Differences between US and UK English: What, Why, How and What Now

Yes; all of us know that there are differences between US and UK English. What we need to know further is what these differences are, how they came into being, the effects they are having, the advantages of knowing both kinds of English to perfection or satisfaction and yes, how to learn both US and UK English well. This article is all about such eternally relevant information.

What are ‘US’ and ‘UK’ English?

‘US’ or American English is the English that is brought into use in the United States of America. This form of English contains the various English dialects used, as well.

The English used in the United Kingdom is known as ‘UK’ or British English. This form of English includes all the English dialects used there, too.

Basic differences between ‘US’ and ‘UK’ English

1. Grammar:

Tenses:

“I forgot the poem. Can you help me remember it?” In British English, this sentence would not be considered too correct. As per British English, it should have been “I have forgotten the poem. Can you help me remember it?” keeping in mind the Present Perfect Tense. In American English, however, using the Past Tense in such a sentence would be seen as permissible.

Verbs:

A base verb is sometimes used differently in US and UK English. For example, for the Past Tense of the word ‘Learn’ and the Verb ‘To learn’, British English would use ‘learnt’, while American English would use ‘learned’.

Prepositions:

The followers of British English would say ‘We enjoy ourselves at the weekend’while a person using American English would say ‘…on the weekend’ for the same kind of sentence.

In American English, ‘I will talk with him’ is acceptable, but the British English users would prefer ‘I will talk to him.’

Collective Nouns:

As per US English, Collective Nouns are taken as Singular in Number. For example, a Team plays well.

As per UK English, Collective Nouns can be taken either as Singular or Plural in Number. For example, a Team are / is playing well.

     2.  Spelling:

Many words are spelt differently in US and UK English. Let us list a few for you:

US English	UK English
Honor	Honour
Program	Programme
Anesthesia	Anaesthesia
Aging	Ageing
Specialize	Specialise

     3.  Pronunciation:

US and UK English users pronounce many words very differently, too. Let us see – or rather, HEAR — how different the same words might sound, in US and UK English:

     4.  Punctuation:

• Mrs., Ms. and Mr. all have a Period or Full-stop at the end, in US English.

In UK English, the ‘.’ is not there.

• As per British English, Quotation marks are used thus: Initial quotations have Single Quotes ( ‘___’ ). In case there is a quotation within the initial quote, Double Quotes ( “____” ) are used, to indicate that.

In the case of American English, it is Double Quotes for the initial quotation, and Single Quotes for any quotation within it.

• The use of the Apostrophe varies in US and UK English, too.

To indicate the Plural Form of Dates:

UK English does not use the Apostrophe. It would be the “1990s” for them.

In case of US English it would be the “1990’s”.

     5.  Vocabulary:

Perhaps the most noticeable difference between US and UK English is the Vocabulary.

US English	UK English
Faucet	Tap
Fries	Crisps
Drugstore	Chemist
Flat	Apartment
Tag	Label

These are just a few examples of the many words that stand for the same things, but are so very different in American and British English.

     6.  Formatting of Numbers and Dates:

US and UK English have different ways of formatting numbers and dates, too.

Here is how:

US English	UK English
6:30 (Time written Digitally)	6.30 (Time written with a Dot)

While writing Dates, the UK way is to put the day first, then month and lastly, the year: 16-6-2016 would thus mean the 16th day of the month of June in the year 2016.

The US way is to mention the month first, followed by the day and year: 6-16-2016. June 16th 2016.

     7.  Accents:

Of course, much is said regarding American and British English accents. Let us HEAR some of it here.

How US and UK English have developed differences in-between themselves

It has been known that in the early 17th Century, America got to know the English language because of British Colonization. British Trade and the Empire had been flourishing, and English language had been spreading far and wide, too.

Over the past hundreds of years, the English spoken in the US has become quite different from that spoken in the UK. With time, there have come to be known two versions of English: the American English and the British English.

Some of the major differences between the two versions have already been discussed in this article.

The first American Dictionary was written by Noah Webster. It was published in the year 1828.

