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Despite the variousEnglish dialects spoken from country to country and within different regions of the same country, there are only slight regional variations inEnglish orthography, the two most notable variations being British and American spelling. Many ofthe differences betweenAmerican andBritish orCommonwealth English date back to a time beforespelling standards were developed. For instance, some spellings seen as "American" today were once commonly used in Britain, and some spellings seen as "British" were once commonly used in the United States.
A "British standard" began to emerge following the 1755 publication ofSamuel Johnson'sA Dictionary of the English Language, and an "American standard" started following the work ofNoah Webster and, in particular, hisAn American Dictionary of the English Language, first published in 1828.[1] Webster's efforts atspelling reform were effective in his native country, resulting in certain well-known patterns of spelling differences between the American and British varieties of English.
In the early 18th century,English spelling was inconsistent. These differences became noticeable after the publication of influentialdictionaries. Today'sBritish English spellings mostly follow Johnson'sA Dictionary of the English Language (1755), while manyAmerican English spellings follow Webster'sAn American Dictionary of the English Language ("ADEL", "Webster's Dictionary", 1828).[2]
Webster was a proponent ofEnglish spelling reform for reasons bothphilological and nationalistic. InA Companion to the American Revolution (2008), John Algeo notes: "it is often assumed that characteristically American spellings were invented by Noah Webster. He was very influential in popularizing certain spellings in the United States, but he did not originate them. Rather [...] he chose already existing options such ascenter, color andcheck for the simplicity, analogy or etymology".[3]William Shakespeare's firstfolios, for example, used spellings such ascenter andcolor as much ascentre andcolour.[4][5] Webster did attempt to introduce some reformed spellings, as did theSimplified Spelling Board in the early 20th century, but most were not adopted. In Britain, the influence of those who preferred theNorman (orAnglo-French) spellings of words proved to be decisive.[citation needed] Later spelling adjustments in the United Kingdom had little effect on today's American spellings and vice versa.
For the most part, the spelling systems of mostCommonwealth countries and Ireland closely resemble the British system. In Canada, the spelling system can be said to follow both British and American forms,[6] and Canadians are somewhat more tolerant of foreign spellings when compared with other English-speaking nationalities.[7]Australian English mostly follows British spelling norms but has strayed slightly, with some American spellings incorporated as standard.[8]New Zealand English is almost identical to British spelling, except in the wordfiord (instead offjord). There is an increasing use ofmacrons in words that originated inMāori and an unambiguous preference for-ise endings (see below).
Most words ending in an unstressed‑our in British English (e.g.,behaviour,colour,favour,flavour,harbour,honour,humour,labour,neighbour,rumour,splendour) end in‑or in American English (behavior,color,favor,flavor,harbor,honor,humor,labor,neighbor,rumor,splendor). Wherever the vowel isunreduced in pronunciation (e.g.,devour,contour,flour,hour,paramour,tour,troubadour, andvelour), the spelling is uniform everywhere.
Most words of this kind came from Latin, where the ending was spelled‑or. They were first adopted into English from earlyOld French, and the ending was spelled‑our,‑or or‑ur.[9] After theNorman Conquest, the ending became‑our to match the later Old French spelling.[10] The‑our ending was used not only in new English borrowings, but was also applied to the earlier borrowings that had used‑or.[9] However,‑or was still sometimes found.[11] The first three folios ofShakespeare's plays used both spellings before they were standardised to‑our in the Fourth Folio of 1685.[4]
After theRenaissance, new borrowings from Latin were taken up with their original‑or ending, and many words once ending in‑our (for example,chancellour andgovernour) reverted to‑or. A few words of the‑our/or group do not have a Latin counterpart that ends in‑or; for example,armo(u)r,behavio(u)r,harbo(u)r,neighbo(u)r; alsoarbo(u)r, meaning "shelter", though senses "tree" and "tool" are alwaysarbor, afalse cognate of the other word. The wordarbor would be more accurately spelledarber orarbre in the US and the UK, respectively, the latter of which is the French word for "tree". Some 16th- and early 17th-century British scholars indeed insisted that‑or be used for words from Latin (e.g.,color)[11] and‑our for French loans; however, in many cases, the etymology was not clear, and therefore some scholars advocated‑or only and others‑our only.[12]
Webster's 1828 dictionary had only-or and is given much of the credit for the adoption of this form in the United States. By contrast, Johnson's 1755 (pre-US independence and establishment) dictionary used-our for all words still so spelled in Britain (likecolour), but also for words where theu has since been dropped:ambassadour,emperour,errour,governour,horrour,inferiour,mirrour,perturbatour,superiour,tenour,terrour,tremour. Johnson, unlike Webster, was not an advocate of spelling reform, but chose the spelling best derived, as he saw it, from among the variations in his sources. He preferred French over Latin spellings because, as he put it, "the French generally supplied us".[13] English speakers who moved to the United States took these preferences with them. In the early 20th century,H. L. Mencken notes that "honor appears in the 1776Declaration of Independence, but it seems to have been put there rather by accident than by design". InJefferson's original draft it is spelled "honour".[14] In Britain, examples ofbehavior,color,flavor,harbor, andneighbor rarely appear inOld Bailey court records from the 17th and 18th centuries, whereas there are thousands of examples of their-our counterparts.[15] One notable exception ishonor.Honor andhonour were equally frequent in Britain until the 17th century;[16]honor only exists in the UK now as the spelling ofHonor Oak, a district of London, and of the occasional given nameHonor.
In derivatives andinflected forms of the-our/or words, British usage depends on the nature of thesuffix used. Theu is kept before English suffixes that are freely attachable to English words (for example inhumourless,neighbourhood, andsavoury) and suffixes of Greek or Latin origin that have been adopted into English (for example inbehaviourism,favourite, andhonourable). However, before Latin suffixes that are not freely attachable to English words, theu:
In American usage, derivatives and inflected forms are built by simply adding the suffix in all cases (for example,favorite,savory etc.) since theu is absent to begin with.
American usage, in most cases, keeps theu in the wordglamour, which comes fromScots, not Latin or French.Glamor is sometimes used in imitation of the spelling reform of other-our words to-or. Nevertheless, the adjectiveglamorous often drops the first "u".Saviour is a somewhat common variant ofsavior in the US. The British spelling is very common forhonour (andfavour) in the formal language ofwedding invitations in the US.[17] The name of theSpace ShuttleEndeavour has au in it because thespacecraft was named after BritishCaptain James Cook's ship,HMSEndeavour. The (former) special car onAmtrak'sCoast Starlight train is known as thePacific Parlour car, notPacific Parlor.Proper names such asPearl Harbor orSydney Harbour are usually spelled according to their native-variety spelling vocabulary.
The name of the herbsavory is spelled thus everywhere, although the related adjectivesavo(u)ry, likesavo(u)r, has au in the UK.Honor (the name) andarbor (the tool) have-or in Britain, as mentioned above, as does the wordpallor. As a general noun,rigour/ˈrɪɡər/ has au in the UK; the medical termrigor (sometimes/ˈraɪɡər/)[18] does not, such as inrigor mortis, which is Latin. Derivations ofrigour/rigor such asrigorous, however, are typically spelled without au, even in the UK. Words with the ending-irior,-erior or similar are spelled thus everywhere.Junior andsenior were borrowed directly from Latin in the 13th century (as adjectives for father-son namesakes), and have never had-our forms anywhere.
The wordarmour was once somewhat common in American usage but has disappeared except in some brand names such asUnder Armour.
The agent suffix-or (separator,elevator,translator,animator, etc.) is spelled thus both in American and British English.
