Differences Between
British Spelling & American Spelling

The main differences between American Spelling and British Spelling are given below:

• British English words that end in -re (e.g. centre, fibre, theatre) often end in -er in American English (center, fiber, theater).

• British English words that end in -our (e.g. colour, humour) usually end with -or in American English (color, humor).

• Verbs in British English that can be spelled with either -ize or -ise at the end (e.g. recognize/recognise) 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).

• In British spelling, verbs ending in a vowel plus l double the l when adding endings that begin with a vowel (e.g. travel, travelled, traveller). In American English the l is not doubled (travel, traveled, traveler).

• British English words that are spelled with the double vowels ae or oe (e.g. archaeology, manoeuvre) are just spelled with an e in American English (archeology, maneuver).

• Some nouns that end with -ence in British English (e.g. licence, defence) are spelled -ense in American English (license, defense).

• Some nouns that end with -ogue in British English (e.g. dialogue) end with -og in American English (dialog).

Commonly Confused Words : (American / British)

Jumper / Pinafore Dress
Sweater / Jumper
Rubber / Condom
Eraser / Rubber
Pants / Trousers
Panties / Pants
Chips / Crisps
French Fries / Chips


Different Words for The Same Thing: (American / British)

Cart / Trolley
Diaper / Nappy
Eggplant / Aubergine
Fall / Autumn
Line / Queue
Scallion / Spring onion
Snow peas / Mange tout
Trunk / Boot
Vacation / Holiday
Zucchini / Courgette


For the complete list of words with the spelling variations between American Spelling and British Spelling,

Click Here!

For detailed differences between American Spelling and British Spelling,

Click Here!

For another list of detailed differences between American English and British English,

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