Each culture has its list of strange things that no one else understands. America is no exception. These are the questions foreigners have for Americans, and they are totally legit.
1) Don’t Want To Be Rude
There’s only two reasons that Americans do this. Either because they want to be polite or because they want to be rude. You never really know which one unless you know the person you’re talking to.
2) We’re Pretty Basic
That’s the reason. The leaves fall so we call it fall. The worst part is that Americans are obsesses with everything “fall.” From pumpkin spice to hayrides, we love it all.
3) Why Are There Flags Everywhere?
Because Americans are patriots. Some call the fact that there are flags at gas stations cultish but to each their own. May you fly any flag you want to fly.
4) Gotta Love Cregslist
Yes, Greg and Craig are pronounced the same in America. Don’t believe me? Ask an American to say them both and unless you’re American, you won’t be able to hear the difference.
5) Don’t Forget Blanket
If you think celebrities give their kids weird names just wait until you visit the Midwest. Names like Hunter and Bear are normal for people in the country.
6) They Can’t See Us?
This is especially true after trailers. People get excited when they see a movie they like and they can’t contain themselves. Americans are proud to be like this.
7) Apes Strong Together
Americans love their country, so they take every chance they get to sing America’s love song. It seems kind of strange but you get used to it after a while.
8) Why Doesn’t Anyone Have An Electric Kettle?
Okay, so most Americans don’t even know what an electric kettle is and they would guess wrong if they were asked. We use microwaves for everything and that’s the way it will always be.
9) What’s A Private Life?
On Facebook, Americans live fake lives. In public, they let strangers see the worst sides of them. And that includes nearly yelling about your dead cat in the middle of Starbucks.
10) Hugging Is Our Favorite
Most Americans love a good hug. It’s the American handshake. Even people from Latin America think it’s strange that men hug men they’ve just met and not just women.
11) This One Makes Sense
The real reason is that back in the 1800s, the uncovered wood benches were bleached by the sun. Thus, the name bleachers was formed and we’ve called them that ever since.
12) Not Many Actually Do
This is true. Americans love to threaten to sue people but few actually do because it costs so much to get a lawyer to even attempt it. Americans are so petty.
13) It’s The Aesthetic
These photoshoots are usually done for graduation and the are very common. You pretty much use whatever pice of nature you can find or you’re not even cool.
14) It’s Infuriating, Really
Even Americans hate this because it feels like a lie. But yeah, American goods are taxed after you check them out, so you never know exactly how much you’re paying until it’s done.
15) Why Not Though?
It’s because the instructions are directing you as to what to do. And it’s easy for kids to understand and say so in kids’ books, they say directions instead of instructions.
16) Does Fahrenheit Work For You?
Yes, it does. I can agree that the Celsius scale is much simpler but since we grew up on Fahrenheit, it’s what makes sense. Everyone remembers 32 and 212!
17) Gotta Stop You Right There
To be fair here, Paracetamol is the brand name for acetaminophen so it looks like everyone uses brand names sometimes. Although Americans call nearly everything by their brand name.
18) Let Us Have Our Consonants
You can’t explain why Americans pronounce words the way they do. In some cases, d and t sound the same just like every vowel can sound the same to some people.
19) Not Everyone Does
A lot of people are annoyed by this too. Most of us know it’s not “I could care less” because that doesn’t make sense unless you want to be super sarcastic.
20) Why Not Convert To The Metric?
No one knows. Perhaps it’s just been this way for so long that there’s no turning back now. The metric system is much simpler but Americans don’t change that easily.
21) Because They Are The Same
While school can mean anything from pre-school to college, the other two mean the same thing. It’s strange to think that college can mean something else in other countries.
22) We’re Not The Only Ones
A lot of countries, like Italy, number their pencils so it’s not that strange. But to be fair, most people only use number two pencils anyway so there isn’t a great reason.
23) You Put Butter On Sandwiches?
Who in the world puts butter on sandwiches? Like a ham sandwich? That’s just as strange as putting butter on pancakes, which goes well with syrup if you ask us.
24) How Is “Sure” Or “Yep” An Answer To Thank You?
When someone says thank you, it can make you feel awkward for no reason. So answers like “sure” and “yep” were bred to ease the tension. It kind of works.
25) Why Use MM-DD-YYYY?
Again, Americans got so tired of England that they decided to do everything different. It’s ridiculous but at this point, we’ve been doing it so long that we can’t turn back.
