American and British English pronunciation differences Totally Explained

Everything about American And British English Pronunciation Differences totally explained

Differences in pronunciation between American English (AmE) and British English (BrE) can be divided into:

differences in accent (for example phoneme inventory and realisation). Accents vary widely within AmE and within BrE, so the features considered here are mainly differences between General American (GAm) and British Received Pronunciation (RP); for information about other accents see regional accents of English speakers.
differences in the pronunciation of individual words in the lexicon (for example phoneme distribution). In this article, transcriptions use RP to represent BrE and GAm and to represent AmE.

In the following discussion

superscript ^A2 after a word indicates the BrE pronunciation of the word is a common variant in AmE

superscript ^B2 after a word indicates the AmE pronunciation of the word is a common variant in BrE

Accent

ť See also: Phonological history of the English language, sections After American/British split, up to the 20th century (c. AD 1725–1900) and After 1900.

GAm is rhotic while RP is non-rhotic; that is, the letter r is only pronounced in RP when it's immediately followed by a vowel sound (unless it's silent). Where GAm has [ɹ] before a consonant, RP either has nothing (if the preceding vowel is [ɔː] or [ɑː], as in bore and bar) or has a schwa instead (the resulting sequences are centring diphthongs or triphthongs). Similarly, where GAm has r-coloured vowels ([ɚ] or [ɝ], as in cupboard or bird), RP has plain vowels [ə] or [ɜː]. However many British accents, especially in Scotland and the West Country, are rhotic, and some American accents, such as the traditional Boston accent, are non-rhotic. ť * The "intrusive R" of many RP speakers (in such sequences as "the idea-r-of it") is absent in GAm; this is a consequence of the rhotic/non-rhotic distinction.

GAm has fewer vowel distinctions before intervocalic [ɹ] than RP; for many GAm speakers, unlike RP, merry, marry and Mary are homophones; mirror rhymes with nearer, and furry rhymes with hurry. However, some eastern American accents, such as the Boston accent, have the same distinctions as in RP.

For some RP speakers (upper class), unlike in GAm, some or all of tire, tower, and tar are homophones; this reflects the merger of the relevant vowels; similarly the pour-poor merger is common in RP but not in GAm.

RP has three open back vowels, where GAm has only two or even one. Most GAm speakers use the same vowel for RP "short O" [ɒ] as for RP "broad A" [ɑː] (the father-bother merger); many also use the same vowel for these as for RP [ɔː] (the cot-caught merger).

For Americans without the cot-caught merger, the lot-cloth split results in [ɔː] in some words which now have [ɒ] in RP; as reflected in the eye dialect spelling "dawg" for dog.

The trap-bath split has resulted in RP having "broad A" [ɑː] where GAm has "short A" [æ], in most words where A is followed by either [n] followed by another consonant, or [s], [f], or [θ] (for example plant, pass, laugh, path). However, many British accents, such as most Northern English accents, agree with GAm in having short A in these words, although it's usually phonetically [a] rather than [æ].

RP has a marked degree of contrast of length between "short" and "long" vowels (The long vowels being the diphthongs, and [iː], [uː], [ɜː], [ɔː], [ɑː]). In GAm this contrast is much less evident, and the IPA length symbol (ː) is often omitted. American phoneticians often prefer the characterizations "tense"/"lax" or "checked"/"free" rather than "short"/"long".

The "long O" vowel (as in boat) is realised differently: GAm pure [oː] or diphthongized [oʊ]; RP central first element[əʊ]. However there's considerable variation in this vowel on both sides of the Atlantic.

The distinction between unstressed /ɪ/ and /ə/ (for example roses vs Rosa's) is often lost in GAm. In RP it's retained, in part because it helps avoid nonrhotic homophones; for example batted vs battered as ['bætɪd] vs ['bætəd]. It is, however, lost in Australian English (which is also non-rhotic) meaning both words are pronounced the same, unlike American or British English.

Where GAm has [iː] in an unstressed syllable at the end of a morpheme, conservative RP has [ɪ], not having undergone happY tensing. This distinction is retained in inflected forms (for example candied and candid are homophones in RP, but not in GAm).

