pronounced differently than an O sound, the ou spelling isstandard to both regions: contour, troubadour • In derivatives and inflectedversions of these words in British English (that is, words where letters havebeen added or changed to denote different attributes or tenses), the U is notalways kept: for instance, honour is BrE standard, but honorary drops the U. •Cardinal numbers four and fourteen are always spelled with U. –Izevs -ise The -ize spelling comes from Greek, while -ise is theFrench spelling. In American English -ize is the preferred form, while Britishspelling typically uses -ise,
variance in their preferences. This applies to forms of the wordother than the root Pakistan Mobile Number List word also. Examples • AmE organize, organizing/BrEorganise, organising • AmE colonize, colonization/BrEcolonise, colonisationExceptions • Words that do not come from a Greek root or do not use -ze/-se asa suffix are standard in English everywhere: advertise, seize, guise, capsize,franchise, demise, enterprise -Yzevs -yse This one is a bit simpler. In verbs,the British form is -yse while the American form is -yze. The spelling isfollowed in all forms of the verb. Examples • AmE analyze,analyzing/BrEanalyse, analysing • AmE paralyze, paralyzed/BrEparalyse,paralysed -Ervs -re If a word ends in -re rather than -er, it’s the Britishspelling. However, even in British English, many words that end in this sounduse -er. Generally -re is only used for the root
versions of nouns; when this sound is used as a suffix (nicer,bigger) it always gets -er. Consult a dictionary if you’re unsure. In the US,unless you are quoting the name of a fancy arts venue with an anachronisticspelling, it’s safe to assume -er is correct. Examples • AmE center/BrEcentre •AmE specter/BrEspectre • AmE fiber/BrEfibre Exceptions • Words borrowed as-isfrom another language (such as French) retain their -re spelling in both UK andUS English: genre, double entendre • Words with Germanic roots, such as fire,anger, mother, danger, chapter, monster, member, and disaster, are typicallyconsistent in both regions. • Words
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