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British English and American English
Look at these sentences. Do you know which sentences are more typical of British English or American English?
Shall I open the door for you?
He's taking a shower.
France have won the World Cup.
I'm not hungry. I just ate.
Try this exercise to test your grammar.
Read the explanation to learn more.
Grammar explanation
The main difference between British English and American English is in pronunciation. Some words are also different in each variety of English, and there are also a few differences in the way they use grammar. Here are five of the most common grammatical differences between British and American English.
1. Present perfect and past simple
In British English, people use the present perfect to speak about a past action that they consider relevant to the present.
The present perfect can be used in the same way in American English, but people often use the past simple when they consider the action finished. This is especially common with the adverbs already, just and yet.
| British English | American English |
|
He isn't hungry. He has already had lunch. |
He isn't hungry. He already had lunch. |
2. got and gotten
In British English, the past participle of the verb get is got.
In American English, people say gotten.
** Note that have got is commonly used in both British and American English to speak about possession or necessity. have gotten is not correct here.
| British English | American English |
|
You could have got hurt! BUT: |
You could have gotten hurt! BUT: |
3. Verb forms with collective nouns
In British English, a singular or plural verb can be used with a noun that refers to a group of people or things (a collective noun). We use a plural verb when we think of the group as individuals or a singular verb when we think of the group as a single unit.
In American English, a singular verb is used with collective nouns.
** Note that police is always followed by a plural verb.
| British English | American English |
|
My family is/are visiting from Pakistan. BUT: |
My family is visiting from Pakistan. BUT: |
4. have and take
In British English, the verbs have and take are commonly used with nouns like bath, shower, wash to speak about washing and with nouns like break, holiday, rest to speak about resting.
In American English, only the verb take (and not the verb have) is used this way.
| British English | American English |
|
I'm going to have/take a shower. |
I'm going to take a shower. |
5. shall
In British English, people often use Shall I ...? to offer to do something and/or Shall we ...? to make a suggestion.
It is very unusual for speakers of American English to use shall. They normally use an alternative like Should/Can I ...? or Do you want/Would you like ...? or How about ...? instead.
| British English | American English |
|
It's hot in here. Shall I open the window? |
It's hot in here. Can I open the window? |
Do this exercise to test your grammar again.
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Can you please explain whether we also need to stick to US/UK grammatical structures? Or we can mix them both? I know we cannot mix the spellings, but I am confused regarding the grammatical structures.
Hi AffanArif025,
I would say yes, it's better to stick to one particular variety of English than to mix them, if you are taking a course or studying English in some other formal context. I would recommend checking with your teacher if they have any particular requirements or preferences.
However, in informal contexts (e.g. travel, communicating with friends), mixing is not really a problem. People who speak one variety should be able to understand the other variety without too much difficulty.
Jonathan
The LearnEnglish Team
I believe that Americans don't use the word "Police" .They use "Cops" instead
Hello Ali,Ateik,
Both words are used in the US. Cops is an informal term which is common in conversation, but for more official contexts police is used:
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
yeAH vEry good. I lik, ilike
Hi! Can we answer to the question "Have you ..(done something)?" - "Yes, I did" in a spoken language?
Hi Yola,
The meaning is clear - the person did it. So, from that point of view, it's absolutely fine in casual conversation. "Did" is also used if there is a time reference (e.g. "Yes, I did it this morning").
Purely in terms of grammar, though, the best response is "Yes, I have" (matching the present perfect in the question). In more formal speaking situations, that would be the best answer.
I hope that helps.
Jonathan
The LearnEnglish Team
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Nice lesson I've learn soo much how to use American English and British English but there is a question that can get out of my mind can we use American English and British English together?
Hello emidepegaso,
I think a lot of English users speak a kind of 'transatlantic English' which combines elements of UK and US dialects. The only thing I would be careful of is consistency in writing. It's not a good idea to mix US and UK spelling, so I think it's better to either follow UK spelling rules or US.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team