American spelling vs. British spelling

[Skycaptain]

British and British 

[Jea]

I'm from a non-English speaking country and usually write in British English but not always. I just choose one when I'm starting a project and stick to it. Right now I'm writing a piece of fanfiction for the Divergent trilogy, so I'm writing that in American English but I wrote my MA thesis and all my essays this year also in British English, although I used to prefer American spelling for academic work.

 

And I like using British English online because there are sooo many Americans and I'm not a conforming person. But when I have a very posh British teacher that annoys me, I do like writing in American English... they probably don't know I'm doing this to annoy them but the feeling of satisfaction is worth it

[Pramana]

I hold degrees from both Canadian and American universities, but never really worried about which spelling I used and I don't recall that being an issue. When I marked essays as a teaching assistant in Canada, I didn't care whether or not students used Canadian spelling, especially given that some students were writing in a second language.

[paperbackreader]

I like using z-s rather than s-es (EQUALITY FOR UNDERUSED LETTERS!!); i.e. organise vs organize; but most other general rules I much prefer UK spelling. 

 

PS: One other exception atop head - in UK English, there is a genuine difference between licence and license. To be licensed is to be issued with a licence. WHO THE HELL CAN REMEMBER WHICH IS WHAT WITHOUT GOOGLE - JUST BE PRAGMATIC LIKE THE AMERICANS AND USE THE SAME BLOODY WORD AND BE DONE WITH IT - IT'S FRIGGING UNDERSTOOD IN THE CONTEXT

[Chimeric]

This is only tangentially related but my partner and I have a lot of fun discovering tiny differences between American and English slang. 

 

Although, I did recently learn that while "dogging" is merely annoying in America, it's, uhm... a touch more involved, in the UK.

[paperbackreader]

Hahaha, that sounds fun ! (discovering differences I mean)

Dogging... I remember asking 'what, is that like taking food away when you can't finish it?' 

 

PS : Relevant to your siggy - Have you heard this : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJX9LV5IBZQ

 

[SpaceDustbin]

I'm Dutch and I use British English - that was what we were taught in school, and I guess it stuck

[Cimmerian]

On 3/5/2018 at 5:56 PM, daveb said:

@GracefulI'm sure I've come across both and never knew there was any distinction between them.

 

http://grammarist.com/usage/instinctive-instinctual/

Same. I've heard both and was trying to think of how I use them because they're very similar words and I would use them a little differently but I'd never be able to describe how they were used differently other than that one seemed to be used more in biological animal sciences and the other in human behavior or more casual talk, but that link explains it! xD

[XYZ96]

I usually don't care, there are a few words I like better in british though, like "grey"... there are also some british spelling that I really dislike, like all words that in American English end in "-er", but end in "-re" in british.. 

 

I'm American/learned my English in the US, but I've been living in a non-English speaking country for nearly a decade now.. 

[Tunhope]

When I sent the ms of my novel, Badge of Loyalty, off to the publisher's, one of the questions asked was whether I wanted British or American spellings (and words like pavement/sidewalk). As the story is set in the north of England, and there's a lot of dialogue, I naturally requested British usage. I did worry if that would annoy users of other spellings, but it's obvious from these posts that it wouldn't. That's very comforting to know. Incidentally, the publisher is Welsh so no bias there.

[Tasha the demi squirrel]

It's easiest to stick with the spelling you learn at school lol so as a Brit I stick to British spelling

[daveb]

40 minutes ago, Tunhope said:

When I sent the ms of my novel, Badge of Loyalty, off to the publisher's, one of the questions asked was whether I wanted British or American spellings (and words like pavement/sidewalk). As the story is set in the north of England, and there's a lot of dialogue, I naturally requested British usage. I did worry if that would annoy users of other spellings, but it's obvious from these posts that it wouldn't. That's very comforting to know. Incidentally, the publisher is Welsh so no bias there.

Yeah. Even though I'm American and that's the spelling I use I have no problem with British spelling. In fact, I prefer British spelling (and terminology) when the author is British. It also makes sense to use British spelling and terms when the setting is in the UK (provided it is done well; no Dick Van Dyke Brit-speak! Even though I'm a fan of his work)

[iff]

4 hours ago, Tunhope said:

When I sent the ms of my novel, Badge of Loyalty, off to the publisher's, one of the questions asked was whether I wanted British or American spellings (and words like pavement/sidewalk). As the story is set in the north of England, and there's a lot of dialogue, I naturally requested British usage. I did worry if that would annoy users of other spellings, but it's obvious from these posts that it wouldn't. That's very comforting to know. Incidentally, the publisher is Welsh so no bias there.

