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Discussion Groups / English Usage / January 2007What is the American term for this device?
What is the American term for stands that hold up ropes or tapes (for forming lines)? I think they are called queue stands in British English, but "line stand" is apparently not the American English counterpart. >What is the American term for stands that hold up ropes or tapes (for >forming lines)? I think they are called queue stands in British English, >but "line stand" is apparently not the American English counterpart. They appear to be called "stanchions" or "crowd control stanchions": http://www.displays2go.com/crowd_control_stanchions.html  SignaturePeter Duncanson, UK (in alt.english.usage) > >What is the American term for stands that hold up ropes or tapes (for > >forming lines)? I think they are called queue stands in British English, [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > Peter Duncanson, UK > (in alt.english.usage) I think you're right. Far more common than my guess. Dominic Bojarski > >What is the American term for stands that hold up ropes or tapes (for > >forming lines)? I think they are called queue stands in British English, > >but "line stand" is apparently not the American English counterpart. > > They appear to be called "stanchions" or "crowd control stanchions": > http://www.displays2go.com/crowd_control_stanchions.html When I were a lass working in a movie theater and refering to them frequently, they were stanchions. SignatureSML > What is the American term for stands that hold up ropes or tapes (for > forming lines)? I think they are called queue stands in British English, > but "line stand" is apparently not the American English counterpart. Based on my instinct, I took a guess at "rope posts", and found that at least some people use the term. Type it into Google Images. I'm not sure if other terms exist, though, and would hardly be surprised if they did. I don't think too many Americans would use the word "stand" here. I think we would consider this to be a type of fence. Hence the term "posts". Other Americans may feel differently, though. I also found that "rope stands" and even "rope and post stands" are used by British and Australian sites. Dominic Bojarski > > What is the American term for stands that hold up ropes or tapes (for > > forming lines)? I think they are called queue stands in British English, > > but "line stand" is apparently not the American English counterpart. > > Based on my instinct, I took a guess at "rope posts", and found that at > least some people use the term. [snip] I took a guess at "queue corrals" and got four hits at Google. "Corral" comes from Spanish, meaning an enclosed space. Aloha ~~~ Ozzie Maland ~~~ San Diego > What is the American term for stands that hold up ropes or tapes (for > forming lines)? I think they are called queue stands in British English, > but "line stand" is apparently not the American English counterpart. I believe you have some technically correct answers downthread, but I'd say "cordon stand." SignatureLars Eighner <http://larseighner.com/> <http://myspace.com/larseighner> God is REAL, unless explicitly declared INTEGER. > What is the American term for stands that hold up ropes or tapes (for > forming lines)? I think they are called queue stands in British English, > but "line stand" is apparently not the American English counterpart. Mostly they are never mentioned by name,it's just standing in line. > What is the American term for stands that hold up ropes or tapes (for > forming lines)? I think they are called queue stands in British English, > but "line stand" is apparently not the American English counterpart. "Those rope holder thingies at the bank, you know" would get you by at the local pub in Indiana. SignatureYours, Dan S. Temporary sig pending inspiration: - If I did all the things that will "only" take {X} minutes per day, it would take three days to do them all. >> What is the American term for stands that hold up ropes or tapes (for >> forming lines)? I think they are called queue stands in British English, >> but "line stand" is apparently not the American English counterpart. > >"Those rope holder thingies at the bank, you know" would get you by at the >local pub in Indiana. Just the one local pub in Indiana? What's it local to? Anyway, the same phrase would work just as well in my local pub. SignatureLinz Wet Yorks via Cambridge, York, London and Watford My accent may vary >>> What is the American term for stands that hold up ropes or tapes (for >>> forming lines)? I think they are called queue stands in British English, [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > Just the one local pub in Indiana? What's it local to? Anyway, the > same phrase would work just as well in my local pub. The proverbial local pub used as an example, not any pub in particular -- nor am I refering to any particular bank, but