# Gray or Grey? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 31, 2007, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gray-or-grey/406233 "2007-05-31T19:47:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Indygrrl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@Indygrrl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indygrrl)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2007, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gray-or-grey/406233/21 "2007-05-31T21:03:45Z")
Grey. ---
**Author:** ![Fretful\_Porpentine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fretful_porpentine/32/2873_2.png) [@Fretful\_Porpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fretful_Porpentine)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2007, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gray-or-grey/406233/22 "2007-05-31T21:31:50Z")
Grey (and curiously, I have exactly the same subconscious associations with the two spellings as **delphica** and **dangermom** ). ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2007, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gray-or-grey/406233/23 "2007-05-31T21:39:09Z")
[QUOTE=twickster] The English/American distinction is correct [/QUOTE] Given the evidence already in the post, this is a rather sweeping statement (Lady Jane Grey?). Chambers says: _“grey or (especially N Amer) gray”_. Cambridge goes for _“grey, US usually gray”_. When even dictionaries can’t settle on a single answer, we’re going to struggle to arrive at one here! At least we can agree that there’s some difference in usage between the countries, but it’s not clear-cut. > **[chambersharrap.co.uk](http://www.chambersharrap.co.uk/chambers/features/chref/chref.py/main?query=grey)** [http://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=34429&dict=CALD](http://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=34429&dict=CALD) ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2007, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gray-or-grey/406233/24 "2007-05-31T22:26:01Z")
Grey ---
**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:** [May 31, 2007, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gray-or-grey/406233/25 "2007-05-31T22:33:38Z")
I use ‘grey’, because that’s the conventional British spelling. I even use it when I’m describing something that’s American and grey (such as a squirrel). The only time I’ll use ‘Gray’ is as a proper noun (or, I suppose in conversations like this one), but of course ‘Grey’ can also be a proper noun. ---
**Author:** ![Frustrated\_Wonderer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a4c791/32.png) [@Frustrated\_Wonderer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frustrated_Wonderer)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2007, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gray-or-grey/406233/26 "2007-05-31T22:40:11Z")
I use “grey”. It looks cooler. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2007, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gray-or-grey/406233/27 "2007-05-31T23:06:51Z")
Gray. To be American and use the British spelling smacks of pretention. And I’m pretentious enough already! ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2007, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gray-or-grey/406233/28 "2007-05-31T23:17:43Z")
Grey. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2007, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gray-or-grey/406233/29 "2007-05-31T23:27:50Z")
I had to think about it, but I’m pretty sure I usually use _grey_. ---
**Author:** ![ouryL](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ouryl/32/6067_2.png) [@ouryL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ouryL)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2007, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gray-or-grey/406233/30 "2007-06-01T00:00:18Z")
Joel Gray, of course. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Rhiannon8404](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rhiannon8404/32/17929_2.png) [@Rhiannon8404](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhiannon8404)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2007, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gray-or-grey/406233/31 "2007-06-01T00:04:33Z")
[QUOTE=Fretful Porpentine] Grey (and curiously, I have exactly the same subconscious associations with the two spellings as **delphica** and **dangermom** ). [/QUOTE] Grey, and me, too. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2007, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gray-or-grey/406233/32 "2007-06-01T00:05:26Z")
Grey here. Just seems natural somehow, though I’ve known a few people with the surname Gray. ---
**Author:** ![Projammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/projammer/32/559_2.png) [@Projammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Projammer)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2007, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gray-or-grey/406233/33 "2007-06-01T00:08:21Z")
It just depends on my mood when I’m writing and whether I can annoy someone by using one or the other. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2007, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gray-or-grey/406233/34 "2007-06-01T00:37:11Z")
Off-black. ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2007, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gray-or-grey/406233/35 "2007-06-01T02:17:03Z")
Interchangeable. I do quality testing for the automotive industry, and I see both spellings frequently. I’ll spell it however the customer does. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2007, 8:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gray-or-grey/406233/36 "2007-06-01T08:41:41Z")
Grey. For years I used it to demonstrate the suckiness of computer spellcheckers, too. ---
**Author:** ![Nancarrow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c37758/32.png) [@Nancarrow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nancarrow)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2007, 9:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gray-or-grey/406233/37 "2007-06-01T09:01:01Z")
I solve two of the great problems of our age in one stroke. I miss out the ambiguous letter. (oh, come on! no-one else saw that? :D) ---
**Author:** ![Mbossa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@Mbossa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mbossa)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2007, 9:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gray-or-grey/406233/38 "2007-06-01T09:28:35Z")
[QUOTE=Nancarrow] I solve two of the great problems of our age in one stroke. I miss out the ambiguous letter. (oh, come on! no-one else saw that? :D) [/QUOTE] Now we just need to find 11 more ways to spell it and we’ll have 14 kinds of grey in a faultlessly performing dictionary. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2007, 10:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gray-or-grey/406233/39 "2007-06-01T10:50:29Z")
So, question. You’re at High School in the US and you hand in a written essay that uses the spelling ‘grey’ to describe the colour. Would you get corrected by teacher? Because if I’d ever spelt ‘gray’ in my english High School, it would’ve been red marker pens at dawn. ---
**Author:** ![Dunderman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecb155/32.png) [@Dunderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunderman)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2007, 10:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gray-or-grey/406233/40 "2007-06-01T10:53:11Z")
I thought “gray” was British. You live and learn. Anyway, I use whichever one feels right at the time, much like “realize” and “realise”. My usual eidetic memory for spelling breaks down when it comes to those particular words. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gray-or-grey/406233.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gray-or-grey/406233.md?page=3)