American English British English
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zip code postcode
baggage luggage
apartment flat
line queue
subway tube
trade show fair
to call to ring
reserve book
service station garage
customer service after sales
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3. 3 Differences between American and British business English in grammar
On the whole, American and British English use the same grammar system. Differences are few in number and trifling in nature. The following are some main divergences:
3. 3. 1 Differences in the use of certain verbs
(1) American English has two past participles for “get”(got, gotten) while British English one (got).
(2) “will” has displaced “shall” in American English.
While British English retains the distinction between “will” and “shall”.
(3) Decline in the use of modal verbs I British English and gradual formation of some new modal verbs in American English[9]. For example:
wanna – want to gonna – be going to
gotta – have got to betta – had better
(4) the use of “have”
It was noted that to ask “do you own or possess at this moment” Americans used “do you have…”, the British used “have you got…”. But due to the influence of American English, since the early 1970, many speakers of British English, esp. the younger generation, have begun to use “ do you have…” as Americans do, and “have you got…” has become much less frequent even in Britain. To ask a similar question in the past, “did you have…”, is used by Americans, while “have you got…” is used by British respectively.
(5) the treatment of “come” and “go”
In American English, “come” and “go” can be followed directly by a bare infinitive, but in British English the connecter “and” should be used in between. The examples run as follows:
Come look at it. (AmE) Go tell her about it. (AmE)
Come and look at it. (BrE) Go and tell her about it. (BrE)
(6) the use of copular verbs
In British English copular verbs “seem, act, look and sound” can be followed directly by an indefinite noun phrase, in American English these verbs must be followed first by the preposition “like”; “seem” can also be followed by the infinitive “to be”. For examples:
AmE BrE
It seemed like a long time. It seemed a long time.
He seems to be an intelligent man. He seems an intelligent man.
John acted like a real fool. John acted a real fool.
That house looks like a nice one. That house looks a nice one.
That sounds like a good idea. That sounds a good idea.
3. 3. 2 Differences in the use of articles
There is more decline of the use of articles in American English than in British English.
(1) The definite article “the” is often omitted in American English after “all”. For examples:
All the night – all night
All the winter – all winter
All the morning – all morning
(2) The definite article is often omitted before “day”, e.g. the day before yesterday – day before yesterday; the day after tomorrow – day after tomorrow.
(3) A noun in apposition is not accompanied by an article in American English. E.g.
Li, writer of this book, is a peasant.
(4) with words like “school, hospital, church,” when the idea expressed concerns the basic use of the building, the definite article is not used in British English, but used in American English. E.g.
He has gone to school. (BrE)
He has go to the school. (AmE)
(5) Differences in order of words maybe noted in the use of the indefinite articles:
Half a dozen (BrE)
A Half dozen (AmE)
Half an hour (BrE)
A Half hour (AmE)
3. 3. 3 Differences in the use of prepositions
(1) On the whole, the Americans are more lavish in the use of prepositions than the British; the American says “in back of, start in, stand for, face up, try out”, whereas the British says, “behind, start, stand, face and try”. More example:
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