Commonwealth countries normally follow British usage.Canadian English most commonly uses the-our ending and-our- in derivatives and inflected forms. However, owing to the close historic, economic, and cultural relationship with the United States,-or endings are also sometimes used. Throughout the late 19th and early to mid-20th century, most Canadian newspapers chose to use the American usage of-or endings, originally to save time and money in the era of manualmovable type.[19] However, in the 1990s, the majority of Canadian newspapers officially updated their spelling policies to the British usage of-our. This coincided with a renewed interest in Canadian English, and the release of the updatedGage Canadian Dictionary in 1997 and the firstCanadian Oxford Dictionary in 1998. Historically, most libraries and educational institutions in Canada have supported the use of theOxford English Dictionary rather than the AmericanWebster's Dictionary. Today, the use of a distinctive set of Canadian English spellings is viewed by many Canadians as one of the unique aspects of Canadian culture (especially when compared to the United States).[citation needed]
In Australia,-or endings enjoyed some use throughout the 19th century and in the early 20th century. Like Canada, though, most major Australian newspapers have switched from "-or" endings to "-our" endings. The "-our" spelling is taught in schools nationwide as part of the Australian curriculum. The most notable countrywide use of the-or ending is for one of the country's major political parties, theAustralian Labor Party, which was originally called "the Australian Labour Party" (name adopted in 1908), but was frequently referred to as both "Labour" and "Labor". The "Labor" spelling was adopted from 1912 onward due to the influence of theAmerican labor movement[20] andKing O'Malley. On top of that, some place names in South Australia such asVictor Harbor, Franklin Harbor or Outer Harbor are usually spelled with the -or spellings. Aside from that,-our is now almost universal in Australia but the-or endings remain a minority variant.New Zealand English, while sharing some words and syntax withAustralian English, follows British usage.
In British English, some words from French, Latin or Greek end with a consonant followed by an unstressed-re (pronounced/ə(r)/). In modern American English, most of these words have the ending-er.[21][22] The difference is most common for words ending in-bre or-tre: British spellingscalibre,centre,fibre,goitre,litre,lustre,manoeuvre,meagre,metre (length),mitre,nitre,ochre,reconnoitre,sabre,saltpetre,sepulchre,sombre,spectre,theatre (seeexceptions) andtitre all have-er in American spelling.
In Britain, both-re and-er spellings were common beforeJohnson's 1755 dictionary was published. Following this,-re became the most common usage in Britain. In the United States, following the publication ofWebster's Dictionary in the early 19th century, American English became more standardized, exclusively using the-er spelling.[5]
In addition, spelling of some words have been changed from-re to-er in both varieties. These includeamber,blister,cadaver,chamber,chapter,charter,cider,coffer,coriander,cover,cucumber,cylinder,December,diaper,disaster,enter,fever,filter,gender,leper,letter,lobster,master,member,meter (measuring instrument),minister,monster,murder,November,number,October,offer,order,oyster,powder,proper,render,semester,September,sequester,sinister,sober,surrender,tender,tiger, andwater. Words using the-meter suffix (from Ancient Greek -μέτρονmétron, via French-mètre) normally had the-re spelling from earliest use in English but were superseded by-er. Examples includethermometer andbarometer.
Thee preceding ther is kept in American-inflected forms of nouns and verbs, for example,fibers,reconnoitered,centering, which arefibres,reconnoitred, andcentring respectively in British English. According to theOED,centring is a"word ... of 3 syllables (in careful pronunciation)"[23] (i.e.,/ˈsɛntərɪŋ/), yet there is no vowel in the spelling corresponding to the second syllable (/ə/). The OED third edition (revised entry of June 2016) allows either two or three syllables. On theOxford Dictionaries Online website, the three-syllable version is listed only as the American pronunciation ofcentering. Thee is dropped for other derivations, for example,central,fibrous,spectral. However, the existence of related words withoute before ther is not proof for the existence of an-re British spelling: for example,entry andentrance come fromenter, which has not been spelledentre for centuries.[24]
The difference relates only to root words;-er rather than-re is universal as a suffix for agentive (reader,user,winner) and comparative (louder,nicer) forms. One outcome is the British distinction ofmeter for ameasuring instrument frommetre for the unit of length. However, while "poetic metre" is often spelled as-re,pentameter,hexameter, etc. are always-er.[25]
Many other words have-er in British English. These include Germanic words, such asanger,mother,timber andwater, and such Romance-derived words asdanger,quarter andriver.
The ending-cre, as inacre,[26]lucre,massacre, andmediocre, is used in both British and American English to show that thec is pronounced/k/ rather than/s/. The spellingseuchre andogre are also the same in both British and American English.
Theater is the prevailing American spelling used to refer to both the dramatic arts and buildings where stage performances and screenings of films take place (i.e., "movie theaters"); for example, a national newspaper such asThe New York Times would usetheater in its entertainment section. However, the spellingtheatre appears in the names of many New York City theatres on Broadway[27] (cf. Broadway theatre) and elsewhere in the United States. In 2003, the American National Theatre was referred to byThe New York Times as the "American NationalTheater", but the organization uses "re" in the spelling of its name.[28][29] TheJohn F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. has the more common American spellingtheater in its references to the Eisenhower Theater, part of the Kennedy Center.[30] Some cinemas outside New York also use thetheatre spelling.[31] (The word "theater" in American English is a place where both stage performances and screenings of films take place, but in British English a "theatre" is where stage performances take place but not film screenings – these take place in a cinema,[citation needed] or "picture theatre" in Australia.)[32]
In the United States, the spellingtheatre is sometimes used when referring to the art form of theatre, while the building itself, as noted above, generally is spelledtheater. For example, theUniversity of Wisconsin–Madison has a "Department ofTheatre and Drama", which offers courses that lead to the "Bachelor of Arts inTheatre", and whose professed aim is "to prepare our graduate students for successful 21st Century careers in thetheatre both as practitioners and scholars".[33]
Some placenames in the United States useCentre in their names. Examples include the villages ofNewton Centre andRockville Centre, the city ofCentreville,Centre County andCentre College. Sometimes, these places were named before spelling changes but more often the spelling serves as an affectation.Proper names are usually spelled according to their native-variety spelling vocabulary; so, for instance, althoughPeter is the usual form of the male given name, as a surname both the spellingsPeter andPetre (the latter notably borne by a Britishlord) are found.
For Britishaccoutre, the American practice varies: theMerriam-Webster Dictionary prefers the-re spelling,[34] butThe American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language prefers the-er spelling.[35]
More recent French loanwords keep the-re spelling in American English. These are not exceptions when a French-style pronunciation is used (/rə/ rather than/ə(r)/), as withdouble entendre,genre andoeuvre. The unstressed/ə(r)/ pronunciation of an-er ending is used either as the most common variant or an alternative pronunciation with some words, includingcadre,macabre,maître d',Notre Dame,piastre, andtimbre.
The-re endings are mostly standard throughout the Commonwealth. The-er spellings are recognized as minor variants in Canada, partly due to United States influence. They are sometimes used in proper names (such as Toronto's controversially namedCenterpoint Mall).[12]
Foradvice/advise anddevice/devise, American English and British English both keep the noun–verb distinction both graphically and phonetically (where the pronunciation is -/s/ for the noun and -/z/ for the verb). Forlicence/license orpractice/practise, British English also keeps the noun–verb distinction graphically (although phonetically the two words in each pair arehomophones with -/s/ pronunciation). On the other hand, American English useslicense andpractice for both nouns and verbs (with -/s/ pronunciation in both cases too).
American English has kept the Anglo-French spelling fordefense andoffense, which aredefence andoffence in British English. Likewise, there are the Americanpretense and Britishpretence; but derivatives such asdefensive,offensive, andpretension are always thus spelled in both systems.
Australian[36] and Canadian usages generally follow British usage.