In GAm, flapping is common: when either a /t/ or a /d/ occurs between a sonorant phoneme and an unstressed vowel phoneme, it's realized as an alveolar-flap allophone [ɾ]. This sounds like a /d/ to RP speakers, although many GAm speakers distinguish the two phonemes by aspirating /t/ in this environment, especially after [ɪ] or [eɪ] (thus bitter and rated are distinguishable from bidder and raided), or by lengthening the vowel preceding an underlying /d/. [ɾ] is an allophone of /r/ in conservative RP, which is hence caricatured in America as a "veddy British" accent.

Yod-dropping occurs in GAm after all alveolar consonants, including [t], [d], [θ], [s], [z], [n], [l]; for example historic [juː] (from spellings u, ue, eu, ew), is pronounced [uː] in a stressed syllable. In contrast, RP speakers:

always retain [j] after [n]: for example new is RP [njuː], GAm [nuː];
retain or coalesce it after [t], [d]: for example due is RP [djuː] or [dʒuː], GAm [duː];
retain or drop it after [θ], [l]: for example allude is RP [ə'ljuːd] or (as GAm) [ə'luːd].
retain, coalesce or drop it after [s], [z]: for example assume is RP [ə'sjuːm] or [ə'ʃuːm], or (as GAm) [ə'suːm];
- In some words where [j] has been coalesced in GAm, it may be retained in RP: for example issue is RP ['ɪsjuː] or (as GAm) ['ɪʃuː]

Stress

French stress

For many loanwords from French where AmE has final-syllable stress, BrE stresses an earlier syllable. Such words include:

BrE first-syllable stress: adult^A2,B2, ballet^A2, baton, beret, bidet, blasé, brevet^A2, brochure^B2, buffet, café^A2, canard^B2, chagrin, chalet^A2, chauffeur^B2, chiffon, cliché, coupé, croissant, debris^B2, debut, décor, detail^A2, détente^B2, flambé, frappé, garage^B2, gateau, gourmet^A2, lamé, montage^A2, parquet, pastel, pâté, précis, sachet, salon, soupçon, vaccine; matinée, negligée, nonchalant, nondescript; also some French names, including Bernard^B2, Calais, Degas, Dijon, Dumas, Francoise, Manet^A2, Maurice, Monet^A2, Pauline, Renault, René^B2, Renoir, Rimbaud, Delacroix^B2.

BrE second-syllable stress: attaché, consommé, décolleté, déclassé, De Beauvoir, Debussy, démodé, denouement, distingué, Dubonnet, escargot, fiancé(e), retroussé A few French words have other stress differences:

AmE first-syllable, BrE last-syllable: address^A2 (postal), m(o)ustache^A2; cigarette^A2, limousine^B2, magazine^B2,

AmE first-syllable, BrE second-syllable: exposé^B2, liaison^A2, macramé, Renaissance

AmE second-syllable, BrE last-syllable: New Orleans

-ate and -atory

Most 2-syllable verbs ending -ate have first-syllable stress in AmE and second-syllable stress in BrE. This includes castrate, dictate^A2, donate^A2, locate^A2, mandate^B2, migrate, placate, prostrate, pulsate, rotate, serrate^B2, spectate, striated, translate^A2, vacate, vibrate; in the case of cremate, narrate, placate, the first vowel is in addition reduced to /ə/ in BrE. Examples where AmE and BrE match include create, debate, equate, elate, negate, orate, relate with second-syllable stress; and mandate and probate with first-syllable stress. Derived nouns in -ator may retain the distinction, but those in -ation do not. Also, migratory^A2 and vibratory retain the distinction.
Most longer -ate verbs are pronounced the same in AmE and BrE, but a few have first-syllable stress in BrE and second-syllable stress in AmE: elongate, infiltrate^A2, remonstrate, tergiversate. Hoewever, some derived adjectives ending -atory have a difference, as stress shifting to -at- can occur in BrE. Among these cases are regulatory^B2, celebratory^A2, participatory^B2, where AmE stresses the same syllable as the corresponding -ate verb; and compensatory, where AmE stresses the second syllable.
A further -atory difference is laboratory: AmE /'læbɹɪˌtɔɹi/ and BrE /lə'bɒɹət(ə)ɹiː/.

Miscellaneous stress

There are a number of cases where same-spelled noun, verb and/or adjective have uniform stress in one dialect but distinct stress in the other (for example alternate, prospect): see initial-stress-derived noun.
The following table lists words where the only difference between AmE and BrE is in stress (possibly with a consequent reduction of the unstressed vowel). Words with other points of difference are listed in a later table.

