http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_and_British_English_spelling_differencesDifference Between American and British English Spellings:Contour, Velour, Paramour and troubadour, glamorous same in both UK and US BritishAmerican

ColourColor

LabourLabor

FlavourFlavor

OffenceOffense

PaediatricPediatric

ModellingModeling

FulfilFulfill

ParalelParallel

AgeingAging

SizeableSizable

HarbourHarbor

HonourHonor (now still used in uk)

HumourHumor

NeighbourNeighbor

Rumour Rumor

FavourtieFavorite

HonourableHonorable

BehaviourismBehaviorism

NeighbourhoodNeighborhood

SavourySavory

HumourlessHumorless

ArmourArmor

CalibreCaliber

GoitreGoiter

CentreCenter

CentringCentering

TheatreTheater

MetreMeter

LitreLiter

Fibre or FibresFiber or Fibers

LustreLuster

ManoeuvreManeuver

MeagreMeager

MitreMiter

NitreNiter

Ochre

Reconnoitre

Sabre

Saltpetre

Sombre

Spectre

Defence Defense

OffenceOffense

PretencePretense

Analyse

Catalyse

Hydrolyse

Paralyse

AnaemiaAnemia

Anaesthesia

Caesium

Diarrhoea

Encyclopaedia

Faeces

Foetal

Gynaecology

Haemophilia

leukaemia

oesophagus

oestrogen

orthopaedic

palaeontology

archaeologyArcheology

Haemoglobin

Palaestra

Foetus

Counsellor

Cruellest

Quarrelled

Signalling

FuellingFueling

DialledDialed

EquallingEqualing

InitialledInitialed

WollenWolen

TranquilliseTranquillize more commonly, tranquilize can be

DuellistDuelist

MedallistMedalist

PanellistPanelist

MarvellousMarvelous

LibellousLibelous

CalliperCaliper

WilfulWillful

FulfilmentFulfillment

InstalmentInstallment

AppalAppall

ThraldomThralldom

RouteingRouting

Likeable Likable

LiveableLivable

RateableRatable

SaleableSalable

UnshakeableUnshakable

AeroplaneAirplane

AluminiumAluminum

ArseAss

BehoveBehoove

BogeymanBoogeyman or Boogerman

BrentBrant

CarburettorCarburetor

CharivariCharivari, Shivaree

EyrieAerie

FilletFilet, Fillet

FuroreFuror

GrottyGrody

HaulierHauler

JemmyJimmy

OrientatedOriented

PernicketyPersnickety

QuinQuint

ScallywagScalawag

SledgeSled

TitbitTidbit

WhilstWhile

AnnexeAnnex

AxeAx, Axe

Camomile, ChamomileChamomile, Camomile

CaratKarat

ChilliChile, Chili

ChoirChoir, Quire

Cipher, CypherCipher

Coulter, ColterColter

CosyCozy

DoughnutDonut, Doughnut

GaugeGauge, Gage

GauntletGauntlet, Gantlet

GlycerineGlycerin, Glycerine

GreyGray

GrilleGrill, Grille

HearkenHarken

Jail, GaolJail

IdyllIdyll, Idyl

KerbCurb

KilogrammeKilogram

LiquoriceLicorice

MouldMold

MidriffMidriff, Midrif

MolluscMollusk, Mollusc

MoultMolt

Neurone, NeuronNeuron

OmeletteOmelet, Omelette

ScepticSkeptic

Rack and ruinWrack and ruin

PrimaevalPrimeval

SmoulderSmolder

Slue, SlewSlew, Slue

Sports, SportSports

StoreyStory

SulphateSulfate, Sulphate

ThroughThrough, Thru

TyreTire

Yoghurt, YogurtYogurt, Yoghurt

MattMatte

In the StreetOn the Street

Talk to Talk with

Opposite toOpposite of

Apart fromApart from, Aside from

forwards,towards,rightwardsforward,toward,rightward

MathsMath

Field hockeyIce hockey

Invigilators, in UK proctor mean student discipline at the University of Oxford or Cambridgeproctors(or(exam) supervisors)