The spellingconnexion is now rare in everyday British usage, its use lessening as knowledge of Latin attenuates,[12] and it has almost never been used in the US: the more commonconnection has become the standard worldwide. According to theOxford English Dictionary, the older spelling is more etymologically conservative, since the original Latin word had-xio-. The American usage comes fromWebster, who abandoned-xion and preferred-ction.[37]Connexion was still the house style ofThe Times of London until the 1980s and was still used byPost Office Telecommunications for its telephone services in the 1970s, but had by then been overtaken byconnection in regular usage (for example, in more popular newspapers).Connexion (and its derivativesconnexional andconnexionalism) is still in use by theMethodist Church of Great Britain to refer to the whole church as opposed to its constituent districts, circuits and local churches, whereas the US-basedUnited Methodist Church usesConnection.
Complexion (which comes fromcomplex) is standard worldwide andcomplection is an uncommon variant.[38][39] However, the adjectivecomplected (as in "dark-complected"), although sometimes proscribed, is on equal ground in the US withcomplexioned.[40] It is not used in this way in the UK, although there exists a rare alternative meaning ofcomplicated.[41]
Many words, especially medical words, that are written withae/æ oroe/œ in British English are written with just ane in American English. The sounds in question are/iː/ or/ɛ/ (or, unstressed,/i/,/ɪ/ or/ə/). Examples (with non-American letter inbold):aeon,anaemia,anaesthesia,caecum,caesium,coeliac,diarrhoea,encyclopaedia,faeces,foetal,gynaecology,haemoglobin,haemophilia,leukaemia,oesophagus,oestrogen,orthopaedic,[note 1]palaeontology,paediatric,paedophile.Oenology is acceptable in American English but is deemed a minor variant ofenology, whereas althougharcheology andameba exist in American English, the British versionsamoeba andarchaeology are more common. The chemicalhaem (named as a shortening ofhaemoglobin) is spelledheme in American English, to avoid confusion withhem.
Canadian English mostly follows American English in this respect, although it is split ongynecology (e.g.Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada vs. theCanadian Medical Association's Canadian specialty profile ofObstetrics/gynecology).Pediatrician is preferred roughly 10 to 1 overpaediatrician, whilefoetal andoestrogen are similarly uncommon.
Words that can be spelled either way in American English includeaesthetics andarchaeology (which usually prevail overesthetics andarcheology),[12] as well aspalaestra.
Words that can be spelled either way in British English includechamaeleon,encyclopaedia,homoeopathy,mediaeval (a minor variant in both AmE and BrE[42][43][44]),foetid andfoetus. The spellingsfoetus andfoetal are Britishisms based on a mistaken etymology.[45] The etymologically correct original spellingfetus reflects the Latin original and is the standard spelling in medical journals worldwide;[46] the Oxford English Dictionary notes that "In Latin manuscripts bothfētus andfoetus are used".[47]
TheAncient Greekdiphthongs <αι> and <οι> weretransliterated into Latin as <ae> and <oe>. Theligaturesæ andœ were introduced when the sounds becamemonophthongs, and were later applied to words not of Greek origin in both Latin (for example,cœli)) and French (for example,œuvre). In English, which has adopted words from all three languages, it is now usual to replaceÆ/æ withAe/ae andŒ/œ withOe/oe. In many words, the digraph has been reduced to a lonee in all varieties of English: for example,oeconomics,praemium, andaenigma.[48] In other cases, the digraph is retained across all varieties. Despitephoenix andsubpoena being the standard spellings in American English, the uncommon variantsphenix andsubpena are occasionally used,[49] withPhenix inVirginia illustrating the variant spelling. The retention of the digraph is especially common in names:Aegean (the sea),Caesar,Oedipus,Phoebe, etc., although "caesarean section" may be spelled as "cesarean section". There is no reduction ofLatin -ae plurals (e.g.,larvae); nor where the digraph <ae>/<oe> does not result from the Greek-style ligature as, for example, inmaelstrom ortoe; the same is true for the British formaeroplane (compare otheraero- words such asaerosol). The now chiefly North Americanairplane is not a respelling but a recoining, modelled afterairship andaircraft. The wordairplane dates from 1907,[50] at which time the prefixaero- was trisyllabic, often writtenaëro-.
In Canada,e is generally preferred overoe and often overae,[citation needed] butoe andae are sometimes found in academic and scientific writing as well as government publications (for example, the fee schedule of theOntario Health Insurance Plan) and some words such aspalaeontology oraeon. In Australia, it can go either way, depending on the word: for instance,medieval is spelled with thee rather thanae, following the American usage along with numerous other words such aseon orfetus,[51] while other words such asoestrogen orpaediatrician are spelled the British way. TheMacquarie Dictionary also notes a growing tendency towards replacingae andoe withe worldwide and with the exception of manoeuvre, all British or American spellings are acceptable variants.[8] Elsewhere, the British usage prevails, but the spellings with juste are increasingly used.[12]Manoeuvre is the only spelling in Australia, and the most common one in Canada, wheremaneuver andmanoeuver are also sometimes found.[12]
One interesting exception is that while British and American English both use the spelling"palaeolithic", the Canadian English standard spelling is"paleolithic", which is one of the very few instances where the Canadian spelling of a word differs from both the British and American spellings of that word.[52][53]
The-ize spelling is often incorrectly seen in Britain as an Americanism. It has been in use since the 15th century, predating the-ise spelling by over a century.[54] The verb-forming suffix-ize comes directly from Ancient Greek-ίζειν (-ízein) or Late Latin-izāre, while-ise comes via French-iser.[55][56] TheOxford English Dictionary (OED) recommends-ize and lists the-ise form as an alternative.[56]
Publications byOxford University Press (OUP)—such asHenry Watson Fowler'sA Dictionary of Modern English Usage,Hart's Rules,[57] andThe Oxford Guide to English Usage[58]—also recommend-ize. However, Robert Allan'sPocket Fowler's Modern English Usage considers either spelling to be acceptable anywhere but the US.[59]
American spelling avoids-ise endings in words likeorganize,realize andrecognize.[60]
British spelling mostly uses-ise (organise,realise,recognise), though-ize is sometimes used.[60] The ratio between-ise and-ize stood at 3:2 in theBritish National Corpus up to 2002.[61] The spelling-ise is more commonly used in UK mass media and newspapers,[60] includingThe Times (which switched conventions in 1992),[62]The Daily Telegraph,The Economist and theBBC. TheGovernment of the United Kingdom additionally uses-ise, stating "do not use Americanisms" justifying that the spelling "is often seen as such".[63] The-ize form is known asOxford spelling and is used in publications of the Oxford University Press, most notably theOxford English Dictionary, and of other academic publishers[64] such asNature, theBiochemical Journal andThe Times Literary Supplement. It can be identified using theIETF language tagen-GB-oxendict (or, historically, byen-GB-oed).[65]
In Ireland, India, Australia, and New Zealand[66]-ise spellings strongly prevail: the-ise form is preferred in Australian English at a ratio of about 3:1 according to theMacquarie Dictionary.
In Canada, the-ize ending is more common, although theOntario Public School Spelling Book[67] spelled most words in the-ize form, but allowed for duality with a page insert as late as the 1970s, noting that, although the-ize spelling was in fact the convention used in theOED, the choice to spell such words in the-ise form wasa matter of personal preference; however, apupil having made the decision, one way or the other, thereafter ought to write uniformly not only for a given word, but to apply that same uniformity consistently for all words where the option is found. Just as with-yze spellings, however, in Canada theize form remains the preferred or more common spelling, though both can still be found, yet the-ise variation, once more common amongst older Canadians, is employed less and less often in favour of the-ize spelling. (The alternate convention offered as a matter of choice may have been due to the fact that although there were an increasing number of American- and British-based dictionaries with Canadian Editions by the late 1970s, these were largely only supplemental in terms of vocabulary with subsequent definitions. It was not until the mid-1990s[68][69] that Canadian-based dictionaries became increasingly common.)
