BrE or AmE?

Status
Not open for further replies.

sondra

Member
Joined
Apr 19, 2010
Member Type
Other
Native Language
Russian
Home Country
Georgia
Current Location
Georgia
Hello,

Is it tue that when a student starts to learn English he or she should choose either AmE or BrE to concentrate on, but not both?

Thanks
 
Hello,

Is it tue that when a student starts to learn English he or she should choose either AmE or BrE to concentrate on, but not both?

Thanks

I think it's helpful for beginners to try to follow one dialect.
 
In real life, students have no choice. They have to learn the English their teachers impose on them.

Rover
 
Hello,

Is it tue that when a student starts to learn English he or she should choose either AmE or BrE to concentrate on, but not both?

Thanks

NOT A TEACHER


The differences between AmE and BrE are not something a beginner should worry about in my opinion. If you compare the BrE version of English Grammar in Use with the one written for students of North American English, you'll notice that they are nearly identical. The differences between AmE and BrE are important, but not in the beginning stages. The basics are common to both Englishes. This is just my personal opinion.
 
***** NOT A TEACHER *****


Hello, Sondra:

May I add my two bits to the discussion?

I agree that a student should choose one variety and try to become an "expert" in that variety.

I am 75 years old, and there is still a lot about American English that I do not understand. I learn something

every day when I read the questions and answers here at usingenglish.com.

*****

Here in the United States, there is a somewhat similar discussion going on regarding the Chinese language.

Should Chinese-language classes teach Americans the traditional ways to write Chinese characters, or should they use the

simplified characters that were introduced in the 1950's? Furthermore, should American students be taught Mexican

Spanish or Colombian Spanish or Argentine Spanish or ...?

*****

As you can see, language is a very sensitive issue. I believe that it has often led to wars. On a less serious note, a few

years ago, I posted my opinion on another grammar helpline that students should learn variety X of English. My post

was deleted because that helpline believed that variety Y should be taught to everyone!

*****

On a more humorous note, some years back I laughed out loud when I read a letter written to a British magazine

in which an Australian gentleman demanded that the magazine change from British spelling to American spelling. The

magazine commented on his letter with three words: "What a nerve!" (P.S. That magazine still uses British spelling.)
:-D

James
 
Hello,

Is it true that when a student starts to learn English he or she should choose either AmE or BrE to concentrate on, but not both?

Thanks

:up:

charliedeut

PS: I agree with Rover that, as a rule, the student is not the one choosing the variety of English s/he is going to learn.
 
I agree that a student should choose one variety and try to become an "expert" in that variety.

I am 75 years old, and there is still a lot about American English that I do not understand. I learn something

every day when I read the questions and answers here at usingenglish.com.

I agree with you, but I don't think that the BrE/AmE divide is entirely black-and-white. Of course, there are some clear differences. A speaker of BrE would write "colour" and not "color". In my opnion, if you're writing an essay/letter etc, you should stick to either the US or UK spelling. So if you write "colour", you should also write "vapour" and "archaeology". However, I also think that there is some overlap between BrE and AmE. Here are three examples:

- I was speaking to a gentlemen from London a few weeks ago (a native Englishman) and he used the word "vacation".
- Some speakers of BrE use -ize endings in words such as realize, organize and so on.
- I have heard two speakers of AmE use the following phrase, which is usually attributed to BrE: That's a load of rubbish.

So if you have time on your hands, try to learn as much as you can. That would be my "non-teacher" advice!
 
Last edited:
If you learn English in Australia, New Zealand, etc, you learn neither BrE nor AmE. Many of us have not suffered at all from this.
 
- Some speakers of BrE use -ize endings in words such as realize, organize and so on.

We can use both ise/ize in many cases- spellchecks may think we only use one form, but that doesn't reflect reality.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top