From interviews i've read, It is something translators have to bear in mind and bring into consideration in that they usually have to make it accessible to both American and UK readers.

[daveb]

British English and American English aren't that different.

I mean, standard English (leaving side heavy use of slang or dialects) it's not that hard to read either. In my opinion. I think it's not good to dumb things down, which is sometimes what happens. Most people won't be confused by things like color/colour. And it's not too hard to sort out differences in terminology - like the pavement/sidewalk case or the like. Maybe I have read too many books in both versions of English, but I like British books to be in British English. It's one of the reasons I like reading them.

 

I know you are not arguing in favor of dumbing down, @iff. You read all sorts of books! I know some (many?) publishers do think things need to be adjusted for UK vs American readers (like the philosopher's stone/sorcerer's stone case with Harry Potter), but as a reader I have always found that approach rather annoying.

[hopeisnotlost]

I'm american and I just use a mixture of british and american writing

[Yatagarasu]

I prefer American spelling, because it does not have unnecessary letters.

[J. van Deijck]

British ftw.  I'm from a non-English speaking country.

 

although

On 05/03/2018 at 9:03 AM, Ortac said:

 

I do have to admit that when I write English, I do sometimes get American and British mixed up and often I don't even remember which is which.

same for some reason, British people seem to find it easier to talk with me than Americans. no idea why

[Guest]

I use a mixture of both without really thinking about the differences.

[Knight of Cydonia]

Kinda hard to answer as a Canadian because our spelling is mainly a weird blend of the two. Sometimes we agree with the Americans, other times we agree with the British.

[Euna]

British spelling is second-nature to me for some words...I read a lot of Brit lit growing up.  On the other hand, with schoolwork I tried consciously to use American spelling.  So now my spelling muscle memory can go both ways.  I prefer British, but if I use it too much, I fear it may come off as phony.

[Homer]

It's either British spelling or wrong spelling.

[daveb]

20 minutes ago, Homer said:

It's either British spelling or wrong spelling.

Ah, you're one of those, eh?  

[Ortac]

On 22/03/2018 at 6:38 AM, Homer said:

It's either British spelling or wrong spelling.

I am trying to figure out whether you really mean that or are being sarcastic! 

I do hear that attitude a lot from brits, but it seems a strange thing for a German person to say .

[Homer]

No sarcasm here.

[Grumpy Alien]

I agree with @daveb - I find it preferable for British books set in Britain to be in British English. As a child, I didn’t know how many changes were made in the Harry Potter books for simplicity’s sake. Now, it’s annoying to read the American versions because they don’t really make sense. A British person wouldn’t say it like that and it’s jarring when you’re reading. I end up making adjustments in my head, switching words and phrases to sound more authentic to me.

[Ennis]

On 19.3.2018 at 6:21 PM, Yatagarasu said:

I prefer American spelling, because it does not have unnecessary letters.

Um... yes it duz. Many langwijez do, espeshaly french and the like. Rushn iz a grate exepshn.

 

[Yatagarasu]

1 hour ago, Julian of Norwich said:

Um... yes it duz. Many langwijez do, espeshaly french and the like. Rushn iz a grate exepshn.

I noted specifically about different types of spelling in English which is the topic all about 

I don't speak French. Nor do I want to. Russian belongs to a different language family. Much like my native, Polish.

[awkward_one34]

American and it's British spelling all the way. Although my family is from Ireland so all the books I read were from there, with British spelling, so that might have had some influence.

[Larkaloke]

American, but I prefer British spelling in almost all cases. This is likely in no small part because I grew up reading more British books than American books, so that was how I got used to seeing words spelled. 'Gray' in particular looks wrong to me, and I always have to remind myself to leave the 'o' out of words like colour and use 'z' instead of 's' in words like recognise when I'm writing things that others are going to be reviewing. Theatre and centre also make more sense to me than theater and center.

 

I refuse to spell aluminum with an extra 'i', though, so that's at least one exception. I'm sure there are others I'm not bringing to mind. I often simply use whatever spelling I saw first, but that tends to have been the British spelling.

[Maiflower]

I'm American and I prefer British spelling. I mainly use it online because I feel people will judge me if they know I'm from America and spell it "colour". But I do say "grey" and "catalogue", which are usually accepted in America. Oh, and apparently punctuation usually goes outside quotes, which I do all the time because I feel it makes more sense.

 

I always say that Noah Webster ruined English and he's been my enemy for years. Then last year I found out I might be related to him.