Hello everybody!
I hope you have had a good Carnival!
Today we are going to talk about a common problem for intermediate (and above) students. In our day to day life we are exposed to English but there are two main issues that I would like to address:
1.- Words we think are English, but actually aren’t.
| We use… | The actual English word is…. |
| Footing | Jogging |
| Parking | Car park |
| Friki | Geek |
| Zapping | Channel surfing |
| Puenting | Bungee jumping |
| Lifting | Face lift |
2.- American English vs British English
If you like watching films (or movies 🙂 ) you may be quite familiar with American English. Firstly, I’d like to say that there’s nothing wrong in using American words! Some students think that they will only speak proper English when they get the Queen’s vocabulary and pronounciation but, needless to say, that’s not true! The only thing you need to remember is to stick to one option when you’re doing the writing task in Cambridge exams because that’s when American English could affect your mark, specially in words where the spelling is different. Take a look at the following chart:
| American word | English word | Meaning |
| Fries | Chips | Patatas fritas (caseras) |
| Potato chips | Crisps | Patatas fritas (paquete) |
| Soccer | Football | Fútbol |
| Faucet | Tap | Grifo |
| Pants | Trousers | Pantalones |
| Garbage | Rubbish | Basura |
| Elevator | Lift | Ascensor |
| Gasoline | Petrol | Gasolina |
| Rest room | Public toilet | Baño (público) |
| Flashlight | Torch | Linterna |
| Vacation | Holiday | Vacaciones |
| Candy | Sweets | Caramelos |
| Closet | Wardrobe | Armario |
| Schedule | Timetable | Horario |
| Overalls | Dungarees | Mono / Peto |
| Subway | Tube | Metro |
| Cab | Taxi | Taxi |
| Parking lot | Car park | Aparcamiento |
| Truck | Lorry | Camión |
| Vest | Waistcoat | Chaleco |
| Post | Correo |
And some spelling differences:
| American spelling | British spelling |
| Color | Colour |
| Tire | Tyre |
| Favor | Favour |
| Center | Centre |
| Realize | Realise |
Bear this in mind when writing and there’ll be no problem! At the end of the day, most American words are so widespread that British people use them as well!
Have a lovely week! 😀
The Red Lobster 