Toilet twee
It's always amused me how Americans ask where the bathroom is, or excuse themselves to take a bathroom break
, when they have no intention of having a bath. Now, the BBC's health reporter, Philippa Roxbury, advises us how to examine one's stools for signs of bowel cancer in Bowel cancer: How to check your poo.
Why the need for kiddywink language? Adults do not go poo-poos
. In polite circles, at least, we defecate; take a dump; or visit the smallest room in the house—one that's often too small to hold a bath. (pipe)
While searching for something completely unrelated, I found this rather nice A to a pretty dumb Q on Quora.
Why do British people call the bathroom a loo? Is that what they still use or are there other names? We don’t. A bathroom is a bathroom. The place where you have a bath. It has a bath in it. Why do American people call the toilet a bathroom when there is no bath in it? Loo is just one of many slang names and euphemisms for the lavatory. It comes from the cry “gardy-loo”, which in turn comes from the French “gardez l’eau”, meaning “beware of the water”. Back in the days of no plumbing, it meant “watch out, I’m going to empty the chamber pot out of the window”. As you will gather, this was a LONG time ago - now we have indoor plumbing and the streets are much less smelly.
Clive Gordon, Quora
QFT! (thumbup)
Why do British people call a toilet “the bog”? Because English is idiosyncratic …… and there are many, many words for the WC which do not include the words ‘powder’ or ‘rest’ or ‘bath’! Loo, bog, can, head, khazi, toilet, lavatory, smallest room …… nothing wrong with any of them at all! I know if somebody says they are going to one of these, they are going to use a toilet; they are not going for a rest, or a bath or to powder anything!
Marian Clarke, Quora
Actually, I often say I'm going to powder my nose, but more for comedic effect than anything else; my nose is not particularly shiny. But her comment did put me in mind of The Goodies (s5e1, The Movies):
- Bill: [talking about silent era comedians]
Keaton, Chaplin, Harry Langdon, Lavatory Meadows…
- Graeme: [incredulously]
Lavatory Meadows?
- Tim: [wearily]
He means W.C. Fields.