American Versus British English: Dialects vs. Languages

American Versus British English: Dialects vs. Languages


English is the second-most widely spoken native tongue globally and an official language in 53 countries. It first developed in Britain—or, more precisely, in the British Isles—but the majority of its speakers live in the United States. English is the main language for global communication and the most popular language among foreign-language learners.
Like any language, English has many varieties. The best-known varieties are British and American English. 
Since school, many have had a stereotype — the British speak more correctly than the Americans. However, contrary to popular belief, there is no more correct version of the language. Each dialect reflects the cultural characteristics peculiar to the inhabitants of different countries.
As you know, British English is a kind of English that is used in the UK, in turn, American English is a kind of English that is used in the United States of America.
English has been constantly changing under the influence of many factors, such as the languages of the local population or technological progress, so there are a huge number of dialects in English.
American English and British English are variants of the same English language. There are more similarities than differences between them, especially where the speech of educated people sounds or the language of science is used. The reason for most of the discrepancies are the peculiarities of the historical and cultural development of the two countries, the diversity of local and regional idioms and stable expressions, as well as the influence of mass media and advertising. Both Americans and Britons laugh at each other and dislike each other's languages. From the point of view of the British, American English is too straightforward and rude, and they regard their British English as the language of polite people. Americans consider British English to be too strained, hypocritical language of snobs, and their native American friendly and friendly.

The differences between British and American English affect pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary, some spelling rules, punctuation, phraseological units, design of dates and numbers. First of all, it is worth dwelling on the lexical differences. By the way, vocabulary is a science that studies the meanings of words. The following distinctive features can be distinguished:

1. As you know, some words from American English are not used in British English and vice versa. For example: vacation- vacation; parking lot- parking; soccer- football; candy- candy (used only in the American version). Autumn-autumn; rubbish- garbage; shop- shop; luggage- luggage (used only in British English).
2. The same words in British and American English may have different meanings: flat-apartment (British English) - tire (American version); homely-good hostess (British version); - ugly (American version); biscuits-cookies (British version) – cupcakes (American version): chips – fried potatoes (British version) – chips (American version): wash up- wash dishes (British version) - wash hands (American version).
These differences are due to the fact that American English has been under pressure from other languages for a long time, for this reason it adopted many different words and phrases. To be understood correctly and not get into an awkward situation, you need to know the differences in the meaning of words.
3. Different words in two versions of English have the same meaning:
1st Floor - ground floor
2nd Floor - 1st floor
Administration - government
Apartment - flat
Appetizer - starter
Assignment - homework
Auditorium - assembly hall
Luggage - baggage

The differences between British and American English grammar are slightly more complicated. The differences are small, but they are significant.

Take the verb to have, for instance. To talk about possession, British English uses the verb to have got (I have got a book.), whereas American English uses to have (I have a book.). An important note: the verb have got is also used in American English, but mostly to indicate obligation (I have got to go.).
The present perfect tense usage differs as well. The British normally use the verb to have (I have just arrived.) in this tense, whereas the Americans usually omit this verb. As a result, the sentences sound simpler: I just arrived.

Christmas greetings are especially worth noting. Congratulating each other on Christmas, North Americans say "Merry Christmas!". In the UK, congratulations usually sound like "Happy Christmas!". Recently, American stores have also started congratulating customers with the words "Happy holidays" ("Happy Holidays"), which indicate all winter holidays of various peoples and religious denominations (Christmas, Thanksgiving, New Year, Hanukkah, Winter Solstice, Kwanzaa). In the UK, such a phrase is not used. The expression "Season's greetings" is equally common in both countries and is often printed on Christmas postcards.

The meanings of the word "holiday season" (or "holiday period") differ: in the USA, this means winter holidays (December-January), and in the UK — the period of summer holidays (June-August). Both versions of English have different names for the floors of buildings. In the UK, the first floor is called the floor above the entrance to the building. The floor where the entrance itself is located is called ground floor. The American system coincides with the Russian—language naming: the first floor is the floor on which the main entrance to the building falls. Hence the differences in the buttons in elevators: in the British elevator, the "G" or "0" button is responsible for the ground floor, in the American one — "1", "G" or "L" (from lobby lobby, for example, in a hotel). In the UK, using the "L" or "-1" button, the elevator will take the passenger to the underground floor (if there is one underground floor in the building) or to the lower underground floor (if there are two). The upper underground floor in this case is called by the "U" button (from upper ground floor — upper underground floor). The only exceptions are American multi—apartment apartments - apartment buildings (Brit. blocks of flats). Parking and lobby are usually located on the ground floor, so the numbering of floors often begins with the second, where only the apartments themselves are already located.

First of all, today American English is more widely spoken than British. This is primarily due to the strong influence of the United States on the economic, political and cultural situation in the world. The mass media and the pop culture of America greatly contribute to the fact that the American version of English becomes more popular than the classic British. An important role is also played by the fact that the territory of the United States is several times larger than the United Kingdom, therefore, the number of native speakers of the American language is much larger than the British one.
Despite all this, English and American English are still mutually intelligible. Sometimes it is even quite difficult to determine whether a particular book was written by an American or British author. According to Russian linguists and teachers, it is still necessary to start studying with the British version, since this is the most complete and rich language. Correct basic English is needed as a basis for understanding other language options, including American. A person with classical English will not disappear anywhere and, if necessary, will be able to easily rebuild, get used to another modification of the language. All this, of course, speaks in favor of the British option for studying at school. Thus, according to the researchers, it is best to learn the classical basis, while supplementing it with the most commonly used slang words and idioms.
Nilufar Namazova 3G