A reflection on differences between American and British English by senior students in Ho Chi Minh City Open University

HO CHI MINH CITY OPEN UNIVERSITY FACULTY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES HO CHI MINH CITY VIETNAM A REFLECTION ON DIFFERENCES BETWEEN AMERICAN AND BRITISH ENGLISH BY SENIOR STUDENTS IN HO CHI MIN

HO CHI MINH CITY OPEN UNIVERSITY FACULTY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES

HO CHI MINH CITY VIETNAM

A REFLECTION ON DIFFERENCES BETWEEN

AMERICAN AND BRITISH ENGLISH BY SENIOR

STUDENTS IN HO CHI MINH CITY OPEN UNIVERSITY

A PAPER SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE

REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF ARTS IN

ABSTRACT

*S

This minor thesis searches for a recognization the differences between American and British English so that an insight into and a broaden view of a much more effective study method English can be attained From needed information from books, and websites for professionals in the field of American English and British English, the thesis analyses a tendency of using American English of senior students in Ho Chi Minh City Open University - English Department

in grammar, pronunciation, spelling and vocabulary The main differences between the two

variants of English in grammar, pronunciation, spelling and vocabulary, are also identified as a

way to help students realize them Then a discussion based on the learned insight and a broader

view is presented with suggestions for a better study

1, Background of the probl€rm§ - <- << HH HH ng vn và 2

2 Purpose of the SEUV «tt HH Hy HH TH g1 000 HH vn gà kh v4 2

3 Rescarch qu€esfIO - HH TS KH Hy TT tk chat 2

4 Significance of the study

5 Methodology

6 Limitation

7 Organization of the study

Chapter 3: Literature R€VÏCW - Go nu nọ ng nh KHI Km

2 DIÍÍETETC€S Quế 7

VN c raa3ẦẦ 7 2.1.1 Present P€rfEC( - - nh HH nh nh nh nh hy kh ro 7 PA ni 8

2.1.3 Regular and Irregular past tenses and participles 8

2.1.4 CollecfiVe ñOUTS , Q Q HH HH nh HH ch nh crxy 9

2.1.5 The word — order in words of river,valley, lake, 10

2.2 PTOTUICIAfIO cu nọ KH nh TH kh nh cv xế, 10

ii

V Xà s- nh ae 18 Chapter 4: Data Collection and analyÏS - - Ăn HH nh kh, 35

li 9u) nh ồn 4 35 1.1 GrammA ST SH nh KH kh kh kiện 35 1.2 SpelÏings - cọ nọ HH nh KH KH KH bệ nh yệt 35

1.3 Vocabulary and PronunciatiOn -.c cành si, 35

2 Data AnalySlS cà cành ehiheteerdrerrrrrrr 2Õ

4 Vocabulary 2 nên n sa 44 Chapter 6: Comclusion .sccscccoseresecvsceveesscestesersersvecnscesseescenscnens " ose 47 Biliography cesccsecccsresercosenssecvccacscssccesarsveaneonsceesentensceees dị Hi Ki ph mi n „48

Appendix B: The answer key for the questionnaire sssssssssscsscsesscssoceseeesseecaseesssoncores §2

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION

ik

Communication is our link to the outside world and, in turn, our chance at economic

growth There is a trend all over the world to learn English now It seems that English has become the international language of business Most leading countries in the world speak English, or use English as their second language You can open up lots of doors if you master this

language

In Vietnam, English becomes more and more important, especially, after Vietnam is

considered as one of the members of World Trade Organization Vietnamese people today can speak English Many foreign language centers are mushrooming and English turns into a main

subject in the Vietnamese educational system as well

Being an international language, it is certain that English has got a lot of varieties among

the countries that English is spoken as their mother tongue, especially in the United States and England American and British English are the two varieties that are taught in most English as Second Language/English as Foreign Language programs Generally, it is agreed that no one version is “correct” The learners are often in a divided mind as in choosing which one to follow

If they decide that they want to use American English spellings, for instance, and then be

consistent in their spelling (i.e the color of the orange is also its flavour — color is American spelling and flavour is British), this is of course not always easy — or possible Within the framework of our minor thesis, we are going to point out the tendency of using the two variants

of English of senior students in Ho Chi Minh City Open University — English Department.

