American and British English spelling differences

Many of the differences between American and British English date back to a
time when spelling was not widely standardized. For instance, some spellings
seen as "American" today were once commonly used in Britain; and vice
versa. A "British standard" began to emerge following the 1755 publication of
influential dictionaries such as Samuel Johnson's A Dictionary of the English
Language, and an "American standard" began following the work of Noah
Webster, and in particular his An American Dictionary of the English
Language

Historical origins
In the early 18th century, English spelling was not standardized.
Differences became noticeable after the publishing of influential
dictionaries. Today's British English spellings mostly follow
Johnson's A Dictionary of the English Language (1755), while
many American English spellings follow Webster's An American
Dictionary of the English Language ("ADEL", "Webster's
Dictionary", 1828).[2]

Webster was a proponent of English spelling reform for reasons

both philological and nationalistic. In A Companion to the
American Revolution (2008), John Algeo notes: "it is often
assumed that characteristically American spellings were invented
by Noah Webster. He was very influential in popularizing certain
spellings in America, but he did not originate them. Rather [] he
chose already existing options such as center, color and check on
such grounds as simplicity, analogy or etymology".[3] William
Shakespeare's first folios, for example, used spellings like center
and color as much as centre and colour.[4][5] Webster did
attempt to introduce some reformed spellings, as did the
Simplified Spelling Board in the early 20th century, but most were
not adopted. In Britain, the influence of those who preferred the
Norman (or Anglo-French) spellings of words proved to be
decisive. Later spelling adjustments in the United Kingdom had
little effect on today's American spellings and vice versa.
For the most part, the spelling systems of most Commonwealth
countries and Ireland closely resemble the British system. In
Canada, the spelling system can be said to follow both British and
American forms,[6] and Canadians are somewhat more tolerant of
foreign spellings when compared with other English-speaking
nationalities. Australian spelling has also strayed slightly from
British spelling, with some American spellings incorporated as
standard.[8] New Zealand spelling is almost identical to British
spelling, except in the word fiord (instead of fjord). There is also
an increasing use of macrons in words that originated in Mori
and an unambiguous preference for -ise endings (see below).

Different spellings for different meanings

dependant or dependent (noun): British dictionaries distinguish

between dependent (adjective) and dependant (noun). In the US,
dependent is usual for both noun and adjective, regardless of
dependant also being an acceptable variant for the noun form in
the US.[89]

disc or disk: Traditionally, disc used to be British and disk

American. Both spellings are etymologically sound (Greek diskos,
Latin discus), although disk is earlier. In computing, disc is used
for optical discs (e.g. a CD, Compact Disc; DVD, Digital
Versatile/Video Disc), by choice of the group that coined and
trademarked the name Compact Disc, while disk is used for
products using magnetic storage (e.g. hard disks or floppy disks,
also known as diskettes).[90] For this limited application, these
spellings are used in both the US and the Commonwealth. Solid-
state devices also use the spelling "disk".[dubious discuss]

enquiry or inquiry:[91] According to Fowler, inquiry should be

used in relation to a formal inquest, and enquiry to the act of
questioning. Many (though not all) British writers maintain this
distinction; the OED, in their entry dating from 1900, lists inquiry
and enquiry as equal alternatives, in that order (with the addition
of "public inquiry" in a 1993 addition). Some British dictionaries,
such as Chambers 21st Century Dictionary,[92] present the two
spellings as interchangeable variants in the general sense, but
prefer inquiry for the "formal inquest" sense. In the US, only
inquiry is commonly used; the title of the National Enquirer, as a
proper name, is an exception. In Australia, inquiry and enquiry are
often interchangeable.[93] Both are current in Canada, where
enquiry is often associated with scholarly or intellectual research.
[citation needed]

ensure or insure: In the UK (and Australia and New Zealand),

the word ensure (to make sure, to make certain) has a distinct
meaning from the word insure (often followed by against to
guarantee or protect against, typically by means of an "insurance
policy"). The distinction is only about a century old.[94] In
American usage, insure may also be used in the former sense, but
ensure may not be used in the latter sense. According to Merriam-
Webster's usage notes, ensure and insure "are interchangeable in
many contexts where they indicate the making certain or
[making] inevitable of an outcome, but ensure may imply a virtual
guarantee <the government has ensured the safety of the
refugees>, while insure sometimes stresses the taking of
necessary measures beforehand <careful planning should insure
the success of the party>."[95]

matt or matte: In the UK, matt refers to a non-glossy surface,

and matte to the motion-picture technique; in the US, matte
covers both.[96]

programme or program: The British programme is from post-

classical Latin programma and French programme. Program first
appeared in Scotland in 1633 (earlier than programme in England
in 1671) and is the only spelling found in the US. The OED entry,
updated in 2007, says that program conforms to the usual
representation of the Greek as in anagram, diagram, telegram
etc. In British English, program is the common spelling for
computer programs, but for other meanings programme is used.
New Zealand also follows this pattern. In Australia, program has
been endorsed by government writing standards for all meanings
since the 1960s,[97] and is listed as the official spelling in the
Macquarie Dictionary;[8] see also the name of The Micallef
P(r)ogram(me). In Canada, program prevails, and the Canadian
Oxford Dictionary makes no meaning-based distinction between it
and programme. However, some Canadian government
documents nevertheless use programme for all meanings of the
word and also to match the spelling of the French equivalent.
[97]

tonne or ton: In the UK, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand,

the spelling tonne refers to the metric unit (1000 kilograms),
whereas in the US the same unit is called a metric ton. The
unqualified ton usually refers to the long ton (2,240 pounds or
1,016 kilograms) in the UK and to the short ton (2,000 pounds or
907 kilograms) in the US (but note that the tonne and long ton
differ by only 1.6%, and are roughly interchangeable when
accuracy is not critical; ton and tonne are usually pronounced the
same in speech).

See also meter/metre, for which there is a British English

distinction between these etymologically related forms with
different meanings but the standard American spelling is "meter".
The spelling used by the International Bureau of Weights and
Measures is "metre".[98] This spelling is also the usual one for the
unit of length in most English-speaking countries, but only the
spelling "meter" is used in American English, and this is officially
endorsed by the United States
 Different spellings for different pronunciations
In a few cases, essentially the same word has a different spelling
that reflects a different pronunciation.

As well as the miscellaneous cases listed in the following table,

the past tenses of some irregular verbs differ in both spelling and
pronunciation, as with smelt (UK) versus smelled (US) (see
American and British English differences: Verb morphology).