pullover vs. sweater

[Torsten]

Hi,

What is the difference between a pullover and a sweater? I the term pullover older than the word sweater?

Thanks,
Torsten
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[Jamie (K)]

[Torsten]

Hi Jamie,

Thanks a lot clearing this up. Interestingly enough, many Germans pronounce "sweater" the same way like "sweeter".
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[Jamie (K)]

[Torsten]

There are lots of English words that are used by Germans when speaking German and many of them are pronounced the German way. I remember shortly after reunification a lot of shop assistants at East German electronic stores would pronounce "receiver" like "driver".

Another word frequently mispronounced word is "lounge" which in Germany often sounds like "launch". Incidentally, this morning on the BBC I heard an interview with an East German travel agent from Erfurt. Her company "OssiUrlaub" is offering a new serice: flights for nudist. In opinion this is an insane idea but apparently there are enough hard core nudists who are willing to pay money for a flight where they have to take their clothes off. Anyway, that woman was constantly mispronouncing the word "clothes" and I had to think about your remarks you made here on the forum regarding this mistake.
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[Yankee]

[Torsten]

Hi Amy,

Thanks for pointing out the difference between UK and US English here. I thought that sweater was pretty American as probably is the term "sweat pants", isn't? I mean, to British ears, "sweat pants" might sound strange since "pants" in UK English are underpants.
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[Yankee]

Hi Torsten

I do not claim to be an expert on British English, so you're better off asking a Brit about about whether they'd use the term "sweat pants".

However, based on my experience with various British neighbors and colleagues, it seems to me that 'sweater' (meaning 'pullover') must also be used in BE.

I have also heard that the word 'pants' basically means 'underpants' in BE, but I really don't know whether 'pants' is used exclusively to mean 'underpants' in BE. I can't remember having any misunderstandings resulting from the use of the word 'sweatpants', though.

By the way, I do not really connect the word 'sweater' with the word 'sweatshirt' (or 'sweatpants'). They are two different types of clothing in my mind.

EDIT:
If the Oxford Dictionary is any indication, then it seems that 'sweatpants' is used in both the UK and the US (i.e. there is no notation that 'sweatpants' is only or chiefly a North American word).
http://www.askoxford.com/concise_oed/sweatpants?view=uk
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Amy
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ESL teacher, translator, and a native speaker of American English

[Yankee]