that didn't pique your curiosity for some reason. SignatureYours, Dan S. Temporary sig pending inspiration: - If I did all the things that will "only" take {X} minutes per day, it would take three days to do them all. >>>> What is the American term for stands that hold up ropes or tapes >>>> (for [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > particular -- nor am I refering to any particular bank, but that > didn't pique your curiosity for some reason. I immediately thought of "rope line" as mentioned in many political and celebrity functions. Those, however, are not for queuing, but so the public may call the attention of the VIP and the latter can approach for hand-shaking, etc. Anyway, the standards (would that do?) that hold up the rope line are referred to as poles, rather than posts. I also see, in some museums, theaters, etc, single loop velvet or plush ropes. Then again, over the recent shopping days, Best Buy had areas taped off with a black "police" line, festooned with notices that customers should not cross the lines. No name for that kind of stampede incentive, though. >>>> What is the American term for stands that hold up ropes or tapes (for >>>> forming lines)? I think they are called queue stands in British English, [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] >nor am I refering to any particular bank, but that didn't pique your >curiosity for some reason. Because you didn't call it a local bank. It's the 'local' that piqued my interest. SignatureLinz Wet Yorks via Cambridge, York, London and Watford My accent may vary >>>>> What is the American term for stands that hold up ropes or tapes (for >>>>> forming lines)? I think they are called queue stands in British English, [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] >Because you didn't call it a local bank. It's the 'local' that piqued >my interest. You are aware that "local" has no connotation of a place that serves liquor in the US? The use of "local" just means "the one near me". We would speak of the local bar or the local bank branch, but not the local bank. Bars are independent units, so "local" means the one nearby. Banks are usually multi-unit, so we only use "local" to refer to unit near us if that designation is important to the statement. SignatureTony Cooper Orlando, FL > You are aware that "local" has no connotation of a place that serves > liquor in the US? The use of "local" just means "the one near me". > We would speak of the local bar or the local bank branch, but not the > local bank. But we might speak of /a/ local bank, as opposed to, say, Bank of America or Chase, which are (unless you live in New York) foreign interlopers, banking-wise. Several banks in my area advertise themselves specifically as local banks, even though they have branches throughout the state. -=Eric >> You are aware that "local" has no connotation of a place that serves >> liquor in the US? The use of "local" just means "the one near me". [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] >themselves specifically as local banks, even though they have branches >throughout the state. There is a difference between an advertisement saying that Security Bank is "your local bank" and an individual saying "I'm off to the local bank". You can expect the first, but not the second. "Local" can be used in an expression like "Is there a local bank?", but that construction is not the same as "I'm going to my local bank" as we would say "I'm going to my local bar". SignatureTony Cooper Orlando, FL [...] > There is a difference between an advertisement saying that Security > Bank is "your local bank" and an individual saying "I'm off to the [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > but that construction is not the same as "I'm going to my local bank" > as we would say "I'm going to my local bar". Understood. But we'd also, rather against standard grammar, ask "Is there a bank locally?" I'm not at all sure how this expression arose, but it does seem to differ in some way I can't identify from "Is there a local bank?" Perhaps, as with your US example, the latter does carry a slight implication of local ownership rather than just local situation. I'm only speculating, but this would mean that the privately-owned corner shop would feel local in a way in which a nearby Tesco wasn't. (A "corner shop" needn't, I fancy, be on a corner.) This ties in with the "homeliness" notion often implicit in "local pub". SignatureMike. >>>>>> What is the American term for stands that hold up ropes or tapes >>>>>> (for forming lines)? I think they are called queue stands in [quoted text clipped - 20 lines] > nearby. Banks are usually multi-unit, so we only use "local" to refer > to unit near us if that designation is important to the statement. Fremont, a city very close to where I live, has a local bank. It's the Fremont Bank. It has a few branches, and yes, there is a local branch here in Hayward. SignatureSkitt (in Hayward, California) http://www.geocities.com/opus731/ >>>>> Just the one local pub in Indiana? What's it local to? Anyway, the >>>>> same phrase would work just as well in my local pub. [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] >Fremont Bank. It has a few branches, and yes, there is a local branch here >in Hayward. I think the difference is that an American would say "I went to the bank today". He wouldn't put "local" in the sentence unless there was a reason to specify that he went to a particular branch. An American might say "I'm going to my local bar tonight" because there's a reason in the statement to specify the local one. He's going to a specific bar...the neighborhood one. There's no need, normally, to refer to a specific bank branch. If what I see on TV, and read in books, is correct, the Brit would say "I'm going to my local tonight". He doesn't need to specify "pub" in that statement. We've covered that both bars and pubs exist in the UK, but this brings another question to mind: Can a bar be a "local" in the UK? I would think "No". SignatureTony Cooper Orlando, FL >>>>>> Just the one local pub in Indiana? What's it local to? Anyway, >>>>>> the same phrase would work just as well in my local pub. [quoted text clipped - 21 lines] > bank today". He wouldn't put "local" in the sentence unless there was > a reason to specify that he went to a particular branch. True. The "local" part would come into play only when someone from Fremont would brag, "We have a local bank here in Fremont -- named, not surprisingly, Fremont Bank." SignatureSkitt (in Hayward, California) http://www.geocities.com/opus731/ > I think the difference is that an American would say "I went to the > bank today". He wouldn't put "local" in the sentence unless there was > a reason to specify that he went to a particular branch. He might say "I have an account at a local bank", though. -=Eric >> I think the difference is that an American would say "I went to the >> bank today". He wouldn't put "local" in the sentence unless there was >> a reason to specify that he went to a particular branch. > >He might say "I have an account at a local bank", though. Well, yes, but that's because there's a specific reason for the use of the word "local": the implication that he can do something like quickly make a withdrawal because the bank is close. SignatureTony Cooper Orlando, FL > Well, yes, but that's because there's a specific reason for the use of > the word "local": the implication that he can do something like > quickly make a withdrawal because the bank is close. I can make a withdrawal from a Chase bank (well, if I had an account there I could) near my house. That doesn't make it a local bank. -=Eric >> Well, yes, but that's because there's a specific reason for the use of >> the word "local": the implication that he can do something like >> quickly make a withdrawal because the bank is close. > >I can make a withdrawal from a Chase bank (well, if I had an account >there I could) near my house. That doesn't make it a local bank. You cut the sentence: He might say "I have an account at a local bank", though. In that case, the Chase branch is the local bank. SignatureTony Cooper Orlando, FL > >I can make a withdrawal from a Chase bank (well, if I had an account > >there I could) near my house. That doesn't make it a local bank. [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > In that case, the Chase branch is the local bank. No, the Chase branch is a local branch of a national bank. It's not a local bank-- that's the Bank One just down the street a mile or so. -=Eric >> >I can make a withdrawal from a Chase bank (well, if I had an account >> >there I could) near my house. That doesn't make it a local bank. [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] >No, the Chase branch is a local branch of a national bank. It's not a >local bank-- that's the Bank One just down the street a mile or so. You're confusing corporate structure with sentence structure. The Chase branch is the local bank in the sentence. The speaker is not wrong for describing it as the local bank. SignatureTony Cooper Orlando, FL >>>>I can make a withdrawal from a Chase bank (well, if I had an account >>>>there I could) near my house. That doesn't make it a local bank. [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > Chase branch is the local bank in the sentence. The speaker is not > wrong for describing it as the local bank. Isn't Bank One now called Chase? Fran > Isn't Bank One now called Chase? Bank One itself says here http://www.chase.com/welcome_redirect.html in big letters that "Bank One is now Chase". Whether that means Bank One is *called* Chase is a whole nother question. In general, though, truly "local" banks are disappearing, major regulatory obstructions to bank mergers having been lifted during the 'Nineties. SignatureSalvatore Volatile >>Isn't Bank One now called Chase? > > Bank