The English language is now universally used in business, politics, entertainment, and other spheres. One might think this would mean the rules of English are the same throughout the world, but this is far from the case. In addition to the countless regional varieties of English spoken in various parts of the world, two major types of English exist: British and American. Many scholarly journals, businesses, and organizations prefer one variety over the other, which makes understanding the differences between them more important than ever before.

Despite the differences between the two types, learning American English does not have to be difficult. Online grammar courses are available on many websites, while schools and businesses may offer conversational courses to help eager students learn American English. Most courses introduce you to the grammar, syntax, and vocabulary that are common to many English dialects. Below, we highlight some of the major differences between British and American English.

Pronunciation

Pronunciation is the most obvious difference between the varieties of spoken English. For an experienced listener, the manner of pronouncing certain words can reveal where a speaker is from. When you learn American English, take the opportunity to listen to native speakers so you can hear the way certain letters, such as r and a, are pronounced in various words (such as farther). Although pronunciation is an important difference between the varieties or dialects of English, it is difficult to describe, and is more readily understood through practice than by reading text.

Grammar

When you learn American English, you will notice that it shares most English grammar rules with the other varieties of English. However, there are some differences, as outlined below.

Nouns: Collective nouns, such as herd, group, and class, often require singular verbs (formal agreement) in American English but require plural verbs (notional agreement) in British English. For example, in American English, you would say, “The team is preparing for the big game.” By contrast, the sentence in British English would be, “The team are preparing for the big game.” To avoid confusion in situations like this, you could rewrite the sentence to read, “The team members are preparing for the big game.”

Verbs: Although various verb forms are preferred in different varieties of English, the most common difference is the spelling of certain past tense verb forms. For example, in British English, irregular forms such as spoilt, smelt, and leapt are preferred, while those who learn American English should be careful to use the regular forms—spoiled, smelled, and leaped.

Prepositions: The usage and meaning of prepositions can vary between different forms of English. One common difference is how in and on are used. An American athlete plays on a team, while a British athlete plays in a team. The intricacies of prepositions, like those of verbs, are complex, so be sure to address these when editing your writing.

Vocabulary

All varieties of English share an extensive common vocabulary, but certain differences do exist. Many of these have to do with new concepts or inventions from the 19th century on. For example, an elevator in the United States is a lift in the United Kingdom. Other common examples of usage in American English/British English are given below.

cookie/biscuit, called/rang, cell phone/mobile, soccer/football, gas/petrol

Additionally, some words—especially slang words—have different meanings in various parts of the English-speaking world. Some of these meanings can be considered quite offensive, so the use of slang should be limited.

Spelling and Punctuation

The final category of differences involves those in written language. Although these differences may seem to be the smallest or least meaningful, they are actually the most noticeable in written English. If you are writing for an American audience, the following differences are vital in producing a polished final product.

Spelling (o or ou): Many words in American English are spelled with an o (e.g., neighbor or favor), while their British English counterparts may contain an ou combination (e.g., neighbour or favour)

Spelling (-er or –re): When you learn American English, please note that many words end in

–er (e.g., center or meter) rather than the British English ending of –re (e.g., centre or metre)

Spelling (-ize or –ise): Many American English words are spelled using an –ize ending (e.g., authorize or organize), but both endings are used in British English, with –ise being more common (e.g., authorise or organise).

Punctuation: When you learn American English, you will notice that quotations are typically surrounded by double quotation marks “like this,”while in British English they may appear in single quotation marks ‘like this’. In American English, the periods and commas are placed within the closing quotation mark, but in British English, they are placed after the closing quotation mark. American English calls for the use of a period (called a full stop in British English) after most abbreviations such as Mr., which is often not the case in British English. Despite these (and other) differences, punctuation is more common between varieties of English than is spelling.

The differences between American English and other varieties may seem intimidating at first. The points noted above are some of the most common differences, and understanding them can go a long way toward helping you learn American English.

5 bad grammar examples to avoid

When speaking or writing, grammar is one of the most powerful representations of intelligence and authority. Right or wrong, people will form opinions based on the way you present yourself—similar to the way a well-tailored business suit helps project competence. If you want people to note your opinions rather than your bad grammar examples, avoid these common errors. You can also take our online course and spend a bit of time learning English grammar.

1. Subject–verb agreement errors

One basic rule of English grammar is that the subject (the one performing the action) must agree in number with the verb (the action or state of being). For example, in the sentence “Matt plays the guitar,” both Matt and plays are singular, so this subject and verb agree. However, most sentences, especially in academic writing, aren’t so straightforward. Descriptive phrases can get in the way, making it difficult to determine if the subjects and verbs agree. When this happens, eliminate all intervening information to get to the meat of the sentence.

