Teach English in TiAnjin Fengdian Chanyeyuan - Tianjin

British english vs American EnglishIn 2009 I moved from my home in the UK to live and work in Bahrain, the Middle East. Since this time I have had an almost daily exposure to American english and perhaps more frequently than with British english which used to be the norm for me. The US Fifth Naval fleet and Coast guard both have large bases in Bahrain and many of their personnel reside as long term guests at the hotel where I work. Being born and raised in the UK I know first-hand that the spoken forms of British english vary considerably. The dialects, accents and word use (also slang) vary not only between England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales but also between towns and cities which are sometimes not very far apart geographically. There is a concept in the UK known as ?the Queen?s english? which is basically the way of pronouncing Standard english ?correctly?. However in reality it is only actually used by about 2% of the UK population, but dictionary pronunciation guides and TEFL courses are based on it. American english has developed its own unofficial standard however like the UK there are also regional variations. Studies into this tell us that the regional dialects reflect the main immigrant groups that live in that particular area. The 4 major variations of spoken American english are known as Northern, Southern, Midland and Western. British english and American english the basis for written and spoken english all over the world. Although generally users of both forms can communicate effectively there are enough differences to cause some misunderstandings in certain situations. The following table illustrates a number of differences however this is definitely not an exhaustive list and is only meant to show some examples. Item British english American english Collective nouns Can take either singular or plural verb forms depending on the emphasis. E.g. New Zealand are the champions. Almost always takes the singular verb form. E.g. New Zealand is the champion. Verbs -The past tense and past participle of some verbs can be irregular or regular. E.g. learnt or learned. Spoilt or spoiled. -Past participle of saw = sawn E.g. sawn-off shotgun -Have you got it? The irregular forms are rarely used except for: burnt, leapt and dreamt. - Past participle of saw = sawed E.g. sawed-off shotgun -Have you gotten it? Tenses Uses present perfect to talk about an event in the recent past and uses the words ?just? ?yet? and ?already? E.g. I have already eaten. These meanings can be expressed with either present perfect or past simple tenses. E.g. I already ate. Verbal auxiliaries. More commonly uses ?shall? instead of ?will? ?Shan?t? is almost never used and is replaced by ?won?t? or ?am not going to? Phrasal verbs E.g. ?Rained off? is used to describe an outdoor event that has been postponed due to rain. ?Rained out? describes the same situation Miscellaneous and slang terms - River Thames - the bill (in a restaurant) - lift - toilet (bog) - pavement - full stop - motorway - Colorado River - the check - elevator - rest room (John) - sidewalk - period - highway Spelling neighbour neighbor Idioms Touch wood Knock on wood Weights Stones and pounds Pounds only Dates Day/month/year Month/day/year In conclusion, as stated earlier most users of both forms of english should be able to communicate relatively effectively, however there are enough differences (often small and subtle) which can lead to misunderstandings. From personal experience, having been exposed to American english almost daily since 2009, I have learned that when communicating with an American english speaker it is important to take the context of the conversation into account to help navigate any differences and unveil the meaning that the other person is trying to convey. For example something that may be considered rude in British english may be perfectly acceptable in American english. Failing this, we can always ask ?What does that mean??