Help with English variants wanted! And info on jeeps.

[indri]

nwhepcat is kindly betaing my fic at the moment and what's become apparent is that I sometimes muddle my slanguages. Scots, English, Strine and American---I keep getting them confused.

So I wonder if anyone has any suggestions for the following:

(i) hoon noun 1. a fast, reckless driver of a car, boat, etc. 2. a speedy drive; a fang: going out for a hoon tonight. 3. a hooligan; a lout. This is Aussie slang but I need Brit or US. I'll just use some dull synonym unless someone knows of a word connoting reckless speed.

(ii) bodeganwhepcat tells me this is the term I need but I'm not comfortable with it as it's not a standard part of my vocabulary. Is the term "convenience store" sufficiently dialect-neutral? I think "corner shop" is largely British and "deli" and "milk bar" are Australian.

(iii) bogie A railroad car or locomotive undercarriage. I can't use this with a straight face, as "bogie" is Scots (and English?) slang for congealed snot. I'd prefer something less polysyllabic than "railroad car" or "locomotive undercarriage" though. Will everyone understand me if I write "rail-car"?

(iv) Frosties It's "Frosties" in one country and "Frosted Flakes" in another. Does it matter which I go for? This is Spike POV, so I figure either UK or US brandnames would be OK.

And also---

(v) jeeps Are these manual or automatic transmission vehicles?

Thanks, all. I may have more slightly daft questions tomorrow.

UPDATE 9:30pm Just got back from dinner with the SO (mm, congee), who kindly explained to me all manner of things about jeeps and gears. I am OK now for jeep knowledge.

Comments

See, I was lost

[tesla321.livejournal.com]

I thought you needed a synonym for "booger".


And Americans have a great capacity for blandly ignoring
trademarks. All sodas are "Cokes", all tissues "Kleenex"
copiers "Xerox", and convenience stores tend to be "7-11".
Nowadays most self-serve gas stations have an all night
convenience store attached.

What *Spike* would call something---hm.

Re: See, I was lost

[caille.livejournal.com]

Hee! The great soda debate...it's so regional. "Coke" in the south, "pop" in the mid-west, "soda" in the west. I'm not sure what it is in the east. Plus nobody can stay put, so you have pops meeting and marrying sodas. Luckily the offspring drink Red Bull.

Re: See, I was lost

[indri]

I grew up saying "fizzy drink" but in South Australia it's usually "soft drink".

I wonder what forces select which words will have so many variants.

Re: See, I was lost

[indri]

I was using 7-11 as a synonym for convenience store in my story, but this turns out to not to fit the period.

It's a minefield!