When the British landed in America in the late 16th century, they brought the English language to the area. Over time, there were several deviations in the 2 languages, including:

Different words

Different spelling and punctuation

Different pronunciation and accent

Different use of verb / agreement and possession, , and

Different use of prepositions.

Different Words, Different Spelling & Different Pronunciation / Accent

Sometimes British and American speakers won’t understand each other despite both speaking English! This is because there are some words which having completely different meanings between the two dialects, and some words that are unknown or not used in one of the dialects. Some of the differences are slight, and some people could argue, depending on the origin of the American family, that words mean the same. For example, the word jumper in British English (BE) is a sweater, and in American English (AE) it refers to a “jumpsuit”- almost like a dress. Many vocabulary items are also used in one form and not in the other. One of the best examples of this is the terminology used for automobiles:

AE - hood BE - bonnet

AE - trunk BE - boot

AE - truck BE - lorry

There are some words which are more similar - but have a different spelling or a different pronunciation. Some general spelling differences apply to words ending in “or” in AE, end in “our” in BE: color / colour, humor / humour, flavor / flavour etc, or words ending in “”ize” in AE, end in “ise” in BE: recognize / recognise, patronize / patronize, etc. Examples of words which have a different pronunciation include such words include: advertisement, controversy, laboratory, secretary, leisure, schedule, dynasty, dance, renaissance, oregano, migratory, aluminium (British) - aluminum (US), Polythene (British)- polyethylene (US), and maths (British) - math (US) (shortening of "mathematics").

Different use of verb tense usage

British English uses the present perfect to express an action that has occurred in the recent past that impacts the present moment. AE also uses present perfect for this purpose, but past simple can also be used, which in BE would be considered incorrect.

For example:

British & American English: I've lost my key. Can you help me look for it?
American English: I lost my key. Can you help me look for it? (Considered incorrect in BE)

In addition, the use of already, just and yet is different in the 2 English variations. In BE, the present perfect tense is used with these, while in AE the past simple can be used.

For example:

I just had lunch (AE) I've just had lunch. (A& BE)

Verbs / Agreement and Possession

There are a set of verbs which have two acceptable forms of the past simple/past participle in both American and British English, however, the “regular” form (ending in ed) is more common to AE, while the “irregular” form is generally more common in BE. These verbs include:

Burn Burnt OR burned

Dream dreamt OR dreamed

Lean leant OR leaned

Learn learnt OR learned

Smell smelt OR smelled

Spell spelt OR spelled

Spill spilt OR spilled

Spoil spoilt OR spoiled

Collective Nouns

Another difference between British and American English is that In BE, collective nouns (the group, the committee) can take either singular or plural verb forms, while in AE collective nouns are usually singular. For example:

The group were unable to agree (acceptable in BE)

The group was unable to agree (acceptable in B&AE)

England have played well today, even if they lost. (BE)

England has played well today, even if it lost. (AE)

The Verb Get

The past participle of the verb get is gotten in AE. Example He's gotten much better at playing tennis. In BE however, it is got: He's got much better at playing tennis.

Possession

There are two forms to express possession in English. Have or have got.

She has a beautiful new home.
She's got a beautiful new home.

While both forms are correct and accepted in both, have got (have you got, he hasn't got, etc.) is generally the preferred form in BE, while in AE people use have (do you have, he doesn't have etc.)

Prepositions

There are also a few differences in preposition use in American VS British English:

AE - on the weekend

BE- at the weekend

AE- on a team

BE - in a team

AE- please write me soon

BE- please write to me soon

In summary, there are several slight differences between American and British English. When you include differences in accent, the two versions of the language can seem quite different. This is something that should be considered when teaching English as a foreign language.

Nicole de Jager