Questions tagged [british-english]
This tag is for questions related to English as used in Great Britain, and sometimes Ireland.
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Where were "should", "shall", and "must" in the 18th Century?
According to the following Google Ngram, in the U.K. the modals should, shall, and must were virtually missing from English writing during the 18th Century (I've added will for a comparison modal ...
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Is there an American English equivalent of the British idiom "carrying coals to Newcastle"?
I'm an American living in the Netherlands who is learning Dutch. There's an idiom in Dutch that describes performing a needless/futile activity, "water naar de zee dragen," which literally translates ...
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"Synced" or "synched"
Which is correct: synced or synched? Is one of these American and the other British spelling or are they interchangeable?
I have only ever seen sync used in the computing industry.
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Is there a reason the British omit the article when they "go to hospital"?
Why do British speakers omit the article in constructions like "go to hospital" or "go on holiday"? Pretty much all American speakers would rephrase those as "go to the ...
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How can I order eggs "over hard" in the UK?
I've recently made a couple of trips to the London area, and I've had a terrible time trying to convince the hotel breakfast cooks that I want my eggs fried "over hard", meaning that both the white ...
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What is the difference between dialogue and dialog?
I am American, and I always thought the difference between dialogue and dialog was one of meaning, the way Merriam-Webster has them listed:
2 entries found:
dialogue (noun)
dialog box (noun)
...
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"Oriented" vs. "orientated"
What are the origins of the word orientated?
As far as I know, the correct spelling is oriented and orientated is not an alternative spelling but an error that is in common use.
Is it for example ...
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Is "faff" well understood outside Britain?
Google says "faff" is just British English. Is it well understood in other English speaking regions? If not, is there an international alternative?
faff
BRITISH informal
verb: faff; 3rd person ...
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How did "biscuit" come to have a distinct meaning in North American English?
The Oxford Living Dictionary makes a clear distinction between the usage of biscuit in Britain and North America:
British: A small baked unleavened cake, typically crisp, flat, and sweet.
‘a ...
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"Speak to" vs. "Speak with"
What are the differences between these two phrasal verbs and what are the best situations to use each?
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Is "act like a mensch" too localized for ELU readers (U.S. and/or British English)?
This question was motivated by an interesting comment that was made at https://academia.stackexchange.com/posts/comments/123681?noredirect=1
Part of Answer: I don't think that particular research ...
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Is "used in anger" a Britishism for something?
On a different board, someone referred to a computer language that had achieved popularity beyond the academic world as "used in anger", the way a shot fired in combat instead of on the practice range ...
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Should I say "ATM" or "cashpoint" in the UK?
ATM is an initialism of automated teller machine, coined sometime in the 1970s. I have always considered it an Americanism while its British equivalent has always been cashpoint, Oxford Living ...
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"Invite" vs. "invitation"
I hear a lot of people saying "Send me an invite". I always thought that it was an 'invitation'. Is "sending one an invite" accepted usage? Or is it incorrect? If I need to get my wedding invitation ...
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Around 1960 in Britain "Have you a camera?" or "Do you have a camera?"
Around 1960, when we began learning English in Japan, we were taught British English. To our great surprise, we were forced to change into American English in the next grade. Japanese English teachers ...
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