From the U.S. to the world

Which are the 12 most used American terms worldwide? 12 strong contenders

American English has influenced global vocabulary for more than a century through movies, advertisements, literature, music, businesses, and technology. Some words that began as distinctly American expressions eventually became common almost everywhere, even in places where English is not an official language. From casual slang to everyday terms for housing, transportation, and anything you can think of, these 12 Americanisms have crossed oceans and cemented themselves into the daily speech of dozens of countries.

"OK" may be the most successful American word ever exported. It first appeared in print on March 23, 1839, in the Boston Morning Post, where editor Charles Gordon Green jokingly abbreviated "oll korrect," a humorous misspelling of "all correct."

The term exploded nationally during the 1840 U.S. presidential campaign of Martin Van Buren, nicknamed "Old Kinderhook" after Kinderhook, New York. Today, "OK" is used almost everywhere on Earth.

The word "teenager" became popular in the U.S. during the 1940s, especially through advertising and youth marketing. Earlier generations did not usually view adolescence as a separate social category the way modern culture does.

American magazines, fashion brands, and music companies helped spread the idea worldwide after World War II. Publications such as Seventeen magazine and Hollywood films helped establish the teenager as a distinct cultural identity across Europe and beyond.

"Movie" emerged in the U.S. around 1912 as a shortened version of "moving picture." Americans favored the informal nickname, while Britain and some other countries kept preferring "film" or "cinema."

Hollywood’s rise during the 20th century carried the term across the globe. By the 1930s and 1940s, millions of people worldwide were watching American "movies," and the word became internationally recognizable even in places where local terms still existed.

Americans popularized the word "elevator" for the vertical lift system invented in the 19th century. In Britain, the same machine became known as a "lift," but American terminology spread internationally through U.S. companies and skyscraper culture.

The word gained prominence after inventor Elisha Otis demonstrated a safe passenger elevator in New York City in 1854 at the Crystal Palace Exhibition. As American-style office towers spread worldwide during the 20th century, so did the "elevator."

The American word "cookie" comes from the Dutch word koekje, meaning "little cake." Dutch settlers brought the term to New Amsterdam, later renamed New York, during the 1600s. Over time, Americans adopted it as the standard word for sweet baked treats.

Britain traditionally used "biscuit," but American culture helped spread "cookie" globally through packaged snacks, television advertising, and brands like Oreo and Chips Ahoy! Today, both terms are recognized internationally, often with slightly different meanings.

"Apartment" became the dominant American term for a rented residential unit during the late 19th century as cities like New York and Chicago rapidly expanded upward with multi-family buildings.

British English traditionally favored "flat," but "apartment" spread internationally through American real-estate marketing, television, and films. Luxury developments worldwide now commonly advertise "apartments," even in countries where local words exist.

Americans shortened "gasoline" to simply "gas" in the early automotive era of the 1900s. The rise of Ford, General Motors, and America’s highway culture helped export the term globally alongside U.S. car culture.

While many countries still prefer "petrol," travelers almost anywhere understand "gas station." American road movies, music, and television helped cement the term in international vocabulary.

The American word "truck" replaced the older freight term during the industrial boom of the late 1800s and early 1900s. In Britain, the same vehicle is usually called a "lorry," but American English has spread widely through commerce and manufacturing.

As American trucking companies, military vehicles, and exports became globally visible after World War II, "truck" entered everyday speech in many countries. Today, international brands from Toyota to Mercedes often market "pickup trucks" using the American term.

Americans adopted "sidewalk" during the 18th and 19th centuries to describe paved pedestrian paths beside the streets. British English preferred "pavement," but U.S. urban terminology spread through engineering, mapping, and popular culture.

The term became especially associated with American city life in places like New York and Los Angeles. Jazz songs, movies, and Broadway culture helped introduce "sidewalk" to international audiences during the 20th century.

"Store" became the standard American word for a retail shop during the country’s commercial expansion in the 1800s. Britain traditionally favored "shop," but American business culture later spread "store" internationally.

Department stores such as Macy’s, founded in New York in 1858, and later chains like Walmart and Target helped popularize the term worldwide. Today, many countries use both "shop" and store, often interchangeably.

