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I know it's the common American vernacular to call toilets "bathrooms", normally I wouldn't bat an eyelid at it, but it just seems weird to see London's old und
by Lio 7y ago
I know it's the common American vernacular to call toilets "bathrooms", normally I wouldn't bat an eyelid at it, but it just seems weird to see London's old underground public toilets referred to as "bathrooms".
I think it's the fact that it's referring to something Victorian that I expect them to be talking about something that actually houses a bath.
When I first saw the headline I thought this was literally about old bathhouses that used to exist. As seen in the cult film Quadrophenia.
Oh well, language changes. I guess in couple of hundred years we'll be referring to the actual lavatory porcelain itself as a "bath".
- twic 7y agoIronmonger Row Baths was built as a bathhouse like that, but is now a swimming pool and gym - it still has a public laundry, though: https://www.better.org.uk/leisure-centre/london/islington/ironmonger-row-baths/facilities https://www.better.org.uk/leisure-centre/london/islington/ir...
- simondw 7y agoI can't help but find it vaguely amusing that you seem to find "toilet" (literally, "small cloth") and "lavatory" ("washing place") somehow more correct than "bathroom." Also, people usually talk/write in their own dialect. "Bathroom" is how you say it in American English. If the article were about Victorian French bathrooms, would you find it weird if it didn't use "salle de bains" ("room of baths")?
- cabalamat 7y ago> I can't help but find it vaguely amusing that you seem to find "toilet" (literally, "small cloth") and "lavatory" ("washing place") somehow more correct than "bathroom." The difference is that of those three words, one consists of 2 fully-semantic unbound morphemes: "bath" and "room"; it literally means a room with a bath in it. Whereas "toilet" and "lavatory" as single-morpheme words.
- Lio 7y agoI certainly acknowledge it's an American article and that it should use the vernacular its audience is expecting. That's fine with me. I have not suggested that one term is "somehow more correct" than another. ...but now that you mention it, none of these place include bath tubs. They do, however, include sinks where you can wash your hands, so maybe "lavatory" - "washing place" is a better fit. If that doesn't float your boat perhaps the simple, down to earth and unpretentious "bog" is the winner. :P