Heath Pulliam is an independent education writer with a focus on the language learning space. He’s taught English in South Korea and various subjects in the United States to a variety of ages. He’s also a language learning enthusiast and studies Spanish in his free time.
British and American English are two well-known varieties of the English language. While the accent is often the first difference people notice, there are also subtle distinctions in vocabulary, grammar and even style. Many know about how Brits say boot and lift, while Americans would say trunk and elevator, but what about a few lesser-known differences?
Here, we take a look at a few of the more obscure differences between British English (BrE) and American English (AmE).
Note: British English is underlined and American English isÌýitalicized.
Along with the well-known difference of how in the U.S., football refers to American football, while football in Britain is what Americans like me call soccer, Americans also use player after the sport to denote someone who plays the sport. In British English, the sport with an added -er suffix is more common, like footballer and cricketer, not football player or cricket player.
This is not universal, though. For some sports, the -er suffix is used in both dialects. Both Brits and Americans use the term golfer, not golf player. There are also sports where the -er suffix is never used, like for tennis, cycling and gymnastics. Nobody says tenniser, tennis player is used instead.
People who cycle are cyclists and people who do gymnastics are gymnasts. Sometimes, badminton players are even called badmintonists. Overall, there aren’t really any concrete rules for what to call each player of a sport. Each sport has its own way of calling someone who participates in that sport.
The American version (I could care less) means the same thing. Although technically incorrect, it is still widely used in North America as an idiom and will be interpreted as not caring at all about something. Although popular, both variations can be heard in North America. Regardless, miscommunications do happen surrounding this phrase.
“I could care less about who Harry Styles is dating right now.â€
“Oh, I didn’t know you were interested in tabloid news.â€
“I’m not! I just said I didn’t care about it.â€
“No, you said that you could care less, meaning that it is possible for you to care less about who he’s dating.â€
“Ugh! What I mean is that I ³¦´Ç³Ü±ô»å²Ô’t care less. Happy?â€
Both British and American dialects are filled with many minuscule differences in spelling and phrasing. For example, the words plough (BrE) and plow (AmE) mean the same thing, but are spelled differently.
When two words differ, American English generally favors the simpler, more phonetic spelling. Hey, there’s another one! Favour (BrE) and favor (AmE). It’s apparent in pairs like analyse (BrE) and analyze (AmE), and neighbour (BrE) and neighbor (AmE).
Many of these small spelling differences can be attributed to Noah Webster, author of Webster’s Dictionary, who sought to distinguish American from British English by simplifying many of the words.
Some of his simplifications to American English are swapping the s for z, (specialised to specialized), dropping the u in words ending in our, (colour to color), and changing words ending in -tre to -ter (theatre to theater).
The history of this vegetable, whatever you may call it, tells us why zucchini is used in American English and courgette is used in British English. If you’ve studied languages, you can probably guess what country each name originated from. England was introduced to this cylinder-shaped vegetable in the 19th century by its French neighbors, while Americans were introduced to it in the early 20th century by the large influx of Italian immigrants.
The word zucchini is something of a mistranslation from Italian, however. What Americans use (zucchini) is the plural masculine form of the proper Italian word, (zucchino).
These terms mean the same thing, the rotation against the way a clock runs. In British English, this movement would be called anticlockwise, and in the U.S., they use counterclockwise.ÌýThe prefixesÌýanti- andÌýcounter- mean similar things.ÌýAnti- means against, andÌýcounter- means contrary or opposite to.
You should use antibacterial soap in order to stop the spread of germs.ÌýBuying cheap clothes that only last you a few months is counterproductive in the long term.
Can you guess how they described this movement before the invention of clocks with hands and circular faces? English speakers this long ago used sunwise. This direction at the time was considered auspicious and the opposite of the other direction.
Have and take are used often before nouns like shower, break, bath, rest and nap.ÌýIn the U.S., peopleÌýtakeÌýshowers andÌýtakeÌýnaps, while in the U.K., peopleÌýhaveÌýshowers andÌýhaveÌýnaps. Another example of this is how AmericansÌýtakeÌýa swim and BritsÌýhaveÌýa swim. These are called delexical verbs and we use them all the time in English, both British and American.
Although often different, both groups of English speakers have arguments, make decisions and take breaks.
This word is spelled the same in both American and British English, but means something different. In the U.S.,ÌýquiteÌýis typically used as an intensifier, like the wordÌývery.ÌýIn the U.K., it’s normally used as a mitigator, like the wordÌýsomewhat.
It can also mean completely if it modifies certain adjectives. (e.g., It’s quite impossible to learn a language in one month.)
American English: That Mexican food we had yesterday was quite spicy.
Translation: That Mexican food we had yesterday was very spicy.
In British English, quite means something more on the lines of kind of, or a bit.
British English: Thank you for the meal, it was quite good.
Translation: Thank you for the meal, it was somewhat good.
The category of clothes is one of the richest, with differences between the two English variants.ÌýHow about those pants that people used to only wear at the gym and around the house, but now wear them everywhere?
