 The most distinct differences between American and British English. When it comes to learning English, non-native speakers can feel quite torn on whether they should learn British English or American English. They have their similarities, but can contrast each other strongly. The differences can be confusing for English speakers as well. The diversity and spelling, pronunciation, and vocabulary can really throw you off. In this article, I will be focusing on these three topics. Let's explore spelling, shall we? Important Spelling Differences Growing up in the USA, I learned to spell in a simplified form. American English focuses on how the words are pronounced, therefore the words are spelled according to their sounds. KLR in the British is spelled color while in the USA it is spelled color. The USA had dropped the U which gives an elongated sound to the word. The same has been done with the British cancelled and the British organized. In the USA, it is spelled cancelled and organized. These changes in spelling are due to Noah Webster, the curator of Webster's dictionary. He believed that while gaining independence in a political form, we should also gain independence through our spelling and vocabulary. This brought around the dropping and changing of letters in the American English language. Differences in Word Choice Americans vocabulary differs from their British counterparts as well. You will never hear an American mother tell her children to Hoover up the Carpator to put the groceries in the boot. This is due to the word choice. Hoover is a vacuum cleaner company widely used in the British. The company is so popular that the British has substituted the word Carpet Cleaner for Hoover. Which, if I said such a long-winded word, I would change it to Hoover as well. Moving on to the boot. In the British, they aren't referring to something you wear on your foot. They mean their cars. In the USA, we say trunk whereas the British calls their trunks a boot. Quite confusing for an American. In the British, they also call their trash cans dust bins, which could possibly make an American child think that a disposal bin is only for dust. Same word, different pronunciation. Americans fight with British natives about the pronunciation of words all of the time. One of the most popular pronunciations to fight over is the USA tomato versus the British tomato for the word tomato. Another popular pronunciation fight is over the word vitamin. Do you prefer the USA vitamin or the British vitamin? One of the least fought over pronunciations would be the USA privacy and the British privacy for the word privacy. What do you think? Are these pronunciation differences worth fighting over? Other things to consider. As you can see, there are some varieties to English. Many parts of the world use British English, due to the vast empire Great Britain once had. Though, American English is slowly taking the place of British English in parts of Asia and South America due to the widespread popularity of American celebrities. Which English style do you prefer? The posh English of Great Britain? Or the neutral tone of American English? Growing up, I thought British English sounded so fancy. Now, as an adult, I like my American English. I'm a firm believer that it is not the accent you have when speaking, it is how you articulate and convey emotion in your voice. Feel free to experiment with the differences and see which speech works best for you. Are you ready to teach English abroad? Speak with an ITTT advisor today to put together your personal plan for teaching English abroad. Send us an email or call us toll free at 1-800-490-0531 to speak with an ITTT advisor today.