Wattpad 101: Your guide to the world of Wattpad

US Versus UK Grammar and Spelling

Most of you are aware that Britain and the US use different grammar and spelling rules. If you didn't know that, now you do! If you're an editor, knowing the differences in grammar can be a major help when editing works. Typical, if you are an editor, you should spell out which type of grammar you edit, because as you'll see, it can have major effects on your editing. Please note that in the last 100 years, the free spread of information (especially in the internet era) has blended a lot of these editing differences, so there are tons of exceptions to the rules. Here is a list of all the things that are different between US and British English.

Words with Different Meanings

There are a lot of words that have different meanings whether you live in Britain or live in the US. Here is a list of the ones you might not catch normally.

Warning: These words may not be common across certain demographics. I've confirmed their legitimacy, but not their frequency. Some words are bound to be obscure in use. 

A&E: In the US, A&E means accident and emergency, referring to a hospital emergency room (ER in America). A&E in America means Arts and Entertainment and is the name of a television network.

Bird – Can be a term to describe a woman in the UK... usually just means a flying animal I the US.

Biscuit – Cookie in the UK, a buttery bread roll in the US.

Bog – Swamp-like for the US, but it can mean a toilet in the UK.

Bonnet – In America, a bonnet is a headpiece worn by olden-day ladies, to a Britain, this can mean a car hood.

Boot – Like above, to an American that is a foot-ware for someone going in wet or snowy conditions, but is a trunk in Britain.

Brown Bread – 'You're Brown Bread!' would be equivalent to telling some they're dead in Britain. In America, it means you're a healthy piece of bread (we think multigrain and brown breads are healthier for some reason). Or it could possibly be taken as racist, given our issues with race relations and the racist term 'white bread' that African Americans some time use to refer to whites.

Bugger – This often means a small insect in the USA, often used when aggravated at anything small and annoying. "Why you little bugger!" In the UK, it has some negative connotations as a slur for homosexual men.

Casket – In the UK, this can mean a jewelry box, but it's another word for coffin in the US.

Chemist – The UK can use this to mean pharmacist. In the US, it only means a scientist who specializes in chemistry.

Conservatory - In America, a conservatory refers to a college to study music and the arts. In Britain, it's a room with a glass roof and walls, typically what we call a greenhouse.

Fanny – It means butt (bum in UK) for Americans, but it's the female sexual organ in the UK. As a side note, in the UK, this is a pretty offensive form of that word, while in the US, it's probably one of the most harmless forms of the word.

Fanny Pack – A fanny pack in the US is something you wear around your waist, something usually associated with geeks and tourists. In the UK, it means buttocks. Since Fanny is lewd in the UK, it's probably considered lewd as well.

First Floor – Refers to the first floor ABOVE the ground floor in the UK, but refers specifically to the ground floor in the US.

Fish and Chips: Most Americans know this, but fish and chips mean fried fish and French fries (although a specific kind of thinner french fry, I guess). In America, we call that a Fish Fry (usually served on Fridays). Fish and chips would possibly get you a bag of potato chips (I believe UK calls them crisps) and un-fried fish.