England and America are two countries divided by a common language – George Bernard Shaw

When you’re here, let’s speak American – Sarah Palin

George Bernard Shaw, of course, was Irish, which just goes to show how confusingly international the English language can be. While there are a number of national and regional variations of English around the world, the greatest division between forms of English is that between American English and British English. Most other forms of English tend to be largely a variation, or mix, of one of these two, with varying influences from other languages of that country.

There are two main areas of difference between British and American English. The first is vocabulary, with different words being used to describe the same thing: cookie/biscuit, tap/faucet, vacation/holiday, hood and trunk/bonnet and boot, lorry/truck, and the whole fry/chip/crisp fiasco. The second is of course spelling. Two of…