American Traditions That Confuse The Rest of the World

Misusing the Word "Football"

Europeans got this one right. Why is American soccer not called "football" as it is in other countries? In soccer, you kick the ball with your foot. In American football, you do no such thing. The discrepancy is confusing.

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The More You Know

  • There's a word for tapping someone on the opposite shoulder from behind to fool them.
  • Shakespeare's plays feature the word "love" about 10 times more than the word "hate."
  • J.K. Rowling became the first person to become a billionaire by writing books. However, she also lost her billionaire status because she donated so much money to charity!
  • The sun and moon appear to be the same size in the sky because of an astonishing coincidence: the moon is 400 times smaller but 400 times closer.
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