A couple more strange 'English' terms

1. Cul-de-sac. (pron: cool de sack) Actually this one is French, but (like a few things) the British nicked it and it's now in our daily use! This refers usually to a road that has no 'end' - so when visiting, you just loop round and come back out. Cul de sacs are most commonly found in pre-designed residential areas in the UK. Here is my own stunning map of a cul-de-sac of eight houses, in a green suburb of London!

Example: "Our house is third on your left, it's in a cul-de-sac."

2. Gazumped. This means 'unfairly outbid at the last minute'. So you thought you were about to get something at an agreed price, then somebody else came in suddenly and took it by offering more money. It is most commonly used when referring to buying houses, but can refer to other sales situations too. It is generally not a nice thing to be gazumped, and implies an untrustworthy seller! I think the word might have originally come from Yiddish (more borrowing!)

Example: "We were about to buy that apartment on High Road, but we got gazumped."