American English vs. British English

According to Wikipedia (2019), over 2 billion people speak English, and there are six large countries with the majority of English speakers, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Republic of Ireland, and New Zealand. Given the number of people who speak English around the world, dialectical and regional differences between areas are inevitable. As one of the students in Taiwan, I learn English as my second language just like everybody else. During my English learning process, American English and British English are the two kinds of English which I heard and read. I have been learning American English since I was little, so I am more familiar with it. However, I am obsessed with both of them; I am not only attracted by the wildness of American English, but the elegance of British English. Despite the different accents, there are more obvious differences between these two kinds of English. In the following contents, I’ll focus on three major and practical differences: vocabulary for clothing, vocabulary for food, and the spelling.

 

First, vocabulary for clothing. When it comes to vocabulary of particular kinds of clothes, American and British English are quite different. For example, Americans say “I wear sneakers,” while British say “I wear trainers.” Americans call the clothes that we wear in winter a “sweater,” while British call it a “jumper” or a “pullover.” Americans call the sleeveless outfit a “vest,” while British call it a “waistcoat.” The “suspenders” that come with a gentleman’s suit in American English become “braces” in British English. There are fewer similarities in the words or the spelling; therefore, in my opinion, the more we learn, the better we can understand different usages from both countries.

 

Second, vocabulary for food. “French fries” and “potato chips” are the two which confuse people the most, because the British call them respectively “chips’ and “crisps.” When Americans say “potato chips,” British would think of “French fries” like those in McDonald’s. On the contrary, when British say “chips,” Americans would think of the snacks. I bet that is the reaction of most of us when we first notice the differences. One more difference, Americans say “I want to eat cookies,” while British say “I want to eat biscuit.” There are more examples that we can talk about. Fortunately, in spite of these differences, most of us can usually guess the meaning through the context of a sentence.

 

Third, the spelling. There are hundreds of subtle spelling differences between American English and British English. Because of the accents and the pronunciations, which the British insist that they could actually recognize some tiny differences, British English words tend to have an “u” in it. For example, “colour” for British English but “color” for American English; “honour” for British English but “honor” for American English; “labour” for British English but “labor” for American English, and “favour” for British English but “favor” for American English; despite the fact that there are many differences in the spelling of words, it won’t really be an obstacle for people to communicate.

 

In terms of some subtle vocabulary and spelling variations, American English and British English have more similarities than differences. If one can understand the other, then he or she should be able to understand the other one. Except some slangs, American and British can communicate and read words without too many difficulties although there are some differences in vocabulary and spelling. Americans watch British TV shows, while British sing American singers’ songs, they even make fun of each other’s accents. To me, the most important thing is that Americans and British both keep their own cultures and are willing to share.

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References

LEARNING ENGLISH. (2017). Six Differences Between British and American English. Retrieved from:

https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/six-difference-between-britsh-and-american-english/3063743.html