American English

As a child, I wondered why Americans couldn’t spell. I thought to myself “Surely Americans should be able to spell basic words – after all, don’t they have spelling competitions?”

I couldn’t understand why Americans couldn’t spell words like colour (color), favourite (favorite), honour (honor), analyse (analyze), analogue (analog), encyclopaedia (encyclopedia), manoeuvre (maneuvre), cheque (check), defence (defense), through (thru) and plough (plow).

Eventually somebody pointed out to me that Americans spell some of their words differently.

“No!” I said with more than a hint of incredulity.

And then somebody told me that Americans use different words for everyday objects.

“NO!!!” I said.

I was young and naïve – and stupid!

The good news is that over the years we have been exposed to America via music, films etc. and now most British people are fully aware of the subtle differences between our tongues.

I’ve travelled to America several times and had to smile at some of the differences, even though I’ve understood what was meant. Occasionally I have said something to an American who has stared at me as if I have just crawled out of a primeval soup, simply because I have used British words rather than their American equivalents.

For example, I was in a café (diner) in New York and, having finished my meal, I called the waitress over and said

“Can I have the bill please?”

She stared at me for a second and said “The what?”

Thankfully I recalled the correct term.

“Can I have the check, please?”

I have been caught off guard myself though.

For example, I was walking around the French Quarter in New Orleans, enjoying the ambience of the place when a gentleman walked up to me and said

“I like your sneakers.”

“My what?” I said.

It was only when he pointed at my feet that I realised he meant trainers.

Here are some other examples:

British	American
Aubergine	Eggplant
Autumn	Fall
Bloke	Guy
Bonnet (car)	Hood
Car Park	Parking Lot
Caravan	Trailer
Cashier	Teller
Chemist	Drug Store
Courgette	Zucchini
CV (curriculum vitae)	Resume
Diversion	Detour
Exhaust Pipe	Tail Pipe
Estate Agent	Realtor
Fairy Cake	Cup Cake
Film	Movie
Headmaster	Principal
Holiday	Vacation
Ice Lolly	Popsicle
I’m tired	I’m beat
Lorry	Truck
Maths	Math
Motorway	Freeway
Mucking Around	Goofing Off
Nappy	Diaper
Off-License	Liquor Store
Pavement	Sidewalk
Petrol	Gas
Postman	Mailman
Post Code	Zip Code
Rubber	Eraser
Rubbish	Garbage
Semi-Detached House	Duplex
Solicitor	Lawyer
Sweets	Candy
Tap	Faucet
Take Away	Take Out
Toilet	Restroom
Treacle	Molasses
Wardrobe	Closet

In some cases, the words used could lead to utter confusion. For example in America the equivalent of the British First Floor is the Ground Floor so the British First Floor is the American Second Floor. This has caused trauma in hotels where I've found myself trying to get into the wrong room.

Here are some more examples:

A British scone is an American biscuit and a British biscuit is an American cookie.

British crisps are American chips and British chips are American fries.

British jam is American jelly and British jelly is American jell-o

American soccer is British football and American football is a poor version of British rugby. Only kidding - my problem is I just don't understand American Football.

Some American words annoy me a little because to me they just don't sound right. Take for example math. As far as I am concerned, it really should be maths because maths is short for mathematics. Call me pedantic if you like but whenever I hear it on an American TV show, I find myself yelling "MATHS! IT'S MATHS!!!!!" at the screen.

Another one is aluminum. In Britain, the element is called aluminium. "IT'S ALUMINIUM, NOT BLOODY ALUMINUM!" I scream. My TV does bear the brunt of my rants sometimes. And the final one is already. Now this word of course is used by British people but Americans use it in a really bizarre and irritating way. For example - "Tidy your room already" and "Shut up already". What does that mean?

Apart from that, I can cope with the other variations - in fact I prefer some American words, like goofing off and garbage.

There is one final word, commonly used in British and American English that could lead to major confusion and possibly violence. Next time I see a woman in America who happens to own a small but magnificent horse-like beast that brays I shall choose my words very carefully if I want to complement her on having such a splendid creature. I wouldn't want to have my butt kicked.