Crystal Clear Proofing: American and British English

Monday, November 2, 2009

American and British English - Words

In American and British English, there are some words and phrases with grammatical differences; one form being preferred in American English and another in British English, some words are spelled differently, and then there are some words which, though they mean the same thing, are completely different words. Below I've listed several common words in both American and British English. You may find yourself writing - or reading - a novel set in England, have a scene in a book with a British character or two, or simply find the following interesting, and maybe a little fun!

American vs. British

apartment = flat
argument = row
baby carriage = pram
backpack = rucksack
band-aid = plaster
bathroom = loo or WC (water closet)
can = tin
checking account = current account
cookie = biscuit
corn = maize
cotton candy = candy floss
cupcake = fairy cake
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
loose change = slummy
lucky = spawny
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
police officer = bobby
popsicle - ice lolly
potato chips = crisps
rent = hire
sandwich = butty
sidewalk = pavement
soccer = football
soda, pop - fizzy drink
stuffed animal = cuddly toy
sweater = jumper
trash can = bin or dust bin
truck = lorry
trunk (car) = boot
underwear = smalls
vacation = holiday
vest = waistcoat
windshield (car) = windscreen
zip code = postal code

Mmm...I think for lunch I'll make myself a bitty and have a fizzy drink. And as soon as I finish typing this sentence, you'll notice that I've used a full stop.

9 comments:

Creative ChroniclerNovember 2, 2009 at 7:51:00 AM CST
This is great! I've been waiting for you to do this one.
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Alan OrloffNovember 2, 2009 at 8:59:00 AM CST
Thanks for that list, Crystal. No wonder I was a tad confused when I visited London (and I thought it was just jet lag).
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L. Diane WolfeNovember 2, 2009 at 10:17:00 AM CST
That's right - if you say you need the bathroom in England, they'll look at you funny and ask why you need to bathe! (I know this from experience!)

And don't forget 'fag' has a different meaning - a cigarette. Plus getting drunk is getting pissed there.
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The Old SillyNovember 2, 2009 at 10:35:00 AM CST
Neat stuff. I have an English guy in one of my WIP's that's set in America and will save this list to add some realism to dialog interchanges. It's also inetersting to note the different way the Brits and Americans spell the SAME words. Like "honour" vs "honor" and "Flavour" vs "flavor" for instance.

Marvin D Wilson
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UnknownNovember 2, 2009 at 10:39:00 AM CST
CC: Actually I do plan doing a post one day on the grammitical differences between the two also, but I thought this would be fun!

Alan: LOL! :)

Karen: I like that one too! Some are actually quite fun and "catchy" like "nappy!"

Diane: Kind of like their meaning of "bloody," being an expletive. So intersting really, the difference in terms used...

Marvin: That's another post I plan on doing one day. This entire topic, for some reason, just fascinates me. The grammar, spelling and differences in words.
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Elspeth FutcherNovember 2, 2009 at 11:01:00 AM CST
Growing up in an English-heritage household I was aware of all of these; add to that my attendance at a very English private school (situated in Canada, though) and you'll understand why I have no problem with British vocabulary! Considering my WIP takes place in England, this is hopefully a good thing.

Elspeth
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Hart JohnsonNovember 2, 2009 at 11:11:00 AM CST
Love the list! I participate in a few international forums and it is funny how you can say the same thing and mean something different. We also joke about the American fear of the letter U (color vs. colour, etc).

There are even some grammar things. I would say "He was sitting" and my friend Tara (from Wales) would say "He was sat".

And if you want to get REALLY wacky, you ought to hear what the Aussies do (nearly everything in the English language has a dirty interpretation-that is the one they go with)
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Elizabeth Spann CraigNovember 2, 2009 at 7:46:00 PM CST
Good one!

I had some of this stuff drilled into me when I worked (briefly) for a London magazine. Then I was messed up back in the States and anytime I tried to spell a word that had a different British spelling. :)

Elizabeth
Mystery Writing is Murder
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AnonymousNovember 3, 2009 at 12:21:00 AM CST
It is amazing how many variations on the English language there are. I'm currently having a book edited for an American publisher and I was asked if I wanted American or British English. I thought both options were a bit odd given I'm an Australian and we mangle the language our own way. Thanks for the list.
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Reader Comments

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Crystal Clear Proofing posts the greatest writing/editing tutorials. As an editor myself, I go there often to learn subtle nuances in the craft of good writing, as she has this marvelous ability to make those fuzzy, sometimes hard to determine, gray areas of correct writing, well…Crystal Clear!

