TRANSCRIPT OF THE ABOVE VIDEO: Different English Words Around The World - Learn Vocabulary Variations in English Speaking Countries

Hi everyone, its Nicole here and I'm answering another one of your questions. So, thank you for coming back.

Um, today's learning video, I just wanted to talk about, I suppose, the differences in English around the world.

So, as you know, you know, there's American English, British English, Canadian English, Australian English, New Zealand English, many different types of English, and then obviously you've got the English of non-native speakers, of people who speak English as a second or a third language, and in all of these situations, people pronounce things differently, but also use different words for the same things.

And one of the best examples is, I suppose, the British English versus the American English, or the Australian English, I suppose, I'm from Australia, versus the American English because we use different words for the same things, you know, an example might be that we say autumn whereas in America they say fall, did you know that, or, you know, we might say a lawyer or a barrister, whereas in the US they say an attorney, we say a taxi they say cab, or we say chips and they say fries, um, you know, we call it a car park, in America they call it a parking lot, or, oh gosh, what else, you know, for a baby we say it's a dummy that they put in their mouth, whereas they call it a pacifier over in the US, or we call them nappies, and they call them, oh gosh, wait a minute, what do they call them, nappies are diapers, you know, we say handbag, they call it a purse, we call it holiday, which is the best word, they say vacation, you know, then we've got lift versus elevator, or we've got jelly versus jello, or even a flat versus an apartment or a unit, you know, chips versus crisps, or, oh there’s so many, you've got like a bonnet of a car or a hood, you've got anti-clockwise and counter-clockwise.

So there's so many words that mean the same thing, but because of the location of that English speaker in the world, whether they're in America, or Canada, or Australia, or New Zealand, or Britain, they use a different word, and that's really exciting actually, yeah, I find it exciting, you know, in the UK they they say lorry, whereas we in Australia call it a truck, or, you know, we say petrol that you put in the car, in America they call it gasoline, you know, we call it post they call it mail, or, you know, we say it's a public toilet, they call it a restroom in America, you know, we call it a queue, where you're in a long queue waiting for someone, in America they call it a line. What else, you know, we've got a shop versus a store. 

There's so many different ideas different words where, I suppose, the Americans use a different word, yeah. So, have a think about it, the words that you use, are they primarily American English, Australian English, British English, Canadian English, what are they? Because when we speak, but more importantly when we write, we have to be consistent, you know, we can't use in one sentence an American English word, followed by an Australian English word, followed by a British English word.

We have to be consistent, especially when we write, so have a think about it. Which words do you use, which English has influenced you, you know, if you had an American English teacher, then obviously most of the words that you have learned are American English or are influenced by the US, if your teacher was British English, used British English all the time, then you’re using more of those words. If I was your teacher, I'm Australian, so you might use more of the Australian version of those words, which a lot of the time is very similar, or almost identical to British English.

So, have a look, think about it, when you speak or when you see some new words, think about it, is this British English, is this American English, is this Australian, and really think about what you use, or what you'd like to use. But, anyway, there's a fun video answering your question about the differences in English, and, yeah, allowing you to open your eyes to whether you primarily use Australian, British, or American English.

Have a great day, and thanks for listening. Bye.