# Differences in the spelling of British and American words **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 4, 2006, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differences-in-the-spelling-of-british-and-american-words/359413 "2006-06-04T22:16:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differences-in-the-spelling-of-british-and-american-words/359413/21 "2006-06-05T13:16:01Z")
> [@Polycarp](#): > > It is “bark” in American usage, to the extent that it’s used at all. The story, of course, is the man who made millions developing software and retired young, deciding to indulge his passion for historical sailing ships by manually building one of those vessels. However, his creation was lost at sea on her maiden voyage, because, of course, his barque was far worse than his bytes. 🙂 It was a luckier soul who moored his vessel in a marina in the South Seas, and as it was just in time for Christmas he hired a firm of decorators to come and, aha, “spruce up” his ship for the season. However, there was a similarly-rigged yacht moored elsewhere in the marina and the decorators carelessly set about their work on this one by mistake. So when our hero spotted what was going on, he tipped a small boy to cycle down to the marina and tell the decorators that they were treeing-up the wrong barque. ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differences-in-the-spelling-of-british-and-american-words/359413/22 "2006-06-05T14:05:53Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > And what the heck is ‘storyed’? As I understand, it would be used as in “a two-storyed house.” ---
**Author:** ![Szlater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/90ced4/32.png) [@Szlater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Szlater)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differences-in-the-spelling-of-british-and-american-words/359413/23 "2006-06-05T14:11:50Z")
> [@Lissa](#): > > As I understand, it would be used as in “a two-storyed house.” Wouldn’t that be spelt [‘storeyed’ or ‘storied’](http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/storeyed)? ---
**Author:** ![glee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b5a626/32.png) [@glee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glee)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differences-in-the-spelling-of-british-and-american-words/359413/24 "2006-06-05T18:17:35Z")
> [@Polycarp](#): > > I’ve seen English people write “gaol” – conversion to “jail” may be a regionalism. I think gaol is old-fashioned. I remember an Oscar Wilde poem about Reading Gaol. Also there’s a road in my historic market town called Gaol Street, but the local prison is a jail. > [@Malacandra](#): > > The spelling “realize” is correct in English, and was a key plot point in an Inspector Morse story - he realized that a key suspect would not have spelled the word “realise”, as a man with his educational background would have viewed it as an illiteracy. Surely ‘realise’ is typical English? I would accept realize, but assume the writer was American… ---
**Author:** ![glee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b5a626/32.png) [@glee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glee)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differences-in-the-spelling-of-british-and-american-words/359413/25 "2006-06-05T18:19:38Z")
> [@Lissa](#): > > As I understand, it would be used as in “a two-storyed house.” I would say that I live in a two storey house. Or my house has two storeys. (Also we Brits have ground floors, beneath the first floor…) ---
**Author:** ![Rayne\_Man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/df705f/32.png) [@Rayne\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rayne_Man)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differences-in-the-spelling-of-british-and-american-words/359413/26 "2006-06-05T18:25:24Z")
There is also a Gaol Lane in Sudbury, Suffolk. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differences-in-the-spelling-of-british-and-american-words/359413/27 "2006-06-05T18:54:22Z")
The British spelling I _love_ is **connexion**. We only have boring old _connection_ here in the States, and I think that odd “x” is fascinating. The British spelling I can do without is “metre”. By itself it’s OK – that wayward “-tre” is interesting if nonintuitive, like the one at the end of “theater”. ut then you can run into confusion whether you should use “-metre” or “-meter” at the end of a word (Ohmmeter? Ohmmetre? Kilometer? Kilometre?) Better just to have all of them end in “-meter” and not worry about it. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differences-in-the-spelling-of-british-and-american-words/359413/28 "2006-06-05T19:15:25Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > The British spelling I _love_ is **connexion**. We only have boring old _connection_ here in the States, and I think that odd “x” is fascinating. Huh? Where have you seen it spelt that way? ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differences-in-the-spelling-of-british-and-american-words/359413/29 "2006-06-05T19:17:55Z")
> [@](#): > > Huh? Where have you seen it spelt that way? Several Penguin editions I have. I don’t recall which ones, though. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differences-in-the-spelling-of-british-and-american-words/359413/30 "2006-06-05T19:29:26Z")
Aha, ‘connexion’ is the Old French spelling. And does perhaps crop up in old editions, or in older literature itself. But it’s not everyday usage. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differences-in-the-spelling-of-british-and-american-words/359413/31 "2006-06-05T19:31:45Z")
Well, they were Penguin editions, but “connexion” wasn’t appearing in olf text – it was on the cover blurbs and in the forwards as well. Someone at Penguin must love the old forms. ---
**Author:** ![Rayne\_Man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/df705f/32.png) [@Rayne\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rayne_Man)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differences-in-the-spelling-of-british-and-american-words/359413/32 "2006-06-05T19:35:33Z")
The youth employment organization here in Nottinghamshire is called [Connexions](http://www.cnxnotts.co.uk/) So that spelling is still around. ---
