While we speak the same language and both call it English, there are differences in some US and UK spellings, definitions and pronunciations. We say tomay-to, they say tomah-to, and that's just the start of it!
Be sure to use the right term when writing for (or speaking to) our transatlantic cousins, otherwise you could get yourself into a whole lot of trouble.
Definition
UK Word
USA Word
11th June 1998
11/06/98
06/11/98
the dot at the end of a sentence
full stop
period
unit of paper currency
note
bill
mathematics
maths
math
the season after summer
autumn
fall
day when offices are closed
bank holiday
legal holiday
small pointed thing used to pin papers onto walls
drawing pin
thumb tack
mark made when something is correct or selected
tick
check
the name of the final letter of the alphabet
zed
zee
angry
pissed off
pissed
third piece of a male's suit that goes between the jacket
and the shirt
waist coat
vest
what women wear over their legs
tights
(panty) hose
what men wear over their legs
trousers
pants
a type of soft shoe used in sports or for casual wear
trainers,
plimsolls
sneakers
strap to hold up a man's trousers / pants
braces
suspenders
item to hold up stockings
suspenders
garters
item of clothing worn in house at night
dressing gown
bathrobe
a thin cloth from Arabia
muslin
cheesecloth
large bag carried by females
hand bag
purse
container carried by females for money
purse
pocket book
what you put in a baby's mouth
dummy
pacifier
what you put around a baby's bottom
nappy
diaper
the area next to a street where pedestrians walk
pavement
sidewalk
place to cross a street on foot
pedestrian crossing
crosswalk
place from where goods are bought
shop
store
place from where medicines are bought
chemist
drug store
payment in a restaurant
bill
check
place where alcoholic drinks are bought
off licence
liquor store
shop / store selling metal goods and tools
ironmonger
hardware store
the business part of a city
town centre
downtown
law enforcement officer
copper
cop
what there was before email
post
mail
code used when sorting mail / post
postcode
zip code
telephone call where the person called pays
reverse charge
collect call
free telephone call paid by company
free phone
toll free
company on the WWW
.co.uk
.com
four wheeled private vehicle
car
automobile
front of a car / automobile
bonnet
hood
rear compartment of a car / automobile
boot
trunk
metal plate with number on a vehicle
number plate
license plate
long piece of metal used for radio reception
aerial
antenna
metal tool for tightening nuts and bolts
spanner
wrench
glass in front of a car
windscreen
windshield
metal over the wheel to keep mud off
mud guard
(wing)
fender
multi-lane road for cars
motorway
freeway
road passing over another
flyover
overpass
heavy goods vehicle
lorry
truck
Fuel for vehicles
petrol
gasoline
place to buy fuel
petrol station
gas station
area to stop off a major road
lay-by
pull-off
metal container in street for unwanted items
skip
dumpster
ticket for one journey
single
one way
ticket for two journeys: out and back
return
round trip
type of transport run on metal rails
railway
railroad
a beam supporting railway / railroad tracks
sleeper
tie
what you eat with milk, tea or coffee
biscuit
cookie
what you put on bread
jam
jelly
a gelatinous dessert
jelly
jell-O
crunchy thin-sliced fried potatoes
crisps
chips
fried stick-shaped potatoes
chips
french fries
a large vessel for juice or water
jug
pitcher
sweet things given to children to rot their teeth
sweets
candy
rolled up cake with jam / jelly in the middle
Swiss roll
jelly roll
a sugary liquid like honey
treacle
molasses
flavoured ice on a stick
lolly
popsicle
soft long green vegetable
marrow
squash
meat passed through a device that breaks it up into little
pieces
mince
ground meat
cereal made from oats, sugar and milk
porridge
oatmeal
Swiss cereal made from oats
muesli
granola
fluffy sweet item for children
candy floss
cotton candy
arthropod with six legs
insect
bug
red insect / bug with black spots
ladybird
ladybug
dwelling in a large building
flat
apartment
device for obtaining water
tap
faucet
container for household waste
rubbish bin
trash can
portable battery-operated light source
torch
flashlight
the floor of a building that is level with the ground
ground floor
first floor
the floor of a building that is one level above the ground
first floor
second floor
device for carrying people between floors of a building
lift
elevator
place where films / movies can be seen
cinema
movie theater
a type of house connected to one other
semi-detached house
duplex
a self contained section of television
programme
show
game played on chess board
draughts
checkers
contest between two teams
match
game
game played by two teams with bats and balls
cricket
baseball
player who throws a ball at another player
holding a bat
bowler
pitcher
bar on a pivot for children
see-saw
teeter-totter
simple game of O and X
noughts and
crosses
tic tac toe
a collection of playing cards
pack
deck
a portable telephone
mobile
cellular, cell
a group of people waiting for their turn
queue
line
the dates of the Second World War
1939 - 1945
1941 - 1945
Confused words
Here are some other commonly confused words and some different words that mean the same thing. Confused yet? You should be.
