do the dishes or do the washing-up?

Dear teachers,

'Mom is doing the dishes in the kitchen.'
'Mom is doing the washing-up in the kitchen.'
Do they mean the same thing?
Which way is more common to use?

Thanks!

- do the dishes [American English]
- do the washing-up [British English]


Cambridge Dictionaries Online - Cambridge University Press
washing-up UK
noun [U] (US dishes)
the act of cleaning plates, pans, glasses, knives, forks' etc. after a meal, or the items needing to be washed:
You do the washing-up and I'll do the drying.
There's an enormous pile of washing-up in the sink.

Either could be used in BrE. They are essentially interchangeable.

"Washing-up" when referring to washing the dishes is strictly BrE. In AmE, it's always referred to as "doing the dishes."

"Mom is doing the dishes in the kitchen."
"I did the dishes last night, it's Becky's turn to do them tonight!"

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Anglika

Either could be used in BrE. They are essentially interchangeable.

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:up: And during my brother's national service (late '50s/early '60s) the army slang was 'crock-bashing'. I don't know if this is still current anywhere.

b