**Author:** ![seosamh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce7236/32.png) [@seosamh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/seosamh)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differences-in-the-spelling-of-british-and-american-words/359413/33 "2006-06-05T21:13:19Z")
We never, ever use Defense - it’s always Defence - but do differentiate between Licence (the noun) and License (the verb). The same goes for Practice and Practise. However, since nobody bothers about anything in schools any longer, I bet you a shilling that these quirks will be gone within 25 years. (See you in 2031.) ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differences-in-the-spelling-of-british-and-american-words/359413/34 "2006-06-05T21:37:06Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Someone at Penguin must love the old forms. Probably! > [@Rayne Man](#): > > The youth employment organization here in Nottinghamshire is called [Connexions](http://www.cnxnotts.co.uk/) So that spelling is still around. Naff attempts at branding don’t count 😉 > [@seosamh](#): > > We never, ever use Defense - it’s always Defence - but do differentiate between Licence (the noun) and License (the verb). The same goes for Practice and Practise. However, since nobody bothers about anything in schools any longer, I bet you a shilling that these quirks will be gone within 25 years. (See you in 2031.) Will anyone shed a tear at the passing of these distinctions? Although I know they exist, I’m unable to know which way around they go without looking it up. And out of interest, do you only ever use ‘quote’ as a verb? ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differences-in-the-spelling-of-british-and-american-words/359413/35 "2006-06-05T21:37:57Z")
> [@Wendell Wagner](#): > > Here’s a large but disorganized list of words with different spellings in the U.S. and the U.K.: > [http://www.xpdnc.com/moreinfo/orlabour.html](http://www.xpdnc.com/moreinfo/orlabour.html) The person who created the list should be spanked. ameba? kidnaped? nite? thru? tho?? Those are lazy-ass barely literate spellings, not the official US spellings! God, I’m surprised glo, razr, ludacris, korn, staind, and lite aren’t on the list too… ---
**Author:** ![seosamh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce7236/32.png) [@seosamh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/seosamh)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differences-in-the-spelling-of-british-and-american-words/359413/36 "2006-06-05T22:33:26Z")
> [@GorillaMan](#): > > Probably! > Naff attempts at branding don’t count 😉 > Will anyone shed a tear at the passing of these distinctions? Although I know they exist, I’m unable to know which way around they go without looking it up. And out of interest, do you only ever use ‘quote’ as a verb? Quote is the verb; quotation is the noun. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differences-in-the-spelling-of-british-and-american-words/359413/37 "2006-06-05T22:37:35Z")
> [@seosamh](#): > > Quote is the verb; quotation is the noun. So, I rephrase my question, do you never ever use ‘quote’ as a noun? Ever? Are you sure? ---
**Author:** ![Blake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a9a28c/32.png) [@Blake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blake)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2006, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differences-in-the-spelling-of-british-and-american-words/359413/38 "2006-06-05T23:44:54Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > But then you can run into confusion whether you should use “-metre” or “-meter” at the end of a word (Ohmmeter? Ohmmetre? Kilometer? Kilometre?) You can’t run into confusion if you remember a single simple rule: If it is a measuring _device_ it is a meter. If it is a _unit_ of linear measurement it is a metre. So a “kilometer” is a device for measuring kilos and an “ohmmetre” is a linear ohm (whatever they may be). That distinction is very handy, if not indispenible, since there are measuring devices that share common or similar names with the unit of measurment. I once had to work with a sound measuring device, brand name “Decimeter”. The ability to clearly distinguish between something like a Decimeter and a Decimetre in writing is very handy. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2006, 7:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differences-in-the-spelling-of-british-and-american-words/359413/39 "2006-06-06T07:15:00Z")
> [@Szlater](#): > > Wouldn’t that be spelt [‘storeyed’ or ‘storied’](http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/storeyed)? Yes. Gosh, that list is annoying. ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2006, 7:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differences-in-the-spelling-of-british-and-american-words/359413/40 "2006-06-06T07:41:29Z")
> [@GorillaMan](#): > > - “BSc”, not “B.Sc.”. What about SSc? 😃 Paging Mr. Rimmer, Will Mr. Rimmer of the Jupiter Mining Corporation vessel _Red Dwarf_ please report to reception? Gaol is still used in Australia in an official capacity (for example, the Centrelink forms you have to fill out to get the dole/pension/whatever ask if you’ve been imprisoned in the last fortnight, including “a gaol, watch house, or other detention facility”) but otherwise it’s generally an anachronistic term little used these days in print. The “-tre” ending makes more sense if you’ve at least a passing knowledge of French, as English has a number of loanwords from French. Personally, I’ve always thought “Meter” (as in “Kilometer” or “centimeter”) just looks _wrong_, and smacks of some American deciding he didn’t like the way a perfectly good word was spelt and changing it arbitrarily… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differences-in-the-spelling-of-british-and-american-words/359413.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differences-in-the-spelling-of-british-and-american-words/359413.md?page=3)