MarksGrades

Stands for electionRuns for office

Turnoverrevenueorsales

Dual carriagewayDivided highway

U may be dropped in British for example, honorary, honorific, honorist, vigorous, humorous, laborious and invigorate U may be dropped or kept in UK colo(u)r In British English, some words from French, Latin or Greek end with a consonant followed by-re. In American English, most of these words have the ending-er. Examples are mentioned above in the table. Some words in British English remained same like american e.g., chapter,December,disaster,enter,filter,letter,member,minister,monster,November,number,October,oyster,powder,proper,September,sober, tender, thermometer, barometer, anger,mother,timber, water, danger,quarterandriver. The ending-cre, as inacre,lucre,massacreandmediocre, is used in both British and American English. Some place names in the United States use Centre in their names. Examples include theStone briar Centremall, the cities of Rockville CentreandCentreville,Centre CountyandCentre College. Sometimes, these places were named before spelling changes but more often the spelling merely serves as an affectation. In BrE, e dropped for other derivations, for example,central,fibrous,spectral. entryandentrancecome fromenter, remained same in BrE like AmE AmE used words glamour and glamorous the most , sometimes, glamor may be used The-erspellings are recognized as minor variants in Canada, partly due to American influence, Rigour has auin the UK; the medical termrigor does not have, "rigorous", typically spelled without a "u" in both AmE and UK. Words with the ending-irior,-erioror similar are spelled thus everywhere. Earlier, most Canadian newspapers chose to use the American usage of-orendings, originally to save time, However, in the 1990s, the majority of Canadian newspapers officially updated their spelling policies to the British usage of-our. Canada have supported the use of the Oxford English Dictionary rather the American Webster's Dictionary. -ouris now almost universal in Australia.New Zealand English, while sharing some words and syntax withAustralian English, follows British usage. -CE, -Se: Foradvice/adviseanddevice/devise, American English and British English both keep the noun/verb distinction (where the pronunciation is -[s] for the noun and -[z] for the verb). Forlicence/licenseorpractice/practise, British English also keeps the noun/verb distinction with s pronunciation while AmE useslicenseandpracticefor both nouns and verbs with s pronunciation. Derivatives such asdefensive,offensive, andpretensionare always thus spelled in both systems. Australian and Canadian usage generally follows British. -ise, -ize: American spelling avoids-iseendings in words like organize, realize and recognize British spelling mostly uses-ise, while-izeis also used but less (organise /organize, realise/realize,recognise/recognize): In Canada, the-izeending is standard, whereas in Ireland, Australia and New Zealand-isespellings strongly prevail: the-ise form is preferred in Australian English. A house may beburglarizedin North America, but in the UK it would beburgled, notburglarised. British and other Commonwealth English uses the ending-logueand-goguewhile American English usually uses the ending-logand-gog for words likeanalog(ue),catalog(ue),dialog(ue),monolog(ue),homolog(ue), etc. American English retains the-gue on the wordstongue,vagueandleague. aeandoe: In Canada,eis usually preferred overoeand often overaebutoeandaeare sometimes found in the academic and scientific writing as well as government publications (for example the fee schedule of theOntario Health Insurance Plan). In Australia,encyclopediaandmedievalare spelled witherather thanae, as with American usage Manoeuvreis the only spelling in Australia, and the most common one in Canada, wheremaneuverandmanoeuverare also sometimes found Double Consonants: British English doubling is used for all inflections (-ed,-ing,-er,-est) and for the noun suffixes-erand-or.Endings-ize/-ise,-ism,-ist,-ishusually do not double thelin