Over the years, US and UK English have both developed, and diversified; though both of them are quite well-understood by the followers of both, and even others.

There are some linguists who explain that the ‘American accent’ had begun to develop within some years of the arrival of the British Colonists. Gradually, it was an entirely new dialect that had developed in America. There could have been two major reasons for that:

1. Little or almost no contact with the Mother Country, to have that language to impact this one strongly enough.
2. Exposure to the languages used in other countries. The colonists met people speaking Native American languages. They heard languages such as French, Spanish, Dutch and Swedish. They even got to hear the Indian English used by mariners. All these influenced the tongue they used. Their language was also influenced by the ones spoken in various parts of places like Wales, Scotland and England.

In the latter years, American English picked up the ‘r’-less accent (that was in fashion then) of the ‘English upper-class’, as places like New York City and Boston were more in touch with England.

The Effects of the Differences between US and UK English

There are some very noticeable and some very subtle effects of the differences between US and UK English.

Let us see what can take place because of them:

• Confusion. There are certain terms that have completely different meanings in US and UK English. They are likely to confuse people who do not know what they mean in both the languages. A ‘lift’ at one place is an ‘elevator’ at another. A ‘pavement’ here is a ‘sidewalk’ there. ‘Trousers’ here, ‘pants’ there. ‘Queue’ here, ‘line’ there. A ‘closet’ at one place means a ‘wardrobe’ at another. And that is not all.

• Miscommunication / Misunderstanding / Offence. If a word that is seen as perfectly simple in one language is a slang / vulgar word according to another, it can cause grave miscommunication or misunderstanding. Even offence.
• Trouble with proper communication.
• Problem with Spelling. This is often faced by students, especially in other parts of the world, who see ‘colour’ at one place and ‘color’ at another – and do not know which the ‘correct’ way to spell the word is. At times, in some schools it has been observed that one way of spelling a word like ‘program / programme’ is marked wrong, in favour of the other.
• Difficulty regarding accents. A non-native speaker of English is quite likely to face considerable difficulty, trying to understand the accents used by speakers of US and UK English. There are places which actually train people to follow both these accents well enough to have a successful communication.

These are just some of the effects that the differences between US and UK English have been found to be having. There, of course, could exist many more, and different ones from these, too.

The Advantages of Knowing both US and UK English well

It would certainly be ideal for a learner or user of the English language to know both the US and UK versions of it well.

That would help in the following ways:

1. In-depth Knowledge. Provide the person with a very sound knowledge of a very important and useful language like English that is brought into use at many places in the world.
2. Power of Confidence. Give the learner / user the confidence and power to travel in the English-using world and move around in the English-speaking society, secure in the faith that s/he is least likely to get confused / embarrassed / into any kind of problem because of the differences between US and UK English.
3. Learning and Earning Potential. It goes without saying that once a person knows both US and UK English well enough, s/he can study or / and work at any of the many places in the world using either, or both of these languages.

We all know that the US and UK have excellent education and job opportunities. Knowledge of good English is seen as an asset in countries like India, too. Therefore, a sound knowledge of both US and UK English would mean great opportunities, almost at most of the parts in the world.

A person knowing both US and UK English well could have a lot of professions to consider: A Teacher’s or Interpreter’s, to begin with. A Writer’s, Translator’s or Journalist’s, too.

S/he could of course choose any other profession, too, but yes; knowing the US and UK versions of English would always be an added advantage.

Ways of Learning US and UK English well

There could be various ways of learning US and UK English well. Here are some of them:

• Studying at an institution that pays attention to teaching both the versions of English equally well.
• Learning both the versions from private / online tutors.
• Reading lots of books and material written in US and UK English, to pick both the styles up.
• Watching suitable videos to learn English from.
• Speaking US and UK English with people who can enhance knowledge of both; for regular, upgraded practice.
• Using an App to practise US and UK English with.

It can only benefit a person to know English well in both its US and UK versions, and with time and the world advancing, this knowledge can prove even more helpful.

Do share your opinion on this matter with us. Your words could benefit many people.