One itself says here > http://www.chase.com/welcome_redirect.html > in big letters that "Bank One is now Chase". Whether that means Bank One > is *called* Chase is a whole nother question. Well it's hardly a *whole* nother question. What interested me was the fact that it was the "Chase" name that survived all the takeovers. My husband was working for Chemical when it bought out Chase in the mid-90s, and there were some rumblings of discord at the decision to drop "Chemical" from the bank's name because "Chase" was more recognisable. Fran >>> Isn't Bank One now called Chase? >> [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > discord at the decision to drop "Chemical" from the bank's name > because "Chase" was more recognisable. Besides, "Chemical" sounds so ... well ... chemical. SignatureSkitt (in Hayward, California) http://www.geocities.com/opus731/ >> Isn't Bank One now called Chase? > [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] >In general, though, truly "local" banks are disappearing, major regulatory >obstructions to bank mergers having been lifted during the 'Nineties. It may be true in general, but it's not true in Orlando. In the last ten years, several new start-up banks have appeared. They don't last long, though. They build up a customer base and then sell out to a major chain. SignatureTony Cooper Orlando, FL > >No, the Chase branch is a local branch of a national bank. It's not a > >local bank-- that's the Bank One just down the street a mile or so. > > > You're confusing corporate structure with sentence structure. The > Chase branch is the local bank in the sentence. The speaker is not > wrong for describing it as the local bank. Well, no, I'm not. At least around here, no-one would refer to the Chase branch as "a local bank" or "the local bank", because even though it's nearby, it's based out of New York, or some other equally Godforsaken place. I guess it's different out East, but in these parts, a local bank is a bank (or credit union, or S&L, or...) that's at least based in Colorado, if not in the city itself. -=Eric ["Followup-To:" header set to alt.usage.english.] >> You're confusing corporate structure with sentence structure. The >> Chase branch is the local bank in the sentence. The speaker is not [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > parts, a local bank is a bank (or credit union, or S&L, or...) that's > at least based in Colorado, if not in the city itself. Well, Chase itself is part of JPMorgan Chase & Co., which is incorporated in Delaware (LNOIIA) and has its corporate headquarters in New York (LCIA). But its retail and commercial banking businesses seem to be run out of Chicago (TLCIA). With respect to a place I have no deep connection to, the term "local bank" doesn't have much meaning to me. If a bank has a branch in a particular locality, and that branch seems to offer a fairly complete range of services (= MBA-E "products"), then as far as I'm concerned that bank is "local". For New York, however, I do have some feeling for relative localness of banks. There are some banks (or like institutions, like savings banks [= ApproxBrE "thrifts"???]) that have known longstanding ties to the region, so those are "local" in a certain way. Often the localness is reflected in the name of the bank. An example is the Apple Bank for Savings. Citibank and Chase seem local, while relative newcomers like Washington Mutual and Bank of America (closely associated with Washington State and California, respectively) do not seem quite so local. SignatureSalvatore Volatile >> >No, the Chase branch is a local branch of a national bank. It's not a >> >local bank-- that's the Bank One just down the street a mile or so. [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] >parts, a local bank is a bank (or credit union, or S&L, or...) that's >at least based in Colorado, if not in the city itself. Eric, you're over-analyzing a simple sentence. When someone says "I'm going to the local bank", they aren't thinking of the corporate ownership of the damn thing. They are simply stating that they are going to go to a bank in the neighborhood. It could be Guido's Savings and Loan, or it could be Chase Manhattan. They are referring only to the function (a bank) and the proximity (nearby). You refer to "in these parts" and saying, in effect, that if someone says "I'm going to the local bank" that anyone in your area hearing that statement would jump to the conclusion that the bank the person is going to is (a) not part of a multi-branch banking operation and (b) that the destination is some sort of store-front, independently owned facility. That's not realistic. I can't imagine anyone being so anal that they would challenge the statement based on the corporate profile of the bank. Sentences like this are common, acceptable, frequently used, and clear within the context. "I'm going to the mall" doesn't mean "I'm going to the only mall