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I.E AND E.G.
Thank you! I've never know what those meant or how to properly use them!

JOINT AND SEPARATE POSSESSION
Thank you so much! I had a hard time finding what joint and seperate possession means! Once again, thank you!

WAIT AND AWAIT
Oh, I love this site! Do you have a past post about lay, lie and all that good stuff?

This is a very clear and succinct explanation of the distinction between the two words."

LAY AND LIE
OMG! This is GREAT!!! I might actually understand it now! Thanks so much, Crystal. This is an awesome site!

You have a great way of explaining words. Your blog is a wonderful source for writers. I'll have to search your post to see if you have "affect" "effect", I know I use those improperly often.

AFFECT AND EFFECT
Thank you for this great post! I have printed it to keep it handy. Hopefully, it will positively affect my future writing.

Thanks for this post Crystal. I was going to actually email you and request that you explain the difference between these two, because these are usually a problem for me. Thanks again!

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THAT AND WHICH
Another excellent grammar lesson!

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WHO AND WHOM
Perfect! Got it...I keep all these tutorials in a bookmarked file now.

Great tutorial!! I'm saving this one.

Another great tutorial.

QUOTATION MARKS
Great post. Good tips about punctuation.

AWHILE AND A WHILE
Another fine tutorial. Got it added to my Clear as a Crystal file.

What a wonderful tip!

Oh!!! Those examples are perfect and it really makes sense now. Thanks!

APOSTROPHE USE WITH POSSESSIVE NOUNS
Excellent and very thorough. Got this one copied and stored along with ALL your tutorials in my Crystal Clear Writing folder. :)

Another excellent post. I always have trouble with these.

Now that my eyes have re-focused after glazing over, I can say that this is why writers need to hire editors--So they don't have to think too much about grammar. I can't keep all the darn rules straight in my head. Thanks for doing what you do. I am cutting and pasting this into a new word file for grammar tips.

Good one! I'm tweeting this.

Clear and concise. Thanks.

That possessive S has at some points been the bane of my existence...so thanks for this.

Great article! Thanks for the examples too.

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LEVELS OF EDITING
Crystal, great explanation and post today - I copied it as a word doc and stored it in my "Crystal Clear" file.

You've written a wonderful post that throws light on a rather mysterious (to me) subject.

ONE WORD VS. TWO WORDS
Another great post.

Thanks for sharing this list and clarifying these points.

WRITING DATES AND TIMES
Writing dates and times is always confusing for me, so I really appreciate this, Crystal! Thanks.

Great tips. This is very helpful. Thanks.

Awesome tips. I make some of those mistakes.

I will copy and paste into a writing tips folder I've started to gather all these handy dandy things in one place. Thank you.

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You have some good reference article(s) here, Crystal. :-)

PREPOSITIONS
Excellent tutorial, got it saved as usual.

Thanks for this! Bookmarking it for easy reference.

SEMICOLONS
Another great and much needed post for people like me. This is why you are the Grammar Goddess!

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Good one!

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COLONS
As always, awesome advice and clarification.

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Helpful as always. Thanks.

DASHES
You should really turn your blog into a book. Now THAT is a grammar book I would buy!

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Most helpful. I just had to change a host of en dashes to em dashes in my ms.

HYPHENS
Thank you very much for this post!

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Good post, great blog!

OVER THE TOP AWARD
Congratulations, you and your blog are "Over the Top."

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FIFTEEN PUNCTUATION FACTS YOU NEED TO KNOW
Great summary.

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Crystal this is excellent. I've got it stored in my Crystal Clear file folder.

Yeah, I've created a Crystal folder as well and cut and paste all your gems.

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Great tips as always :)

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EFFECTIVE WRITING
I think this is one of my favorite rules post yet. So helpful!! May have to post this one on my desk too, I know I'll get one of those flip book easels so I can have all your post handy and in my face to remind me. I need that, you are an editor extraodinaire!!!

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CLAUSES
Thanks! I love these tutorials.

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CHALLENGES
Great idea for a proofreader post!

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