Worldwide,-ize endings prevail in scientific writing and are commonly used by many international organizations, such asUnited Nations Organizations (such as theWorld Health Organization and theInternational Civil Aviation Organization) and theInternational Organization for Standardization (but not by theOrganisation for Economic Co-operation and Development). TheEuropean Union's style guides require the usage of -ise.[70] Proofreaders at the EU's Publications Office ensure consistent spelling in official publications such as theOfficial Journal of the European Union (where legislation and other official documents are published), but the-ize spelling may be found in other documents.
The same applies toinflections and derivations such ascolonised/colonized andmodernisation/modernization.
The ending-yse is British and-yze is American. Thus, in British Englishanalyse,catalyse,hydrolyse andparalyse, but in American Englishanalyze,catalyze,hydrolyze andparalyze.
Analyse was the more common spelling in 17th- and 18th-century English. Some dictionaries of the time, however, preferredanalyze, such asJohn Kersey's of 1702,Nathan Bailey's of 1721 andSamuel Johnson's of 1755. In Canada,-yze is preferred, but-yse is also very common. In South Africa, Australia and New Zealand,-yse is the prevailing form.
English verbs ending in either-lyse or-lyze are derived from the Greek nounλύσιςlysis ("release"), with the-ise or-ize suffix added to it, and not the original verb form, whose stem isλυ- ly- without the-s/z- segment. For example,analyse comes from Frenchanalyser, formed byhaplology from the Frenchanalysiser,[74] which would be spelledanalysise oranalysize in English.
Hart's Rules for Compositors and Readers at the University Press, Oxford states: "In verbs such as analyse, catalyse, paralyse,-lys- is part of the Greek stem (corresponding to the element-lusis) and not a suffix like-ize. The spelling-yze is therefore etymologically incorrect, and must not be used, unless American printing style is being followed."[57]
British and other Commonwealth English use the ending-logue while American English commonly uses the ending-log for words likeanalog(ue),catalog(ue),homolog(ue), etc., etymologically derived from Greek-λόγος-logos ("one who speaks (in a certain manner)"). The-gue spelling, as incatalogue, is used in the US, butcatalog is more common. In contrast,dialogue,epilogue,prologue, andmonologue are extremely common spellings compared todialog etc. in American English, although both forms are treated as acceptable ways to spell the words[75] (thus, the inflected forms,cataloged andcataloging vs.catalogued andcataloguing).
In American English,analog is the standard spelling for the adjective (e.g.,analog signal), whileanalogue is often preferred for the noun (e.g.,meat analogue). According toMerriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary,analog is listed as the primary adjective form, whileanalogue is the principal noun form.[76]
In Australia,analog is standard for the adjective,[citation needed] but bothanalogue andanalog are current for the noun; in all other cases the-gue endings strongly prevail,[12] for examplemonologue, except for such expressions asdialog box in computing,[77] which are also used in other Commonwealth countries. In Australia,analog is used in its technical and electronic sense, as inanalog electronics.[8] In Canada and New Zealand,analogue is used, butanalog has some currency as a technical term[12] (e.g., in electronics, as in "analog electronics" as opposed to "digital electronics" and some video-game consoles might have ananalog stick). The-ue is absent worldwide in related words likeanalogy,analogous, andanalogist.
Words such asdemagogue,pedagogue, andsynagogue, from the Greek nounἀγωγόςagōgos ("guide"), are more commonly spelled with‑ue in American English, though the shorter formsdemagog[78],pedagog[79], andsynagog[80] also exist and are accepted variants.
Both British and American English use the spelling-gue with a silent-ue for certain words that are not part of the-ogue set, such astongue,plague,vague, andleague. In addition, when the-ue is not silent, as in the wordsargue,ague andsegue, all varieties of English use-gue.
The plural of the nounbus is usuallybuses, withbusses a minor American variant.[81] Conversely, inflections of the verbbus usually double thes in British usage (busses, bussed, bussing) but not American usage (buses, bused, busing).[81] In Australia, both are common, with the American usage slightly more common.[82]
The final consonant of an English word is sometimes doubled in both American and British spelling when adding a suffix beginning with a vowel, for examplestrip/stripped, which prevents confusion withstripe/striped and shows the difference in pronunciation (seedigraph). Generally, this happens only when the word's final syllable is stressed and when it also ends with a lone vowel followed by a lone consonant. In British English, however, a final-l is often doubled even when the final syllable is unstressed.[12] This exception is no longer usual in American English, seemingly because ofNoah Webster.[83] The-ll- spellings are nevertheless still deemed acceptable variants by both Merriam-Webster Collegiate and American Heritage dictionaries.
Among consonants other thanl, practice varies for some words, such as where the final syllable hassecondary stress or an unreduced vowel. In the United States, the spellingskidnaped andworshiped, which were introduced by theChicago Tribune in the 1920s,[85] are common, butkidnapped andworshipped prevail.[86][87]Kidnapped andworshipped are the only standard British spellings. However,focused is the predominant spelling in both British and American English,focussed being just a minor variant in British English.[88]
Miscellaneous:
Conversely, there are words where British writers prefer a singlel and Americans a doublel. In American usage, the spelling of words is usually not changed when they form the main part (not prefix or suffix) of other words, especially in newly formed words and in words whose main part is in common use. Words with this spelling difference includeappall,enrollment,fulfillment,installment,skillful,thralldom,willful. These words have monosyllabic cognates always written with-ll:pall (verb),roll,fill,stall,skill,thrall,will. Cases where a singlel nevertheless occurs in both American and British English includenull→annul,annulment;till→until (although some prefertil to reflect the singlel inuntil, sometimes using a leading apostrophe ('til); this should be considered ahypercorrection astill predates the use ofuntil); and others where the connection is not clear or the monosyllabic cognate is not in common use in American English (e.g.,null is used mainly as a technical term in law, mathematics, and computer science).
In the UK, a singlel is generally preferred over American formsdistill,enroll,enthrall, andinstill, althoughll was formerly used;[91] these are always spelled withll in American usage. The former British spellingsdulness,fulness, andinstal are now quite rare.[12] The Scottishtolbooth is cognate withtollbooth, but it has a distinct meaning.
In both American and British usages, words normally spelled-ll usually drop the secondl when used as prefixes or suffixes, for exampleall→almighty,altogether;full→handful,useful;well→welcome,welfare;chill→chilblain.
Both the Britishfulfil and the Americanfulfill never use-ll- in the middle (i.e., *fullfill and *fullfil are incorrect).[92][93]
Johnson wavered on this issue. His dictionary of 1755lemmatizesdistil andinstill,downhil anduphill.[12]
British English sometimes keeps a silent "e" when adding suffixes where American English does not. Generally speaking, British English drops it in only some cases in which it is needed to show pronunciation whereas American English only uses it where needed.
Both forms of English keep the silent "e" in the wordsdyeing,singeing, andswingeing[95] (in the sense ofdye,singe, andswinge), to distinguish them fromdying,singing,swinging (in the sense ofdie,sing, andswing). In contrast, the verbbathe and the British verbbath both formbathing. Both forms of English vary fortinge andtwinge; both prefercringing,hinging,lunging,syringing.