Brits call themÌýtracksuit bottomsÌýand Americans call themÌýsweatpants. What about a lightweight jacket that protects from wind and rain?ÌýBrits might call this anÌýanorakÌý(derived from the Greenlandic word), but Americans would call it aÌýwindbreaker. Both variants also useÌýraincoatÌýfor this article of clothing.
As an American, I’ve been confused before when coming across the word torch while reading the work of an English author.
To Americans, a torch is a piece of wood with the end lit on fire for light.ÌýWhat Brits are referring to when they use the wordÌýtorchÌýis aÌýflashlight (AmE), a small, battery-run electric lamp.
Ah, the English contraction. Many English learners don’t particularly love learning these, but they are an essential and everyday part of the language. ±·±ð±ð»å²Ô’t, however, is one that I don’t think I’ve ever heard another American say.
In the U.K., this contraction is fairly common. ±·±ð±ð»å²Ô’t, when separated, becomes need not.
British English: “You needn’t come until Tuesday night.â€
Americans would say the relatively simpler don’t need to.
American English: “You don’t need to come until Tuesday night.â€
Don’t be fooled into thinking British English has necessarily more difficult contractions than the U.S., though. Just come to the American South and prepare to hear famous (or infamous) contractions like y’all (you all) and ain’t (am not, is not, are not)!
There are hundreds of differences between British and American dialects, we’re only scratching the surface here.ÌýSome of these make more sense than others, but luckily, both Brits and Americans can usually understand the meaning of any English word through context.
Some people would even say that Brits speak English while Americans speak American.ÌýAlthough each dialect from across the pond seems very different, they have far more similarities than differences.
Read our posts 'Understanding dialects in the English language' and 'What are the most spoken languages in the world?'
Learning English with music can enhance learning and create a more engaging and dynamic classroom environment. In a previous post, we discussed if music can help you learn a language; this post looks at how music can be incorporated into the classroom.
Using music in your classroom can help improve student motivation, focus, and retention of information. Here are some ways you can use music to enhance your classroom teaching:
Ìý
Have you considered studying abroad? Moving to Canada to study? With more than 100 world-class universities across the country, there’s good reason to. From coast to coast to coast, it offers many international students a safe and supportive learning environment and the opportunity to work after graduation.
Want to learn more? In this guide, we cover ten things you should know about studying in Canada:
Ìý
Teaching teenagers can be a rewarding yet challenging experience.
When planning classes, we need to consider the environment in which the students are growing up. Most of our teenage students do not know a life without the internet, instant messaging or Google.
Commonly referred to as Ìý(or Gen Z), they are the most tech-savvy generation to date; this should be reflected in how we teach them.
However, not all of us have access to computer labs, interactive whiteboards or class tablets. But there is something that many of our teens bring to class in their pockets and bags every day.
You’ve guessed it - a phone.
By bringing students’ phones into your classes, you can bridge the technology gap between the learners and the curriculum, keep them engaged for longer and make them feel more empowered at the same time.
Here are four low-tech activities that use phones in class.
Activity requirements: one phone per student (or group of students) and a pre-made quiz.
is an app designed to help you create quizzes online, which can be a fun, engaging way to challenge your learners in the classroom.
Quizzes are an ideal activity to use at the start of a class to recycle previous vocabulary or to pre-teach new language.
For example, you could choose 10 British English phrases or idioms. Write a series of four possible definitions for each word, phrase, or idiom (with only one correct answer).
In class, ask your students to take out their phones, find the app, and link to the quiz.
Tell the students that they must vote for the definition they think is correct. They can keep track of their scores directly on the app while competing with their friends.
Not only will it immediately engage your learners and help them interact with what’s being learned, but they’ll also have a lot of fun.
Activity requirements: a phone with the Google Translate app installed and a pen and paper per pair.
Did you know Google Translate has a feature where you can ? This is a perfect tool for text that you might find on a poster, in a book or uses an alphabet which you are unfamiliar with.
Bring in samples of different languages to class – the more complex, the better. If you don’t have anything suitable at home, find something online and print it out.
Get one student to take a photo of the text using the app and with their finger, select the section of the text they’d like to translate from the original language to English. (Note: if you download the Google Translate language file to your phone, it will translate everything automatically).
Then, have them dictate what it says to their partner, who has to write it down.
Finally, they work together to improve the English translation. After all, everyone knows Google’s English isn’t perfect (not yet, anyway).
Activity requirements: a mobile phone with a camera per student.
Do your students love taking photos? Tap into their love of photography and make activities more exciting by incorporating the photos on their phones into your classes.
Adapt speaking activities from common exams such as the B2 Cambridge First. Instead of using the pictures in the book, put the students in pairs and get them each to choose a more relevant photo from their phones. You may find they have more to say and will communicate naturally while still practicing the necessary language and skills required in the exam.
Another idea is to get students to take photos of things they encounter in English in the street. This could be on a sign outside a restaurant or in their favorite clothing shop. Use these photos to start the next class with a discussion about where they saw it, what it means and if the English is correct.
You could also nominate one student each week to bring a photo they took that weekend. Share it with the class and get everyone to write Instagram captions. You wouldn’t believe how many already do this in English, so why not help them?
If you are worried about the misuse of mobile devices in your class – don’t be! Here are our top three strategies to help avoid students getting distracted:
