Are the meaning same for - Toilet, Latrine, Bathroom & Washroom.

Freeman   Friday, December 10, 2004, 01:20 GMT
''Does the words Toilet, Latrine, Bathroom & Washroom carry the differnet meaning or they are just different Slangs for the same purpose?''

Out of all those words only ''Latrine'' seems slang to me. I once heard a Canadian say ''washroom'' and I thought they were talking about a laundry room and then I later found out that they meant the loo.
Freeman   Friday, December 10, 2004, 01:22 GMT
''Latrine'' isn't slang. My mistake, none of ''toilet'', ''latrine'', ''bathroom'' or ''washtoom'' are slang words.
Freeman   Friday, December 10, 2004, 01:27 GMT
Real vulgar slang words for this related stuff would be ''crapper'', ''shitter'', ''piss pot'', ''pisser'' etc.

Here's two trivia questions, weren't latrines really common before they had flushing toilets?

Also, was the inventor of the flushing toilet really named ''Thomas Crapper''?

I've heard some Americans call the toilet and the loo ''the john''. I wonder why they call it ''the john''.
Adam   Friday, December 10, 2004, 01:28 GMT
I think his last name was 'Crap'.
Freeman   Friday, December 10, 2004, 01:45 GMT
If his last name was 'Crap' then why does everyone say that his last name was 'Crapper'?
Adam   Friday, December 10, 2004, 01:50 GMT
Sorry, my mistake, it was 'Crapper'.
Adam   Friday, December 10, 2004, 01:53 GMT
Found this online :

<<This john is a variant on jack, jacks or jakes, all of which have meant "privy" since the early 1500s. Their origin is uncertain but it is very likely that they originated in someone excusing themselves with "I must speak with my friend Jack" or some such.>>
Adam   Friday, December 10, 2004, 01:56 GMT
Here's another possible explanation:

http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-joh1.htm
Sehrish   Friday, December 10, 2004, 09:54 GMT
i want to say that "Bathroom"is used for taking bath instead of "Washroom.Boy i dont think that "Restroom and "Toilet" conveys the same meaning and the room where the teacher can discuss is "Staff room"i have not heard that it is called restroom.because i have not written my message correctly i think that u r making me fool.i think that u know better than me and u r much intelligent than me.when u will confirm this plz teall me also.i will no thanks u in advance.i will thanks u when u will tell me.i want to write more here but my english is weak.i am waiting 4 ur answer.
for boy
Boy   Friday, December 10, 2004, 16:52 GMT
Sehrish,
You are also right what you said.


I can tell you examples in what situation I heard these two words "washroom" and "restroom". One day I phoned to my friend and his sister picked up my call and told me that please wait for 5 minutes because he was taking a shower in washroom. Once he came back to pick up the phone and he told me the exact sentence that he was taking a shower in washroom, so boy sorry for a delay. In our country, we don't take a bath/shower in bathroom at home. We have a seperate room for it where you have a shower attacted in it. That's what we call "Ghusal Khana" in our native language. So I assumed that "washroom" wasn't a place where we eased ourselves.

As for the term of restroom, oneday I was talking with my American born cousin on yahoo messenger. He was at job, he told me that his colleagues were going to restroom so he was also going there . He would talk to me later. I said okay. But what I assumed that he was going to take a rest because all of his co-colleagues were going to the same room.
It isn't possible for all people to have a pee/call of nature at the same time, isn't it? So I assumed that "rest room" was used to refer to "staff room".

Sehrish, I'm not making you fool. I myself an ESL student and have some unclear concepts about daily life stuff.
Boy   Friday, December 10, 2004, 17:01 GMT
Typo: Is it?
Joanne   Friday, December 10, 2004, 17:52 GMT
That's odd... it's usually women who go to the restroom in herds, not men! :D
sEHRISH   Saturday, December 11, 2004, 03:43 GMT
My mother tongue is urdu and i also know "Ghusal Khana" where we have a shower attached in it.here we all speak in urdu with each other.My english was so weak in matric.but recently in firstyear i got good marks in it and all the credit goes to our english teacher "Miss Rizwana".i donot know the difference between "Rest Room" and "sTAFF ROOM" bUT I WILL CONSULT MY TEACHER AND I WILL INFORM U SOON.tHANKS ALOT.
fOR BOY
navantimoon   Monday, December 13, 2004, 06:12 GMT
Thanks to all of you for providing the explanation. Though its sounds wired that how same words can have different meanings in different countries and places.

My thanks to Sehrish, Boy, Freeman, Latza, Damian, Toaste, Tiffany, Lims, mjd, Jim & Anteno who have participated and given their views.
Toasté   Monday, December 13, 2004, 15:52 GMT
One other variant, which I believe has British origins... water closet. My grandmother was a very proper lady, who could never bring herself to say the word in public, but if she had to refer to the room it was always the water closet.

The origins of that term, I believe, go back to the earliest days of indoor plumbing when toilettes were being added to already constructed homes. Often, they were built into spaces that formerly had been closets, which led to the name.