3 ms·

(People scribble on cigarette packages? Aren't those waxed cardboard or something? I wouldn't expect a pen to work well on those.)

pbhjpbhj 6y ago
FWIW they almost certainly didn't write on a cigarette package in this instance ;o) It's just the name of that type of maths because people used to use whatever small, available, piece of paper was around - so cigarette packs some time ago (you definitely could write on them with a ballpoint pen (ie un bic). Getting tangential, napkins to me in the UK have always been cloth, and we have serviettes (a French word, meaning sheet IIRC) made of paper to wipe our mouths with. Our language gets more and more influenced by USA "English" usage, so perhaps youth would just call it a napkin. People do say 'paper napkin' but without the qualifier it's a fancy piece of cloth [to me].
- mikelward 6y ago
  I can't decide whether to use the term cutlery (mainly UK) or silverware (mainly US). They're both inaccurate, especially when asking for plastic/disposable versions.
  - PaulDavisThe1st 6y ago
    https://separatedbyacommonlanguage.blogspot.com/2008/09/stemware-and-other-wares.html https://separatedbyacommonlanguage.blogspot.com/2008/09/stem...
  - bigbubba 6y ago
    'Utensils' seems accurate, although imprecise.
    - Izkata 6y ago
      This is actually the one I've always jumped to (in the US). "Silverware" and "cutlery" have always had a fancy restaurant vibe, rather than a be a word for an everyday object.
  - pbhjpbhj 6y ago
    If it includes a knife then "cutlery" seems accurate? Sometimes I'll just make a compound of the items "spoons-and-forks" (when it's pasta for tea [tea meaning evening meal where I come from]).
- jjgreen 6y ago
  Our language gets more and more influenced by USA "English" usage, That's a two-way street https://notoneoffbritishisms.com/ https://notoneoffbritishisms.com/
Buttons840 6y ago
I carry a Fisher Space Pen in my pocket with my keys. It can write on wax paper. The ink cartridges are pressurized.

pbhjpbhj 6y ago

FWIW they almost certainly didn't write on a cigarette package in this instance ;o) It's just the name of that type of maths because people used to use whatever small, available, piece of paper was around - so cigarette packs some time ago (you definitely could write on them with a ballpoint pen (ie un bic). Getting tangential, napkins to me in the UK have always been cloth, and we have serviettes (a French word, meaning sheet IIRC) made of paper to wipe our mouths with. Our language gets more and more influenced by USA "English" usage, so perhaps youth would just call it a napkin. People do say 'paper napkin' but without the qualifier it's a fancy piece of cloth [to me].

mikelward 6y ago
I can't decide whether to use the term cutlery (mainly UK) or silverware (mainly US). They're both inaccurate, especially when asking for plastic/disposable versions.
- PaulDavisThe1st 6y ago
  https://separatedbyacommonlanguage.blogspot.com/2008/09/stemware-and-other-wares.html https://separatedbyacommonlanguage.blogspot.com/2008/09/stem...
- bigbubba 6y ago
  'Utensils' seems accurate, although imprecise.
  - Izkata 6y ago
    This is actually the one I've always jumped to (in the US). "Silverware" and "cutlery" have always had a fancy restaurant vibe, rather than a be a word for an everyday object.
- pbhjpbhj 6y ago
  If it includes a knife then "cutlery" seems accurate? Sometimes I'll just make a compound of the items "spoons-and-forks" (when it's pasta for tea [tea meaning evening meal where I come from]).
jjgreen 6y ago
Our language gets more and more influenced by USA "English" usage, That's a two-way street https://notoneoffbritishisms.com/ https://notoneoffbritishisms.com/

Buttons840 6y ago

I carry a Fisher Space Pen in my pocket with my keys. It can write on wax paper. The ink cartridges are pressurized.