On Sat, 01 Mar 2014 05:33:33 -0800, sf > wrote:

>On Fri, 28 Feb 2014 19:03:06 -0500, S Viemeister
> wrote:
>
>> I've been in a number of NJ diners where the waitress asks "white or
>> wheat". To many people wheat=brown - they don't seem to understand the
>> the white stuff is also wheat...
>
>That's not why. Wheat is just an acceptable shortening of whole
>wheat. That's all there is to it. The options used to be white,
>wheat or rye, except they would say "whitewheatorrye". I imagine it's
>a real tongue twister to say whole wheat so quickly in a list like
>that. In any case, I don't hear the rye option very often anymore.
>They have sourdough and/or English muffins on the list in place of rye
>now.

Besides which, white or wheat has been diner speak since the 1930s at
least. You're not going to change it now.
Janet US