| Meaning | Example | British | American | Notes | Etymology | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| dependant ordependent | adjective | A is dependent on B | dependent | dependent | dependant is also an acceptable variant for the noun form in the US.[98] | |
| noun | A is a dependant | dependant | ||||
| disc ordisk | optical discs | (computing) disc In computing, disc is used for optical discs (e.g., a CD, Compact Disc; DVD, Digital Versatile/Video Disc; MCADiscoVision,LaserDisc), by choice of the group that coined and trademarked the name Compact Disc.[99] | Traditionally, disc used to be British and disk American. | Both spellings are etymologically sound (Greekdiskos, Latindiscus), althoughdisk is the earlier form. | ||
| other disks | disk In computing, disk is used for products using magnetic storage (e.g.,hard disks orfloppy disks, also known as diskettes).[99] | |||||
| inquiry or enquiry[12] | formal inquest | a formal inquiry | inquiry | inquiry (except for theNational Enquirer) | Historicallyinquiry andenquiry were equal alternatives. A strict distinction is made by Fowler, and is maintained by many (though not all) British writers.[citation needed] Interchangeable in Australian English[100] | |
| act of questioning | to make enquiries | inquiry or enquiry[101] | ||||
| ensure orinsure[102] | to make sure, to make certain | to ensure the gates are shut | ensure | The Commonwealth distinction is only about a century old.[12] | ||
| to make certain especially by taking necessary measures and precautions | to ensure the prisoner doesn't escape | ensure | insure | |||
| to provide or obtain insurance on or for | to insure a car | insure | ||||
| to guarantee or protect against | to insure against danger | insure | ||||
| matt ormatte[12] | a non-glossy surface | a matt table | matt | matte | ||
| themotion-picture technique | a matte shot | matte | ||||
| programme orprogram | a leaflet listing information about a live event | a concert programme | programme (first appeared in England in 1671) | program (first appeared in Scotland in 1633, shared with Canadian English, though occasionally wholly replaced with -mme there[12]) | New Zealand also follows the British pattern. Australia has followed the American pattern since the 1960s,[12] and is listed as the official spelling in theMacquarie Dictionary;[8] see also the name ofThe Micallef P(r)ogram(me). | The Britishprogramme is from post-classical Latinprogramma and Frenchprogramme. TheOED entry, updated in 2007, says thatprogram conforms to the usual representation of Greek as inanagram,diagram,telegram etc. |
| a computer program | program (occasionally programme) | |||||
| tonne orton | SI unit (1,000 kilograms) | a metrictonne | tonne | ton | Canada uses either nomenclature.[103] | |
| long ton (2,240 pounds or 1,016 kilograms) | ton | N/A | The tonne and long ton differ by only 1.6%, and are roughly interchangeable when accuracy is not critical | |||
| short ton (2,000 pounds or 907 kilograms) | N/A | ton | ||||
| metre ormeter[104] | unit of length | a metre long | metre | meter | also the international spelling for the unit according to the SI brochure by theBIPM | |
| measuring device | a water meter | meter | ||||
In a few cases,essentially the same word has a different spelling that reflects a different pronunciation.
As well as the miscellaneous cases listed in the following table, the past tenses of some irregular verbs differ in both spelling and pronunciation, as withsmelt (UK) versussmelled (US) (seeAmerican and British English grammatical differences: Verb morphology).
| UK | US | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| aeroplane/ˈɛə.ɹə.pleɪn/ | airplane/ˈɛɚˌpleɪn/ | Aeroplane, originally a French loanword with a different meaning, is the older spelling.[105] The oldest recorded uses of the spellingairplane are British.[105] According to theOED,[106] "[a]irplane became the standard American term (replacingaeroplane) after this was adopted by theNational Advisory Committee for Aeronautics in 1916. AlthoughA. Lloyd James recommended its adoption by the BBC in 1928, it has until recently been no more than an occasional form in British English." In the British National Corpus,[107]aeroplane outnumbersairplane by more than 7:1 in the UK. The case is similar for the Britishaerodrome[108] and Americanairdrome;[109]Aerodrome is used merely as a technical term in Australia, Canada and New Zealand. The prefixesaero- andair- both meanair, with the first coming from the Ancient Greek wordἀήρ (āēr). Thus, the prefix appears inaeronautics,aerostatics,aerodynamics,aeronautical engineering and so on, while the second occurs invariably inaircraft,airport,airliner,airmail etc. In Canada,airplane is more common thanaeroplane, althoughaeroplane is used as part of the regulatory term "ultra-light aeroplane".[110] |
| aluminium/ˌæl.(j)ʊˈmɪn.jəm/ | aluminum/əˈlu.mɪ.nəm/ | The spellingaluminium is the international standard in the sciences according to theIUPAC recommendations.Humphry Davy, the element's discoverer, first proposed the namealumium, and then lateraluminum. The namealuminium was finally adopted to conform with the-ium ending of some metallic elements.[111] Canada usesaluminum and Australia and New Zealandaluminium, according to their respective dictionaries[12] although the Canadian trade association is called the 'Aluminium Association of Canada'[112] |
| ampoule/ˈæm.p(j)uːl/ | ampoule,ampule,ampul/ˈæm.puːl/ | The-poule spelling and/-puːl/ pronunciation, which reflect the word's French origin, are common in both the US and the UK,[113] with-pule and/-pjuːl/ being rare variants in Britain.[114] |
| arse/ɑːs/ | ass/æs/ | In vulgar senses "buttocks" ("anus"/"wretch"/"idiot"); unrelated sense "donkey" isass in both.Arse is very rarely used in the US, though often understood, whereas both are used in British English (with arse being considered vulgar).Arse is also used inNewfoundland. |
| behove/bɪˈhəʊv/ | behoove/bɪˈhuːv/ | The 19th century had the spellingbehove pronounced to rhyme withmove.[115] Subsequently, apronunciation spelling with doubledoo was adopted in the US, while in Britain aspelling pronunciation rhyming withrove was adopted. |
| bogeyman/ˈboʊɡimæn/ | boogeyman/ˈbʊɡimæn/,boogerman/ˈbʊɡərmæn/ | The American form,boogeyman, is reminiscent of musical "boogie" to the British ear. Boogerman is common in theSouthern US and suggests the slang termbooger fornasal mucus while the mainstream American spelling of boogeyman does not, but aligns more closely with the British meaning where a bogey is also nasal mucus. |
| brent/bɹɛnt/ | brant/bɹænt/ | Forthe species of goose. |
| carburettor,carburetter | carburetor/ˈkɑːrbəreɪtər/ | The wordcarburetor comes from the Frenchcarbure meaning "carbide".[116][117] |
| charivari/ʃɑːɹɪˈvɑːɹi/ | shivaree,charivari /ʃɪvəˈɹiː/ | In the US, both terms are mainly regional.[118] The pronunciation of/ʃɪvəˈɹiː/is also found in Canada andCornwall,[119] and is a corruption of the French word. |
| closure/ˈkləʊ.ʒə/ | cloture/ˈkloʊ.t͡ʃɝ/ | Motion in legislative or parliamentary procedure that quickly ends debate. Borrowed from the Frenchclôture meaning "closure";cloture remains the name used in the US. The American spelling was initially used when it was adopted into the UK in 1882 but was later changed toclosure.[120][121] |
| eyrie/ˈɪə.ɹi/ | aerie,eyrie /ˈaɪ.ɹi/,/ˈɪə.ɹi/ | Not to be confused with the adjectiveeerie. Rhymes withweary andhairy respectively. |
| fillet/ˈfɪl.ɪt/ | fillet,filet/fɪˈleɪ/ | Pronounced the French way (approximately) in the US; Canada follows British pronunciation and distinguishes between fillet, especially as concerns fish, and filet, as concerns certain cuts of beef.McDonald's in the UK and Australia use the US spelling "filet" for theirFilet-O-Fish. |
| fount/faʊnt/,font/fɒnt/ | font/fɒnt/ | Fount was the standard British spelling for a metal typefont (especially in the sense of one consignment ofmetal type in one style and size, e.g. "the printing company had a fount of that typeface"); lasted until the end of the metal type era and occasionally still seen.[122] From Frenchfondre, "to cast". |
| furore/fjʊəˈɹɔːɹi/ | furor/ˈfjʊəɹɚ/ | Furore is a late 18th-century Italian loanword that replaced the Latinate form in the UK in the following century,[123] and is usually pronounced with a voiced finale. The Canadian usage is the same as the American, and Australia has both.[12] |
| grotty/ˈgrɒti/ | grody, groady/ˈɡɹoʊdi/ | Clippings ofgrotesque; both are slang terms from the 1960s.[124] |
| haulier/ˈhɔːliə(ɹ)/ | hauler/ˈhɑlɚ/ | Haulage contractor;haulier is the older spelling.[12] |
