One Minute English Lesson – American English VS British English

If you thought American English and British English were the same, think again! Here are a few examples.

Video Transcript

Hello. Welcome to Malvern House in Brighton. Today we are looking at American English versus British English, so some vocabulary words.

Americans say “sneakers” whereas the English say “trainers”.

“I like your new sneakers”, “I like your new trainers”. In America “vacation” means “holiday”. “Where are you going on vacation?”, “Where are you going on holiday?”.

In America, “chips” are actually “crisps”, (confusing) so “Salt & vinegar chips are my favourite” is the same as “salt & vinegar crisps are my favourite”.

And even more confusion in America chips are French fries, so “I’d like some French fries with my burger please or “I’d like some chips with my burger please” if you are in England. So a little bit of grammar.

In America, the Americans use the past simple to talk about something that has just happened and the English use the present perfect so you will hear “I ate too much”, in England “I’ve eaten too much” or in America “I went to the store”, in England “I’ve been to the shop.

Thank you for joining me today for your one minute lesson and we’ll see you soon.

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