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  British vs. American English (2)

                 (spelling differences)

There are some well-known spelling differences between British English and American English. Many of these spelling differences result from French influence on English. British English has a tendency to keep the spelling of many words of French origin. Americans try to spell words more closely to the way they sound phonetically and they tend to omit some letters.

The general spelling differences between British and American English are listed below.

British -our vs. American -or difference
armourarmor
behaviourbehavior
colourcolor
favouritefavorite
flavourflavor
harbourharbor
honourhonor
humourhumor
labourlabor
neighbourneighbor
rumourrumor
savioursavior
British -re vs. American -er
difference
amphitheatreamphitheater
centimetrecentimeter
centrecenter
fibrefiber
kilometrekilometer
litreliter
lustreluster
louvrelouver
manoeuvremaneuver
metremeter
spectrespecter
theatretheater
British -ae/-oe/-oeu vs. American
-e/-o/-eu difference
archaeologyarcheology
gynaecologygynecology
leukaemialeukemia
manoeuvremaneuver
mediaevalmedieval
mementoesmementos
oestrogenestrogen
orthopaedicorthopedic
paediatricpediatric
palaeontologypaleontology
toxaemiatoxemia
British -se vs. American -ze difference*
analyseanalyze
apologiseapologize
appetiserappetizer
catalysecatalyze
civilise, civilisationcivilize, civilization
colonise, colonisationcolonize, colonization
criticisecriticize
emphasiseemphasize
organiseorganize
popularise, popularisationpopularize, popularization
priseprize
realiserealize
recogniserecognize
British -l vs. American -ll difference
enrolmentenrollment
fulfilfulfill
instalmentinstallment
skilfulskillful

British -ll vs. American -l difference
counsellorcounselor
fuelledfueled
travellingtraveling
parallelledparalleled
quarrellingquarreling

!Remember: In British English, verbs that end in -l preceded by a vowel usually double the final -l when a suffix -ed/-ing is added. In American English the final -l is doubled only when the last syllable is stressed.
British -ogue vs. American
-og difference
analogueanalog
cataloguecatalog
dialoguedialog
monologuemonolog

British –ence vs. American
-ense difference
defence*defense
licence (noun)
license (verb)
license (both
noun and verb
)
offence*offense
pretencepretense

*But note: defensive, offensive

*Additional notes:

:: British English uses both "-ise" and "-ize" forms but tends to prefer -ise (-isation) form.

:: Verbs in British English that can be spelled with either "-ize" or "-ise" at the end are always spelled with -ize in American English.

:: Verbs in British English that end in "-yse" (e.g. analyse) are always spelled "-yze" in American English (analyze).

British -dge/-gue vs. American -dg/-gu)
judgementjudgment
arguementargument


British -que vs. American
-k/–ck difference
cheque (money)check
British -gramme vs. American -gram difference
programme (noun)
(TV/radio programme or programme of events - plans, conferences, a theatre programme etc.)
program
programme (verb) (to instruct)program (-mm-)
program (programme)
(computer program)
program
gram (gramme)gram
kilogram (kilogramme)kilogram


Miscellaneous spelling differences
BritishAmericanBritishAmerican
ageingagingmouldmold
aluminiumaluminummum, mummy (mom, mam)mom, mommy
encyclopaediaencyclopediaomeletteomelet
kerb (edge of roadway or pavement)
curb (verb means "restrain")
curb (both
noun and verb
)
practise (verb), practising, practice (noun)practice (both
noun and verb
),
practicing
draught (current of air)draftpyjamaspajamas
greygrayploughplow
sulphur or sulfursulfurtyretire
jewelleryjeweleryscepticskeptic
marvellousmarvelouswoollenwoolen


It is useful to learn both British and American English forms, but a good recommendation is to aim for consistency in your spelling.








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