Autor: CCBEU BLUMENAU | Publicado: 2015-05-19T11:35:00-07:00


British English - in a team While
there are certainly many more varieties of English, American English and
British English are the two varieties that are taught in most ESL/EFL programs.
Generally, it is agreed that no one version is "correct" however,
there are certainly preferences in use. The three major differences between
between American and British English are:

<!--[if !supportLists]-->·&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
<!--[endif]-->Pronunciation - differences in both
vowel and consonants, as well as&nbsp;stress and intonation

<!--[if !supportLists]-->·&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
<!--[endif]-->Vocabulary - differences in nouns and
verbs, especially&nbsp;phrasal verbusage

<!--[if !supportLists]-->·&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
<!--[endif]-->Spelling&nbsp;- differences are generally found in certain prefix and suffix
forms

.

Use of the Present
Perfect

In British English
the&nbsp;present perfect&nbsp;is used to express an action that has occurred in the recent past
that has an effect on the present moment. For example:

I've lost my key. Can you help me
look for it?
In American English the following is also possible:
I lost my key. Can you help me look for it?

In British English the above would be
considered incorrect. However, both forms are generally accepted in standard
American English.

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Other differences
involving the use of the present perfect in British English and&nbsp;simple past&nbsp;in American English include&nbsp;already, just and yet.

British English:

I've just had lunch
I've already seen that film
Have you finished your homework yet?

American English:

I just had lunch OR I've just had
lunch
I've already seen that film OR I already saw that film.
Have your finished your homework yet? OR Did you finish your homework yet?

Possession

There are two forms to express
possession in English. Have or Have got

Do you have a car?
Have you got a car?
He hasn't got any friends.
He doesn't have any friends.
She has a beautiful new home.
She's got a beautiful new home.

While both forms are correct (and
accepted in both British and American English), have got (have you got, he
hasn't got, etc.) is generally the preferred form in British English while most
speakers of American English employ the have (do you have, he doesn't have
etc.)

The&nbsp;Verb&nbsp;Get

The past participle of the verb get
is gotten in American English. Example He's gotten much better at playing
tennis. British English - He's got much better at playing tennis.

Vocabulary

Probably the major
differences between British and American English lies in the choice ofvocabulary. Some words mean different things in the two varieties for example:

Mean: (American English - angry, bad
humored, British English - not generous, tight fisted)

There are many more examples (too
many for me to list here). If there is a difference in usage, your dictionary
will note the different meanings in its definition of the term. Many vocabulary
items are also used in one form and not in the other. For a more complete list
of the vocabulary differences between British and American English use this&nbsp;British vs. American
English vocabulary tool.

Prepositions

There are also a few differences in
preposition use including the following:

<!--[if !supportLists]-->·&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
<!--[endif]-->American English - on the weekend
British English - at the weekend

<!--[if !supportLists]-->·&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
<!--[endif]-->American English - on a team
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<!--[if !supportLists]-->·&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
<!--[endif]-->American English - please write me
soon
British English - please write&nbsp;to&nbsp;me soon



Spelling


Here are some
general differences between British and American spellings:

Words ending in -or (American) -our (British) color, colour, humor, humour,
flavor, flavour etc.
Words ending in -ize (American) -ise (British) recognize, recognise, patronize,
patronise etc.

The best way to make sure that you are being consistent in your spelling is to
use the spell check on your word processor (if you are using the computer of
course) and choose which variety of English you would like. As you can see,
there are really very few differences between&nbsp;standard British
English&nbsp;and&nbsp;standard American English. However, the largest difference is probably that of the choice of
vocabulary and pronunciation.