A cookie (American English), or a biscuit (British English), is a baked or cooked snack or dessert that is typically small, flat and sweet.
To most of the rest of the English-speaking world, a biscuit is what Americans would refer to as either a cookie or a cracker. Biscuits can be sweet (shortbread) or savory.
Much like cake, cookies are made from a soft, thick dough and are denser than an English biscuit. When they are finished, cookies are larger, softer, and chunkier than their biscuit cousins. In contrast, the word “biscuit” comes from the Latin 'bis' (twice) and 'coquere' (cooked). It essentially means twice baked!
1. Cookie. These are called biscuits in the UK. Cookie in US English comes from the Dutch koekje, a small crisp cake.
But the more common name in many European countries was derived from the Latin bis coctus, or “twice-baked.” That's where we get both “biscuit” and “biscotti.” The name, it turns out, is more figurative than it sounds: British military hardtack was baked four times, and modern British biscuits are only baked once.
Here in Australia (and as a hang-over from our UK forefathers) we seem to define 'biscuits' as smaller, crunchy, baked items to have alongside a hot cuppa, whereas a 'cookie' on the other hand, is typically larger with a softer, chewy middle.
In Australia, "biscuits" are what Americans call "cookies," and these traditional treats date back to World War I.
The British call cookies "biscuits". They occasionally use the word "cookie" in the context of using Americanisms like "he got caught with his hand in the cookie jar", or "that's the way the cookie crumbles".
(Scotland) A bun. (computing, Internet) An HTTP cookie. (computing) A magic cookie. (slang, dated) An attractive young woman.
In the UK, 'chips' are a thicker version of what people in the US call 'fries'. If you want a bag of what Americans call 'chips' in the UK, just ask for crisps. A refreshing dessert made of frozen sweetened water with (usually fruit) flavouring.
Biscuits and gravy are not a thing in the UK. The nearest things to what Americans call biscuits are scones. As for gravy, that white sauce you call gravy does not have an equivalent in the UK. Gravy is a brown sauce made from the scrapings of the meat roasting tin, stock and thickening agent (cornflour or Bisto).
English zucchini goes by courgette in England, the French word for the green gourd. The United States inherited the Italian name, and both terms reference the summer squash. Note that the word squash refers to a fruity drink in Britain, and a mature version of the courgette fruit becomes marrow.
Jelly (vs.
In the UK, the word “jelly” calls to mind images of what most Americans refer to as Jell-o (or jello). Like this. The fruity substance Americans call “jelly” is called “jam” in the UK.
In British English, crackers are sometimes called water biscuits, or savoury biscuits.
In Commonwealth countries these [North American] puddings are called custards (or curds) if they are egg-thickened, blancmange if starch-thickened, and jelly if gelatin based. Pudding may also refer to other dishes such as bread and rice pudding, although typically these names derive from the origin as British dishes.
Gherkin is a common name for a pickled cucumber, especially in British English.
In the case of Australian slang, words are clipped, and then a diminutive suffix is added to the clipped word. In this case, bikkie (the colloquial Australian word for a cookie), is clipped slang for biscuit (the British English word for a type of cookie), and it uses the -ie diminutive suffix.
Common Irish Slang
Biscuit = Cookie – not to be attempted with gravy!! How's the craic?
Chebs. Breast, jugs, mammary glands.
American cucumbers, whose seed is called Americana Slicing Hybrid, are the variety you're most likely familiar with at the grocery store, and are often simply labeled "cucumber." The skin of these cucumbers can be tougher than other varieties, and some you buy at the grocery store may have been coated in wax to help ...
Candy, also called sweets (British English) or lollies (Australian English, New Zealand English), is a confection that features sugar as a principal ingredient.
The use of the word 'Anzac' in the commercial production and sale of Anzac biscuits is usually approved, however the biscuits must not substantially deviate from the generally accepted recipe and shape, and must be referred to as 'Anzac Biscuits' or 'Anzac Slice' (not 'Anzac Cookies').
The recipe for Anzacs is legally protected by the Australian and New Zealand governments, and Aussies and Kiwis alike seem to go up in arms (hopefully not literally) when their national recipe is tampered with, or when the biscuits are called 'cookies' (by pesky Americans, no doubt).
There is a general exemption granted for Anzac biscuits, as long as these biscuits remain basically true to the original recipe and are both referred to and sold as Anzac biscuits and never as cookies.
American biscuits are different to Australian biscuits because they are more like Australian and British Scones. American Scones are also different again. Aussies refer to cookies and biscuits the same.