British Vs American English

Speakers of American English generally use the present perfect tense (have/has + past participle) far less than speakers of British English. In spoken American English it is very common to use the simple past tense as an alternative in situations where the present perfect would usually have been used in British English. The two situations where this is especially likely are:

(i) In sentences which talk about an action in the past that has an effect in the present:

American English / British English

·        Jenny feels ill. She ate too much.

·        Jenny feels ill. She's eaten too much.

·        I can't find my keys. Did you see them anywhere?

·        I can't find my keys. Have you seen them anywhere?

(ii) In sentences which contain the words already, just or yet:

American English / British English

·        A: Are they going to the show tonight?

·        B: No. They already saw it.

·        A: Are they going to the show tonight?

·        B: No. They've already seen it.

·        A: Is Samantha here?

·        B: No, she just left.

·        A: Is Samantha here?

·        B: No, she's just left.

·        A: Can I borrow your book?

·        B: No, I didn't read it yet.

·        A: Can I borrow your book?

·        B: No, I haven't read it yet.

1. Verb agreement with collective nouns

In British English collective nouns, (i.e. nouns referring to particular groups of people or things), (e.g. staff , government, class, team) can be followed by a singular or plural verb depending on whether the group is thought of as one idea, or as many individuals, e.g.:

My team is winning.

The other team are all sitting down.

In American English collective nouns are always followed by a singular verb, so an American would usually say:

Which team is losing?

whereas in British English both plural and singular forms of the verb are possible, as in:

Which team is/are losing?

2. Use of delexical verbs have and take

In British English, the verb have frequently functions as what is technically referred to as a delexical verb, i.e. it is used in contexts where it has very little meaning in itself but occurs with an object noun which describes an action, e.g.:

I'd like to have a bath.

Have is frequently used in this way with nouns referring to common activities such as washing or resting, e.g.:

She's having a little nap.

I'll just have a quick shower before we go out.
In American English, the verb take, rather than have, is used in these contexts, e.g.:

Joe's taking a shower.

I'd like to take a bath.

Let's take a short vacation.

Why don't you take a rest now?

3. Use of auxiliaries and modals

In British English, the auxiliary do is often used as a substitute for a verb when replying to a question, e.g.:

·        A: Are you coming with us?

·        B: I might do.

In American English, do is not used in this way, e.g.:

·        A: Are you coming with us?

·        B: I might.

In British English needn't is often used instead of don't need to, e.g.:

They needn't come to school today.

They don't need to come to school today.

In American English needn't is very unusual and the usual form is don't need to, i.e.:

They don't need to come to school today.

In British English, shall is sometimes used as an alternative to will to talk about the future, e.g.:

I shall/will be there later.

In American English, shall is unusual and will is normally used.

In British English shall I / we is often used to ask for advice or an opinion, e.g.:

Shall we ask him to come with us?

In American English should is often used instead of shall, i.e.:

Should we ask him to come with us?

4. Use of prepositions

In British English, at is used with many time expressions, e.g.:

at Christmas/five 'o' clock

at the weekend

In American English, on is always used when talking about the weekend, not at, e.g.:

Will they still be there on the weekend?

She'll be coming home on weekends.

In British English, at is often used when talking about universities or other institutions, e.g.:

She studied chemistry at university.

In American English, in is often used, e.g.:

She studied French in high school.

In British English, to and from are used with the adjective different, e.g.:

This place is different from/to anything I've seen before.

In American English from and than are used with different, e.g.:

This place is different from/than anything I've seen before.

In British English to is always used after the verb write, e.g.:

I promised to write to her every day.

In American English, to can be omitted after write, i.e.:

I promised to write her every day.

5. Past tense forms

Below is a table showing verbs which have different simple past and past participle forms in American and British English. Note that the irregular past forms burnt, dreamt and spoilt are possible in American English, but less common than the forms ending in -ed.

Infinitive	Simple past (Br)	Simple past (Am)	Past participle (Br)	Past participle (Am)
burn	burned/ burnt	burned/ burnt	burned/ burnt	burned/ burnt
bust	bust	busted	bust	busted
dive	dived	dove/ dived	dived	dived
dream	dreamed/ dreamt	dreamed/ dreamt	dreamed/ dreamt	dreamed/ dreamt
get	got	got	got	gotten
lean	leaned/ leant	leaned	leaned/ leant	leaned
learn	learned/ learnt	learned	learned/ learnt	learned
plead	pleaded	pleaded/ pled	pleaded	pleaded/ pled
prove	proved	proved	proved	proved/ proven
saw	sawed	sawed	sawn	sawn/ sawed
smell	smelled/ smelt	smelled	smelled/ smelt	smelled
spill	spilled/ spilt	spilled	spilled/ spilt	spilled
spoil	spoiled/ spoilt	spoiled/ spoilt	spoiled/ spoilt	spoiled/ spoilt
stink	stank	stank/ stunk	stunk	stunk
wake	woke	woke/ waked	woken	woken

Note that have got is possible in American English, but is used with the meaning 'have', gotten is the usual past participle of get, e.g.

