BRITISH vs AMERICAN English | Everything you need to know! | US vs UK English easy explanation

Ajouté : 2026-05-10

[00:00:00]British versus American English.

[00:00:03]Everything you need to know.

[00:00:05]Hello and welcome to English Speaking 360. My name is Josh. I'm from Canada and I speak American English.

[00:00:14]There are two main types of English, British English and American English.

[00:00:20]Which is better? Both are correct. One is not better than the other. However, many of you might face this dilemma.

[00:00:30]Should you study British English or American English? The answer is simple.

[00:00:36]If you're moving to the US, then focus on American English. If you're moving to the UK, focus on British English. But if you're not moving, then you should understand both because native speakers do understand both equally easily. and you should strive to do the same. Today I will try to help you understand both.

[00:01:02]English is a global language. How many English speakers are there worldwide?

[00:01:07]Can you guess? There are 1.5 billion English speakers in the world.

[00:01:15]How many native speakers though? 390 million native speakers of English around the world. But there are 1.1 billion second language speakers of English around the world and that is you. But maybe you wonder about the native speakers. Do they speak British or American English? That's a great question. Here's the answer. Out of the 390 million native speakers, 260 million live in the United States. So they speak American English. In Canada, 21 million native English speakers. We also speak American English. In the United Kingdom, 60 million people speak British English.

[00:02:03]In Australia, 18 million people speak Australian English, but Australian English is Britishbased.

[00:02:11]So, it is closer to British English than to American English. And finally, in New Zealand, people speak New Zealand English, but it is also British-based, so it is closer to British English. So there you have it. Around the world, there are more native speakers of American English.

[00:02:33]What is the biggest difference between British and American English? The biggest difference is pronunciation.

[00:02:41]And the pronunciation tells you what type of English people speak. There are three important sound differences. Let me show you. Pronunciation is the biggest difference. Here's a basic sentence. Now, if you speak American English, you will read it like this. My little brother can't dance. However, if you speak British English, you will read it in a very different way. You will read it like this. My little brother can't dance. I'm sorry for my British accent. It's not great, but you can see the big difference here. Let's dig a little deeper.

[00:03:27]The first sound difference is the R sound. In American English, the R is strong, so you will say car. However, in British English, the R is soft or even silent, so car becomes car, my car. The second word park but in British English park hard for for sister.

[00:04:06]The R sound is a very big difference between American English and British English.

[00:04:12]Now you try it. Here's a sentence and I want you to try to read it first in American English. You ready? Let's do it. My sister parked her car.

[00:04:25]Did you do it? I hope you did it. It's very important to practice now for British English. My sister parked her car. Much softer in British English.

[00:04:36]Now, let's go with the second sound difference, the T sound. In American English, the T sounds like a soft D. So we say water.

[00:04:48]We don't say water. We say water. In British English, however, it is a clear t sound. So you will hear water. Water.

[00:05:00]In American English, better. In British English, better in American English, city. In British English, city butter becomes butter. Little becomes little.

[00:05:17]Are you starting to understand the difference in pronunciation? Now, let's practice. So, now you try it. Here's your sentence. Let's try in American English first. The city water is better.

[00:05:31]The city The city water is better. In British English, the city water is better. The city water is better.

[00:05:42]Excellent. And the third sound that we have to investigate together is the A sound. In American English, the A sound is a short A. For example, bath. The A sound is very short. Bath. But in British English, it is a long a. Bath.

[00:06:03]Bath.

[00:06:05]Can't dance.

[00:06:11]Dance.

[00:06:13]Grass.

[00:06:15]Grass.

[00:06:17]Last.

[00:06:18]Lost. So in British English, it sounds like you're adding the letter H after the A to make it longer.

[00:06:27]Now you try it. Here's your sentence. In American English, you can't dance on the grass. You can't dance on the grass. But in British English, you can't dance on the grass. You can't dance on the grass.

[00:06:46]British English speakers are going to hate me for that. What is the second biggest difference between British and American English? It is vocabulary. Only a few words though, not that many words are different. Here are 10 words that you must know. In American English, that is called an apartment. In British English, it is a flat. So in American English, you would say he lives in a nice apartment downtown. But in British English, you would say he lives in a nice flat downtown. And that is a huge difference actually because in American English a flat is a flat tire. It's not an apartment.

[00:07:34]Here's another one. In American English, that's an elevator. In British English, it is a lift. Here's an example. An American would say, "Take the elevator to the third floor." But a British English speaker would say, "Take the lift to the third floor. Here's one more. In American English, those are fries. In British English, they are chips.

[00:08:01]Would you like fries with your burger?

