AMEERICAN VS BRITISH GRAMMAR. DIFFERENCES.

CONTENTS

Introduction .................................................................................. 3
1. Tense .......................................................................................... 3
2. Informal Speech ........................................................................ 4
3. Verbs .......................................................................................... 4
4. Use of delexical verbs have and take ....................................... 5
5. Collective Nouns ....................................................................... 6
6. Tag questions ............................................................................ 6
7. Auxiliary verbs.......................................................................... 7
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Introduction
When learning or speaking English, most people do not realise the vast
differences between American and British versions of the language. Though
the original 'correct' grammar originally comes from old British English,
grammar is constantly changing and many new ways of using grammar are
coming from across the pond from American influence through the media
and internet.
Both types of language structure can be considered right, though in British
and American education systems there are different rules depending on
which English is being taught. There are various differences in spelling and
punctuation, but this does not affect the spoken language as the grammar,
vocabulary and pronunciation differences do.

1. Tense
In British English, the present perfect tense is used a lot more than in
American English. Present perfect tense is used to describe a past event that
has present consequences, but in American English, the simple past tense is
normally used.
For example:
"Robert feels sick, he has eaten too much" - British English
"Robert feels sick, he ate too much" - American English
"I have got to leave now" - British English
"I have to leave now" - American English
"I have already seen that movie"- British English
"I already saw that movie" - American English
"You've missed Sarah. She's just left." - British English
"You missed Sarah. She just left" - American English

You will also find some small differences with past forms of irregular verbs.
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The past tense of learn in American English is learned. British English has
the option of learned or learnt. The same rule applies to dreamed and dreamt,
burned and burnt, leaned and leant.
Americans tend to use the –ed ending; Brits tend to use the -t ending.
In the past participle form, Americans tend to use the –en ending for some
irregular verbs. For example, an American might say, “I have never gotten
caught” whereas a Brit would say, “I have never got caught.” Americans
use both got and gotten in the past participle. Brits only use got.
Don’t worry too much about these small differences in the past forms of
irregular verbs. People in both countries can easily understand both ways,
although Brits tend to think of the American way as incorrect.

2. Informal Speech
When the British would say "going to" for example, Americans may say
"gonna" and this informal shortened word is becoming more popular with
many English speakers.
"Are you going to come later?" - British English
"Are you gonna come later?" - American English

3. Verbs
Some verbs that are regular in British English are irregular in American
English.
For example:
"She wet her hair before washing it" - British English
"She wetted her hair before washing it" - American English
"All the shoes fit in to the shelves" - British English
"All the shoes fitted in to the shelves" - American English
With verbs of perception such as senses are used independently in American
English whereas British English speakers will use 'can' or 'could'.
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For example:
"I could smell the flowers" - British English
"I smelled the flowers" - American English
"I could hear the birds outside" - British English
"I heard the birds outside" - American English
"I can see the beach" - British English
"I see the beach" - American English

In British English, many past simple verbs can end in 'ed' or in 't', but in
American English the ending of 'ed' is normally preferred.
For example:
"She learnt to play the piano" - British English
"She learned to play the piano" - American English
"He always dreamt of being a footballer" - British English
"He always dreamed of being a footballer" - American English

4. Use of delexical verbs have and take

In British English, the verb have frequently functions as what is technically
referred to as a delexical verb, i.e. it is used in contexts where it has very
little meaning in itself but occurs with an object noun which describes an
action, e.g.
I'd like to have a bath.
Have is frequently used in this way with nouns referring to common activities
such as washing or resting, e.g.
She's having a little nap.
I'll just have a quick shower before we go out.
In American English, the verb take, rather than have, is used in these
contexts, e.g.
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Joe's taking a shower. Let's take a short vacation.

I'd like to take a bath. Why don't you take a rest now?

5. Collective Nouns
When referring to groups of people, collective nouns are treated differently
in American and British English.
For example:
"The audience are very quiet" - British English
"The audience is very quiet" - American English
"The government are making a decision" - British English
"The government is making a decision"- American English
The Brits tend to treat collective nouns as plural whereas Americans treat
them as singular which is technically correct.
Though it may seem like a lot of differences, they are actually only slight and
most of the grammar in British and American English are in agreement. Both
variations are generally understood by the whole English-speaking
population.

6. Tag questions
A tag question is a grammatical form that turns a statement into a question.
For example, “The whole situation is unfortunate, isn’t it?” or, “You don’t
like him, do you?”
The tag includes a pronoun and its matching form of the verb be, have or do.
Tag questions encourage people to respond and agree with the speaker.
Americans use tag questions, too, but less often than Brits.
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7. Auxiliary verbs
Another grammar difference between American and British English relates
to auxiliary verbs. Auxiliary verbs, also known as helping verbs, are verbs
that help form a grammatical function. They “help” the main verb by adding
information about time, modality and voice.
Let’s look at the auxiliary verb shall. Brits sometimes use shall to express the
future.
For example, “I shall go home now.” Americans know what shall means, but
rarely use it in conversation. It seems very formal. Americans would
probably use “I will go home now.”
In question form, a Brit might say, “Shall we go now?” while an American
would probably say, “Should we go now?”
When Americans want to express a lack of obligation, they use the helping
verb do with negative not followed by need. “You do not need to come to
work today.” Brits drop the helping verb and contract not. “You needn’t come
to work today.”