British English; for example,normalise,dualism,novelist, anddevilish. The words Libellee, bimetallism, cancellation, chancellor,crystallize, excellent, tonsillitis, raillery compelled,excelling,propelled,rebelling, revealing,fooling and hurling remain same in both AmE & BrE. Canadian and Australian English mostly follow British usage. Cases where a singlelnevertheless occurs in both American and British English includenull annul,annulment;till until. In the UK,llis sometimes used indistil(l),instil(l),enrol(l), andenthral(l)ment, and often inenthral(l), all of which are always spelled this way in American usage.In both American and British usages, words normally spelled-llusually drop the secondlwhen used as prefixes or suffixes, for example full useful,handful;all almighty,altogether;well welfare,welcome;chill chilblain. Dropped e: Both forms of English keep the silentein the wordsdyeing,singeing, andswingeing (in the sense ofdye,singe, and swinge), to distinguish from dying, singing,swinging(in the sense ofdie,sing, andswing). In contrast, the verbbatheand the British verbbathboth formbathing. Both forms of English vary fortingeandtwinge; both prefercringing,hinging, lunging,syringing. Before-able, British English preferslikeable where American practice prefers to drop the-e; but both British and American English preferbreathable,curable,datable,lovable,movable,notable,provable,quotable,scalable,solvable,usable, believableand decidable. Both systems keep the silente in some words such as in traceable,cacheable,changeable; both usually keep the "e" after-dge, as inknowledgeable,unbridgeable, and unabridgeable. In the UK, in the practice of law, wherejudgmentis standard. This also holds for abridgmentandacknowledgment. Both systems preferfledglingtofledgeling, butridgelingtoridgling. Bothacknowledgment,acknowledgement,abridgmentandabridgementare used in Australia; the shorter forms are endorsed by Australian governments. The word "blue" always drops the "e" when forming "bluish" or "bluing". Past tenses Differences: The past tense of the verb "to dive" is most commonly found as "dived" in British, Australian and New Zealand English. "Dove" is usually used in its place in American and Canadian English. Both terms are understood, and may be found either in minority use or in regional dialect. The past participle and past tense of the verb "to get" is most commonly found as "got" in British and New Zealand English. "Gotten" is also used in its place in American and Canadian, and occasionally in Australian English, as a past participle, though "got" is widely used as a past tense. The main exception is in the phrase "ill-gotten", which is widely used in British, Australian and New Zealand English. Both terms are understood, and may be found either in minority use or in regional dialect. This does not affect "forget" and "beget", whose past participles are "forgotten" and "begotten" in all varieties. Litas the past tense oflightis more common thanlightedin the UK; American English useslitto mean "set afire" / "kindled" / "made to emit light" butlightedto mean "cast light upon" (e.g., "The stagehandlightedthe set and thenlita cigarette."). British English favoursfittedas the past tense offitgenerally, whereas AmE usesfittedfor the sense of having made an object conform to an unchanged object that it surrounds (e.g., "fittedX around Y") AmE prefersfit("The clothes [past-]fit."; "The clothes [past-]fitme well."). The past tense ofspit"expectorate" isspatin BrE, whereas spitorspatin AmE, sometimes spat may be used for example, "He spat out the name with a sneer." The past participle ofsawis normallysawnin BrE andsawedin AmE (as insawn-off/sawed-off shotgun) The formgottenis never used in BrE but Gottenis also typically used in AmE as the past participle forphrasal verbsusingget, such asget off, get on,get into,get up, andget around:If you hadn't gotten up so late, you might not have gotten into this mess. AmE, but not BrE, hasforgotas a less common alternative toforgottenfor the past participle offorget.

