—Work hard, ________ you can make it.

—By listening to a tape and repeating out loud.

—OK, well, can you tell me his telephone number?

British English and American English

A student is studying British English. He asks himself: Can I have a talk with Americans? Learners of English often ask, "What are the differences between British English and American English?" Are these differences important?

Certainly, there are some differences between British English and American English. There are a few differences in grammar. For example, speakers of British English say "in hospital" and "Have you got a pen?" But Americans say "in the hospital" and "Do you have a pen?" Pronunciation is partly different. Americans usually pronounce the "r" in words like "car" and "farm". Speakers of British English do not pronounce the "r" in these words. There are differences between British English and American English in spelling and vocabulary, too. For example, "color" and "honor" are American English. In British English, these two words are written as "colour" and "honour".

These differences in grammar, pronunciation, spelling and vocabulary are not important. For the most part, British English and American English are the same language.