You’ll never hear the royals say these 8 words!

The British Royal Family

While many of us will never have the chance to become Buckingham Palace regulars, just in case you get invited to tea with the Queen or any of their royal highnesses, perhaps you’d like to bear in mind that these royals never utter these words and phrases ….

In her book Watching the English: The Hidden Rules of English Behaviour  , social anthropologist Kate Fox,  talked about the words England’s upper class never use:

Couch

In no way you will see a royal sitting on a couch. They lie on a sofa.

Living room

The humble living room doesn’t exist in the world of royals and elites. Rooms with sofas for them are called “drawing rooms” or “sitting rooms.” Very Jane Austen, indeed!

Mum  and Dad

While the words Mummy and Daddy sound too babyish, even Prince Charles still calls the nonagenarian Queen Elizabeth “Mummy.” How sweet.

Pardon?

Polite is neither a polite nor a socially acceptable word when you’re in royal circles. You’d be more likely to hear, “Sorry?” or “Sorry, what?”

Perfume

It may sound fancy for a commoner, but to the royals, they call it scent.

Posh

Upper class Britons think of the word posh as a little beneath their station. "The correct upper-class word is 'smart,'" Kate Fox explains. "In upper-middle and upper-class circles, 'posh' can only be used ironically, in a jokey tone, to show that you know it's a low-class word."

Toilet

Toilet, bathroom and “ladies” are never in the royals’ vocabulary. If the urge calls, ask where the “lavatory” is, instead.

So, they next time you bump in with a royal or two, you know what words to use (and not to use!).