Hi all,

I just want to know your idea about american and british English.

what are the main differences between them? any idea?



thx.

Neo

in american english, 'a' pronounced as 'e' meanwhile british english, 'a' is pronounced as 'a' with ur mouth a bit look like the letter o ;D
when americans say the word 'past' it sounds like 'pest' meanwhile british sounds like 'poast'

the writing is different too, for example...americans write the word 'teater' as theater...and british = theatre?

ummm [dunno] ask the expert ...;D

British English refers to the level above the ground as 1st floor, whereas American English refers to it as 2nd floor.

Some of my friends said that in American English we use -ize, while in British English, we use -ise.

e.g. stabilize -->american, stabilise -->british
expertise --->british, expertize-->american

is it true?

Yes, it is true. But nowadays, even people in Britain use the suffix -ize instead of -ise

What we call biscuits, the Americans call cookies.
We refer to something cozy as homely, whereas the American refer to something ugly as homely.

and australian call biscuits as bikkie hehehehe

Different in some words such as Flautist (British) and Flutist (American), Night (British) and Nite (American) instead of the dialect...

Nite? I thought Nite is the slang word for night, isnt it?

British English is more conservative, we have the law in language.
I have been learning British English for almost 12 years.. American
English is more flexible, there is no main stream for this language
so you can say something like the way you want. No one could
blame on you.
Let me give you an example.. in American english there's no rules for putting the prepotition in the right place (in, on, at) that sounds simple
but in British English we have the rules for this one..
and it's very strict...

Happy English.... :)

so could you suggest the best way to learn british english instead of american english??

Am: truck, Br: lorry.
Am: elevator, Br: lift.
Am: apartment, Br: flat.

Am: baby boogie Br: baby pram

"WHAT", "which", "why"
AM: pronounce the "h" silently
Br: you can hear the "h"

Originally posted by The_One
Nite? I thought Nite is the slang word for night, isnt it?
Probably. :)
But I got that from my english teacher, she told me that the word nite is American English, not a slang word...

But I dunno... ;D

Originally posted by Rando Verlaine
Let me give you an example.. in American english there's no rules for putting the prepotition in the right place (in, on, at) that sounds simple
but in British English we have the rules for this one..
and it's very strict...


Is that so?? :eek:
So the conclusion is... it's easier to study American english than British english ;D

Originally posted by Neo_888
Some of my friends said that in American English we use -ize, while in British English, we use -ise.

e.g. stabilize -->american, stabilise -->british
expertise --->british, expertize-->american

is it true?

yeah, that's true....:)

in my humble opinion, i think most of daily life are influenced by american english, isnt it so? look at tv show. all are american:)

so i think it will be much easier to study american than british

British English for me is harder to be learned than American.
When I went to London for holiday, I should listen carefully to what the peoples there talking, 'cause I didn't get the point... because of the dialect!

agree. American English is the easiest English to learn. ::agree::

american english forever!!!

But British people do not really care bout Grammar when they speak, American do pay more attention on Grammar in speaking. American people use more appropriate grammar than British

huh? is that true? u kidding? i thought British is far more strict than Americans...:o

i think it should be the other way round.

Originally posted by stinger
agree. American English is the easiest English to learn. ::agree::

easier than indonesian english? like, my children fruit is stupid no play?

Originally posted by meleena
But British people do not really care bout Grammar when they speak, American do pay more attention on Grammar in speaking. American people use more appropriate grammar than British
are you sure? :p

Originally posted by The_One
i think it should be the other way round.
i think so too..

my native speaker said so and i tried to listen to my teacher's speaking last time

so Mel, in your opinion, what is the main difference between american and british english?

A couple of minor differences with the exception of....

ASS That word has invaded American English. Everything can be expressed as a manipluation of ASS nowadays. You can be a jackass, dumbass, slowass, lazy ass, cheap ass, greedy ass, etc., etc., etc.! I don't think British English is dominated by the use of the word ASS.

so, which one do you prefer? american or british? in your opinion, which one is easier ?

I think british english more difficult than american english.I can't follow it if I must speak british english.Coz my american english is not very good too ( I guess ).

So I wanna learn both with all of u.

prefer american english....^^

perasaan american english lebih gaul yah:D

I once had a chat pal on irc who was a british. She was a teenager (she said), and you know what, she spoke english in quite terrible grammar, even worse than mine. When I first met her, I thought she came from a non-english speaking country, and it was a bit of a suprise to me when I was told that she was from the UK.

but it is just a chatting on irc. who knows? she is not the real british. no offence.

did you met her offline?

yeah, she might live in UK but who knows she's indonesian (whoops).....:D

gotcha :hehe

Originally posted by pid
I once had a chat pal on irc who was a british. She was a teenager (she said), and you know what, she spoke english in quite terrible grammar, even worse than mine. When I first met her, I thought she came from a non-english speaking country, and it was a bit of a suprise to me when I was told that she was from the UK.

i said b4, british people do not really care bout grammar once goes to chit chat. but since it is irc, chatting room, who knows?

yeah ;)

p.s. : mel, teriibly home sick eh.....:D

I think British English is about pronounciation. The grammar doesn't happen to be easier. It might seem so, I think, because it's a lot more natural to Britons that Americans. That is when they're not speaking Cornish or Gaelic or Scots...