• Incorrect: The girl with the black and white puppies have a ball.

Because puppies is right before have, this bad grammar example is easy to overlook. Ask yourself who the sentence is about (the girl), and eliminate the rest:

• Correct: The girl has a ball.

2. Pronoun–antecedent agreement errors

Like subjects and verbs, pronouns must agree with their antecedents, the nouns they replace. They must agree in both number and gender. Typically, this is easy, as in the following example:

• Correct: Yolanda has her notebook.

However, with certain words, it is more difficult to determine whether they are singular or plural. For instance, indefinite pronouns (such as someone, anyone, few, none, or everyone) confuse many English speakers, as in this bad grammar example:

• Incorrect: Everyone needs to bring their pencil.

Here, everyone is singular, so the pronoun before pencil must be as well. It would be more grammatically correct to say:

• Correct: Everyone needs to bring his or her pencil.

Note that many modern English speakers use the plural their to avoid gender-biased language, especially in informal speech. If writing an academic paper, consult your style guide or professor to determine whether this is acceptable.

3. Sentence errors

To be a complete sentence, a group of words must begin with a capital letter, have ending punctuation (a period, question mark, or exclamation point), and express a complete thought. While most people understand the first two requirements, it’s the third that causes problems, with errors often resulting in sentence fragments or run-on sentences. Consider these bad grammar examples:

• Incorrect: Because I wanted to go on a picnic.
• Incorrect: When Al gets here.
• Incorrect: Lisa went to the concert, she saw the band.

The first two bad grammar examples are incorrect because they don’t express complete thoughts: What happened because the speaker wanted to go on a picnic? What will happen when Al gets here? To correct this error, you must add an independent clause to complete the thought.

• Correct: I brought a blanket because I wanted to go on a picnic.
• Correct: When Al gets here, we can start making dinner.

Adding the independent clause completes the thought, facilitating understanding. The third bad grammar example is a run-on sentence; it provides too many complete thoughts without connecting them appropriately. To correct this, add a coordinating conjunction (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so) after the comma, change the comma to a semicolon, or make two sentences.

• Correct: Lisa went to the concert, and she saw the band.
• Correct: Lisa went to the concert; she saw the band.
• Correct: Lisa went to the concert. She saw the band.

4. Descriptive phrase errors

Descriptive phrases can add depth and clarity to writing, but can also result in bad grammar examples. When writing, be sure your descriptive phrase is attached to the right word, and be sure to put your work through editing to avoid these common mistakes.

• Incorrect: Smelling like rotten fish, my sister took the trash out.
• Incorrect: Watching from the airplane window, the volcano erupted.

The first bad grammar example, implying that your sister needs a bath, involves a misplaced modifier. The phrase should be describing trash.

• Correct: My sister took out the trash, which smelled like rotten fish.

The second bad grammar example leaves readers wondering who was on the plane—because it sure seems like the volcano was having a great trip. To correct this dangling modifier, add an appropriate subject:

• Correct: Watching from the airplane window, I saw the volcano erupt.

While the above errors are sometimes difficult to catch, the bad grammar examples below can be a little bit more obvious (though they can still stump even experienced editors at times!)

5. Homonyms

Certain pairs or groups of words are confusing because they are similar but have different meanings. Review the following homonyms to avoid appearing lazy or uninformed and infusing your writing with more bad grammar examples.

It’s/Its: It’s is a contraction meaning It is or It has. Its is a possessive pronoun.

• Incorrect: Its going to be a long day. Does the car need it’s oil changed?

• Correct: It’s going to be a long day. Does the car need its oil changed?

There/Their/They’re: There is either a place or a pronoun. Their is a possessive pronoun. They’re is a contraction meaning They are.

• Incorrect: Their goes my freedom. There going to bring they’re suitcases.

• Correct: There goes my freedom. They’re going to bring their suitcases.

Your/You’re: Like the above examples, your is a possessive pronoun, while you’re is a contraction for you are.

• Incorrect: Your going to need you’re notebook.

• Correct: You’re going to need your notebook.

Affect/Effect: Most of the time, affect is a verb, and effect is a noun.

• Incorrect: That medicine effects my ability to sleep. Have you heard of the butterfly affect?

• Correct: That medicine affects my ability to sleep. Have you heard of the butterfly effect?

Note: While this is an easy distinction, in certain cases, affect can be a noun, such as in psychology, and effect can be a verb meaning to accomplish.

Homonyms can be tricky even for experienced English speakers, so make a list of the ones you confuse most and check for them each time you write.

That’s all, folks!

By watching out for all these errors, you can present yourself in the best possible light, whether you’re writing an informal email or a university dissertation.