Are they fireflies or lightning bugs?

[Softball Bat]

Is it soda, coke, or pop?

Is it a garbage can or a trash can?

https://www.rd.com/list/regional-sayings-phrases-words/

[Diego in Seattle]

Shopping cart or buggy?

[Mikey]

Faeries

[Roach]

Coyote

City folks and tree huggers say it with 3 syllables, ki oh tee

Rednecks and westerners say ki oat.

I believe the 16th century Spaniards couldn't pronounce the Indian word, so they changed it to two syllables, along with changing their language, raping their daughters, stealing their wealth, and enslaving them for hundreds of years.


Then Wile E Coyotee changed everything.

[Mikey]

We use the Spanish pronunciation of the indigenous name (coyōtl) here, which is three syllables. Coy-yo'-tay. See (and hear) them all the time in our neighborhood. They are notorious for going after pets and chickens, though I don't think it really happens all that often. They help keep the varmint population down.

The NextDoor app is full of ring camera pictures of them terrorizing good people in their homes. Of course you also get pictures of strangers walking down the street who are automatically assumed to be homeless drug addicts who are out to invade your home and steal your catalytic converter.

[Softball Bat]

Shopping cart or buggy?

Shopping cart

[Carson]

What did fatsak call it?

[Softball Bat]

[Dr_Phibes]

Things evolve, including words - took an interest in 'Duppies', Jamaican for a malevolent spirit. That evolved into 'Rolling Calf', a terrifying creature with it's legs chained that rolled down the road at night.

Caribbean islands all have the same folklore and it came from a bizarre mosaic of languages, evolving in independent communities. Language differences from individual regions were from the same source and maintained the point in storytelling or delivery - Dupee/Dapaa

And if there's a point to any of that ^ :

The English language as any other, is a bit of a whore.

[smackaholic]

I've used lightning bugs and fireflies, which is understandable as the map shows that we enlightened U&Rers practice diversity regarding descriptions of illuminating insects.

[Kierland]

It’s naming not descriptions.
You almost made it thru one post without fucking up.

[smackaholic]

It is both a name and a description. Technically, it isn't a name at all. it's formal name is likely something latin. So, if you want to be a nitpicking cunt, as you pretty much always are, you are wrong.....again.

[Kierland]

Even scientists use common and Latin names, so try again.

And yes they are descriptive names, unlike say Alligator, but they are still names.