My experience from a short stay in England, but my accent is Brummish, none of the above_ what they call Midlanders.

If there's a difference in the two, well it's acceptable. American English is suppose to be more varied, as Americans are more varied culturally. Try, for example, walking on the streets of New Orleans and compare the with one you got in Harlem.

And I'm afraid that's slightly OOT. ^_^

i hev a questien. is from my esl class

i want to go ______

partying atau party atau to party?

Two answers, actually,

1. partying; IMHO, it's not so formal -tapi kata Microsoft Word benar aja ^_^;

2.to the party; I don't know what it would be in American English or if it's not much different, they say the British are a maniac for the word 'the', and couldn't stand it missing.

to party = verb?? no?

not to the party party place

haiya, eniway i looked my friend's answer and she got right with the answer to party

and i got right with partying

going to the party place?

But yeah, definitely not to the party party place. *scratches head and squints a little bit more at the screen*

To go to party? Maybe that's a... okay, I get it.

I want to go to party = I want to go, to party = I want to go partying. The word 'party' here is verb. Sure, previously I thought it was a noun ;D.

hi. i think this is related to the gerund topic.

2 ways are correct in this case.
1. i want to go to party.
2. i want to go partying.
either case is correct:)

I want to go to party... it sounds correct, it is correct. But somehow I just have to put the word 'the' before the word 'party' because it somehow seems incomplete. Dunno why, just a freak habit I call the British effect.

Originally posted by xxx
i hev a questien. is from my esl class

i want to go ______

partying atau party atau to party?

how could "to party" be correct in the sentence:

I want to go to party.

I can see how the sentence "I want to party" would be correct, but not "I want to go to party." What is the "to go" referring to? It is unclear.

"I want to go partying" would also be correct. In both sentences, "party" is used as a verb. In the second one it seems like it is trying to be a noun, but it is missing an "a" or "the" before it.

I'm reading and rereading the sentence over and over again, and I'm still not confident that the sentence is grammatically correct. ::argg::

I want to go to party.

I think if you put a coma between the word 'go' and the second 'to' word, it does makes sense.

I want to go, to party.

BUN
American English --> pantat
British English --> roti

hahaha

Originally posted by xxx
i hev a questien. is from my esl class

i want to go ______

partying atau party atau to party?

kalau untuk spoken english sih yang bener "go party" seperti hal nya lo bilang "I want to go eat, go study, go sleep" etc.

kalau untuk written english tepat nya sih "go partying"

kalau go to party kayaknya redundant

why u guys keep talking bout the party? just write and speak by following ur feeling. i studied english in hi-school, and now...2 years after graduation i completely lost my ability to write in english with a perfect grammar....(see....i cant even write a simple paragrapf perfectly...) ::bash::

in my opinion, writing with a perfect grammar for english (don't care if it is british nor american) as a second language is absolutely difficult, so it doesn't matter if u r wrong.

I guess, American english vs. British english is like Indonesian Vs. Malaysian, no? [dunno] :hehe

Do Yourself A Favour...talk like a Brit ;D

IT HAS been a truism for decades: "Britain and America are two countries separated by the same language."

Not any more, they aren't.Widely attributed to George Bernard Shaw, these words were spoken half a century ago - and if the great playwright were around today, might he feel a little nostalgic for that transatlantic rift?Because from cinema to TV, from the internet to our McDonald's, Starbucks and Gap-linedhigh streets, the influence of the US is everywhere.

Now, say the critics, the colonialism is complete with the natives - us - speaking the language of the empire - them. Here are some of the worst culprits worth guarding against. As the French say: "Vive la difference!"

CLOSURE : THERE was a time when this was what happened after last orders at the Crown and Ferret. Now we're talking the pop psychology of Oprah Winfrey.
"Closure" may be more succinct than: "I have finally reconciled myself to my parents' divorce, which for years impeded my psychological development", but who needs it when the old British way - lifelong bitterness - was so much more satisfying?

ISSUES : ONCE teenagers had spots and dodgy hairstyles; today they have "issues". Favourites include minor parental neglect, being denied the latest pair of trainers and the way Mum is so embarrassing in front of friends.
Next time you hear some Avril Lavigne-alike airing her "issues" at the mall (or Tesco's car park), just stop her and say: "Real issues are Iraq or the environment. You haven't got issues, you've got acne."

24/7 : WHEN people say they've been working 24/7 all week, they haven't really stayed up for 168 hours without a wink of sleep. If "open all hours" was good enough for Ronnie Barker...

COULD CARE LESS: LIKE "bad" for "good", this expression actually means the exact opposite - that you couldn'tcare less. If the trend continues, just think where we'll all end up - black will mean white, yes will mean no and Bush will mean "compassionate, intellectual, pacifist statesman".
Next week: Is stupid the new clever?