Different spellings for Different Meanings: dependantordependent(noun): British dictionaries distinguish betweendependent(adjective) anddependant(noun). In the US,dependentis usual for both noun and adjective, regardless ofdependantalso being an acceptable variant for the noun form in the US discordisk: Traditionally,discused to be British anddiskAmerican.althoughdiskis earlier. In computing,discis used for optical discs (e.g. a CD, Compact Disc; DVD, Digital Versatile/Video Disc), by choice of the group that coined and trademarked the name Compact Disc, whilediskis used for products using magnetic storage (e.g.hard disksorfloppy disks, also known as diskettes) these spellings are used in both the US and the Commonwealth. Solid-state devices also use the spelling "disk" In Canada,programprevails, and theCanadian Oxford Dictionarymakes no meaning-based distinction between it andprogramme. However, some Canadian government documents nevertheless useprogrammefor all meanings of the word and also to match the spelling of the French equivalent. tonneorton: In the UK, Australia, Canada and New Zealand, the spellingtonnerefers to the metric unit (1000kilograms), whereas in the US the same unit is called ametric ton.

Compounds and Hyphens:British English often prefers hyphenated compounds, such ascounter-attack, whereas American English discourages the use of hyphens in compounds where there is no compelling reason, socounterattackis much more common.any moreoranymore: In sense "any longer", the single-word form is usual in North America and Australia but unusual elsewhere, at least in formal writing.or everorforever: Traditional British English usage makes a distinction betweenfor ever, meaning for eternity (or a very long time into the future), as in "If you are waiting for income tax to be abolished you will probably have to wait for ever";near byornearby: Some British writers make the distinction between the adverbialnear by, which is written as two words, as in, "No one was near by"; and the adjectivalnearby, which is written as one, as in, "The nearby house".[185]In American English, the one-word spelling is standard for both forms.

Acronyms and Abbreviations: Acronymspronounced as words are often written intitle caseby Commonwealth writers, but usually asupper caseby Americans: for example,Nasa / NASAorUnicef / UNICEF. This does not apply to abbreviations that are pronounced as individual letters (referred to by some as "initialisms"), such as US,IBM, or PRC (the People's Republic of China), which are always written as upper case. However, sometimes title case is still used in the UK, such as Pc (Police Constable). The past tense and past participle ofdwellandkneelare more commonlydweltandkneltin both standards, withdwelledandkneeledas common variants in the US but not in the UK. Contractions, where the final letter is present, are often written in British English without full stops/periods (Mr,Mrs,Dr,St, Ave).Abbreviationswhere the final letter is not present generally do take full stops/periods (such asvol.,etc.,i.e.,ed.). British English shares this convention with the French:Mlle,Mme,Dr,Ste, butM.forMonsieur. In American and Canadian English, abbreviations likeSt.,Ave.,Mr.,Mrs.,Ms.,Dr., andJr., always require periods. Some initials are usually upper case in the US but lower case in the UK:liter/litreand its compounds ("2L or 25mL" vs "2l or 25ml");andante meridiem and post meridiem(10P.M.or10PMvs10p.m.or10pm).Both AM/PM and a.m./p.m. are acceptable in American English, though AM/PM is more common.

Punctuation: British usage, at one stage in the recent past, preferred single quotation marks for ordinary use, but double quotation marks are again now increasingly common; American usage has always preferred double quotation marks, as does Canadian, Australian, and New Zealand English. American English still is, to put full stops (periods) and commas inside the quotation marks, irrespective of the sense. British English has moved away from this style while American English has kept it. Formal British English practice requires a full stop to be put inside the quotation marks if the quoted item is a full sentence that ends where the main sentence ends, but it is common to see the stop outside the ending quotation marks.Grammar:1. Noun: In British English (BrE),collective nounscan take either singular (formal agreement) or plural (notional agreement) verb forms, e.g., a committee was appointedorthe committee were unable to agree. The termthe Governmentalways takes a plural verb in British civil service convention, like Oliver's Army are on their way. Staffactually combine with plural verbs most of the time. In American English (AmE), collective nouns are almost always singular in construction:the committee was unable to agree.BrE:The Clashare a well-known band; AmE:The Clash is a well-known band.BrE:Spainare the champions; AmE:Spain is the champion. Proper nouns that are plural in form take a plural verb in both AmE and BrE; for example,The Beatlesare a well-known band;The Seahawksare the champions, with one major exception: largely for historical reasons, in American English, the United States isis almost universal. This is due to the growth in federal control over state governments following the American Civil War(cf.the inclusion of the term "indivisible" in thePledge of Allegianceto the United States flag); before this, the construction"the United States are"was more common.

2. Verb: The past tense and past participle of the verbslearn,spoil,spell,burn,dream,smell,spill,leap, and others, can be either irregular (learnt,spoilt, etc.) or regular (learned,spoiled, etc.). In BrE, both irregular and regular forms are current, but some words (such assmeltandleapt)are irregular. In most accents of AmE, the irregular forms are never or rarely used (except forburnt,leapt anddreamt).3. Use of tenses: BrE uses thepresent perfectto talk about an event in the recent past and with the wordsalready,justand yet. while AmE uses simple past e.g., BrE: "I have just arrived home" or "I've just arrived home." AmE: "I just arrived home." BrE: "I have already eaten" or "I've already eaten." AmE: "I already ate." Similarly AmE occasionally replaces thepast perfectwith thesimple past In BrE,have gotorhavecan be used for possession andhave got toandhave tocan be used for themodal of necessity.AmE informally usesgotas a verb for these meaningsfor example,I got two cars,I got to go. Inconditional sentences, US spoken usage often substituteswouldandwould have(usually shortened to[I]'dand would've) for the simple past (If you'd leave now, you'd be on time. /If I would have [would've] cooked the pie we could have [could've] had it for lunch)., in BrE would can usually be interpreted as a modal use ofwould:If you would listen to me once in a while, you might learn something.) Thesubjunctive moodis regularly used in AmE inmandative clauses(as inThey suggested that he apply for the job). In BrE, this usage declined in the 20th century in favour of constructions such asThey suggested that he should apply for the job(or even, more ambiguously,They suggested that he applied for the job).

