"Time for tea I think" - I'm going on a break, do not follow me with work
"We're out of tea" - Ight, I'mma head out
this post was submitted on 15 Nov 2023
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I wonder if that second meaning is how "tea" began to also mean "gossip"
It started as “T” for “truth” and evolved into “tea” with wordplay with “spill the tea”.
https://www.merriam-webster.com/wordplay/tea-slang-meaning-origin
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In lesson 2, the semantics of tea vs brew vs cuppa
I'd like to learn this too.
Tbh, I was hoping some other Brit with actual social skills would drop by with the answer, then I could pretend to have known all along. I think it indicates increasing familiarity, something like
- Tea - you are a person who might want tea
- Cuppa - we are on friendly terms and I consider you my social equal
- Brew - I would trust you with my life and call you wanker to your face
I'd say it's much more regional, for instance brew is much more a northern thing.
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Please use brew in a sentence that reflects your theory.
Fancy a brew, ya wanker?
Thank you!
Uh... "Does your Royal Majesty fancy a brew?".
It doesn't feel right when you don't have a reasonably close relationship.
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"NOT IN THE HARBOR!!!!": Their American cousins are over for a visit.
*Harbour, you fuckin degenerate 😅
At least we actually pronounce the R instead of somehow cancelling it by adding an unpronounced letter.
Says the guy that sounds like they're having an aneurysm when saying "squirrel" or "mirror" 😜
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Unless you're from Boston, in which case it's pronounced "Hah-bah"
Pahk yah cah in the hahbah cah-pahk, Mahk!
How does English society even function
Liberal amounts of tea by the looks of it.
Aggressive queueing.
I'm from the Commonwealth and I don't see anything wrong. Which part of this doesn't make sense? Would it help understanding if you swapped tea for coffee?
Lots of caffeine.
Imperfectly, to say the least
Mate, you need a cup of tea = you are having a really hard time right now and I hope that a cup of tea might be of some comfort to you.
Right! I'm getting tea = it's the morning and I'm already sick of everything.
My English father and grandmother just said, "do you want tea?" Can someone tell me the translation of that?
It often translates as "do you have time to stay and chat, or do you have stuff to get on with?". It's an invitation to relax together, without the implicit social demand.
English social etiquette is a minefield, even for the English.
What should one do when the visiting Brit wants coffee? Do they need medical attention?
It's generally a sign that they are in a very bad place, mentally. It's a bit like an Aussie who doesn't swear, or a rude Canadian. It's just wrong.
As for what to do? Obviously make them a nice cup of tea, to calm down. Use force if necessary.
With my Nan, this means that she's just finished a cup but she'll happily put the kettle back on if you'd like one, but she's not going to just start making tea because she's alright for now, but if are having one she'll join you for another.
If it had been more than 1 hour since her last cuppa she'd just say "I'm putting the kettle on" and that was that, everyone in the house without their milk teeth was getting a cup of tea shoved in their hands once the kettle had boiled.
Something I've wanted to ask a Real Brit™ for a while now, since I'm trying to slowly transition from coffee to tea on the days I'm working from home:
For the standard, basic tea you're drinking all day, can you give me the specifics of what you use and how it's prepared?
I'm assuming the kettle is just for the water and you're not actually brewing a kettle full of tea? What kind is standard quality? Is it Earl Gray, English Breakfast, or is it just plain old "tea"? Bags? Loose leaf with an infuser?
And do most drink it plain? With sugar? Milk? Honey?
And are folks generally just constantly drinking it throughout the entire day?
For coffee, I'll drink 1 or 2 cups, guaranteed minimum, fairly quickly every morning (both down by 930 or 10) and then the next cup after 10 I'll usually nurse through the afternoon until maybe 1 or 130, then that's it for coffee...but it seems like tea in the UK is just all day, every day.
Some people will definitely do the all day every day thing but a lot of us just play it up for the internet really. I have a cuppa when I get up, and that's usually it. Although admittedly my "cup" is a big Green Bay Packers travel mug that keeps it warm for hours, so probably counts as at least two regular cups.
On days like today when I'm a bit under the weather I'll have a second one to get me through, and then me and the husband have developed a definitely unhealthy habit of late-night tea and Hobnobs although I go with a normal size cup for that one!
Older people especially seem to drink a lot out of sheer boredom. Also office workers, same reason.
Kettle is just for the water, most people use teabags. Loose leaf is "fancy". I believe english breakfast is the kind that I would just think of as "normal tea" but not 100% sure on that one, it's just tea! 😅
Milk is very common to the point of being default, sugar is more of an individual question. I often drink mine black with honey at home but just go with the default milk when out and about.
I hope this boringly factual tale of life in Tea Country was everything you hoped it would be.
I hope this boringly factual tale of life in Tea Country was everything you hoped it would be.
Yes! It was great, thank you!
Boil kettle > put 'regular' tea eg PG Tips in ceramic mugs adorned with greeting-card-grade pro-tea sentiment > pour > stir with vigour > squeeze bags between two tea spoons for added strength > place bags in the spent bag vessel > milk to order > sugar? > one lump (spoonful) or two? > final stir and deliver.
Remember to use the spoon to scoop and stir so yellow clumps of congealed sugar begin to appear in the bag and a permanent residual rime forms about the tip of the spoon.
Assuming "PG Tips" is a brand of tea?
Excellent, to the point guide, thank you!
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You're taking the piss, right? Squeezing the bags makes the tea bitter, by releasing tannins into the tea. You steep, pull and allow to drip. For stronger taste steep longer. I'm a dumb American and even I know that
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Feels like it's the "family" answer. Basically the first one, the "guest" answer, but more relaxed because you're closer.
"Have you had your tea yet?" = "Have you had dinner yet"
You missed a nuance -
"You'll have had your tea?"
Meaning "I am offering dinner but secretly hoping you refuse it because I can't really spare it"
What does "This tea is nothing more than hot leaf juice" translate to?
Banishment
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"Would you like a cup of tea before you go?" - I would like you to leave now.
"Right, kettle's on" - thank god I am now finally able to sit down and relax
"Quick tea?" -> This conversation has just swapped from small talk to a discussion and I need a way to mentally prepare myself
Can confirm this is an accurate translation
Cuppa splosh?
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