this post was submitted on 15 Aug 2023
154 points (98.7% liked)

196

16244 readers
2287 users here now

Be sure to follow the rule before you head out.

Rule: You must post before you leave.

^other^ ^rules^

founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
154
Toilet Rule (lemmy.ohaa.xyz)
submitted 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
 
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

In English, "American" by itself refers unambiguously to the United States of America because, (again) in English, there is no continent called "America."

America uses flush toilets unless you're on an airplane. Besides, we can clearly see a huge water tank, which is how flush toilets work.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)
  1. you are absolutely correct. The correct Terms are siphonicä- and washdown-toilets. My mistake.
  2. if there are "american Continents" and they can be referred to as "the Americas" then i would deduct that all the objects within those Continents are also "American"
[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

they can be referred to as "the Americas" then i would deduct that all the objects within those Continents are also "American"

Unfortunately not though, because "American" is already used exclusively in reference to the USA. There is no adjective to refer to things from the Americas collectively. One of these two possible uses is extremely common and the other is extraordinarily rare. If you need the rare option, you need multiple words and can't shorten it.