BrE	AmE	words with relevant syllable stressed in each dialect
1st
2nd
1st
3rd
2nd
3rd

Affixes

-ary -ery -ory -bury, -berry, -mony

Where the syllable preceding -ary,-ery or -ory is stressed, AmE and BrE alike pronounce all these endings /əɹi(ː)/. Where the preceding syllable is unstressed, however, AmE has a full vowel rather than schwa: /ɛɹi/ for -ary and -ery and /ɔɹi/ for -ory. BrE retains the reduced vowel /əɹiː/, or even elides it completely to /ɹiː/. (The elision is avoided in carefully enunciated speech, especially with endings -rary,-rery,-rory.) So military is AmE /'mɪlɪtɛɹiː/ and BrE /'mɪlɪtəɹiː/ or /'mɪlɪtɹiː/.
   Note that stress differences occur with ending -atory (explained above) and a few others like capillary (included above). A few words have the full vowel in AmE in the ending even though the preceding syllable is stressed: library, primary^A2, rosemary. Pronouncing library as /'laɪbɛɹi/ rather than /'laɪbɹɛɹi/ is highly stigmatized in AmE, whereas in BrE, /'laɪbɹiː/ is common in rapid or casual speech.
   Formerly the BrE-AmE distinction for adjectives carried over to corresponding adverbs ending -arily, -erily or -orily. However, nowadays most BrE speakers adopt the AmE practice of shifting the stress to the antepenultimate syllable: militarily is thus /ˌmɪlɪ'tɛɹɪliː/ rather than /'mɪlɪtɹɪliː/.
   The placename component -bury (for example Canterbury) has a similar difference after a stressed syllable: AmE /bɛɹi/ and BrE /bɹɪː/ or /bəɹɪː/. The ending -mony after a stressed syllable is AmE /moʊni/ but BrE /mənɪː/. The word -berry in compounds has a slightly different distinction: in BrE, it's reduced (/bəɹiː/ or /bɹiː/) after a stressed syllable, and may be full /bɛɹiː/ after an unstressed syllable; in AmE it's usually full in all cases. Thus, strawberry is BrE /'strɔːbəɹiː/ but AmE /'strɔbɛɹi/, while whortleberry is BrE /'wɔːtlbɛɹiː/ and similarly AmE /'wɔɹtlbɛɹi/.

-ile

Words ending in unstressed -ile derived from Latin adjectives ending -ilis are mostly pronounced with a full vowel (/aɪl/) in BrE but a reduced vowel /ɪl/ or syllabic /l/ in AmE (for example fertile rhymes with fur tile in BrE but with turtle in AmE). This difference applies:

generally to agile, docile, facile, fertile, fissile, fragile, futile, infertile, missile, nubile, octile, puerile, rutile, servile, stabile, sterile, tactile, tensile, virile, volatile;

usually to ductile, hostile, (im)mobile (adjective), projectile, textile, utile, versatile;

not usually to decile, domicile, infantile, juvenile, labile, mercantile, pensile, reptile, senile;

not to crocodile, exile, gentile, percentile, reconcile; nor to compounds of monosyllables (for example turnstile from stile). Related endings -ility, -ilize, -iliary are pronounced the same in AmE as BrE. The name Savile is pronounced with (/ɪl/) in both BrE and AmE. Mobile (sculpture), camomile and febrile are sometimes pronounced with /il/ in AmE and /aɪl/) in BrE. Imbecile has /aɪl/ or /iːl/ in BrE and often /ɪl/ in AmE.

-ine

The suffix -ine, when unstressed, is pronounced sometimes /aɪn/ (for example feline), sometimes /i(ː)n/ (for example morphine) and sometimes /ɪn/ (for example medicine). Some words have variable pronunciation within BrE, or within AmE, or between BrE and AmE. Generally, AmE is more likely to favour /in/ or /ɪn/, and BrE to favour /aɪn/: for example adamantine^A2, carbine, crystalline^A2, labyrinthine, philistine, serpentine^A2, turbine^A2. However, sometimes AmE has /aɪn/ where BrE has /iːn/; for example iodine^B2, strychnine^A2.

Weak forms

Some function words have a weak form in AmE, with a reduced vowel used when the word is unstressed, but always use the full vowel in RP. These include: or [ɚ]; you [jə]; your [jɚ].
On the other hand, the titles Saint and Sir before a person's name have "weak forms" in BrE but not AmE:
before vowels, [snt] and [səɹ]; before consonants, [sn] and [sə].

