American expat was shocked to learn Christmas decorations are called baubles in New Zealand

An American expat living in New Zealand was baffled after scrawling the word “baubles” on a package of decorations while shopping at Kmart for Christmas.

Maddie Gemmel, from Arizona, has been calling the festive sale “ornaments” all her life and was quick to take to Tiktok and share the culture shock moment with fans.

“I’m just here at Kmart doing my Christmas shopping and I’m confused about what I’m seeing so someone help me,” she said.

“I don’t think I’ve ever heard this word before. That should say ornaments.’

‘What kind of word is that. What? Do you say this or do you say ‘ornaments’ for tree decorations?’ she asked.

Maddie Gemmel, from Arizona, has been calling the festive sale “ornaments” all her life and was quick to take to Tiktok and share the culture shock moment with fans.

Kiwis were quick to defend themselves, however, with many saying that ornaments and baubles are “completely different.”

“All baubles are ornaments, but not all ornaments are baubles,” one woman explained.

“Trinkets are round, but ornaments can be any shape or theme,” added another.

That’s actually the correct term. Ornaments can be any shape, baubles are round or teardrop shaped,’ another agreed.

Some commentators were offended that Madi was so shocked by the word difference.

‘Wow. It’s like being in another country,” said one man.

“Guys are waiting for her to find out that different countries also have different languages,” one woman added.

Madi has noticed other differences since moving to New Zealand, most notably variations in slang.

She and her husband often share the difference between American and New Zealand slang.

For example, she noticed that American people say ‘see you later’ while Kiwis say ‘catch up’.