|
ESL Forum:
Techniques and methods
in Language Teaching
Games, activities
and teaching ideas
Grammar and
Linguistics
Teaching material
Concerning
worksheets
Concerning
powerpoints
Concerning online
exercises
Make suggestions,
report errors
Ask for help
Message board
|
ESL forum >
Ask for help > can I go to the toilet
can I go to the toilet
|
|
Apodo
|
|
And the person who developed the flush toilet was Thomas Crapper. Good name, eh? ;-)
LOL Australians have so many wonderful words for toilet visits, but as IbuLulu said we are quite happy to use the word toilet. |
14 May 2012
|
|
|
douglas
|
|
Correct, Americans prefer "May I use the restroom?" or "May I use the bathroom?"
The logic is that when you say "toilet" a person gets a mental picture of the the single fixture (the toilet) and what goes into it. When you use "restroom" or "bathroom" the mental picture tends to be a sink or bathtub which is much more appealing when, for example, people are sitting at the dinner table.
Using "toilet" is not really rude, it is just frowned upon and its use is rare in comparison to the other terms.
Cheers,
Douglas |
15 May 2012
|
|
|
joy2bill
|
|
Personally I have always found it interesting when students ask to go to the bathroom as there is usually no bath in a language school and so how can we have a �bathroom �. Downunder we prefer a separate room so that more people can use the facilities at once. I have even lived in a house that had three different rooms for ablutions..one toilet, one bathroom and one shower room. We use the word �toilet � quite comfortably! Cheers Joy |
15 May 2012
|
|
|
alexcure
|
So as not to sound incorrect to an American or Australian ear isn �t it okay to all ears just saying: Can I go to the loo? 
Have a nice day!
Alex |
15 May 2012
|
|
|
rockthevinyl
|
I completely agree with Douglas! In fact, that�s the explanation I give to my Spanish-speaking students - who, learning English in Spain, speak British English. As an American, I get the unpleasant visual of a toilet and the actions associated with it...when in fact, maybe the student is just going to wash his/her hands!
Bathroom - inside a house, for example. A �half-bath� would be just a sink and toilet if I �m not mistaken.
Restroom - public facility, like at a rest stop or a mall (shopping center).
Toilet - the actual object.
That �s how I use those terms, anyway!
|
15 May 2012
|
|
|
douglas
|
|
>>Alex: Most Americans don�t know what a loo is.
|
15 May 2012
|
|
|
alexcure
|
|
Hahahaha, my English sounds to be too British. Anyway, to my Polish ear the word �restroom � sounds very funny so you can imagine the reaction of the students... anyway funny words are always easier to memorise, ;-) (PS. I always taught my students the word �loo� and also the word �john� as its American colloquial equivalent, tell me if you have heard someone saying �john� now, I heard it saying about 15 years ago in England but by a group of American tourists). |
15 May 2012
|
|
|
Liligirl
|
|
I didn �t catch the joke John said " please , no swimming " . Can you explain ?
|
15 May 2012
|
|
< Previous
1
2
|
