Is it Neat or Straight Up?

Someone recently asked me to resolve a little dispute between him and his friends about the difference between a neat and straight up drink. It's probably not the first conversation about that subject because these terms are often confused with one another and along the way the two have almost become synonymous for some. The difference between the two is simple:chilled or not. Neat typically refers to a undiluted shot of liquor served at room temperature while the straight up is usually used to describe a drink that's chilled with ice (shaken or stirred) and strained into a glass. For example you can have a Bay Breeze on the rocks (as is customary) or you could strain it and enjoy it straight up, but you could never serve it neat. On the other hand, a sipper of Scotch can be served on the rocks, neat or straight up.