American English and British English

American English and British English

Communication may seem easy, but sometimes it is hard to understand between people even though they share the same language. American and British English have the same origin, which is the Elizabethan English. This means that Americans and the British speakers share the same language; but nowadays, these two varieties somewhat differ from each other. We can find both similarities and differences in both varieties. Even though American and British people can communicate and understand one another quite well, there are some aspects of language where comprehension breaks down; such as vocabulary, pronunciation, and spelling. The similarities between the American and British English are that they share almost all the same adjectives, nouns, verbs and adverbs. Because they come from the same origin, though it may seem different languages when we listen at them, both American and British speakers can understand each other if they listen carefully. Plus, the reading and writing forms are easier to understand because they vary little. There may be some spelling differences such as colour and color, or honour and honor; but these differences are understandable while reading. The main differences occur especially while speaking due to the vocabulary and pronunciation differences. As mentioned previously, most differences between the two varieties occur due to the vocabulary. For example, when British use toilets, Americans use bathrooms; whereas the British pay bills, Americans pay check; and while British have petrol, Americans call it gasoline and so on. These tiny differences may seem insignificant but it can cause difficulties in communication between American and British speakers, especially in occasions such as daily conversations. I remember my first visit to England, when I asked the hotel cleaning service where was the trash can, and they couldn’t understand until I found out it was called ‘rubbish’. These vocabulary