‘I moved from US to the UK and there’s one British phrase I still find odd’

A woman who moved from the US to the UK has shared three phrases she never said before she moved to Britain, including one that she claims ‘throws off every American’

A woman who moved from the US to the UK has shared the one ‘British’ phrase that she claims every American expat gets confused by. It’s expected to get some culture shocks when moving to a new country, including the language used by locals, and an American called Katie has taken to TikTok to speak about the differences she has experienced since moving across from the States.

The content creator now lives in York and has posted videos about her life in the UK. These include British supermarket items she likes and things that “feel illegal” in Britain but aren’t illegal. In another clip she shared three British phrases she never used to say before living in the UK.

1. ‘You alright’

Katie claimed the phrase ‘you alright’ “throws off every single American when they move here” and she admitted that it’s definitely true for herself.

She explained that in America people only say that if something’s wrong but in the UK people commonly say ‘you alright’ as a greeting when passing each other in the street, for example.

The expat advised fellow American expats not to panic if a British person says this to them and to respond ‘yeah, good thanks and you?’

2. ‘Hiya’

Katie continued: “[The] Second one is ‘hiya’. I don’t…I never said this before moving here, now I say it all the time.”

‘Hiya’ is an informal way of saying ‘hello’. She added that it flows well with ‘you alright’ so someone from the UK might say ‘hiya, you alright.’

3. ‘What’s for tea?’

The content creator’s third and favourite phrase that she has picked up since moving to the UK is ‘what’s for tea?’

Katie remarked: “I ask everybody ‘what’s for tea?’, I love it.” She explained that Brits use this casual phrase when asking someone what they are having for dinner.

The expat elaborated: “I think it’s maybe only like a northern thing to ask that but either way, yeah I’m obsessed with it.”

She also shared that she asks ‘what’s for tea?’ anytime there’s a lull in the conversation or when she’s talking to someone she has just met.

Katie’s TikTok video has garnered 18,700 views, more than 1,000 likes and numerous comments, at the time of writing.

One user pointed out: “Americans say ‘how you doin’ which is literally the same as ‘you alright’.

Another said: “There’s an amusing irony in how you started the video with ‘what’s up’ which always throws Brits off as we would only use it if something is wrong.”

A third praised Katie for adopting British culture as they commented: “Perfect, you’re doing great. These made me smile, I use all of these.”

While a fourth added: “Love how you’re picking up a bit of an accent too.”