CHAPTER TWO: SETTING OF THE STUDY

*

1 Background of the problem

English is the main language in worldwide communication and business Therefore, the requirement of learning and teaching English is very essential and popular However, being an international language, English is different from one country to one country where English is

spoken as his mother tongue In Viet Nam, where English is used as a foreign language, many

English centers are mushrooming and they teach many variants of English: British English, American English, or Australian English If a Vietnamese student learns American English, he often has difficulty in differntiating it with other variants Therefore, the differences between the variants of English are concerned, especially the differeces between American English and British English which are the two variants that are taught in most English program

In general, differences between American English and British English have been mentioned in many former researches Yet, few studies particularly concern about the tendency

of using the two variants of English among Vietnamese students With this thesis, the tendency

of using the two variants will be investigated in the fourth — year classes of Ho Chi Minh City Open University Due to this thesis, main differences between American English and British

English will be reflected clearly Therefore, the students can study better

2 Purpose of the study

The study aims at:

> Pointing out main differences between American English and British English

» Investigating the tendency in using variants of English among senior students of Ho Chi Minh City Open University

3 Research Questions

The research questions are:

e What are the main differences between American English and British English?

e = Which variant of English do the senior students in Ho Chi Minh City Open

4 Significance of the study

Being the students whose major is English, the senior students have to go on looking for

ways of improving themselves At the level of university students, the students are required to

have a good knowledge of English This study can show the essential information of the comparison between American and British English in both theory and reality

To be uppermost, this study offers the most benefits to the researcher herself The knowledge, statistics and understanding that were comprehended during the process of this thesis are precious experiences for not only a English learner but also a language learner To be conscious of the differences between the two variants of English, the researcher will well-prepare for her respectful and fully challenging profession

5 The methodology

To collect data for this study, the methods used are questionnaires for senior students in

Ho Chi Minh City Open University

The questionnaire was designed to evaluate the tendency of using American English and British English The questionnaire was delivered to 33 senior students

All details of the process in which the data was collected and analyzed will be mentioned carefully in chapter IV : Data Collection and Analysis

6 Limitation

Nowadays, learning English is very popular and many and many students share the same

difficulty in differentiating American English and British English However, because of the lack

of time and experience, the thesis just concentrates on Ho Chi Minh City Open University, where questionnaires were collected from the senior students Besides, the thesis just consists of some main differences between American and British English In spite of the above limitation, the study expectedly has it own partial contribution to English learning of Ho Chi Minh City Open University

7 The organization of the study

This study contains six chapters:

e Chapter I, Introduction, provides general ideas about the thesis

¢ Chapter II, The setting of the study, includes the background of the problem, purpose of the study Moreover, the research questions, significance of the study and the

methodology as well as the limitation are mentioned respectively in orderly sections

¢ Chapter III, Literature Review, is the theoretical foundation of the thesis It contains many

sections and related subsections, which focus on the main differences between American English and British English

e Chapter IV, Data Collection and analysis, describes the selected sample and the way of collecting data from questionnaires It also contains description of analyzing data process

¢ Chapter V, Suggestions, presents the recommendations for the students in learning

English

e Chapter VI, Conclusion, provides more explanation for the obtained results of the

investigations as well as the restatement of the study’s significance

CHAPTER THREE: LITERATURE REVIEW

#

English is one of the most important languages in the world with regard to both the

’ number of speakers and users for their international communication However, the English language spoken in Britain is different from the ones spoken elsewhere This is the result of the changes that occur in the language spoken in one area but are not spread to another area, or of the communication barrier that separates groups of speakers British English and American English are two such varieties (or variants) of the same English language They have many things in common, but there are still noticeable differences between them that should not be neglected

Chapter two is for the literature review of the thesis It provides the theoretical foundation

for the research topic The materials of this chapter are collected from many experts, educators,

authors and researchers through many kinds of books, journals, articles This chapter will concentrate on main differences in grammar, pronunciation, spelling, and vocabulary between American and British English Some of the examples are commonly known, but others may be

new to many readers

However, the colonists had different backgrounds They came from different areas of Britain and from different social classes: most of them represented the lower or middle class There were many dialectical varieties from which the most frequent alternatives tended to survive The language of community leaders and the language which had most prestige also survived

Differences between American English and British English are mainly due to the

novel conditions, new environment and new experiences the colonists confronted, although

names for the new things encountered in America had begun to enter English already during the phase of exploration — a century before the actual colonization Later on, the new political and administrative system also required the invention of new words Words such as

congressman, presidential, and statehouse were introduced (Mathews, 1951)

