check vs. bill

[thedaffodils]

Which word is more common for check and bill?

In Gossip Girl, An American TV series, aftering dining in a restaurant, Rufus told his wife, " I'm go gonna get our check and coats".

I am used to using bill.

Thank you!

 

[emsr2d2]

Check = AmE.
Bill = BrE.

I'm sure we'll soon find out what is used in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa etc.

 

[SoothingDave]

Some places in the US South call it a "ticket," but "check" is universally understood in the US.

A restaurant worker should understand if you ask for the "bill," but it is called a "check" by natives.

 

[Offroad]

In the UK you can pay the bill with a cheque.;-)
In the US you can pay the check with a check (not another check, that'd be great).

 

[probus]

"I'm sure we'll soon find out what is used in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa etc."

I wish that were true but I doubt it. In Canada we mostly say check, as in the USA. I always say bill, as a form of snobbery to show that I've lived outside North America..

 

[Route21]

There's another expression: "The Company will 'pick up the tab'.", meaning the company will cover the cost.

Regards
R21

 

[Odessa Dawn]

In Gossip Girl, An American TV series, aftering dining in a restaurant, Rufus told his wife, " I'm go gonna get our check and coats".

I am used to using bill.

Thank you!

Five posters/contributors have dropped in thus far, but no one has pointed out to the word "aftering". Does that mean that we can add –ing to that word or it is pointless correcting it?


P.S.: Please note that I am serious. And I have no English grammar books or regular classes to study English.
​

 

[Offroad]

:-?

 

[thedaffodils]

Thank you for all replies.

I am sorry "aftering" was my typo. It should be after.

 

[Raymott]

Bill, though they are all understood.

 

[Route21]

Five posters/contributors have dropped in thus far, but no one has pointed out to the word "aftering".

The problem with English is that it can be a very forgiving language.
It's a "double-edged sword".
Good: You can make some of the most horrendous mistakes and still be reasonably understood by an NES and others.
Bad: Equally well, you tend to see what you expect to see and so don't notice things that would be glaringly apparent to a non-NES.

There's a decent sized paragraph that has been around for some time, where only the first and last letters of the words are correct. The remainder of the letters are correct but jumbled up. It's surprising how easy it is to read! Maybe someone can dig it out and post it.

Hope this helps clarify the mechanisms at work here in such cases.
Regards
R21

 

[Rover_KE]

In the UK you can pay the bill with a cheque.;-)

And in the USA you can pay the check with bills (bank notes).

 

[Tdol]

I always say bill, as a form of snobbery to show that I've lived outside North America..

Internationally, I hear bill more than check.

 

[emsr2d2]

I think this is the piece referred to in post #11. I know that the vast majority of native speakers can read the paragraph almost without hesitation but it would be interesting to find out what non-natives make of it.

 

[Route21]

I think this is the piece referred to in post #11. I know that the vast majority of native speakers can read the paragraph almost without hesitation but it would be interesting to find out what non-natives make of it.

Yes. That's the one.
Many thanks.
R21

PS: Odessa Dawn may have identified dents in the "letter by letter" reading theory, by being the only one to spot what so many of us missed - a glaring typo!
Maybe the difference is that OD reads English letter by letter, as I have to do with Arabic/Thai. True OD?