in the world". "I have to see the doctor today" doesn't mean that you're seeing the only person licensed to practice medicine. SignatureTony Cooper Orlando, FL > Eric, you're over-analyzing a simple sentence. When someone says "I'm > going to the local bank", they aren't thinking of the corporate > ownership of the damn thing. They are simply stating that they are > going to go to a bank in the neighborhood. I agree-- but I wasn't commenting on "the local bank". I was commenting on "a local bank", which is a related, but distinct phrase. Here, let me recap the start of this mess: >> I think the difference is that an American would say "I went to the >> bank today". He wouldn't put "local" in the sentence unless there was >> a reason to specify that he went to a particular branch. > >He might say "I have an account at a local bank", though. Sorry if that got confused along the way. If I said, "I bank at a local bank", I *am* talking about the corporate ownership of the damn thing, and I am contending that people around here would probably make the distinction. I don't know that I'd talk about "the local bank"; I might say, "I'm going to a nearby bank", but rarely would I use your particular phrase. > You refer to "in these parts" and saying, in effect, that if someone > says "I'm going to the local bank" that anyone in your area hearing > that statement would jump to the conclusion that the bank the person > is going to is (a) not part of a multi-branch banking operation It might well be-- in fact, probably is. But that's irrelevant; the question is, is it based in Colorado, or Chicago (or New Yawk, or...)? > and (b) that the destination is some sort of store-front, > independently owned facility. Dunno where you're getting these statements. A local bank may well (probably does) look like a national bank. It's likely to have multiple branches (it better, or people probably won't use it). But it won't be based out of some big city out East, it'll be based in Denver, or Colorado Springs, or maybe Fort Collins. > That's not realistic. I can't imagine anyone being so anal that > they would challenge the statement based on the corporate profile of > the bank. I can, easily. But then, Mountain States Bank frequently advertises itself with the slogan "Bank locally", and it and other banks based in Colorado will frequently use phrases like, "We're the Colorado bank for you", or "We're your local bank." Also, I work with a number of people for whom corporate profiles are important aspects of a business; if I asked one of them, "Where's the local bank?", they wouldn't tell me where the closest financial institution was, they'd iterate through a list of banks within driving distance that they were pretty sure were based in Colorado. > Sentences like this are common, acceptable, frequently used, and clear > within the context. "I'm going to the mall" doesn't mean "I'm going > to the only mall in the world". "I have to see the doctor today" > doesn't mean that you're seeing the only person licensed to practice > medicine. True, but banks around here do their best to reserve the phrase 'local bank' for banks based in the state (or sometimes in the city), and by and large, I think their efforts have been successful. -=Eric >True, but banks around here do their best to reserve the phrase 'local >bank' for banks based in the state (or sometimes in the city), and by >and large, I think their efforts have been successful. We're never going to get together on this. I'm talking about what people say in casual conversation, and you're talking about what banks say in advertisements. SignatureTony Cooper Orlando, FL > Well, no, I'm not. At least around here, no-one would refer to the > Chase branch as "a local bank" or "the local bank", because even > though it's nearby, it's based out of New York, There's a phrase that bothers me: based out of. It seems to me that it is based *in* New York. "Based out of New York" should mean that it is based somewhere other than New York, but I know those who say it mean that its main location is New York. Bill ---------------------------------------------------------------- Reverse halves of the user name for my e-address >> Well, no, I'm not. At least around here, no-one would refer to the >> Chase branch as "a local bank" or "the local bank", because even [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > it is based somewhere other than New York, but I know those who say it > mean that its main location is New York. I read it that way at first: I assumed Eric was in New York, because he was saying a bank wasn't local if based out of (ie outside) New York. In the UK we don't really have local banks any more, in the sense of the headquarters of the bank (unless you happen to live in Canary Wharf), so I would take "the local bank" to mean the local branch - but then most people would just say "I'm going to the bank". "Local" normally just indicated proximity, or