cordial vs squash

[nyota]

In BrE, what's the difference between cordial and squash understood as fruit juices/syrups you dilute with water before you drink them?

 

[JohnParis]

A cordial is an alcoholic beverage. Squash is not.

John

 

[nyota]

A cordial is an alcoholic beverage. Squash is not.

John

As far as I know a cordial doesn't have to be/ isn't an alcoholic drink in BrE?

 

[Seriah]

Cordial definitely isn't alcoholic! I was given it loads as a child! Alcoholic cordials are liqueurs.

In my experience squash and cordial refer to the same thing.... concentrated fruit syrup that you add water to. Cordial is just a slightly posher word for it. If I was in a high-end supermarket I would expect to find cordial. I think cordial is sometimes made without fruit e.g. ginger or mint but squash is always fruity? That is just speculation though.

In the north of England people also call squash/cordial 'juice' which can get so confusing!

 

[JohnParis]

Sorry everyone - my bad. I took my definition from the American Oxford Dictionary.
Here's the definition from the Oxford Dictionary of the English Language.

• British a sweet fruit-flavoured drink: wine cups and fruit cordials[mass noun] :a tall glass of blackcurrant cordial
• North American another term for liqueur

 

[bhaisahab]

Sorry everyone - my bad. I took my definition from the American Oxford Dictionary.
Here's the definition from the Oxford Dictionary of the English Language.

• British a sweet fruit-flavoured drink: wine cups and fruit cordials[mass noun] :a tall glass of blackcurrant cordial
• North American another term for liqueur

"my bad"?

 

[birdeen's call]

"my bad"?

Is this idiom unknown in the UK, bhaisahab?

PS: I've just read that it's a very fresh one. I was apparently coined in the 80s: http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/002693.html

It seems to be very frequently used it America. I like watching American shows and I often hear it.

 

[Rover_KE]

'My bad' = 'my mistake.'

 

[5jj]

Is this idiom unknown in the UK, bhaisahab?

It's unknown to me, though I have to admit that I no longer reside in the UK.

One of the many good things about this site is that we can all learn, all of the time.

 

[Tdol]

I think cordial is sometimes made without fruit e.g. ginger or mint but squash is always fruity? That is just speculation though.

Not necessarily- we do refer to lime cordial. I think squash is always fruity, but not all fruity ones are squash. I wonder whether it's to do with the sweetness, as lime cordial is less sweet.

 

[Tdol]

Is this idiom unknown in the UK?

It is in use in the UK, but it is a fairly recent import.

 

[nyota]

Not necessarily- we do refer to lime cordial. I think squash is always fruity, but not all fruity ones are squash. I wonder whether it's to do with the sweetness, as lime cordial is less sweet.

Thanks Tdol, can you or aybody else think of which fruity ones you wouldn't call 'squash'?

 

[Tdol]

Sharp citrus ones- lemon/lime cordial (lemon squash exists too, but cordial is less sugary IMO)

 

[JohnParis]

"my bad"?

Yes, this expression is widely used by all social strata in the US. It's everywhere in the media (except the American Oxford Dictionary), and I was hesitant to write it but did because it's what you'll hear spoken, often in place of "sorry", "excuse me" and "my mistake".
Our family makes it to the US about 3 times a year and we always find time to spend with friends and family. Over the years, they have told me that my English has "evolved" and while not incorrect, they are sometimes surprised by some of my sentence constructions and my lack of words and expressions that are "new and hip". My sister's children are particularly merciless because mine are bilingual and they are not. They accuse my children speaking Franglais (a mix of French and English and definitely not true) but also "ex-pat English." I've often wondered if that's true, however. Can it be helped or is it to be expected?

 

[emsr2d2]

We sell a lot of drinks where I work and the majority are described as cordials. The only ones named "squash" are orange, lemon and blackcurrant.

All the others, elderflower, ginger, kombucha, mixed fruit, rhubarb, blackberry, mixed red berries, are cordials. I have never seen those flavours in a squash.

I was under the impression that a cordial was made from a syrup which is then diluted whereas squashes are concentrated fruit juices which you then dilute. I must admit, though, that searches on the net have actually made the difference between the two less clear, rather than more.

P.S. I've been hearing "my bad" for about the last 18 months in the UK, from a variety of people not just the hip, street youth!

 

[bhaisahab]

Yes, this expression is widely used by all social strata in the US. It's everywhere in the media (except the American Oxford Dictionary), and I was hesitant to write it but did because it's what you'll hear spoken, often in place of "sorry", "excuse me" and "my mistake".
Our family makes it to the US about 3 times a year and we always find time to spend with friends and family. Over the years, they have told me that my English has "evolved" and while not incorrect, they are sometimes surprised by some of my sentence constructions and my lack of words and expressions that are "new and hip". My sister's children are particularly merciless because mine are bilingual and they are not. They accuse my children speaking Franglais (a mix of French and English and definitely not true) but also "ex-pat English." I've often wondered if that's true, however. Can it be helped or is it to be expected?

I've never heard anyone say "my bad", but I've only been back in the UK for a year after over twenty years away, in Ireland, India and France.

 

[Tdol]

"ex-pat English." I've often wondered if that's true, however. Can it be helped or is it to be expected?

Ex-pat English is an interesting idea- it is likely that certain rub off as you live abroad for a long time. I do probably speak a less markedly British English abroad and I use some words that I never used when living in the UK.

 

[riquecohen]

It seems to be very frequently used it America. I like watching American shows and I often hear it.

I've been away too long. I spend about three weeks in NY every year and I've never heard it spoken. I have recently seen a textbook in which it appears in a list of expressions attributed to "Black English."

One of the many good things about this site is that we can all learn, all of the time.

I agree.

 

[Barb_D]

I'm still puzzling over why a squash, which we think of as a vegetable, is a drink. I'm good with "my bad" though.

 

[emsr2d2]

I'm still puzzling over why a squash, which we think of as a vegetable, is a drink. I'm good with "my bad" though.

I assume it's the fact that the fruit is "squashed" in order to get the juice out, which is then concentrated, has sugar added and then bottled.

In BrE, the only people who would have thought of "squash" as a vegetable were probably people who grew their own food, until a few years ago. "Butternut squash" became available in British supermarkets as a standard probably 5-6 years ago. Before that, we would have bought pumpkins, but probably not known what squash were.