Translation help what does a Brit call the tube in other countries? - Serious question.?

Question

Translation help what does a Brit call the tube in other countries? - Serious question.?

Answer 1

It really has nothing to do with what nationality the people are. It has to do with whether the people know the name of the system in the country they are in and whether they have lived there a long time or been there often.



Having lived in Germany for years myself, all the people who live here as foreigners say U-Bahn, S-Bahn and even Bahnhof (station). So anyone I know would say things like "I'm taking the U-Bahn to the Bahnhof".

When I was in Spain I called it the underground because I didn't know what the underground system was called. In Paris and Moscow I would call it the metro because I know that's what it's called.



"Tube" is a very specialised word and as far as I know it only refers to the London underground. The reason is that the London underground has round tunnels which look like a long tube. Most foreign underground systems have rectangular tunnels.

Answer 2

Not all " Brits" are the same - some are English and live in London and talk about the tube, some are Scottish and live in or visit Glasgow and use, and refer to, the Underground.

Some of these Scots visit Moscow or Paris or St Petersburg where they use the metro, or New York where they use rthe subway, or Hamburg where they use the U-Bahn... and if referring to this mode of transport, among people who would not understand the term U-Bahn, they say "Underground". Because that is what is it.

Answer 3

Speaking for myself, I would call it the underground, whatever country I was in, if I was talking to a fellow Briton. If I was speaking to a native, I would be careful to call it the S-Bahn, or the Metro, or whatever.



Strictly speaking, the "Tube" isn't the correct name for every single line on the London underground. The tunnels were constructed in two different ways: sometimes it was dug down from the surface; the others were constructed by boring. I have been told that only those that were bored through to form the tunnel should be called the "Tube".



PS: I live near Glasgow, and the Underground there is colloquially called the Clockwork Orange (due to the colour of the trains/maps). Just thought I'd throw that in!!

Answer 4

Well I worked in Germany for 16 years-often in Berlin or other big cities. We always called the U-Bahn the U-Bahn or the S-Bahn or the surface railways by their names. We used to travel on the inter-city express a lot-called the ICE(fabulous-runs on time-seems to glide on air and you get a printed itinery of your trip with all changes and platforms as a matter of course) Its what they are called there. If you are in a different country you use the local currency and work prices out in that currency-you don't call the currency "pounds" even though at first you might work out what it costs in pounds. Actually you have to dive in and call everything by its proper name for that country-otherwise you are just a perpetual tourist.

Answer 5

Your example regarding Berlin is correct. Brits say 'the Tube', but even Brits in Hong Kong might well refer to the MTR (which doesn't necessarily mean 'Underground - it stands for Mass Transit Railway). When in Paris, then it's the Metro, although in Manchester, the Metrolink is a tram line (aka light railway link).

To avoid confusion, it's probably better to use the local name for the service.

Answer 6

I can't speak for all British, but most people tend to use the local name - Metro in Paris, Subway in NY, U-Bahn in Berlin.

Answer 7

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Answer 8

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Answer 9

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Answer 10

In British English, "underground" refers to any subterranean railway. The "tube" is, in strict usage, only the deep-level part of the "underground", that is the part of the network built in the 1890s and later, which to save money, had to fit the narrowest diameter tunnels capable of being fitted with standard (4 foot, 8.5 inch) track. This required very coaches set very low on their wheels, with rounded roofs, from which, when they stop at platforms also used by normal rolling stock, passengers have to step up six inches or so, instead of stepping down.

Much of the pre-1890 "underground"network is known as the "Metropolitan line." This gave its name to the circa 1900 subterranean railway in Paris, where it came to be abbreviated as "Metro", and is used in Montreal, Mexico City, Brazil, Santiago de Chile and elsewhere, and often, not just for subterranean railways, but also (e.g. in Recife, Brazil) for any railway, surface or subterranean, serving a city centre and its immediate outskirts.

"Subway" in British usage means an subterranean path for "tramcars" (street cars) or pedestrians (e.g. to provide a safe way to cross under a busy street).

Your list of foreign words for subterranean railways omits the "Subterráneo" of Buenos Aires, shortened to "subte."

If I am writing for British readers, I use "underground" for any subterranean railway, anywhere. If I am writing for North American readers, I use "subway" similarly for any subterranean railway. If I expect readers from both places, I would probably use "metro." In the only foreign language I ever write in (Portuguese) I would also opt for "metro."

Obviously if it were necessary to distinguish a particular line, then I would say "S-Bahn" or "Red Line" or "Circle Line" as appropriate, but such a choice would be made within the clearly stated context of Berlin, Washington DC, London etc.

Answer 11

I'd probably call it "the metro" if I was using a generic term, but I'd probably call it whatever it's called in that country, depending on how easy it was to say - i.e. when I was in New York I called it "the subway". For example I'd probably say "metro" rather than "chikatetsu"!



I'd only ever say "the tube" in London.

Answer 12

We'd call it the underground, except where it was universally known by a more familiar name, such as the Metro or the Subway. We only call it the tube in London.

Answer 13

The derogatory term "Paki" is utilized with the help of white Britons to describe maximum south Asians. i do no longer understand why it grew to alter into the Most worthy term - perhaps with the aid of fact Pakistan became a source of many, yet with the help of no capacity all, of the immigrants, and "Paki" became the only nicely-usually used slang word for everybody from that section. Pakistan does have some thing to do with India because it used to hitch India (Bangladesh, too). historical past LESSON -------------------------- Partition of India, wherein Muslim-majority areas interior the east and west of the Indian subcontinent have been constituted right into a separate u . s ., Pakistan. The Western zone became popularly (and for a volume of time, additionally formally) termed West Pakistan and the jap zone (cutting-edge-day Bangladesh) became initially termed East Bengal and later, East Pakistan. the two zones have been separated with the help of numerous thousand miles of Indian territory. They have been additionally very diverse from one yet another culturally, no rely if in language, the humanities, song, delicacies or outfits. It became extensively perceived that the west zone ruled the rustic, best to the efficient marginalization of the east zone. East Pakistan, renamed the persons's Republic of Bangladesh, grew to alter into self sustaining following the Bangladesh Liberation conflict of 1971.

Answer 14

Generally I use the local term - MRT in Thailand, MTR in Hong Kong, Underground in London, Metro in Paris.

But if I am not sure I usually say underground or something.

Answer 15

Its called The Underground

ref

http://www.google.co.uk/search?q=the+underground&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a

Answer 16

I think the Americans call it the subway train.