Institute Course TESOL

British english vs American EnglishThe British and American varieties of english are so similar that most British and American speakers can understand each other without great difficulty. There are however, a few differences in spelling, vocabulary, and grammar. The following report will point out these three principal differences between British english (BE) and American english (AE). Spelling The majority of the spelling differences between BE and AE fall into the following rules: British english American english Example (BE – AE) words ending in –re change to –er centre-center metre – meter words ending in –our change to –or colour – color words ending in –ogue change to –og catalogue – catalog words ending in –ise/ize end only in –ize realise/realize – realize final –l doubled after short vowel -l not always doubled after a short vowel travelled – traveled modelling – modeling words ending in –ence change to –ense defence – defense licence – license Vocabulary Probably the most major differences between BE and AE lies in the choices of vocabulary. Sometimes the same word has different meanings. For example the word biscuit means a cookie or cracker in BE but in AE biscuit means a small bread. There are also different words with the same meaning. For example the word ‘Bonnet’ in BE means the same thing as ‘Hood’ in AE. There are a number of online resources that list the most common vocabulary differences between BE and AE. Reading through these could help BE or AE speakers understand each other better. Listed below are a few common words which are different in BE and AE. American British apartment flat argument row baby carriage pram band-aid plaster bathroom loo or WC can tin chopped beef mince cookie biscuit corn maize diaper nappy elevator lift eraser rubber flashlight torch fries chips gas petrol guy bloke, chap highway motorway hood (car) bonnet jello jelly jelly jam kerosene paraffin lawyer solicitor license plate number plate line queue mail post motor home caravan movie theater cinema muffler silencer napkin serviette nothing nought overpass flyover pacifier dummy pants trousers parking lot car park period full stop pharmacist chemist potato chips crisps rent hire sausage banger sidewalk pavement soccer football sweater jumper trash can bin truck lorry trunk (car) boot vacation holiday vest waistcoat windshield (car) windscreen zip code postal code Grammar The major differences between BE and AE grammar can be broken down to the use of present perfect, possession, prepositions, past simple and past participles. • Present Perfect o Speakers of AE generally use the present perfect tense (have/has + past participle) far less than speakers of BE. In spoken AE it is common to use the simple past tense as an alternative in situations where the present perfect would usually have been used in BE. o Examples British english American english Jenny feels ill. She’s eaten too much. Jenny feels ill. She ate too much. I can’t find my keys. Have you seen them anywhere? I can’t find my keys. Did you see them anywhere? They’ve already seen it. They already saw it. • Possession o There are two forms to express possession in english. Have or Have got. While both forms are correct (and accepted in both BE and AE), have got (have you got, he hasn’t got, etc) is generally preferred in BE while most speakers of AE employ the have (do you have, he doesn’t have, etc). o Examples British english American english Have you got a car? Do you have a car? He hasn’t got any friends He doesn’t have any friends. She’s got a beautiful home. She has a beautiful home. • Prepositions o Prepositions are oftentimes expressed different in BE and AE. o Examples British english American english At the weekend On the weekend In a team On a team Please write to me soon Please write me soon • Past Simple/Past Participles o Many verbs have two acceptable forms of the past simple/past participle in both BE and AE, however, the irregular form is generally more common in BE and the regular is more common to AE. o Examples ? burn burnt or Burned ? dream dreamt or dreamed ? lean leant or leaned ? learn learnt or learned ? smell smelt or smelled ? spoil spoilt or spoiled