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Comment by no_ja | Hacker News Reader

Discussions of healthcare facilities always get me in Canada. Grew up in the states, but born in Canada, when you have to use the emergency room it’s said that “they went to Hospital” as opposed to “they went to ‘the’ hospital”. No one up here ever seems to see the oddity of always referring to multiple different hospitals as the singular Hospital.

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“They went to hospital” is a Britishism and definitely not something you’ll hear all the time in Canada.

Confirming britishism - both are in use here in Australia.

I've never heard a fellow Canadian say "to hospital" over "to the hospital", in person, or on TV.

I usually hear "they went to emerg(e?)"

In America you do something similar with school. I went to school (not “the school”).

Also varies by region in the US for referring to highways. In Southern California it is usually "the I-5" while on the other coast you will hear a plain "I-95".

In Northern California it's also just "5" "880" etc. We can pick out Southern Californians by their use of the pronoun.

If you want to show your geographical sophistication within California, you can safely refer to "80" (I-80 passes through only the northern part of the state) and "the 10" (which passes only through the southern part). As for "5" vs. "the 5" just make sure that if you're heading south you've switched by the time you reach the Grapevine (q.v.).

I'm not sure where the N/S dividing line is, though. Any HN readers from Bakersfield or Coalinga?

I think Americans have the most variety of names for roads - kind of like the Inuit have many ways to talk about snow.

Parkway, Freeway, Highway, Tollway, Expressway, Interstate, Byway, etc

>In Southern California it is usually "the I-5"

in LA it's most definitely "the 5" and state highways are also named with their numbers with no distinguishing. it's all "the N"

I’m from Arizona and I don’t think this is settled law here. I’m just as likely to say the 10, the I-10, or just I-10.

In Colorado, people tend to say "The I" and the automatic assumption is I-25. At least if you live on the front range anyway, which 80% of the state does.

went to hospital is a British thing and ive never heard it in Canada

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