26) Because It’s Natural
The word herb comes from the Latin language, and it Latin languages, the “h” is always silent. So in reality, Americans say this one the right way, for once in their life.
27) Why Do States Have Their Own Laws?
In most countries, federal government rules. But in America, governors and even city mayors have a lot of power. They make up silly laws and let the people decide on everything.
28) Mind Blown Here
This makes so much sense. We call it gasoline, which was actually due to British man who patented the word Gazeline for his petrol/oil. So why do you call in petroleum?
29) Why Do Pharmacies Sell Alcohol?
It’s easier to get alcohol at Walgreens than it is to get it at a liquor store. The people at the liquor store id everyone while those at Walgreens might let you slip one in your groceries.
30) Ask Morticia
Wednesday Addams won’t take that bull, she pulls of her name. On the other hand, most people will get made fun of if their name is Tuesday, so I don’t recommend naming your kid that.
31) Why Super-sized Drinks?
No one knows why Americans drink so much soda. All of our drinks are so much larger than they used to be. A small in the 50s is a kids’ size now, and a large is a small!
32) It Just Sounds Better
There’s two reasons Americans do what they do. It’s either to be different or to be lazy. This one can be classified into both of those categories so just pick one.
33) Do Your SS Cards Come From A Cereal Box?
Apparently social security cards in other countries are super nice, because people wonder if ours come from a cereal box. They are flimsy, easy to lose, and look cheap.
34) Wait, They Don’t?
Most Americans think that eggs need to be refrigerated. Americans keep everything they can cold because we’re told that food lasts a lot longer when you do.
35) Because We Need To
We don’t all have the same drinking cups, we have the same measuring cups. One that is eight ounces, one four ounces, and one two ounces. It’s the only way to measure things.
36) What’s With Biscuits And Gravy?
Biscuits and gravy are one of the best breakfast foods in the world. Especially with bacon and a glass of your favorite breakfast beverage. Try it and you’re sure to love it.
37) What’s With The Coin Names?
In most countries, they don’t have unique names for their coins. They would just say, five cent coin and ten cent coint instead of nickel and time. So yeah, it is kind of weird that we make them unique.
38) It’s 100 Yards
The reason we do this is because not only is 100 yards an easy unit to use, but it also gives us the visual. Because we’ve all seen football fields many, many times.
39) Is A Pizza Really A Pie?
This is an Italian thing, you know. When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie, that’s amore. Italians know this and so do Americans, and Italians are always right when it comes to pizza.
40) Okay, They Don’t
If someone pukes in the sink, then something is wrong with them. The toilet is the way to go. Whoever started this by puking in the sink should be ashamed of himself.
41) What Are Grits?
If you grew up in the south and if you grew up poor, you probably had grits on a regular basis. Grits is basically just cornmeal and either water or milk. Season them the way you like and eat them for any meal.
42) Do All Bars Have TVs?
Most of them do. Most grills do these days too. There are usually sporting events on them which makes half the people roll their eyes but the other half are ecstatic.
43) Why Do You Love Drive-Thrus?
Because Americans are lazy, okay? They want to go eat Taco Bell in their pajamas. There’s a reason that they are trying to turn everything into a drive-thru these days.
44) It’s A Toss Up
Not everyone says “Holloween,” but a lot of people do. It really depends on where you’re from. The same thing can be said for “Minnesota” actually.
45) Are College Sports Important?
Yes. To most people, college sporting events are just as important as others. Especially football! The same goes for high school sports too though. Those things get intense.
46) Why So Much Water In Toilets?
Others believe that Americans waste water by allowing there to be so much in the toilet before it is used. This is something that has never crossed most Americans’ minds.
47) At Least The Office Was Good
British people want to know why we remake all of their shows. Well, I don’t know. They usually don’t work out but then we have shows like The Office that was a big hit.
48) Those Gaps Though
No one appreciates those gaps but we have to deal with them in America. In other countries, you get more privacy, so foreigners are even more uncomfortable than we are with them.
49) Then You’re Doing It Wrong
The reason is because in the early 1900s, “restrooms” had comfortable sofas and chairs. If only they still did! Add a Roku and we’re set. Just remember to wash your hands.
50) Please Repeat The Question
No idea where this came from but both ways make sense to me. Math is easy to say and Americans like to keep things user-friendly. So we call it math, why not?
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