APARTMENT : IT'S the same size as a flat, it looks like a flat, yet by calling it an apartment, estate agents can charge you an extra £50,000.All you get extra is the misguided belief that people called Ross and Rachel will drop by for brunch. Face it: you're renting a one-bed flat over the chippie, and nobody's coming round except for the rent.

REGULAR : FAST-FOOD speak, like fast food itself, threatens our well-being.Americans like to call normal things "regular" - eg, a regular Coke with fries. But it's no longer just in restaurants that "regular" is replacing "standard".
Now people come from "a regular family" or are described as a "regular guy". Regular means customary, or at spaced intervals, or symmetrical. None of which is the same as a pint-and-a-half bucket of bad coffee or a very dull bloke in the pub.

WHATEVER :ALICIA Silverstone changed the English language when she dismissed her less stylishly attired preppies by saying "whatever" in the 1995 comedy Clueless.
This infuriating phrase is pronounced "whut...evah" and often accompanied by an irritating eye-rolling and sullen jutting of the speaker's half-openjaw. Jane Austen, whose literary classic Emma was the inspiration for Clueless, must be revolving in her grave.

GARBAGE : GARBAGE are an American band led by Scots singer Shirley Manson. Britain's binmen have always and will always collect rubbish. Likewise, trash-can -- the proper term is wastepaper basket or bin. Watch out for Garbage Laden, public enemy No 1.

AWESOME : IF only we could go back to saying things were "nice" or "pleasant". But humbly positive expressions such as "super", "great" and "lovely" have been overwhelmed by super-superlatives. Now everything is "awesome" or "totally fabulous".
Can't Gordon Brown do something to keep this rampant "praise inflation" in check?

I'M, LIKE, SOOOO COOL! : AS in: "I'm, like, totally stoked that Dawson's Creek is about to start." Like Paris Hilton, overuse of "like" wastes our time and serves no purpose.
Likewise, stretching out "so" is lazy and shows extreme poverty of vocabulary. Why not try out a proper sentence such as: "He was exceptionally cool." Assuming he was of a low temperature, that is.

CAN I GET...? WHEN Jennifer Aniston says it in Friends, she really means: "May I have..." An example of the States' grab-and-go coffee-barculture which sounds outrageously silly over here.
The correct response from cafe staff to the question: "Can I get a coffee?" should, of course, be: "No you can't get it. You see, I work here, so that's my job."

SPORTS : FOR some reason, Americans have taken the collective noun "sport", meaning sporting activities, and added a wholly unnecessary "s". Which is almost as annoying as the word "fruits".
The term "sports" belongs strictly to sports' day, not sports reporter or sports pages, which should both be singular.

FRIES : NOT content with forcing the Big Mac on us, the McDonald's marketing machine has introduced this verbal takeaway monstrosity to our shores. Note to US corporations: over here, we eat chips.
No, that's not a chip. That's a crisp.

The differences in American and British english are subtle but when you get used to it, it's obvious. The easiest thing to notice is their pronounciation.. Yanks and Brits speak differently. Even among the Brits themselves there are many different accents: low brow English, high class English, Welsh English, Irish English, and my favorite Scottish English. It's the same in the US.. there's the classic US english, there's black english, the Bronx and New Yorkers have their own accents, as do midwesterners and Southern US locals.

They write differently too... US english uses these spellings: color, meter, theater, industrialize. Brits use: colour, metre, theatre, industrialise.

Also, they have different terms for slang. I admit that i don't know Brit slang as much as US slang which i have been exposed to all my life, but some things are much more native to one type of english than the others. For instance, Yanks say cops.. Brits say bobbies or copper. Brits say Bollocks.. you might never hear an american say that. Anyway, there's too much to tell about the differences, but they are recognizable when you've been exposed to many different accents in the world.

Well I say British accent is better for writing and American for conversation. I prefer British accent, esp Irish and Scottish, but the thing is...it's bloody difficult to understand what they yappi 'bout mate.

What is British accent anyway, Great Britain is home to some of the most diverse dialects of the English language. A cockney accent is different from a Liverpuddlian, a posh Queen's English is totally unparrable with Scottish, Glaswegian is different from Welsh, they all speak with totally different accents, for God's sake!

Gotta admit that ones who speak posh British English is divinely sexy anyway.... hehehe :p :D

Ahoy mate, we know that, same goes to Americans. We are talkin about the major accent like the one you hear from the tv. Actually each accents sound good, but britiish is sexier tho, sounds more educated, aye?. Btw Liverpool have a cool accent.

I like american english than british english... coz my ear is better in understanding american english... :D

guess what, i'm really interested in learning the british accent, but it's really hard. although i've seen some of the british movies, i still can't apply that accent onto my lips. ;D

anyway, now i can differentiate a little bit between british and american. however, how bout the australian and british? until now i still can't recognize the differences, although my friends said that they're completely different. :bingung:

i think Pommies (britton) has a real sexy accent..
Can't stand irish or scottish..