MacDonald's have caused a bit of a fuss by the inaccurate use of the word "bob" in one of their adverts. For American readers, what do you think this British slang word means.

Question:
The slang word "bob" means

Choices:
I know the answer now but I didn't before I read the story.
I know the answer now and I already knew it before I read the story.
I haven't seen the story, I think it means one pound.
I haven't seen the story, I think it means one penny.
I haven't seen the story, I think it means five pence (formerly known as one shilling).
Something else.
I have no idea.

 

I needed another selection: "I don't know, but I should know!" Bob, I remember all your bob limericks, and I imagine the answer is in one of them.

BTW, I just read today that Burger King in South Beach is planning to sell beer. I can just imagine the future of fast food!

I know the answer now and I haven't seen the story, but the survey recorded my answer incorrectly (or, I was looking at it crosseyed and hit the wrong button.) So discount that one glaring answer.

WM

I also hit the wrong button. But I went back and hit the right one. I'd erase my first answer if I knew how.

Interesting results so far. Very interesting. It explains why MacDonald's got it wrong but for an ad they run in the UK they ought to have at least got someone from the UK to look at it before going to print. Anyone over the age of about 20 would know the right answer, and probably most people under that age.

quote:

Originally posted by tinman:
I also hit the wrong button. But I went back and hit the right one. I'd erase my first answer if I knew how.

You can only vote once. It looks as if you probably voted correctly the first time. The results can be confusing; the yellow bar appears above the question, not below.

I've not seen the story either. But I assume it's something about the price of one of their semi-edible offerings. And that being the case I obviously know what a bob is.

bob

quote:

Mean Mister Mustard sleeps in the park
Shaves in the dark trying to save paper
Sleeps in a hole in the road
Saving up to buy some clothes
Keeps a ten-bob note up his nose
Such a mean old man

I asked my dad, who had been stationed in various parts of the UK during WW2, about it back when I first heard those curious lyrics in '69 or '70. He told me how much it was and gave me one he had brought back. I still have it somewhere. So, I am probably the one correct answer.

I agree with everybody else that while it is easy to vote, because the radio button is immediately to the left of the choice, it is quite difficult to determine that you have voted correctly when you view the polling results. As Comic Book Man would say, "Worst user experience ever!"

As far as clueless ad agencies mangled foreign topics goes, my favorite is still the fast-food chain formerly known as Der Wienerschnitzel. Two strikes there: (1) the noun is neuter so it should be Das Wiener Schnitzel, and (2) the foodstuff is not a hot dog, but a fried, breaded veal cutlet.

I've not seen any story about it but can imagine what it says, having seen the commercial myself and noticed that McDonald's had got it wrong.

What's the corect answer? I know one meaning of "bob" is an armless, legless man floating in the water.

"I haven't seen the story, it has something to do with money."

OK.
MacDonald's advert refers to "a pound also known as a bob". The trouble is that the pound isn't known as a bob and never has been. Back when we had pounds shillings and pence, 12 pence was one shilling and twenty shillings was one pound. A "bob" was one shilling. Nowadays we have 100 pence is one pound and the equivalent of a shilling is five pence. The term "bob" is still heard occasionally but it's getting rarer.

Of course it's like me selling fish and chips in the US and advertising them as being "one dollar, also known as a nickel".

2 farthings are a ha'penny
2 ha'pennies are a penny (1d)
3d is a joey
2 joeys are a tanner
2 tanners or 12d is a bob
2 bob are a florin
2/6 is half a dollar
4 half dollars are are ten bob
two ten-bob notes are a quid
21 shillings are a guinea
...it all seems pretty straight-forward to me...

Straight-forward?
Appears to be leading to a straitjacket.

So what does 10/⁶ mean on the Mad Hatter's hat?

So what does 10/⁶ mean on the Mad Hatter's hat?

It's a price: 10 shillings 6 pence (a half guinea or 10 1/2 shillings), or in modern terms, 52.5p or £0.525. The 1/2p coin has been removed from circulation, IIRC. The slash is from the old long s (ſ) and is an abbreviation for Latin solidus 'shilling'. The abbreviation Lsd for pounds shilling pence shows the other abbreviations from Latin libra 'pound' and denarius 'penny'. By itself, 6 pence would be 6d, but when prefixed with some shillings, the d is dropped. A hyphen indicates zero pence: 3/-, 3 shillings.

Bob, did one of your "bob" limericks use this definition?

Yes

And the whole cycle of love, murder and retribution starts here.

There you have it--Robert's your mother/father's brother.