baggage claim vs. baggage reclaim
- Thread starter joygogo
- Start date
gramman
Senior Member
American English
Yes, but not in this context. It's just a cultural difference.
Egmont
Senior Member
English - U.S.
We also take a lift down to baggage reclaim in the UK, but an elevator down to baggage claim in the US*. There are enough examples of differences between American and British English to fill a book. In fact, this subject has already filled several books.
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*Unless we use stairs or an escalator, of course.
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*Unless we use stairs or an escalator, of course.
gramman
Senior Member
American English
Here's a blog entry on this issue: Baggage (re)claim.
It's come up in the forum before: baggage reclaim // baggage claim.
It's come up in the forum before: baggage reclaim // baggage claim.
If so, I have no choice but to accept them as set phrases. And thank you very much for offering me another two links.
They are very helpful!
Hello, Egmont,
I do know that sometimes Americans and British people use totally different words to refer to the same thing, just as the example you gave me. However, claim and reclaim look somewhat alike because they both have "claim"; therefore, I was wonder which one is more correct than the other when it comes to getting our belongings back.
Thanks for your reply.
JulianStuart
Senior Member
English (UK then US)
This thread (retrieve vs reclaim) discusses the use of re- as a prefix. Some interpret it as "again" and think reclaim is inappropriate, while re- is also used to mean "back", not "again" - i.e. re-claim is not the same word as reclaim. So both claim and reclaim can mean the same for your bolded quote.
Hi, JulianStuart,
Thanks for offering me the thread. The discussion is very interesting and everyone's opinion makes sense.