Miscellaneous pronunciation differences

These tables list words pronounced differently but spelled the same. See also the table of words with different pronunciation reflected in the spelling.

Single differences

Words with multiple points of difference of pronunciation are in the table after this one. Accent-based differences are ignored. For example, Moscow is RP /'mɒskəʊ/ and GAm /'mɑskaʊ/, but only the /əʊ/-/aʊ/ difference is highlighted here, since the /ɒ/-/ɑ/ difference is predictable from the accent. Also, tiara is listed with AmE /æ/; the marry-merry-Mary merger changes this vowel for many Americans. Some AmE types are listed as /ɒ/ where GAm merges to /ɑ/ .

BrE	AmE	Words
/æ/	/ɑ/	annato, Bangladesh^A2, Caracas, chianti^A2, Galapagos, Gdańsk^A2, grappa^A2, gulag^A2, Hanoi^A2, Jan^A2 (male name, for example Jan Palach), Kant^A2, kebab, Las (placenames, for example Las Vegas), Mafia, mishmash^A2, Mombasa^A2, Natasha, Nissan, Pablo, pasta, Picasso^A2, ralentando, San^A2 (names outside USA; for example San Juan), Slovak^A2, Sri Lanka^A2, Vivaldi, wigwam^A2, Yasser^A2 (and A in many other foreign names and loanwords)
/iː/	/ɛ/	aesthete, anaesthetize, breve^A2, catenary^A2, Daedalus, devolution^A2,B2, ecumenical^B2, epoch^A2, evolution^A2,B2, febrile^A2, Hephaestus, Kenya^B2, lever^A2, methane, Oedipus^A2, (o)estrus, penalize^A2, predecessor^A2, pyrethrin^A2, senile^A2, hygienic
/ɒ/	/oʊ/	Aeroflot, compost, homosexual^B2, Interpol, Lod, pogrom, polka^B2, produce (noun), Rosh Hashanah, scone^A2,B2, shone, sojourn, troll^B2, yoghurt
/ɑː/	/æ/	(Excluding trap-bath split words) banana, java^A2, khaki^A2, morale, Nevada^A2, scenario^A2, soprano^A2, tiara^A2, Pakistani
/ɛ/	/i/	Cecil^A2,B2, crematorium^A2, cretin, depot, inherent^A2,B2, leisure^A2, medieval^A2, reconnoitre^A2, zebra^B2, zenith^A2,B2
/æ/	/eɪ/	compatriot, patriot^B2, patronise, phalanx, plait, repatriate, Sabine, satrap^A2, satyr^A2, basil^A2 (plant)
/ɪ/	/aɪ/	dynasty, housewifery, idyll, livelong^A2, long-lived^A2, privacy^B2, simultaneous, vitamin. Also the suffix -ization. See also -ine.
/z/	/s/	Aussie^A2, blouse, complaisant^A2, crescent, erase, Glasgow^A2, parse, valise, trans-^A2,B2 (in some words)
/ɑː/	/eɪ/	amen^A2, charade^B2, cicada, gala^A2, promenade^A2, pro rata, tomato, stratum
/əʊ/	/ɒ/	codify, goffer, ogle^A2, phonetician, processor, progress (noun), sloth^A2,B2, wont ^A2, wroth
/ʌ/	/ɒ/	accomplice, accomplish, colander^B2, constable^B2, Lombardy, monetary^A2, -monger^A2
/ɒ/	/ʌ/	hovel^A2,B2, hover. Also the strong forms of these function words: anybody^A2 (likewise every-, some-, and no-), because^A2,B2 (and clipping 'cos/'cause), of^A2, from^A2, was^A2, what^A2