Great numbers of words introduced to the language were borrowings from other

languages The colonists learned many words from the Native Americans, words like moose,

raccoon, and skunk for certain animals peculiar to North America, and wigwam, tomahawk,

and moccasin reflecting the way of life of the Native Americans The non-English-speaking colonists, too, contributed to the language For example, words like bureau, portage, and cache are borrowings from the French; cookie, coleslaw, and boss from the Dutch; noodle,

pretzel, and sauerkraut from the German (Craig M.Carver, 2000)

The person who affected the spelling of American English the most was Noah Webster (1758-1843) The majority of the different spellings in American English are due to his advocacy of them and the incorporation of them in his dictionaries In his dictionaries he stressed the American usage and pronunciation He also introduced quotations from American

authors (Trudgill, Peter and Jean Hannah, 2002)

Over the past 400 years, the form of the language used in the Americas — especially in

the United States — and that used in the United Kingdom and the rest of the British Isles have diverged in many ways, leading to the dialects now commonly referred to as American

English and British English Differences between the two include pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary (lexis), spelling, punctuation, idioms, formatting of dates and numbers, and so on

A small number of words have completely different meanings between the two dialects or are

even unknown or not used in one of the dialects.

2, DIFFERENCES

2.1, Grammar

Differences in grammar are relatively minor, and normally do not affect mutual intelligibility Here are some of the most common:

2.1.1 Use of the Present Perfect

According to A Guide to the Varieties of Standard English, 1994, in British English the present perfect is used to express an action that has occurred in the recent past that has an effect

on the present moment For example:

- Garry? You have missed him He has just left

In American English the following is also possible:

- Garry? You missed him He just left

Other differences involving the use of the present perfect in British English and simple past

in American English include already, just and yet Past-time adverbs, such as just, already and yet are often used with the past simple in American English, whereas in British English they would normally be used with the present perfect Compare the following:

British English (A Guide to the Varieties of Standard English, 1994) :

Thave just had lunch

Thave already seen that film

Have you finished your homework yet?

American English (A Guide to the Varieties of Standard English, 1994):

Ijust had lunch

Lalready saw that film

Did you finish your homework yet?

We've got a new car

He hasn't got any friends

American English: Do you have time to finish this report before you leave?

We have a new car

He doesn’t have any friend

2.1.3 Regular and irregular past tenses and participles

The following verbs have two acceptable forms of the past simple/past participle in both American and British English, however, the irregular form is generally more common in British

English (the first form of the two) and the regular form is more common to American English

¢ The kitchen smelled of roast chicken Dinner was ready

¢ The kitchen smelt of roast chicken, Dinner was ready

e have learned that it is better to be safe than sorry

e Ihave learnt that it is better to be safe than sorry

e Hehad spoiled his paper by spilling his coffee on it

e Hehad spoilt his paper by spilling his coffee on it

The following verbs are regular in British English, but irregular in American English:

dive, fit, wet

All her clothes fit into the suitcase

e All her clothes fitted into the suitcase

« She wet her long blond hair before pushing it under her bathing cap

e She wetted her long hair before pushing it under her bathing cap

e Then she dove into the pool with all her clothes on

e Then she dived into the pool with all her clothes on

2.1.4, Collective nouns

The British sometimes treat collective nouns as plural where the Americans treat them as

singular (Labov, Ash, & Boberg, 2006)

British English:

The government are announcing an important decision (Speaking of specific people in the

government)

The government is a constitutional monarchy (Speaking of the government as an institution) American English:

The government is announcing an important decision

The government is a republic

2.1.5 The word — order in words of river, valley, lake (Cheshire, 1991)

British English American English

River Clyde Hudson River

University of London Harvard University

2.2 Pronunciation

According to Longman Pronunciation Dictionary, 2000, there are certain distinctive features of pronunciation in American English that are considerably different from those of British English

- The letter 'r' in barn, park, cart, fart is still pronounced in American English as a fricative whereas in British English it is kept silent, making no distinction between barn and

(auto) bahn, except when immediately followed by a vowel

- In Britain, the ‘o’ vowel, [bp], in words like dog, hod, pot, is pronounced with rounded lips

and the tongue back in the mouth Americans do not have this vowel, instead pronouncing the same words using the [a] vowel with the lips unrounded and the tongue back but more relaxed