| jemmy/ˈd͡ʒɛmi/ | jimmy/ˈd͡ʒɪmi/ | In the sense "crowbar". |
| moustache/məˈstɑːʃ/ | mustache,moustache/ˈmʌstæʃ/,/məˈstæʃ/ | In the US, according to theMerriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary andThe American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, the British spelling is an accepted variant, yet the pronunciation with second-syllable stress is a common variant. In Britain the second syllable is usually stressed. |
| mum(my)/mʌm/ | mom(my)/mɒm/ | Mom is sporadically regionally found in the UK (e.g., inWest Midlands English). Some British and Irish dialects havemam,[125] and this is often used in Northern English,Hiberno-English, andWelsh English.Scottish English may also usemam,ma, ormaw. In the American region of New England, especially in the case of theBoston accent, the British pronunciation ofmum is often retained, while it is still spelledmom. In Canada, there are bothmom andmum; Canadians often saymum and writemom.[126] In Australia and New Zealand,mum is used. In the sense of a preserved corpse,mummy is always used. |
| naivety,naïveté/nɑːˈiːv(ə)ti/ | naïveté/nɑːˈiːv(ə)teɪ/ | The American spelling is from French, and American speakers generally approximate the French pronunciation, whereas the British spelling conforms to English norms.[127][128] In the UK,naïveté is a minor variant, used about 20% of the time in the British National Corpus; in the US,naivete andnaiveté are marginal variants, andnaivety is almost unattested.[12][129] |
| neurone/ˈn(j)ʊɹəʊn/ | neuron/ˈn(j)ʊɹɑn/ | Canada and Australia generally use the American "neuron" according to their relevant dictionaries. |
| orientated | oriented | In the UK, Australia and New Zealand, it is common to useorientated (as in family-orientated), whereas in the US,oriented is used exclusively (family-oriented). The same applies to the negative (disorientated,disoriented). Both words have the same origins, coming from "orient" or its offshoot "orientation".[130] |
| pernickety/pəˈnɪk.ɪ.ti/ | persnickety/pɚˈsnɪ.kɪ.ti/ | Persnickety is a late 19th-century American alteration of the Scots wordpernickety.[131] |
| plonk/plɒŋk/ | plunk/plʌŋk/ | As verb meaning "sit/set down carelessly".[132] |
| potter/ˈpɒtə/ | putter/ˈpʌtɚ/ | As verb meaning "perform minor agreeable tasks".[133] |
| pyjamas/pɪˈd͡ʒɑːməz/ | pajamas {/pəˈd͡ʒæ.məz/ | The 'y' represents the pronunciation of the originalUrdu "pāy-jāma", and in the 18th century spellings such as "paijamahs" and "peijammahs" appeared: this is reflected in the pronunciation/paɪˈdʒɑːməz/ (with the first syllable rhyming with "pie") offered as an alternative in the first edition of theOxford English Dictionary. Two spellings are also known from the 18th century, but 'pajama' became more or less confined to the US.[134] Canada follows both British and American usage, with both forms commonplace. |
| quin/kwɪn/ | quint/kwɪnt/ | Abbreviations ofquintuplet. |
| scallywag/ˈskælɪwæɡ/ | scalawag/ˈskæləwæɡ/,scallywag | In the United States (where the word originated, asscalawag),[12]scallywag is not unknown.[135] |
| sledge/slɛd͡ʒ/ | sled/slɛd/ | In American usage asled is smaller and lighter than asledge and is used only over ice or snow, especially for play by young people, whereas asledge is used for hauling loads over ice, snow, grass, or rough terrain.[136] Australia follows American usage.[137] |
| speciality/ˌspɛʃiˈælɪti/ | specialty/ˈspɛʃəlti/ | In British English the standard usage isspeciality, butspecialty occurs in the field of medicine[138] and also as a legal term for a contract under seal. In Canada,specialty prevails. In Australia and New Zealand, both are current.[12] |
| titbit/ˈtɪt.bɪt/ | tidbit/ˈtɪd.bɪt/ | According to theOxford English Dictionary, the oldest form was "tyd bit", and the alteration to "titbit" was probably under the influence of the obsolete word "tit", meaning a small horse or girl. |
In the UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and Canada, it is more common to end some past tense verbs with a "t" as inlearnt ordreamt rather thanlearned ordreamed,[139] though such spellings are also found in American English. However, in American English,burned andburnt have different usages.
Several verbs have different past tenses or past participles in American and British English:
In the table below, the main spellings are above the accepted alternative spellings.
| United Kingdom (UK) | United States (US) | Remarks |
|---|---|---|
| adze | adze,adz[141] | In British English,adze is the standard spelling. In American English,adz is an accepted variant, thoughadze is also widely used. TheU.S. Government Publishing Office Style Manual prefers the spellingadz.[142] |
| annexe | annex | Toannex is the verb in both British and American usage. However, the noun—an annex(e) of a building—is spelled with an-e at the end in the UK, but not in the US. Australia follows US usage.[51] |
| apophthegm[143] | apothegm[144] | Johnson favouredapophthegm (theph is silent) which matchesAncient Greek:ἁπόφθεγμα,romanized: apophthegma.[145] Webster favouredapothegm, which matchesLatin:apothegma, and was also more common in England until Johnson.[145] There is an unrelated word spelledapothem in all regions.[145] |
| artefact,artifact | artifact | In British English,artefact is the main spelling andartifact a minor variant.[146] In American English,artifact is the usual spelling. Canadians preferartifact and Australiansartefact, according to their respective dictionaries.[12]Artefact reflectsArte-fact(um), the Latin source.[147] |
| axe | axe,ax | Both the noun and verb. The word comes fromOld Englishæx. In the US, both spellings are acceptable, though the spelling "axe" is more common. TheOxford English Dictionary states that "the spellingax is better on every ground, of etymology, phonology, and analogy, thanaxe, which became prevalent in the 19th century; but it ["ax"] is now disused in Britain".[148] |
| camomile,chamomile | chamomile | The word derives, via French and Latin, from Greekχαμαίμηλον ("earth apple"). The more common British spelling "camomile", corresponding to the immediate French source, is the older in English, while the spelling "chamomile" more accurately corresponds to the ultimate Latin and Greek source.[149] In the UK, according to theOED, "the spellingcha- is chiefly in pharmacy, after Latin; that withca- is literary and popular". In the US,chamomile dominates in all senses. |
| carat | karat, carat | The spelling with a "k" is used in the US only for the measure of purity of gold. The "c" spelling is universal for weight.[147] |
| cheque | check | Used in banking, hence the termspay cheque andpaycheck. Accordingly, the North American term for what is known as acurrent account orcheque account in the UK is spelledchequing account in Canada andchecking account in the US. Some American financial institutions, notablyAmerican Express, usecheque, but this is merely a trademarking affectation. |
| chequer | checker | As inchequerboard/checkerboard,chequered/checkered flag etc.Checker is the more common spelling in Canada and Australia.[12] |
| chilli | chili,chile | The originalMexican Spanish word ischile, itself derived from theClassical Nahuatlchilli.[12][150] InMerriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary,chile andchilli are given asalso variants. |
| chlorophyll | chlorophyll,chlorophyl[151][152] | |
| cigarette | cigarette,cigaret[153] | Cigaret was common in American usage during the early to mid 20th century and remains an accepted variant inMerriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary. |
| cipher,cypher | cipher | |
| cosy | cozy | In all senses (adjective, noun, verb). |
| coulter | colter, coulter | |
| doughnut | doughnut,donut | In the US, both are used, withdonut indicated as a less common variant ofdoughnut.[154] |
| draught, draft | draft | British English usually usesdraft for all senses as the verb;[155] for a preliminary version of a document; for an order of payment (bank draft), and formilitary conscription (although this last meaning is not as common as in American English). It usesdraught for drink from a cask (draught beer); for animals used for pulling heavy loads (draught horse); for a current of air; fora ship's minimum depth of water to float;[156] and for the gamedraughts, known ascheckers in the US. It uses eitherdraught ordraft for a plan or sketch (but almost alwaysdraughtsman in this sense; adraftsman drafts legal documents). American English usesdraft in all these cases. Canada uses both systems; in Australia,draft is used for technical drawings, is accepted for the "current of air" meaning, and is preferred by professionals in the nautical sense.[12] The pronunciation is always the same for all meanings within a dialect (RP/drɑːft/, General American/dræft/). The spellingdraught reflects the older pronunciation,/drɑːxt/.Draft emerged in the 16th century to reflect the change in pronunciation.[157][158] |