American English	British English
You've got two brothers (= you have two brothers)	You've got two brothers
You've gotten taller this year	You've got taller this year

Here you will find words which have different meanings or are spelled differently in British and American English.

British English		American English
A
accelerator		gas pedal, accelerator
aerial (TV, radio)		antenna, aerial
Alsatian		German shepherd
American Indian		Native American
anorak		jacket, parka
at the weekend		on the weekend
aubergine		eggplant
B
bank holiday		national holiday, federal holiday
barrister, solicitor		lawyer, attorney
base rate		prime rate
to bath		to bathe
beetroot		beet
bill (in restaurants)		check (in restaurants)
bin, dustbin		garbage can/trash can
biro		ball-point pen
biscuit		cookie
bonnet		hood
boot		trunk
braces		suspenders
(round) brackets		parentheses
C
candy floss		cotton candy
car park		parking lot
caravan		trailer
caretaker		janitor
catalogue		catalog
centre		center
chemist's shop		drugstore, pharmacy
chips		French fries
city centre		downtown, city center
cloakroom		checkroom, coatroom
clothes peg		clothespin
colour		color
cooker		stove
(bathing) costume		swimsuit
cosy		cozy
cot (baby)		crib
cotton wool		cotton ball
courgette		zucchini
crisps		potato chips
crossroads		crossroad (in the country) intersection (town and country)
curriculum vitae (CV)		résumé curriculum vitae (depending on the professional field)
D
dinner jacket		tux, tuxedo
directory enquiries		directory assistance
diversion		detour
double cream		heavy cream
draught		draft
draughts		checkers
drawing pin		thumb tack
dressing gown		(bath) robe
drink driving		drunk driving
driving licence		driver's license
dummy		pacifier
duvet		comforter
E
earth wire		ground wire
engaged		busy
enquiry		inquiry
everywhere		everyplace, everywhere
expiry date		expiration date
F
fancy dress		costumes
Father Christmas		Santa Claus
favourite		favorite
to fill in		to fill out
film		film, movie
fire brigade		fire department
first floor		second floor
fish-fingers		fish-sticks
flannel		face cloth, wash cloth
flat		apartment (flat: used for apartment on one floor)
flavour		flavor
football		soccer
fortnight		two weeks
fringe		bangs
from Monday to Friday		from Monday to Friday from Monday through Friday (Friday included)
full stop		period
G
garden		yard
gear lever		gear shift
Gents		Men's Room
goods train		freight train
ground floor first floor		ground floor, first floor second floor
H
harbour		harbor
headmaster, headteacher		principal
to hire		to rent
hire purchase		installment plan
hockey		field hockey
holiday		vacation
hoover		vacuum cleaner
humour		humor
I
icing sugar		powdered sugar
indicator		turn signal
inverted commas, quotation marks		quotation marks
J
jacket potato		baked potato
jewellery		jewelery
Joe Bloggs		John Doe
jumble sale		yard sale
jumper		sweater
K
kilometre		kilometer
L
ladybird		ladybug
to lay the table		to set the table
letter box		mail box
lift		elevator
litre		liter
lorry		truck
lost property		lost and found
M
mackintosh		raincoat
managing director		CEO (chief executive officer)
mashed potato		mashed potatoes
match		game
maths		math
mobile (phone)		cellphone
motorbike		motorcycle
motorway		freeway, highway, expressway, interstate
mum		mom

N
nappy	diaper
national insurance number	social security number
neighbour	neighbor
note	bill
notice board	bulletin board
number plate	license plate
P
a pack of cards	a deck of cards
a packet of cigarettes	a package of cigarettes
pants	underpants
paraffin	kerosene/kerosine
pavement	sidewalk
pedestrian crossing	crosswalk
pepper	bell pepper
petrol	gas
phone box	phone booth
plane	airplane
polo neck	turtle neck
post	mail
post code	zip code
postman	mailman
pram, pushchair	baby carriage, baby buggy, stoller
prawn	shrimp
primary school	elementary school grade school
programme	program
Q
to queue	to line up
quid	buck
R
railway	railroad
reception	front desk
to ring	to call
road way	pavement
roundabout	traffic circle, rotary
rucksack	backpack
rubber	eraser
rubbish	garbage
S
share	stock
shop	store
shop assistant	sales clerk
sick	nauseated
single ticket	one-way ticket
Sorry.	Excuse me.
spanner	wrench
sports day	fields day
public school	private school
stock	inventory
subway	underpass
sultana	raisin
sweet shop	candy store
T
tap	faucet
taxi	cab
term	semester
theatre	theater
timetable	schedule
tin	can
toilet, loo	bathroom, rest room
town centre	downtown, city center
torch	flashlight
trainers	sneakers
tram	streetcar
travelled	traveled
trolley	cart
trousers	pants
tyre	tire
U
underground, tube	subway
underlay	carpet pad
undertaker	mortician
V
vest	undershirt
W
waistcoat	vest
wallet	billfold
wardrobe	closet
to wash	wash up
wing	fender
Y
year	grade
Z
zebra crossing	crosswalk
zip	zipper