This is the same vowel in card or bard In some cases in the US the ‘o’ is pronounced using the

‘or’ vowel in words like /ong (Central East Coast) and horrid (especially in the western US)

- The British have the [a] vowel, (cat, hat) and the [a] vowel, as do Americans, but often in different places Trudgill [2002] notes that words with ‘a’ followed by [f] [6] [s] [nt] [ns] [ntf]

[nd] [mp] (laugh, path, grass, plant, dance, branch, demand, and sample) have [ze] in American

and [a:] in southern British Northern British bends a’s pretty flat in general compared to Southern English, and is generally the same as American, but there are exceptions like banana,

can’t, half, where the ‘a’ is more like in the south In Britain, words like what are pronounced

using the same vowel [p] as in dog, above, and so is phonetically spelled wot rather than wat

Perhaps this is why baloney (nonsense) is so spelled in American dictionaries, but primarily as

boloney in some British ones It should be noted that in America the ‘ah’ vowel (father, bard,

calm) is usually shorter and sometimes sounds a little closer to the ‘u’ vowel in cup So the long, firm [a:] in Britain really stands out in bath and dance where Americans have the short [z] mentioned above Even this southern English accent, with the long ‘a’ [a:] in words like father and bath, is not consistent Only a small group would put a long ‘a’ in a surveyor’s transit

- In many areas the American‘t’, when not the initial consonant in a word, is pronounced closer to a ‘d’, and in some cases can disappear altogether Thus /atter and butter sounds more

like ladder and budder, and words like twenty and dentist can sound like twenny and Dennis Why do Americans pronounce t as d? Perhaps because to pronounce the frequent ‘r’s at the end

of words ending in ‘-er’ it is easier to say ‘-der’ than ‘-ter’

- Less words in American pronounce like a ‘y’ in front of a ‘u’ than in British (as in mule,

mute) Most American words don’t: assume, new, nude, tune, student, duke, and due In England

most of these words are pronounced with a ‘y’ in front of the ‘u’ Amongst older speakers, this is true for words like suit and /ute, and sometimes even in words like Susan and super

11

- Although there are relatively few words pronounced completely differently, many are well known This list shows some of these, but the examples are not restrictive — leisure is pronounced both /eezhure and lezhure in the US, but leezhure is prevalent ( Simpson, 1989)

word US

herb *erb leisure leezhure

privacy Pry-vacy

schedule skedule semi Sem-eye tomato Tom-ay-do

UK filit

herb Lezhure

leever

priv-acy

root

Shedule sem-ee

tom-ah-to

Vowels of American English Here the vowels of American English are plotted according to the point of primary obstruction

by the tongue in the articulation of the sound "Low" refers not only to the position of the tongue

but the jaw as well ( Simpson, 1989)

Word stress and sentence stress both are also weaker in American English pronunciation

and intonation is more level American speech is therefore more monotonous-in sound, but at the same time it is generally more distinct than the English speech Unstressed syllables are pronounced with more measured detachment and hence with greater clarity than in British

English On the whole we feel that the American English is slower in utterance Also in certain

parts of America the speakers speak so slowly as to drag out and diphthongize the stressed vowels, instead of 'yes' we hear 'yeis' and instead of 'class' we hear ‘kleis'

13

- Stress differences, although minor, stand out Britons stress the first vowel in ballet, cafe (&

other borrowed French words), Americans the second, but they often stress the first vowel in

cigarette, police, and research There are many place names in Britain that also occur in the US,

especially on the eastern seaboard British towns ending in —ham, -wich, -cester, -mouth are fully

pronounced in America but reduced in Britain to - [am], - [sta], - [moé@] (e.g Birmingham,

Norwich, Gloucester, and Portsmouth) Similar reductions are found in British personal names,

for instance Raleigh is raylee in the US but ralee in Britain.(Pederson, 1986)

- American English prefers the double stress.( Peter Trudgill and Jean Hannah,1994)

eg

Capillary [ka`pIlarT] Capillary [`k œ pL lerI]

Centenary [son tInarï] Centenary [‘sent! ner]

2.3 Spelling

- In the early 18th century, English spelling was not standardized Different standards became noticeable after the publishing of influential dictionaries Current British English spellings follow, for the most part, those of Samuel Johnson's Dictionary of the English Language (1755) Many of the now characteristic American English spellings were introduced, although

often not created, by Noah Webster in his An American Dictionary of the English Language of