| dyke | dike | The spelling with "i" is sometimes found in the UK, but the "y" spelling is rare in the US, where they distinguishesdike in this sense fromdyke, aslur term for a lesbian. |
| gauge | gauge,gage[159] | Both spellings have existed since Middle English.[160] |
| gauntlet | gauntlet,gantlet | When meaning "ordeal", in the phraserunning the ga(u)ntlet, Americanstyle guides prefergantlet.[161] This spelling is unused in Britain[162] and less usual in the US thangauntlet. The word is an alteration of earliergantlope byfolk etymology withgauntlet ("armoured glove"), which may be spelled eithergauntlet organtlet.[163] |
| glycerine | glycerin | Scientists use the termglycerol. |
| grey | gray | Grey became the established British spelling in the 20th century,[12] but it is a minor variant in American English, according to dictionaries. Canadians tend to prefergrey[why?]. The two spellings are of equal antiquity, and the Oxford English Dictionary states that "each of the current spellings has some analogical support".[164] BothGrey andGray are found in proper nouns everywhere in the English-speaking world. The name of the dog breedgreyhound is never spelledgrayhound; the word descends fromgrighund. |
| grill,grille | grill, grille | In the US, "grille" refers to that of anautomobile, whereas "grill" refers to a device used for heating food. However, it is not uncommon to see both spellings used in the automotive sense,[165] as well as in Australia[166] and New Zealand.[167]Grill is more common overall in both BrE and AmE.[168] |
| hearken | hearken,harken[169] | The word comes fromhark. The spellinghearken was probably influenced byhear.[170] |
| idyll | idyl | Idyl is the spelling of the word preferred in the US by the Merriam-Webster dictionary, for the same reason as the double consonant rule;idyll, the original form from Greekeidullion, is also used. |
| jail,gaol | jail | In the UK,gaol andgaoler are used sometimes, apart from literary usage, chiefly to describe a medieval building and guard. Both spellings go back to Middle English:gaol was a loanword from Norman French, whilejail was a loanword from central (Parisian) French. In Middle English the two spellings were associated with different pronunciations. In current English, the word, however spelled, is always given the pronunciation originally associated only with thejail spelling/dʒeɪl/. The survival of thegaol spelling in British English is "due to statutory and official tradition".[171] In Australia, the spelling "gaol" is obsolete and only used in historical contexts (e.g.Maitland Gaol, although the modern spelling is used for the tourist attraction). The spelling "jail" has been used throughout the 20th century and was made the preferred spelling by the Government Publishing Style Manual in 1978.[172] However, while the terms "jail" and "prison" are commonly used in Australia, the term "correctional facility" is officially used by most state and territory governments. |
| kerb | curb | For the noun designating the edge of a roadway (or the edge of a British pavement/ American sidewalk/ Australian footpath).Curb is the older spelling, and in the UK and US it is still the proper spelling for the verb meaningrestrain.[173] |
| gram,gramme | gram | The dated spellinggramme is used sometimes in the UK[174] but never in the US.(Kilo)gram is the only spelling used by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures. The same applies to other related terms such asdecagram andhectogram. |
| liquorice | licorice | The American spelling is nearer the Old French sourcelicorece, which is ultimately from Greekglykyrrhiza.[175] The British spelling was influenced by the unrelated wordliquor.[176]Licorice prevails in Canada and it is common in Australia, but it is rarely found in the UK.Liquorice is all but nonexistent in the US ("Chiefly British", according to dictionaries).[12] |
| mollusc | mollusk | The related adjective may be spelledmolluscan ormolluskan. |
| mould | mold | In all senses of the word. Both spellings have been used since the 16th century.[177] In Canada, both spellings are used.[12] In Australia and New Zealand, "mold" refers to a form for casting a shape while "mould" refers to the fungus. |
| moult | molt | |
| omelette | omelet, omelette | Theomelet spelling is the older of the two, in spite of the etymology (Frenchomelette).[12]Omelette prevails in Canada and Australia. |
| pipette | pipette,pipet[178] | TheU.S. Government Publishing Office Style Manual prefers the spellingpipet.[179] |
| plough | plow | Both spellings have existed since Middle English. In England,plough became the main spelling in the 18th century.[180] Althoughplow was Noah Webster's pick,plough continued to have some currency in the US, as the entry inWebster's Third (1961) implies. Newer dictionaries labelplough as "chiefly British". The wordsnowplough/snowplow, originally an Americanism, predates Webster's dictionaries and was first recorded assnow plough. Canada has bothplough andplow,[12] althoughsnowplow is more common. |
| programme | program | While "program" is used in British English in the case of computer programs, "programme" is the spelling most commonly used for all other meanings. However, in American English, "program" is the preferred form. |
| rack and ruin | wrack and ruin | Several words like "rack" and "wrack" have been conflated, with both spellings thus accepted as variants for senses connected to torture (orig.rack) and ruin (orig.wrack, cf.wreck)[181] In "(w)rack and ruin", the W-less variant is now prevalent in the UK but not the US.[182] The term, however, is rare in the US. |
| racquet | racket | In the UK,racquet is the spelling for the item of sporting equipment, whereasracket is the spelling for the type of organized crime. In the US,racket is the standard for both terms, though an exception is that the sport"Racquetball" is spelled with the -qu spelling in all countries. In Canada,racket has been the accepted preferred spelling and Australia uses both. |
| sceptic,skeptic | skeptic | The American spelling, akin to Greek, is the earliest known spelling in English.[183] It was preferred by Fowler, and is used by many Canadians, where it is the earlier form.[12]Sceptic also pre-dates the European settlement of the US and it follows the Frenchsceptique and Latinscepticus. In the mid-18th century, Dr Johnson's dictionary listedskeptic without comment or alternative, but this form has never been popular in the UK;[184]sceptic, an equal variant in the oldWebster's Third (1961), has now become "chiefly British". Australians generally follow the British usage (with the notable exception of theAustralian Skeptics). All of these versions are pronounced with a /k/ (a hard "c"), though in French that letter is silent and the word is pronounced likeseptique. |
| slew,slue | slue | Meaning "to turn sharply; a sharp turn", the preferred spelling differs. Meaning "a great number" is usuallyslew in all regions.[185] |
| smoulder | smolder | Both spellings go back to the 16th century, and have existed since Middle English.[147][186] |
| storey, storeys | story, stories | Level of a building. The letter "e" is used in the UK and Canada to differentiate between levels of buildings and a story as in a literary work.[12]Story is the earlier spelling. The Oxford English Dictionary states that this word is "probably the same word as story [in its meaning of "narrative"] though the development of sense is obscure."[187] One of the first uses of the (now British) spelling "storey" was by Harriet Beecher Stowe in 1852 (Uncle Tom's Cabin xxxii). |
| sulphate, sulfate[188] | sulfate, sulphate | The spellingsulfate is the more common variant in British English in scientific and technical usage; see the entry onsulfur and the decisions of theInternational Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC)[189] and the UK'sRoyal Society of Chemistry (RSC).[190] |
