Trust Sir George Bernard Shaw to hit the nail right on the head when he said, ‘England and America are two countries separated by the same language’. My first personal experience of this was when I spent two weeks in London, and one year in New York. The time I spent in each city made me realize that perhaps a lifetime of reading and studying British literature and watching American movies and TV programs were not adequate preparation for appreciating and coping with the differences between American and British English, both of which until then, I was quite sure I knew pretty well.
The first morning I spent in London I went down to breakfast and the British friend I was staying with welcomed me with a cheerful, “Are you all right?” My immediate reaction was surprise, tinged with worry! Was something wrong with me? Did nasty red spots breakout on my skin between the time I left my room to the time I reached the parlor (or should that be parlour?) “I’m OK...” I stammered. Then blurted out, “Why? Do I look like I’m sick?” “No,” she assured me, “I was just asking if you are doing well this morning - no reason.” I pressed her to explain further, and finally realized that her, “Are you all right?” is the same as saying, “How are you?”, which is the kind of greeting I am used to, and which it appears belongs to American English.
Later that day we drove all the way to Devon, slowing down several times for the “sleeping policeman” in the middle of the road! “Don’t worry, he’s meant to be driven over”, my friend assured me(these are speed bumps in the USA and for us in Sri Lanka too). While in Devon, I noticed people threw empty packets of chips (what Americans call fries) into the “rubbish bin” (trash can in America).
My friend’s cousin, when we met him, told us that he was looking for a new job because he had “become redundant.” In American English, that means he was laid off because there were too many people doing his job. Other phrases I heard in the UK included “queuing” which in New York is “lining up” and looking for the “Way Out” which in America is “Exit.”
Origins
According to the Legends of America website, inhabitants of the New World first noticed that their English was different from what was spoken in Britain about one hundred years after settling in Jamestown. Little wonder, for colonists didn’t have the ease of communication and transportation available today. They couldn’t hop on a plane to visit relatives, nor could they video chat with their grandparents back home. The settlers were interacting with Native Americans as well as with immigrants from Germany, France, and other countries. The Americans coined original words to describe their new environment. For example, what would they call that furry little creature that was always trying to dig holes in the garden? They had never seen groundhogs in Great Britain. Meanwhile, words came and went out of fashion in Britain, and the Americans were none the wiser.
Along with groundhogs and woodchucks, other living things earned uniquely American monikers. One of them was the ladybug, the red and black ladybird beetle of the United Kingdom. The Americans based rappel, the act of descending from a height using a rope, on the French word for recall. Uniquely American foods, such as s’mores, don’t have British equivalents because they are still relatively unknown. Perhaps that would change if they sampled them; s’mores are delicious!
“Put on your anorak. Check the pillar box, and see if my business partner sent over the hire purchase”. Would the average American understand these commands? Probably not! Here’s the translation: Put on your jacket. Check the mailbox, and see if my business partner sent over the installment plan.
As Shundalyn Allen explains in her article, ‘How British English and American English are Different’ there are also words that exist in both languages, but with different meanings. For example, if you requested a caretaker in England, you might be introduced to someone holding a broom and dustpan. There, a caretaker is a person who cleans and maintains a building. To Americans, a caretaker is a person who takes care of someone, such as a child or sick person, or who looks after a property while the owner is away.
Spelling and sentence construction
When it comes to sentence construction British English tends to favor the passive voice (eg. “Bill was kicked by Bob.”) American prefers the active voice (eg. “Bob kicked Bill.”) British English uses more auxiliary verbs (to be, to have, to do), and American English uses more regular verbs, which express a particular action and distinguish between past and present tense more precisely. The Secret Life of the Pronoun, explains: “Auxiliary verbs are associated with a passive voice and are frowned on in American English classes but celebrated in British English classes.”
There are major differences in spelling as well:”Aeroplane” – Airplane,”Aluminium” – Aluminum,”Centre” – Center, “Colour” – Color, “Cheque” – Check, “Grey” – Gray etc.
It is hard not to wonder how Americans made the switch from honour to honor, colour to color, and centre to center. Did those extra vowels just fall off in the New World as time went by? No, it was actually a masterly decision on the part of Noah Webster, an American colonial, who wanted America to have its own independent language, and created the most popular dictionary in the history of the world. Webster cut the letter “u” out of many words that had an “ou” inside (“flavour,” “colour,” “honour”). He also changed “musick” to “music” and “centre” to “center.” He also added some colloquial American words that the British would have never heard of: “skunk,” and “hickory” (both derived from popular sayings). It’s easy to see the brand-new character of America shine through these words. They sound more abrupt and to the point, less fussy, and they get down to business. There are differences in punctuation too. An American period is a British “full stop”. And instead of the American parenthesis, they have “brackets”.
It is obvious then, that the difference between American English and British English goes much farther than “You say Tomayto, I say Tomahto.” The difference can be found in vocabulary, slang, sentence structure, syllabic emphasis, and even punctuation.
When you are in America you will realize many Americans who love tea would turn up their noses at the idea of adding milk to it. Brits, on the other hand, are known for lacing their strong tea with milk. But, with or without milk, tea is tea. It’s served one way in Britain and another way in the United States, but everyone can recognize it for what it is. The language that the chaps in Britain and the blokes in America share is a bit like that as well, spoken differently in two different lands, but somehow understood by both groups of people.
But with slight variations. The following conversation took place between a visiting American and an Eton schoolmaster.
“Do you allow your boys to smoke?” the American asked.
“I’m afraid not,” was the reply.
“Can they drink?”
“Good gracious no.”
“What about dates?”
“Oh, that’s quite all right,” said the master, “as long as they don’t eat too many.”
Differences between British and American English
* Vocabulary: There are hundreds of everyday words that are different. For example, Brits call the front of a car the bonnet, while Americans call it the hood. Americans go on vacation, while Brits go on holidays, or hols. New Yorkers live in apartments; Londoners live in flats.
* Auxiliary verbs: Brits sometimes use shall to express the future. For example, “I shall go home now.” Americans know what shall means, but rarely use it in conversation. It seems very formal. Americans would probably use “I will go home now.”
In question form, a Brit might say, “Shall we go now?” while an American would probably say, “Should we go now?”
When Americans want to express a lack of obligations, they use the helping verb do with negative not followed by need. “You do not need to come to work today.” Brits drop the helping verb and contract not. “You needn’t come to work today.”
* Past tense verbs: You will also find some small differences with past forms of irregular verbs.
The past tense of learn in American English is learned. British English has the option of learned or learnt. The same rule applies to dreamed and dreamt, burned and burnt, leaned and leant.
Americans tend to use the –ed ending; Brits tend to use the -t ending.
to think of the American way as incorrect.
* Spelling: There are hundreds of minor spelling differences American spelling of words like color (from colour), honor (from honour), and labor (from labour).
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