4. Verbal auxiliaries: Shall(as opposed towill) is more commonly used by the British than by Americans. However, expressions likeI should be happyare rather formal even in BrE Theperiphrastic future"be going to" is about twice as frequent in AmE as in BrE.

5. Pro-predicate "do" Use of "do" as a pro-predicate is almost exclusively British usage. example:"Did Frank love nature or fair play?" "Why, he must have done." where the AmE response would be "Why, he must have." omitting the form of "do". The BrE usage is commonly found with all forms of "do", for example: I have done. I haven't done. I will do. I might have done. I could do. I could have done. I should do. I should have done.

6. Complementation: "prevent/stop someonefromdoing something is used in AmE and "prevent/stop someone doing something" is well established in BrE, Some verbs can take either a to + infinitive construction or agerundconstruction (for example,to start to do something/to start doing something). For example, the gerund is more common: In AmE than BrE, withstart, begin, omit, enjoy; In BrE than AmE, withlove,like, intend.

7. Presence or absence of syntactic elements: A speaker of AmE may say I'll go take a bath, BrE speakers would sayI'll goandhave a bath. Thus, where a speaker of AmE may saycome see what I bought, BrE speakers would saycome and see what I've bought. The contraction 'n' for and is often used in AmE such as "come 'n' get it" and "wait 'n' see". Use of prepositions before days denoted by a single word. Where British people would sayShe resigned on Thursday, Americans often sayShe resigned Thursday, but both forms are common in American usage. Occasionally the preposition is also absent when referring to months:I'll be here December In the UK,fromis used with single dates and times more often than in the United States. Where British speakers and writers may saythe new museum will be open from Tuesday, Americans most likely saythe new museum will be open startingoron Tuesday. A variation or alternative of this is the mostly Americanthe play opens Tuesdayand the mostly Britishthe play opens on Tuesday. Americanlegislatorsand lawyers always use the prepositionofbetween the name of a legislative act and the year it was passed; their British counterparts do not. CompareAmericans with Disabilities Act of 1990toDisability Discrimination Act 1995.8. The Definite Article: BrE hasinhospital(as a patient) andat university(as a student), where AmE requiresinthehospitalandattheuniversity(though AmE does allowin collegeandin school). When the implied roles of patient or student do not apply, the definite article is used in both dialects. However, both variations drop the definite article withrush hour:at rush hour(BrE)/in rush hour(AmE). BrE distinguishesin future("from now on") fromin the future("at some future time"); AmE usesin the futurefor both senses. AmE omits, and BrE requires, the definite article in a few expressions such astell (the) time,play (the) piano. In BrE, numbered highways usually take the definite article (for example "the M25", "the A14"); in America they usually do not ("I-495", "Route 66"). Upstate New York, SouthernCalifornia Englishand Arizona are exceptions, where "the 33", "the 5" or "the 10" are the standard. A similar pattern is followed for named roads (for example, Strand in London is almost always referred to astheStrand), but in America, there are local variations and older American highways tend to follow the British pattern ("the Boston Post Road"). AmE distinguishesin back of[behind] fromintheback of; the former is unknown in the UK and liable to misinterpretation as the latter. Both, however, distinguishin front offromin the front of. Dates usually include a definite article in UK spoken English, such as "theeleventh of July", or "Julytheeleventh"; American speakers most commonly say "July eleventh" and the form "July eleven" is now occasionally used by American speakers.

In the UKdrink drivingis against the law, while in the US, where the action is also outlawed, the term isdrunk driving. The legal term in the US isdriving while intoxicated(DWI) ordriving under the influence of alcohol(DUI). The equivalent legal phrase in the UK isdrunk in charge of a motor vehicle(DIC) or more commonlydriving with excess alcohol.

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