>> This section is where both the pronunciation and spelling differ from what's heard in other versions of English, or where the imported words have lost the connection to the original, and were adjusted to the local ear and tongue. Surprisingly, there's not much of it, simply because the main differences are in usage - where Brits say flat, Amers say appartment etc.
last refreshed 10/14/2018 11:44:53 AM
| English | American English | Note |
|---|---|---|
| aluminium | aluminum | |
| biceps | bicep | seems like erroneous back-formation which is now incurable |
| center | centre | |
| colosseum | coliseum | but I never got a straight answer as to how to pronounce this: as coll-Ease-ee-um, coll-uh-See-um or how else? |
| complete | compleat | |
| dialogue | dialog | |
| discrete | discreet | |
| entree | main dish | appetizer |
| flat | appartment | |
| Habsburg | Hapsburg | |
| kalium | potassium | |
| lorry | truck | |
| Machiavelli | Machiavel | Other Italian words of the kind are OK. Don't know why this one was mangled. |
| mahagony | mahogany | Latin name: Swietenia mahagoni |
| natrium | sodium | |
| Osman | Ottoman | What we call "Osmanli Empire" |
| Petrarca | Petrarch | |
| programme | program | |
| qui pro quo | quid pro quo, i.e. something for something, I'll scratch you back and you'll scratch mine | misunderstaning, confusion of identities |
| Rotonda | Rotunda | While Turin for Torino is OK - every language has its own versions of toponyms... Rotonda is a building. However, the Latin root is "rotundus", so this is off the list. |
| sanatarium | sanatorium | both words are OK in US English |
| sub poena | subpoena | used as a verb - "he was subpoenaed" |
| through | thru | |
| triceps | tricep | same as biceps/bicep |
| Volkswagen | Volkswagon |