(sounded)	(silent)	chthonic, herb^A2 (plant), Knossos^B2, phthisic^B2, salve, solder
/ɑː/	/ɚ/	Berkeley, Berkshire, clerk, Derby, Hertford. (The only AmE word with = [ɑɹ] is sergeant).
/aɪ/	/i/	either^A2,B2, neither^A2,B2, Pleiades. See also -ine.
/iː/	/aɪ/	albino, migraine^B2. Also the prefixes anti-^A2, multi-^A2, semi-^A2 in loose compounds (for example in anti-establishment, but not in antibody). See also -ine.
/ə/	/ɒ/	hexagon, octagon, paragon, pentagon, phenomenon.
/iː/	/eɪ/	eta, beta, quay^A2, theta, zeta
/aɪ/	/ɪ/	butyl^B2, diverge, minority^A2,B2, primer (schoolbook). See also -ine.
/ɛ/	/eɪ/	ate^B2 ("et" is nonstandard in America), mêlée, chaise longue
/ɜːz/	/us/	Betelgeuse, chanteuse, chartreuse^A2, masseuse
/eɪ/	/æ/	apricot^A2, dahlia, digitalis, patent^A2,B2, comrade
(silent)	(sounded)	medicine^B2. See also -ary -ery -ory -bury, -berry
/ɒ/	/ə/	Amos, condom, Enoch
/ʃ/	/ʒ/	Asia^B2, Persia^B2, version^B2
/ə/	/oʊ/	borough, thorough (see also -ory and -mony)
/ɪɹ/	/ɚ/	chirrup^A2, stirrup^A2, sirup^A2, squirrel
/siː/	/ʃ/	cassia, Cassius^A2, hessian
/tiː/	/ʃ/	consortium
/uː/	/ju/	coupon^A2, fuchsine, Houston^B2
/uː/	/ʊ/	boulevard, snooker, woof^A2 (weaving)
/ɜː(ɹ)/	/ʊɹ/	connoisseur^A2, entrepreneur^A2
/ɜː/	/oʊ/	föhn^B2, Möbius^B2
/ə/	/eɪ/	Draconian^A2, hurricane^B2
/eɪ/	/i/	deity^A2,B2, Helene
/juː/	/w/	jaguar, Nicaragua
/ɔː/	/ɑ/	launch, salt^B2
/ɔː(ɹ)/	/ɚ/	record (noun), stridor^A2,B2
/ziː/	/ʒ/	Frasier, Parisian, Malaysia
/æ/	/ɒ/	twat^B2
/ɒ/	/æ/	wrath
/ɑː/	/ət/	nougat
/ɑː/	/ɔ/	Utah
/ɑː/	/ɔɹ/	quark^A2,B2
/æ/	/ɛ/	femme fatale^A2
/aɪ/	/eɪ/	Isaiah
/aʊ/	/u/	nous^A2
/ð/	/θ/	booth
/diː/	/dʒi/	cordiality
/dʒ/	/gdʒ/	suggest^A2
/eɪ/	/ə/	template
/eɪ/	/ət/	tourniquet
/ə(ɹ)/	/ɑɹ/	Madagascar^A2
/ə(ɹ)/	/jɚ/	figure
/ɛ/	/ɑ/	envelope^A2,B2
/ɛ/	/ə/	Kentucky
/ə/	/æ/	trapeze
/ɜː(ɹ)/	/ɛɹ/	err^A2
/əʊ/	/ɒt/	Huguenot
/əʊ/	/aʊ/	Moscow^A2
/əʊ/	/u/	brooch^A2
/ɪ/	/i/	pi(t)ta^B2
/iː/	/ɪ/	been^B2
/iːʃ/	/ɪtʃ/	niche^A2,B2
/jɜː/	/ju/	milieu
/juː/	/u/	barracuda
/ɔː/	/æ/	falcon^A2
/s/	/z/	asthma
/ʃ/	/sk/	schedule^B2
/t/	/θ/	Anthony^A2,B2
/ts/	/z/	piazza^A2
/ʊ/	/ɪ/	kümmel
/ʊ/	/ʌ/	brusque
/uː/	/aʊ/	route^A2
/uː/	/oʊ/	cantaloup(e)
/ʌ/	/oʊ/	covert^A2,B2
/z/	/ʃ/	Dionysius
/ziː/	/ʃ/	transient^A2

Multiple differences

The slashes normally used to enclose IPA phonemic transcriptions have been omitted from the following table to improve legibility.

Spelling	BrE IPA	AmE IPA	Notes
barrage
boehmite
bouquet
boyar
buoy
cadre
canton
dilettante
enquiry/inquiry
febrile
fracas

glacier
jalousie
lapsang souchong
lasso
lieutenant
lychee
Molière
oblique
penchant
penult
premier
première
provost
quinine
resource
respite
reveille
slough
Tunisia
untoward
vase
z (the letter)

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