The U.S. popularized "vacation" as the standard word for leisure travel and time away from work. The term comes from the Latin vacatio, meaning freedom or exemption from duty, but gained especially strong impulse and use in the U.S. during the late 19th century.

British English prefers "holiday," yet "vacation" has spread globally through American tourism, airlines, and entertainment. Expressions like "summer vacation" became internationally familiar thanks to movies, television, and school-related American culture.

"Guy" originally referred to Guy Fawkes, the English conspirator involved in the failed Gunpowder Plot of 1605. In Britain, "guy" first described strange-looking figures burned during Bonfire Night celebrations.

Americans later transformed the word into an informal term for a man, and eventually for groups of people in general, as in "you guys." Hollywood films, television sitcoms, and everyday American speech helped spread this casual usage worldwide.

Good luck, bad luck

Debunking widespread superstitions: Why are ladders so scary?

Do you have rules you follow "just in case"? Some of us avoid walking under ladders, hesitate before opening umbrellas indoors, or instinctively knock on wood after saying something… But

where did these rituals come from? Why did some everyday accidents, animals, or gestures get labeled "unlucky"? Let’s explore some of the answers and whether they have to do with psychology, religion, history, or plain old common sense!

For one, there’s the safety concern: Why would you walk under a ladder if you could avoid the –albeit low– risk of it falling on you?

However, this superstition is also linked to the medieval Christian belief that interrupting a shape resembling a triangle was a way of insulting the Holy Trinity. Again: Why risk it?

Have you ever shattered a mirror and winced at the thought of years of bad luck? This goes back to ancient Greece and Rome. There, reflections were thought to be linked to the soul. Destroying a mirror was considered an affront to the gods watching over your spiritual self.

The "seven years" bit comes from the Roman idea that the human body renewed itself in seven-year cycles.

"You’ll jinx it!" is a common reaction when someone celebrates before their actual birthday. This superstition appears across several European traditions, where marking a milestone before it arrives was seen as presumptuous, even disrespectful to fate.

In eras when illness and mortality were real daily concerns, reaching your birthday wasn’t guaranteed… so celebrating early felt like counting blessings before earning them.

In ancient Egypt, black cats were revered and associated with protection and prosperity. What happened to their reputation, then? Simply put, in medieval Europe, when fear of witchcraft ran rampant, cats (especially the poor black ones) became linked with witches.

However, beliefs vary widely: in Britain, Ireland, and Japan, black cats can signify good luck or fortune, and sailors once welcomed them aboard ships to ensure safe voyages.

In many Western traditions, both Fridays and the number 13 had separate unlucky connotations long before they were combined: Friday was sometimes seen as ill-fated in Christian lore (Jesus’ crucifixion is said to have been on a Friday), and 13 was viewed with suspicion in Norse myth (where Loki’s unexpected arrival as the 13th guest at a feast led to chaos).

When early umbrellas with stiff metal frames first became popular in Britain and Europe, they were hard to fold and easy to jab into furniture, lamps, or unsuspecting family members. That made opening one inside genuinely hazardous, and turning it into a superstition was a tidy way to say, "Please don’t do it."

Almost everyone does this reflexively: you say something hopeful and then tap wood to "keep the luck going." One theory ties this to pagan traditions in Europe, where people believed protective spirits lived in trees; knocking on the trunk was a way to call on those spirits or to secure their goodwill.

Salt was once very precious: it preserved food, flavored meals, and even served as currency in parts of the ancient world. Spilling it meant waste, and waste invited misfortune. But, of course, everyone knows the fix: throw some over your left shoulder.

"Step on a crack, break your mother’s back." This ominous-sounding rhyme isn’t ancient at all; it rose to popularity in the early 20th century, spread through schoolyards rather than folklore. Of course, there is no logical explanation to back it up. But if you are superstitious… why would you risk it?

"One for sorrow, two for joy"... In British and Irish folklore, seeing a single magpie was thought to signal misfortune, loneliness, or bad news. The belief probably just pointed at how unlikely it is to see only one of these beautiful birds. To counter the bad luck, people developed rituals: tipping a hat, greeting the bird politely, or even saluting it.