| sulphur, sulfur | sulfur | Sulfur is the preferred spelling by theInternational Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) since 1971 or 1990[189] and by the UK'sRoyal Society of Chemistry (RSC) since 1992.[190]Sulfur is used by scientists in all countries and has been actively taught in chemistry in British schools since December 2000,[191] but the spellingsulphur prevails in British, Irish and Australian English, and it is also found in some American place names (e.g.,Sulphur, Louisiana, andWhite Sulphur Springs, West Virginia). Use of both variantf~ph spellings continued in Britain until the 19th century, when the word was standardized assulphur.[192] On the other hand,sulfur is the form that was chosen in the United States, whereas Canada uses both. Oxford Dictionaries note that "in chemistry and other technical uses ... the-f- spelling is now the standard form for this and related words in British as well as US contexts, and is increasingly used in general contexts as well."[193] Some American English usage guides suggestsulfur for technical usage and bothsulfur andsulphur in common usage and in literature, but American dictionaries listsulphur as a less common or chiefly British variant.[194][195][196][197] The variation betweenf andph spellings is also found in the word's ultimate source: Latinsulfur,sulphur,[198] but this was due toHellenization of the original Latin wordsulpur tosulphur in the erroneous belief that the Latin word came from Greek. This spelling was later reinterpreted as representing an /f/ sound and resulted in the spellingsulfur which appears in Latin toward the end of theClassical period. (The true Greek word for sulfur,θεῖον, is the source of the international chemical prefixthio-.) In 12th-centuryAnglo-French, the word becamesulfre. In the 14th century, the erroneously Hellenized Latin-ph- was restored in Middle Englishsulphre. By the 15th century, both full Latin spelling variantssulfur andsulphur became common in English. |
| through | through,thru[199] | "Thru" is typically used in the US as shorthand. It may be acceptable in informal writing, but not for formal documents. "Thru" is commonly used on official road signs in the US, as in "no thru traffic", to save space. In theCOBOL programming language, THRU is accepted as an abbreviation of the keyword THROUGH. Since programmers like to keep their code brief, THRU is generally the preferred form of this keyword. |
| tyre | tire | The outer portion of a wheel. In Canada, as in the US,tire is the older spelling, but both were used in the 15th and 16th centuries (for a metal tire).Tire became the settled spelling in the 17th century buttyre was revived in the UK in the 19th century for rubber/pneumatic tyres, possibly because it was used in some patent documents,[12] though many continued to usetire for the iron variety.The Times newspaper was still usingtire as late as 1905. For the verb meaning "to grow weary" both American and British English use only thetire spelling. |
| vice | vise | For thetwo-jawed workbench tool, Americans and Canadians retain the very old distinction betweenvise (the tool) andvice (the sin, and also the Latin prefix meaning a deputy), both of which arevice in the UK and Australia.[12] Regarding the "sin" and "deputy"senses ofvice, all varieties of English use-c-. Thus, American English, just as other varieties, hasvice admiral,vice president, andvice principal—nevervise for any of those. |
| wagon,waggon | wagon | Refers to the four wheel vehicle pulled by draft animals used for transporting things."Waggon" was the predominant spelling in British English in the 19th century, but has for the vast majority fallen out of use, however both "waggon" and"wagon", are acceptable spellings in Britain.[200] |
| whisky (Scotland),whiskey (Ireland) | whiskey, whisky | In the United States, thewhiskey spelling is dominant;whisky is encountered less frequently, but is used on the labels of some major brands (e.g.,Early Times,George Dickel,Maker's Mark, andOld Forester) and is used in the relevant US federal regulations.[201] In Canada,whisky is dominant. Often the spelling is selected based on the origin of the product rather than the location of the intended readership, so it may be considered afaux pas to refer to "Scotch whiskey" or "Irish whisky". Both ultimately derive from "uisce beatha" (Irish) and "uisge beatha" (Scottish) meaning 'water of life'. |
| yoghurt,yogurt,yoghourt | yogurt, yoghurt | Yoghurt is rarely used in the US, as isyoghourt in the UK. Although the Oxford Dictionaries have always preferredyogurt, in current British usageyoghurt seems to be prevalent. In Canada,yogurt prevails, despite the Canadian Oxford preferringyogourt, which has the advantage of satisfying bilingual (English and French) packaging requirements.[6][202] The British spelling is dominant in Australia. The word comes from theTurkish language wordyoğurt.[203] Thevoiced velar fricative represented byğ in themodern Turkish (Latinic) alphabet was traditionally writtengh in theLatin script of theOttoman Turkish (Arabic) alphabet used before 1928. |
British English often prefers hyphenated compounds, such asanti-smoking, whereas American English discourages the use of hyphens in compounds where there is no compelling reason, soantismoking is much more common.[204] Many dictionaries do not point out such differences. Canadian and Australian usage is mixed, although Commonwealth writers generally hyphenate compounds of the form noun plus phrase (such aseditor-in-chief).[12] Commander-in-chief prevails in all forms of English.
Compound verbs in British English arehyphenated more often than in American English.[205]
Acronyms pronounced as words are often written intitle case by Commonwealth writers, but usually asupper case by Americans: for example,Nasa / NASA orUnicef / UNICEF.[211] This does not apply to abbreviations that are pronounced as individual letters (referred to by some as "initialisms"), such asUS,IBM, orPRC (the People's Republic of China), which are virtually always written as upper case. However, sometimes title case is still used in the UK, such asPc (Police Constable).[212]
Some initials are usually upper case in the US but lower case in the UK: liter/litre and its compounds (2 L or25 mL vs2 l or25 ml);[213][214] andante meridiem and post meridiem (10 P.M. or10 PM vs10 p.m. or10 pm).[215][216][217] BothAM/PM anda.m./p.m. are acceptable in American English, but US style guides overwhelmingly prefera.m./p.m.[218]
The use ofquotation marks, also called inverted commas or speech marks, is complicated by the fact that there are two kinds:single quotation marks (') anddouble quotation marks ("). British usage, at one stage in the recent past, preferred single quotation marks for ordinary use, but double quotation marks are again now increasingly common; American usage has always preferred double quotation marks, as have Canadian, Australian, and New Zealand English. It is the practice to alternate the type of quotation marks used where there is a quotation within a quotation.[219]
The convention used to be, and in American English still is, to put full stops (periods) and commas inside the quotation marks, irrespective of the sense. British style now prefers to punctuate according to the sense, in which punctuation marks only appear inside quotation marks if they were there in the original. Formal British English practice requires a full stop to be put inside the quotation marks if the quoted item is a full sentence that ends where the main sentence ends, but it is common to see the stop outside the ending quotation marks.[220]
Contractions where the final letter is present are often written in British English without full stops/periods (Mr,Mrs,Dr,Fr, andSt — for "Saint" but not for "Street").Abbreviations where the final letter is not present generally do take full stops/periods (such asvol.,etc.,i.e.,ed.); British English shares this convention with French:Mlle,Mme,Dr,Ste, butM. forMonsieur. In American and Canadian English, abbreviations likeSt.,Ave.,Mr.,Mrs.,Ms.,Dr., andJr., usually require full stops/periods.
Johnson's dictionary became the accepted standard for private spelling ... of a literate Englishman ... during the nineteenth century ... Webster had more success in influencing the development of American usage than Johnson had with British usage.
not an error...simply an Americanism
may be legitimately spelled with either -ize or -ise throughout the English-speaking world (except in America, where -ize is always used).
inBRIT, use ampoule
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{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)acronyms: take initial cap: Aids,Isa,Mori, Nato
although both l and L are internationally accepted symbols for the liter, to avoid this risk the preferred symbol for use in the United States is L
Use, read and write standard metric units (km, m, cm, mm, kg, g, l, ml), including their abbreviations
{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
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