eat biscuits and Americans eat cookies. Why brands keep nouning everything. Hamster alert.

Update: 2025-12-02
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This week, in honor of National Cookie Day, we look at the vocabulary split between British and American English, including the differences between a cookie and a biscuit, and the two meanings of "pudding." Then, we look at anthimeria, the advertising trend of turning one part of speech into another, as in the slogan "Together makes progress."

The anthimeria segment was by Ben Yagoda,whose books include "Gobsmacked! The British Invasion of American English" and the novel "Alias O. Henry." His podcast is "The Lives They’re Living."

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Why Brits eat biscuits and Americans eat cookies. Why brands keep nouning everything. Hamster alert.

Why Brits eat biscuits and Americans eat cookies. Why brands keep nouning everything. Hamster alert.

Mignon Fogarty, Ben Yagoda