1828

- Some words end in -ogue in English and -og in American English

-0g Vs -ogue

=> Americanisms have a tendency to make the spelling easier

- Many nouns that in American English end in —or, in British English end 1n —our

-er vs —re

American British Center Centre

Fiber Fibre

Kilometer Kilometre

Meter Metre

- In British English, words that end in -/ preceded by a vowel usually double the -/ when a

suffix is added, while in American English the letter is not doubled “7” ¡s doubled with the

stress on the second syllable

Base Word American British

- The American -yze words are all -yse in Britain

Fiber Fibre

Kilometer Kilometre

Meter Metre

- In British English, words that end in -/ preceded by a vowel usually double the -/ when a

suffix is added, while in American English the letter is not doubled “7” is doubled with the

stress on the second syllable

Base Word American British

tuanal Quarrefing Quarreffing

- The American -yze words are all -yse in Britain

-Ze VS —Se

American British Analyze ‘Analyse

- Nouns ending in -ce with -se verb forms: American English and British English both

has lost the same distinction with licence / license and practice / practise that British spelling

retains American English uses practice and license for both meanings Also, American English has kept the Anglo-French spelling for defense and offense, which are usually defence and offence in British English; similarly there are the American pretense and British

pretence; but derivatives such as defensive, offensive, and pretension are always thus spelled

in both systems.( Peter Trudgill and Jean Hannah, 1994)

- Other words also have variant spellings

American English British English

Curb Kerb draft Draught Inquire Enquire Maneuver Manoeuvre

Pajamas Pyjamas Plow Plough Program Programme

The word "pants" refers to an Trousers Pants

undergarment in BE

In British usage "jumper" means a

sweater

In British usage "vest" refers to an

undergarment worn underneath a shirt

Galoshes

Wellies

There are interesting regional variations

in both British and American usage

“Pumps", "Plimsolls" and "Daps" are ail

regional variations include "Sneakers" (New England and Mid-Atlantic states) and "Tennis Shoes"

in a class called "reception" From 11

to 18 they will attend a secondary

school, in some areas they may transfer

to sixth form colleges at the age of 16 The stages are referred to as years

starting at I (at age 5) up to 11 After the 11th year children may join the 6th: form (don't ask !) The phrase "high

school" when used refers to a school, often for girls, with selective entry via competitive examination A_ similar school for boys is often a “grammar

19

school"; many of these are fairly ancient foundations and in recent years

have become co-educational AE

"sophomores", "K12" etc., would not be

understood in the UK In Scotland "high school” means any secondary school

Public School Private School

You have to pay to go there In BE

"private school" means pretty much the

same thing as "public school"

State School Public School

You don't have to pay to go there The state, in the guise of local authorities,

pay OK, you ultimately pay via taxes

Holiday Vacation

BE does not distinguish between

(sometimes called "bank" holidays

because banks are not open for

business) and individual holidays from

work In BE the verb is "to go on

holiday”

Play Time / Break Time Recess Gap in proceedings, usually for

refreshment when BE might specifically refer to a "lunch break" or a "dinner

20

break", however British courts recess Both terms are also used in schools as a

rather grown-up version of "play time"

|

single decker Within towns and cities

it's a bus, often double-decker

Pedestrian Crossing used by pedestrians crossing the road

The British usage "zebra crossing" is obsolescent Many such crossings are controlled by traffic lights, some are

still uncontrolled but indicated by large orange globes on striped posts

known, after the presiding minister who first installed them, as Belisha beacons

"express way", "parkway” all have

similar meanings that are not differentiated in British usage

"Freeway" often implies that it isn't a toll road or turnpike Apart from a few

bridges, toll roads are currently

unknown in the UK, although the

countries first toll motorway is opened north of Birmingham in 2004

Main road Highway In British usage the word "highway" is

confined to formal and legal contexts

Lorry Truck

In BE "fallen off the back of a lorry”

means acquired in dubious

circumstances

Many British people think, incorrectly, that the American usage "pavement"

refers to the surface of a road In fact,

it refers to any area that is paved and sealed against water by asphalt or concrete Such areas can be for foot traffic as well as vehicular traffic

Petrol

reserves "gas" to mean an

22