[00:08:04]But if you're in England, they will say, "Would you like chips with your burger?"

[00:08:09]But you probably already knew because of this dish, we say fish and chips. But we don't say fish and fries in the US or Canada. We still say fish and chips.

[00:08:22]How about these? In American English, these are chips, but in British English, people call them crisps.

[00:08:30]Ketchup chips are the best. Ketchup crisps are the best. And you should know that ketchup chips are the most Canadian chips. You can find them only in Canada.

[00:08:43]How about this? In American English, people say restroom. But in British English, people say toilet or the L. So you would ask where's the restroom in the US, but in England, you would say where's the toilet? But in American English, we also use the word toilet, but it means the toilet bowl. Same thing in British English.

[00:09:09]If you are applying for a job in American English, people say ré. Ré is a French word. It means summary. However, in British English, people say CV curriculum vite CV. Please send your resume to apply. Please send your CV to apply.

[00:09:30]What is this? In American English, it is a line, but in British English, people say a Q.

[00:09:38]There's a long line outside. There's a long queue outside.

[00:09:43]What about this one? In American English, it's a truck. In British English, it's a lorry. Here's an example. A truck is blocking the road. A lori is blocking the road.

[00:09:57]In American English, this is gas or gasoline, but in British English, it is petrol.

[00:10:04]Gas prices are very high this year.

[00:10:07]Petrol prices are very high this year.

[00:10:11]What about this? In American English, we say the trunk of a car, but in British English, they say the boot of a car.

[00:10:20]That's very different. Put your suitcase in the trunk. Put your suitcase in the boot. And that is something that you must know.

[00:10:30]What is the third biggest difference between British and American English? It is spelling. Let me show you what I mean. Spelling can be tricky. In American English, we use o r, but in British English, they use o r. For example, color. O r. In American English, o r in British English. Flavor.

[00:10:55]O r. Flavor. Our r. Neighbor. O r.

[00:11:00]Neighbor. Our r. Behavior. Same thing.

[00:11:05]and humor also. So every time you see a word written with o r that is British English e r versus r e in American English center. British English center also the pronunciation is the same but they use r e at the end instead of e r. Theater the meter meter leader leader fiber fiber.

[00:11:37]So every time you see re it is British English.

[00:11:42]L versus double L. In American English traveling has only one L but in British English it has two. Same thing with cancelled. One L for American English, two L's for British English.

[00:11:58]modeling one L. Modeling with two L's.

[00:12:03]Labeled. Labeled.

[00:12:06]Marveled. Marveled with a double L.

[00:12:10]But there are also other words where the spelling is different. For example, in American English, license with an S. In British English, license with a C. Gray with an A. But in British English, gray with an E.

[00:12:27]Check as in writing a check for a certain amount of money. To pay someone, you write a check. CK in American English, but q in British English.

[00:12:40]Mold. M O L D. Mold. M O U L D. Program with one M versus program with MME.

[00:12:52]Those are the most important words where the spelling is different.

[00:12:56]And the last major difference between British and American English is shall.

[00:13:02]And that is a big difference.

[00:13:06]Shall we dance, darling?

[00:13:09]Now in British English, the future shall at the first person is very common and formal. I shall arrive tomorrow or we shall see. But in American English, it's very rare and it's very formal also. So instead we usually say I will arrive tomorrow. We will see. For suggestions and offers in British English it is very common. Shall I open the window? Shall we go? But in American English it is very rare. So instead we use should.

[00:13:45]Should I open the window? Or instead of shall we go we say do you want to go?

[00:13:51]Now for legalities and formal rules.

[00:13:54]Shall is very common in British English also. The tenant shall pay rent. But here in American English, it is also very common. So you will see it very often in contracts. For example, the tenant shall pay rent.

[00:14:12]Here's a summary of the key differences between American English and British English. native speakers 280 million for American English but only 60 million for British English. Pronunciation the R is strong in American English brother. But the R is silent in British English brother. In American English the T becomes d city. But in British English the T is clear city.

[00:14:42]The A is short in American English bath.

[00:14:45]The A is long in British English. Bath.

[00:14:49]For the vocabulary, there are many words that are different. Apartment in American English, flat in British English. Fries become chips. An elevator becomes a lift. And a restroom is a toilet in British English. Spelling is also different. O R becomes O R. E R becomes R E. Those are the main differences. And finally, shall. Shall is rarely used in American English, but it is commonly used in British English.

[00:15:21]Take a screenshot to make sure that you can remember the main differences.

[00:15:26]And there you have it. But remember, as a second language speaker, understanding both is key. Do not focus on one or the other. You should be able to understand both. Thanks for watching. See you next time. Bye-bye.