British and American spelling differences

Most spelling differences between British and American English follow a few patterns, such as -our/-or (colour/color), -re/-er (centre/center) and -ise/-ize (organise/organize). The lists below show 782 common word pairs from the dictionary.

Jump to: -our / -or · -ise / -ize · -yse / -yze · -re / -er · -ogue / -og · -ence / -ense · Double L · ae and oe / e

-our / -or (92)

Many words ending in -our in British English end in -or in American English.

Showing 80 of 92.

-ise / -ize (540)

British English usually uses -ise, although -ize is also correct in British English and is preferred by some publishers, including Oxford. American English uses -ize.

Showing 80 of 540.

-yse / -yze (6)

Verbs ending in -yse in British English end in -yze in American English. Unlike -ise, -yze is not used in British English.

-re / -er (33)

Some words ending in -re in British English end in -er in American English.

-ogue / -og (4)

Some words ending in -ogue in British English can end in -og in American English, although -ogue is also common there.

-ence / -ense (4)

A few nouns ending in -ence in British English end in -ense in American English.

Double L (35)

British English doubles a final L before -ed, -ing and -er even when the stress is not on the last syllable; American English usually does not.

ae and oe / e (68)

Some words from Greek and Latin keep ae or oe in British English but simplify them to e in American English, especially in medicine and science.

Other spelling differences

Some differences do not follow a pattern: British tyre and American tire, kerb and curb, cheque and check, draught and draft, grey and gray, plough and plow, programme and program, aluminium and aluminum. Some also differ in meaning; see practice vs practise and licence vs license.

• British vs American vocabulary
• British vs American pronunciation