perhaps presence in a community. "My local" means the pub, and doesn't have the same meaning in relation to any other business - it means the pub I frequent regularly (where I am probably "a regular") and is not necessarily the closest pub to my home. Chris R ["Followup-To:" header set to alt.usage.english.] >> Well, no, I'm not. At least around here, no-one would refer to the >> Chase branch as "a local bank" or "the local bank", because even [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > it is based somewhere other than New York, but I know those who say it > mean that its main location is New York. WDTOB. I think they have slightly different meanings, or nuances. "Based out of" suggests to me that there is significant activity occurring in other places besides the place out of which it's based, or at any rate places a bit of emphasis on the existence or fact of those other places. "Based in" doesn't seem to do that. Any company based out of New York is also based in New York. But it might not always be meaningful, or at least sensible, to say that a company based in New York is "based out of New York". SignatureSalvatore Volatile > There's a phrase that bothers me: based out of. It seems to me that > it is based *in* New York. "Based out of New York" should mean that > it is based somewhere other than New York, but I know those who say it > mean that its main location is New York. Google tends to support your feelings-- "based out of" gets only 1.5M hits, but "based in" gives 98.2M. Still, "based out of" is idiomatic for me, and is the phrase I'm most likely to use in that context. Apologies in advance for bothering you. :) -=Eric [...] You are aware that "local" has no connotation of a place that serves > liquor in the US? The use of "local" just means "the one near me". > We would speak of the local bar or the local bank branch, but not the > local bank. Bars are independent units, so "local" means the one > nearby. Banks are usually multi-unit, so we only use "local" to refer > to unit near us if that designation is important to the statement. [...] "Local" for a pub is a noun in BrE: you speak of your "local", not, in my experience, of your "local pub". That seems to work even when the pub is a "tied house" owned or controlled by a particular brewery: people round here wouldn't, I think. speak of their "local Wadworths". Referring to one of a chain of pubs, you might speak of "my local Wetherspoons". Alan Jones >[...] You are aware that "local" has no connotation of a place that serves >> liquor in the US? The use of "local" just means "the one near me". [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] >wouldn't, I think. speak of their "local Wadworths". Referring to one of a >chain of pubs, you might speak of "my local Wetherspoons". This gets tricky to explain, but we really don't have multi-unit bars. We have establishments like T.G.I. Friday's which are bars and have multiple outlets, but they are really restaurants with bars or bars with restaurants. They are not just bars in the sense of place primarily for drinking. Normally, an American would say "I'm going to Friday's" and not "I'm going to the bar" when referring to a planned trip to Friday's. I can't imagine an American saying "I'm going to the local Friday's" even though there may be several Friday's in the area and the speaker may have one that he usually frequents. If an American usually stops at a bar on the way home from work, he will invariably identify the place by the name: "I usually stop at Will's on my way home". It seems that the Brit would say "I usually stop at my local on way home". (If "stop at" is Brit-speak) Drifting a bit...Most American bars have a person's name in the name of the place: Joe's Tavern, Will's Place, Brannigan's Bar. Before I'm challenged on "most" by citations of places with no personal names in the name, I'm using "most" to mean "more than not" in a statistical sense. I'm also referring to establishments where drinking, and not eating, is the primary activity. This drinking vs eating as the primary activity bears some comment. While we have bars here where food is served, we don't really have the "pub lunch" type of place. We have restaurants where drinks are served at lunch, and we have bars where (usually bad) food is served at lunch. A place that you would choose for lunch because the food is known to be good, and you want a drink with lunch, would most likely be a restaurant that serves drinks. SignatureTony Cooper Orlando, FL > On Wed, 03 Jan 2007 08:50:34 GMT, "Alan Jones" <atj@blueyonder.co.uk> [...] > If an American usually stops at a bar on the way home from work, he > will invariably identify the place by the name: "I usually stop at > Will's on my way home". It seems that the Brit would say "I usually > stop at my local on way home". (If "stop at" is Brit-speak) [...] "Stop at" is normal. But note that "the pub" is at least as common as "the local": more so, I suspect. I think we'd be more likely to use "local" if some degree of physical or psychological proximity was important in the context: by this I don't mean to contradict those who've said it can be used for a less-than-local house (they tend to call them "houses" in the trade, though it's rare in lay speech), but I don't think that use is all that common. Contextualized "local" could be, among many others, "I fancy a swift half. What do they serve at the local?" or "The Crown's my local, but I prefer The Stag down the road." The more I think about it, the less sure I am that you can be sure that "the local" means the speaker's regular pub -- it usually is, but the _word_ doesn't necessarily imply it. I even believe that "the local" is used in a rather arch way by many speakers, not as a natural feature of their speech: you can hear the quotation marks. SignatureMike. ["Followup-To:" header set to alt.usage.english.] > This gets tricky to explain, but we really don't have multi-unit bars. > We have establishments like T.G.I. Friday's which are bars and have > multiple outlets, but they are really restaurants with bars or bars > with restaurants. Truly. I've never knowingly been to a T.G.I. Friday's, but I think of it as a chain of restaurants that have substantial bar-like properties. Their television commercials actually seem to emphasize their family-friendly nature, which you wouldn't expect a bar proper to do. They may have started out more as bars (wasn't the original T.G.I. Friday's in Manhattan the prototype of the 1960s/1970s single's bar?). > They are not just bars in the sense of place > primarily for drinking. Agreed. I'd say it's a case of a bar that evolved into a restaurant. > If an American usually stops at a bar on the way home from work, he > will invariably identify the place by the name: "I usually stop at > Will's on my way home". Agreed. Sometimes special circumstances may get in the way. A few months ago I was seated on a mercifully short flight to RDU next to this fellow who, during the beverage service, asked the steward what the price of a beer was and, upon being told $5, ordered *two* cans of beer, which he proceeded to drink. When we landed, he got on his cellphone (= BrE "mobile"; BavE "Handy") and told the callee that he'd arrived but would be delayed because he was going to stop off to have a beer. I think we can assume that he located some convenient airport terminal bar. > Drifting a bit...Most American bars have a person's name in the name > of the place: Joe's Tavern, Will's Place, Brannigan's Bar. It's certainly a very common formula, though many others exist. The mediaeval fanciful British style of pub naming for bars is most often found in a sub-subclass of the self-styled Irish pub subclass, the sorts of places that have shamrocks on their signs, a Guinness thingie in the window, and live "trad" music performances by the Hooligan Brothers or the Fenian Warriors on Friday and Saturday nights. I think most of these places are really just glorified sports bars with a veneer of faux-Celticity, sadly. > Before > I'm challenged on "most" by citations of places with no personal names > in the name, I'm using "most" to mean "more than not" in a statistical > sense. I'm also referring to establishments where drinking, and not > eating, is the primary activity. Understood. I'll bet you're correct, though I'd also bet that the majority was a larger one 30 years ago than it is today. > This drinking vs eating as the primary activity bears some comment. > While we have bars here where food is served, we don't really have the [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > known to be good, and you want a drink with lunch, would most likely > be a restaurant that serves drinks. WHRHR. SignatureSalvatore Volatile >>>>>> What is the American term for stands that hold up ropes or tapes (for >>>>>> forming lines)? I think they are called queue stands in British English, [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] >nearby. Banks are usually multi-unit, so we only use "local" to refer >to unit near us if that designation is important to the statement. Yes, I know that "local" has no connotation of a place that serves liquor. What caused me to stumble over the post was the idea of a local pub in a huge vicinity. "Would you get you by in the local pub in Indiana" would be, for me, like saying "would get you by in the local pub in Yorkshire". It can hardly be local in such a large place and it would be unusual for there just to be one in such a large place. Even if the original poster hadn't said pub, but bank, or school, or post office, or petrol station, I'd've stumbled. SignatureLinz Wet Yorks via Cambridge, York, London and Watford My accent may vary >> You are aware that "local" has no connotation of a place that serves >> liquor in the US? The use of "local" just means "the one near