Is American Spelling "better"?

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TheParser

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Some people have gently suggested that it would be most useful for

learners if they were all taught American spelling. It has been gently

suggested that learners would do well to follow the lead of the most

important English-speaking country (and, in the humble opinion of some

people, the most important country in the world). Is there any reason, for

example, to have some learners write "colour" instead of "color," or "gaol"

for "jail." Would it solidify the future of English if we could all agree on

one standard -- in spelling, vocabulary, and grammar?

What is your considered opinion?

P. S.

I may be wrong, but I faintly remember reading that some British people

are now saying "truck" instead of "lorry." Some people, I hear, feel that

American movies and TV are having a very positive influence on the

speech of our British friends -- including the wider use of the

subjunctive.

P. P. S. I personally am 100% neutral on this issue. It would be

interesting to see what native speakers and world-wide learners

think about this spelling issue.
 

konungursvia

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I prefer American spelling in principle. Its introduction was carried out with extreme moderation (think of all the unnecessary simplifications in Chinese) and is very logical. The ending -ize rather than -ise reflects the Greek and Latin roots of such words; colour didn't really succeed in carrying the torch for the French couleur, whereas color returns to Latin and is identical to Spanish and no further from our pronunciation; gray from grey looks like day and may as it should...

It's just that I grew up with Canadian spelling (British + jail and tire about sums it up) so I usually write that way. To do otherwise would take a political decision, which I'm not prepared to do at this point. Canada rocks, and the US .... doesn't ;)
 

Ouisch

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It depends upon the context. If a company is doing business internationally, then American spelling has pretty much become the norm. (For example, prices/shipping rates are calculated by truckload rather than lorryload*.) "Cheque" and "colour" are easily understood by the average AmE blue-collar worker who works on, say, a loading dock and has to match items being shipped against a manifest. But "gaol" and "tyre" would probably stump the AmE-non-world traveler when confronted with such words in print.


*By the way, "lorry" is not such much a spelling difference between the UK and US but an actual terminology difference.
 

thatone

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Makes sense to me.

The American spelling is simpler and more consistent, as well as (generally) closer to the pronunciation. I mean for instance, why use "gaol" instead of "jail?" What about words like mail, snail, nail, bail?

This with the simpler grammar, in this world where a lot of students find English hard to learn, would certainly help quite a bit.

Besides, it would be more practical since the vocabulary would help with Hollywood movies, world-famous tv shows, most of the internet, international companies etc.
 

billmcd

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Some people have gently suggested that it would be most useful for

learners if they were all taught American spelling. It has been gently

suggested that learners would do well to follow the lead of the most

important English-speaking country (and, in the humble opinion of some

people, the most important country in the world). Is there any reason, for

example, to have some learners write "colour" instead of "color," or "gaol"

for "jail." Would it solidify the future of English if we could all agree on

one standard -- in spelling, vocabulary, and grammar?

What is your considered opinion?

P. S.

I may be wrong, but I faintly remember reading that some British people

are now saying "truck" instead of "lorry." Some people, I hear, feel that

American movies and TV are having a very positive influence on the

speech of our British friends -- including the wider use of the

subjunctive.

P. P. S. I personally am 100% neutral on this issue. It would be

interesting to see what native speakers and world-wide learners

think about this spelling issue.

I would suggest that, "When in Rome, do as the Romans do", unless, of course, you don't know what the Romans do.
 
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birdeen's call

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I think it doesn't make much difference. The American spelling is easier and more logical but not much easier and not much more logical. One might say we should use one spelling anyway. But I think it's also not crucial in this case. Except "gaol"/"jail" case the differences don't make the understanding any harder...
 

thatone

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I think it doesn't make much difference. The American spelling is easier and more logical but not much easier and not much more logical. One might say we should use one spelling anyway. But I think it's also not crucial in this case. Except "gaol"/"jail" case the differences don't make the understanding any harder...

Well, I think that if we consider all the extra letters of the British spelling altogether, those studying American English will have quite an easier time remembering words. I frankly don't see what's the point in making studying harder by adding extra letters here and there.

In addition to that, British English has a few words whose spelling changes between the noun and verb forms. Another useless complication.
 
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