American and British Words That Mean the Same Thing

Many common objects and ideas have different names in American and British English. Today we’re going to compare some of these words. The left column in the chart below contains twenty Standard American English words, the ones you learn in our English classes in Atlanta. The right column contains their Standard British English equivalents.

American English British English
apartment flat
biscuit scone
cookie biscuit
candy sweets
check (paying at a restaurant) bill
(potato) chips crisps
French friends chips
closet wardrobe
elevator lift
faucet tap
flashlight torch
freeway motorway
friend mate
gas (as in gasoline) petrol (as in petroleum)
mom(my) mum(my)
sidewalk pavement
suspenders (worn instead of a belt) bracers
truck lorry
trunk (of a car) boot
vacation holiday

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