Macruadhi  +  295348 Mon, 20 Nov 06 03:54 AM I'm not sure if this goes here, sorry if it doesn't For the past several years I have enjoyed the differences twix American and British English and I endevour to use the British spellings of words, i.e. Colour, Favourite, and to drop those annoying Zs', i.e.Realise, Scrutinise. Is the British spelling the "correct" spelling? Or is the the American spelling just further evolution of our language? And lastly, Tire v/s Tyre,  I am not sure where the difference came from. Thanks, Eric Macruadhi Joined on Tue, Oct 10 2006 New Member 07 British English, Spelling

	Grammar Geek  +  295350 Mon, 20 Nov 06 04:09 AM Neither is universally correct or more evolved. If you live in the U.S. or work for a U.S. company outside of the U.S., use the U.S. spellings, because in those cases the British spelling would incorrect. If you live in the U.K., use the U.K. spellings. Just don't use "color" and "colour" in the same essay. Grammar Geek Joined on Tue, Jan 10 2006 Veteran Member 19,678 Barbara, who answers in American English. My housekeeping skills attest to the truth of the second law of thermodynamics: Left to themselves, things get more and more random! Essays, Spelling

	Englishuser  +  295509 Mon, 20 Nov 06 01:53 PM Hi Macruadhi, You wrote: and to drop those annoying Zs', i.e.Realise, Scrutinise Realize, scrutinize, memorize, apologize, etc., are all considered appropriate in British English. In fact, they are given as main entries in the Oxford English Dictionary, whereas ise-spellings are given as equally correct and completely acceptable variant spellings. Some people think that ize-spellings are Americanisms, but these people are wrong. Englishuser Englishuser Joined on Thu, Mar 30 2006 Regular Member 717 British English

	Englishuser  +  295510 Mon, 20 Nov 06 01:56 PM Hi Grammar Geek, You wrote: Just don't use "color" and "colour" in the same essay. I couldn't agree more. We should always strive to be as consistent as possible. Englishuser Englishuser Grammar, Essays

	J Lewis  +  295900 Tue, 21 Nov 06 01:02 PM Some American spellings are a simplification of British ones, like "jail", which I adopt wholeheartedly instead of the absurd BrE spelling "gaol". Also the removal of some Greek diphthongs, e.g. "esthetic" instead of "aesthetic" doesn't seem a bad idea, but I wouldn't use this for a British readership. A historical note: some of these changes, like "color" for "colour" and "center" for "centre", are the result of a conscious campaign led by Webster, of dictionary fame, to differentiate the language, a need felt after Independence. I confirm that "-ize" and "-ise" are both acceptable in BrE, in spite of what some spelling checkers on computers tell us. J Lewis Joined on Tue, Sep 5 2006 Italy Regular Member 518 Spelling, Diphthongs