More American and British Words with the Same Meanings
Many common objects and ideas have different names in American and British English. In a previous lesson, we compared some of these words. In this lesson, we’re going to look at an additional fifty-six pairs, including words that have the same pronunciation but different spellings.
The left column in the chart below contains Standard American English words, the ones you learn in English classes at the English Island in Atlanta. The right column contains their Standard British English equivalents.
| American English | British English |
| Airplane | aeroplane |
| Allen wrench | Allen key |
| appetizer (before the main course of a meal) | starter |
| barrette (hair) | hairslide |
| bathrobe, robe | dressing gown |
| cell phone | mobile phone |
| checkers (game) | draughts |
| clothespin | peg |
| collect call (telephone) | reverse charge |
| color | colour |
| counter-clockwise | anti-clockwise |
| crib (for a baby) | cot |
| dish towel | tea towel |
| diaper | nappy |
| drop cloth (for construction, painting, etc.) | dust sheet |
| fire brigade | fire department |
| first floor | ground floor |
| freight train | goods train |
| garbage, trash | rubbish |
| garbage can, trashcan | dustbin |
| ground (electrical wiring) | earth |
| hood (automobile) | bonnet |
| housing project, project | council estate |
| inseam | inside leg |
| jelly beans (candy) | jelly babies |
| license plate (automobile) | number plate, registration plate |
| line (when checking out at a store) | queue |
| post | |
| main street | high street |
| movie theater | cinema |
| muffler (automobile) | silencer |
| overpass | flyover |
| pacifier (for a baby) | dummy |
| parking lot | car park |
| pharmacy | chemist |
| private school | public school |
| public school | state school |
| second floor | first floor |
| sneakers (athletic shoes) | trainers |
| soccer | (association) football |
| stovetop | hob |
| subway (mass transit) | underground |
| sweater (clothing) | jumper |
| thumbtack | drawing pin |
| tic-tac-toe (game) | noughts and crosses |
| tire (of a bicycle, automobile, etc.) | tyre |
| trailer (automobile) | caravan |
| train car | wagon |
| transmission (automobile) | gearbox |
| turn signal (automobile) | indicator |
| turtleneck (shirt) | polo neck |
| undershirt | vest |
| vest | waistcoat |
| washcloth | flannel |
| windshield (automobile) | windscreen |
| wrench | spanner |