me". [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > place. Even if the original poster hadn't said pub, but bank, or > school, or post office, or petrol station, I'd've stumbled. I will add here that "local" in some contexts might refer to the local union. It did when I was working for the International Union of Operating Engineers Local No. 3 in my college days. SignatureSkitt (in Hayward, California) http://www.geocities.com/opus731/ >>>>>>> What is the American term for stands that hold up ropes or tapes >>>>>>> (for >>>>>>> forming lines)? I think they are called queue stands in British >>>>>>> English, >>>>>>> but "line stand" is apparently not the American English counterpart. Stantion. I am not sure of the spelling but the same as a stantion in a cattle barn where the wooden device holds a cow in her stall. Roger >>>>>>>> What is the American term for stands that hold up ropes or >>>>>>>> tapes (for [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > barn where the wooden device holds a cow in her stall. > Roger Please watch your attributions. If you delete everything someone says, you should remove their attribution line also. SignatureLinz Wet Yorks via Cambridge, York, London and Watford My accent may vary >>>>>>>> What is the American term for stands that hold up ropes or >>>>>>>> tapes (for [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > barn where the wooden device holds a cow in her stall. > Roger I grew up calling that a stanchion, a word that has already been proposed in this thread for the standard holding the rope in a queue line for crowd control (rope line). >>>>> What is the American term for stands that hold up ropes or tapes (for >>>>> forming lines)? I think they are called queue stands in British [quoted text clipped - 14 lines] > Because you didn't call it a local bank. It's the 'local' that piqued > my interest. Oh. I try to locate myself on these English boards in case the question of dialect comes up as it so often does. "Thingy" and "ya know" are fairly regional colloquialisms phrases. One could use them to locate a dialect anywhere from Ohio to Indiana and on up into Ontario pretty reliably I'd think. SignatureYours, Dan S. Temporary sig pending inspiration: - If I did all the things that will "only" take {X} minutes per day, it would take three days to do them all. > What is the American term for stands that hold up ropes or tapes (for > forming lines)? I think they are called queue stands in British English, > but "line stand" is apparently not the American English counterpart. As posted, stanchion is the only likely term. This was in common use by the 19th century to identify the rope supports on ships lacking bulwarks (wood walls) that prevent people falling into the water -- common a century ago but now scarce, so that few people today recognize the specific word and find it easier to invent a new word for whatever holds up barrier ropes in restaurants, streets, etc. SignatureDon Phillipson Carlsbad Springs (Ottawa, Canada) >What is the American term for stands that hold up ropes or tapes (for >forming lines)? I think they are called queue stands in British English, >but "line stand" is apparently not the American English counterpart. "Stanchions" comes immediately to mind. SignaturePosted via a free Usenet account from http://www.teranews.com >What is the American term for stands that hold up ropes or tapes (for >forming lines)? I think they are called queue stands in British English, "Queue stand" is one of the phrases used, but it may not be restricted to BrE. A Chinese website which sells queue stands and other products internationally is: http://www.sz-wholesale.com/shenzhen_China_products/Retractable-Queue-Stand_1.htm A British import company webpage is headed: http://www.hgimports.com/retractable.htm Retractable Tape Queue Stand Single & Double High Quality Barriers at a very economical price In the body of the page the upright part of the barrier is called a "post". The general term on that website is "barrier": http://www.hgimports.com/?gclid=CIat7u6DwokCFTlhMAodHk8QMQ A barrier of a different style is the "cafe barrier". In this type the tapes are replaced by rectangular "screens": http://www.hgimports.com/parascreens.htm As far as I known none of these terms is used in by the general public. In everyday BrE "barrier" would usually imply something much more substantial. SignaturePeter Duncanson, UK (in alt.english.usage) >>What is the American term for stands that hold up ropes or tapes (for >>forming lines)? I think they are called queue stands in British English, > > "Queue stand" is one of the phrases used, but it may not be > restricted to BrE. If you asked about a "queue stand" in the U.S., everyone would wonder why you'd need something to put a letter 'Q' on. --Jeff SignatureThe shepherd always tries to persuade the sheep that their interests and his own are the same. --Stendhal |
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