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Thursday, March 26, 2026

English and American spelling - practise and practice

 American and English spelling differs slightly. Some would say differs a lot. You rarely get any misunderstanding. You can find yourself in difficulty or delay when composing work to be published in another language, or using a dictionary.

Some of the most common changes I have noticed are:

Why Is American Spelling Different?

American spelling was simplified and made more phonetic, easy to teach others, teach yourself, and understand and remember, Webster's dictionary was published by Webster, a publisher who produced school text books, work books, and the dictionary which still bears his name in the USA. 

I learned this when I visited the home of American Webster in the USA when my husband and I were living there.

England still follows the old spellings which allow you to instantly see the meaning of two words which sound the same. 

Practise and Practice in British English

In British English, the SE ending is for the verb, the doing word, and CE if for the noun, the object, or subject of a sentence, the idea. It is good practice, to practise.

May 14th 2026 is the date of the annual fundraiser, War of Words, for Noah Webster House in Hartford where several teams compete for a trophy.

You can buy an American Webster's dictionary from Amazon online and from physical bookshops in the USA.

The Oxford English dictionary, with British spelling, is sold on Amazon and online bookshops and from shops in the UK.

Online dictionaries sometimes give English spalling, sometimes US spelling. Some online dictionaries allow you to hear both the American and English pronunciation and intonation.

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