Asking about the amenities

[la_fono]

Hi folks. I have a question regarding toilets/bathrooms

Comments

[michelel72]

In a private home, I'd ask (in an apologetic tone, which is more a "me" thing), "Would you mind if I used your bathroom?" Plenty of people I know wouldn't bother with the apologetic tone or, in my home, might just tell me they would be using my bathroom. If there were multiple people visiting, someone would likely just use the bathroom without asking, I'd say. In general, I would expect a less formal approach among friends and acquaintances, even those who had never been in a given house before, than among strangers. In a small business, I'd ask if they had a public restroom; in a larger business, I'd just ask for directions to the restroom.

[la_fono]

Ah, yes! Thank you. I'd been wondering about the size of business/formality thing. Much obliged. :)

[msilverstar]

A few people ask the way to the "little girls' room" or the "little boys' room", in Dursley-like bourgeois puritanism.

And of course the "bathroom" may not have a bath or even a shower in it. Which in real estate terms means it's a "half-bath".

[la_fono]

*grin* Ah, yes! That's good to know. Thank you.

[mecurtin]

Super-Mrs-Dursley-esque: "where's the powder room?"

Geeky/twee: "May I borrow your facilities?" or "Where might I find the facilities?"

[la_fono]

Is the 'borrow' common use? I'm imagining "Depends where you're taking it" sarcastic comments in response.

[griffen]

In a business establishment, it tends to be "Where are the restrooms?" or "Where is the men's room?" At home, it would be more like "May I use your restroom?" or "may I use your bathroom, please?"

I live in southern California, near Los Angeles. Mileage may vary depending on region of the country.

[la_fono]

Thank you. This is just the sort of thing I was wondering. :)

[griffen]

Also, many non-restaurant business establishments may not allow customers to use the restrooms, so in a grocery or a clothing shop the question would probably be phrased more like "Is there a restroom I can use here?"

[sister_dear]

If they're locally owned, anyway. A Macys is just about guaranteed to have public restrooms.

[sophinisba]

Yeah, I think of restroom as something in a business too, but I have heard people say "May I use your restroom?" to my parents, for example, when at their home. I think some people just think of that as the more formal word so they'd be more likely to use it if they're nervous or trying extra hard to be polite.

[pinkpolarity]

I could be completely wrong about this, but I wonder if "restroom" might have derived from when public bathrooms actually had couches and chairs in them. Also called "lounge". I occasionally still run into department stores that have actual "ladies' lounges". So yeah, public bathroom=restroom, somebody's house=bathroom.

[very_improbable]

One more alternative, which might be good if someone's nervous or not sure of the formality level, is that you could just go, "Excuse me, where's the, uh..." or "Do you mind if I use the..." and your host will almost certainly be like, "Oh, last door on the left." There are so many different cultures in this country and (as you can see in this thread!) so very many euphemisms around the toilet that I can see trailing off and hoping that your host will rescue you from having to say "bathroom". :)

[kethlenda]

LOL, one of my best friends actually calls it "the euphemism," as in, "I'll be right back, I need to use the euphemism."