QUIZ: What's a geezer?

Question: Is this a geezer? …

Or is this a geezer?

Answer: Both! The first one is a Gieser (pronounced ‘geezer’), and the second is also a geyser (pronounce ‘geezer’ here in South Africa). And yes, our geyser is attached to the ceiling in our bathroom, above the bathtub. Just in case we need the reassurance of its mass.

When meeting people for the first time, we used to say, “Yes, it really is Gieser/geezer, like the old man.” Now we say, “It’s Gieser, like the hot water heater.” And people smile. Still. And no one mispronounces it ‘gyz-er’ or ‘guys-er’ anymore, like Americans often do.

(Note on the irony: The very word that we use here to help people learn the pronunciation of ‘Gieser’ would be the exact wrong word to use in the US. South Africans pronounce ‘geyser’ as ‘geezer’, while Americans pronounce ‘geyser’ as ‘gyz-er’. Oh the dread of the ‘gyz-er.’ Either way we’re still the geezers.)