Canadian Vocabulary vs American and British

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Anonymous

#329638 Thu, 15 Feb 07 02:02 PM

Hello everybody:-) I'm currently writing MA thesis concerning Canadian English. My practical section of this dissertation is to involve the analysis of Canadian Vocabulary and I do need your help (especially of Native CANADIANS). I would be REALLY grateful if U could give me answers to the following survey:

1. Which way of spelling do U prefer: odour/odor, colour/color, centre/center, foetus/fetus, licence/license, dialogue/dialog, jewellery/jewelery, criticise/criticize, formulae/formulas, tyre/tire, program/programme

2.Do U ever use any of these words (if yes how often): serviette, chesterfield

3. Which words do you use in everyday life: autumn/fall, biscuit/cookie, chemist's/drugstore, crisps/chips, football/soccer, garden/yard, lift/elevator

Thx also for filling these info:

Age:

Sex:

Province and territory (if you are a Canadian):

Town:

Education (primary/secondary/ higher education):

Anonymous

Football, Vocabulary, Spelling

Grammar Geek

#329653 Thu, 15 Feb 07 03:02 PM

1. Which way of spelling do U prefer: odour/odor, colour/color, centre/center, foetus/fetus, licence/license, dialogue/dialog, jewellery/jewelery, criticise/criticize, formulae/formulas, tyre/tire, program/programme

2.Do U ever use any of these words (if yes how often): serviette, chesterfield Never

You need to provide the definition you were looking for in #3. Biscuit, in American English, has its own defintion, and so does football. Likewise, garden and yard, etc. If I followed the question directly ask asked, I'd choose all of them except crisps and chemists. Likewise, others will choose chips to mean "French fries."

3. Which words do you use in everyday life: autumn/fall - both, but probably fall more often, biscuit - this is a type of bread - I do use it, but not to mean cookie/cookie, chemist's/drugstore, crisps/chips, football - I call American football just "football"/soccer to mean what everyone else calls football, garden - these have flowers/yard - this you mow, lift - of course I use the word "lift" but not to mean elevator/elevator

Thx also for filling these info:

Age: 40

Sex: F

Province and territory (if you are a Canadian): And if we're not Canadian?

Town:

Education (primary/secondary/ higher education): master's

Grammar Geek

Joined on Tue, Jan 10 2006

Pennsylvania, USA

Forum Guru (14,497)

Barbara, who answers in American English.

Football, Vocabulary, American English, Spelling

Cool Breeze

#329666 Thu, 15 Feb 07 03:33 PM

Hi GG

I didn't know jewelery existed! Are you sure they use it in Canada? Jewellery is British and jewelry is American.

Cheers
CB

Cool Breeze

Joined on Fri, Apr 7 2006

Helsinki, Finland

Advanced Member (2,440)

The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco.- Mark Twain

Vocabulary

Grammar Geek

#329669 Thu, 15 Feb 07 03:35 PM

Hell, I don't know. It's not MY survey. I'm just a respondent.

(All I know is that I say it funny: JEWL-ree, not jew-ell-ree)

Grammar Geek

Vocabulary

Anonymous

#329822 Fri, 16 Feb 07 05:17 AM

1. Which way of spelling do U prefer: odour/odor, colour/color, centre/center, foetus/fetus, licence/license, dialogue/dialog, jewellery/jewelery(which i say jewl-ree), criticise/criticize, formulae/formulas, tyre/tire, program/programme

2.Do U ever use any of these words (if yes how often): serviette(as often as napkin), chesterfield(never)

3. Which words do you use in everyday life: autumn/fall(both but fall more comonly), biscuit/cookie(biscuit but not to mean a cookie, cookie to mean a cookie), chemist's/drugstore, crisps/chips(meaning potato chips, not french fries), football/soccer(football means american football, soccer means everyone else's football), garden/yard(garden has flowers, yard you mow), lift/elevator(as was said, of course i saw lift but it doesn't mean an elevator)

Thx also for filling these info:

Age: 21

Sex: m

Province and territory (if you are a Canadian): BC

Town: Kamloops

Education (primary/secondary/ higher education): University Student

Anonymous

Universities, Football, Vocabulary, Spelling

Marvin A.

#330759 Sun, 18 Feb 07 07:39 PM

>> (All I know is that I say it funny: JEWL-ree, not jew-ell-ree) <<

Nah, it's just one of those words with several pronunciation variants that seem to be found all over the English speaking world. Pretty much the same as for example route: rowt vs root; milk: m-ilk vs melk; caramel (2 or three syllables), I'll as Isle or All, etc. There is no real "right" way to say these words, and neither of those pronunciation dominates any particular English speaking region.

Marvin A.

Joined on Fri, Dec 8 2006

Full Member (638)

Pronunciation, Vocabulary

Clive

#330816 Mon, 19 Feb 07 12:58 AM

Hi,

I beleive there is quite a lot of literature available on this topic. This includes the Canadian Oxford Dictionary that I have in front of me here, and which claims to define Canadian English. Are you hoping to add something new?

Good luck, Clive

My practical section of this dissertation is to involve the analysis of Canadian Vocabulary and I do need your help (especially of Native CANADIANS). I'm a Canadian. We use the term native Canadian to refer to what you might call Canadian Indians. I would be REALLY grateful if U could give me answers to the following survey:

1. Which way of spelling do U prefer: odour/odor, colour/color, centre/center, foetus/fetus, licence/license, dialogue/dialog, jewellery/jewelery, criticise/criticize, formulae/formulas, <<< both, depending on context.- the former in a math context tyre/tire, program/programme

2.Do U ever use any of these words (if yes how often): serviette, chesterfield No and No

3. Which words do you use in everyday life: autumn/fall, biscuit/cookie, chemist's/drugstore, crisps/chips, football/soccer, <<< both, depending on which of the two games I am speaking of garden/yard, lift/elevator

Thx also for filling these info:

Age:

Sex: M

Province and territory (if you are a Canadian): Ontario

Town: Toronto

Education (primary/secondary/ higher education):

Clive

Joined on Thu, Oct 28 2004

Canada

Forum Guru (19,221)

El tango argentino es un pensamiento triste que se puede bailar (The tango argentino is a sad thought which can be danced) Enrique Santos Discépolo

Football, Vocabulary, Spelling, Literature

Anonymous

#333852 Tue, 27 Feb 07 07:13 PM

Thank you very much for your answers! I do appreciate your help!

Contrary to your opinion there is a considerable shortage of info concerning Canadian English, especially info I'm interested in. However I don't give up and keep on searching:-) That's why, I wonder if you could help me even more. Would you talk some of your friends into answering this short survey? I believe it's not so much of trouble for you For me, your answers are invaluable source of info. I would be extremely grateful for your help!

Anonymous

Vocabulary

Anonymous

#338586 Tue, 13 Mar 07 03:46 AM

I would happily comply, but anonymous doesn't cut it for me. It's too gratuitous.

Anonymous

Vocabulary

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