Watch a video about different accents between pronunciation of British, American and Australian variations.
The English language is spoken in many countries around the world, and has developed different accents and dialects. The most commonly recognized accents are those of Great Britain, the United States, Canada, Australia, and South Africa.
- Different accents
In Great Britain, there are various regional accents that make up British English. The most well-known of these is Received Pronunciation (RP), which is a prestigious form of British English associated with upper-class speech in England. RP features a flat intonation and words being pronounced as they would be spelled. Other regional dialects include Cockney, which is spoken in London’s East End; Estuary English, which combines elements of Southern English with London speech; and West Country English spoken throughout the south-western counties. The vocabulary used in British English also differs from other versions of the language; for example, common terms like ‘crisps’ and ‘biscuits’ refer to potato chips and cookies respectively in the UK but have different meanings across sea.
In contrast to British English pronunciation American English tends to have more drastic changes to vowel sounds than its counterpart across the pond. A phenomenon known as “Canadian Raising” also exists where vowels are raised before certain consonants when speaking American English – for example,”about” may sound like “aboot” or “idea” can sound like “eedea”. Similarly to British English there are a variety of dialects within America such as New York City speech or Southern drawl which further adds differences between vocabularies used across each region.
In Canada two main varieties of the language exist including Canadian Raising and what is known as CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) accent – both being borrowings from American english that Canadians place on their own native tongue. As well as this French-Canadian also has a large influence on Canadian English with features derived from both French and English intermingling such as loanwords borrowed from either languages being used together without any adaptation or switching into another related word form.
Australia has its own unique set of accents ranging from General Australian (GA) to Broad Australian (BA). GA is widely recognized throughout Australia while BA has been described by linguists as sounding ‘rougher’ due to certain vocal tendencies such as dropping off syllables at the ends of words or elongating certain vowel sounds – one example being Australians pronouncing “no” more like “noo” . The slang vocabulary used in Australia often derives from Aboriginal words along with others adapted from traditional Cockney rhyming slang, shortened versions of phrases i.e “arvo” meaning afternoon or by adding extra syllables like -o/-y endings onto existing words i.e G’day becoming G’dayo
Finally South African english stands out due to its influences not only derived from Afrikaans but also Indian languages such as Tamil making it quite distinct when compared to other varieties around the world . Just like all other variations some words mean completely different things while others remain relatively similar – one example being that South Africans use both biltong and beef jerky interchangeably even though they are two distinct food items , one containing less fat than the other.
- Distinct vocabulary
In the English-speaking world, there are different dialects and accents with distinct vocabulary and expressions. British, American, Canadian, Australian, and South African English all have uniquely identifiable words and phrases that distinguish them from each other. Here is a list of common synonyms and language variances from each dialect:
British English:
Lift (elevator)
Flat (apartment)
Lorry (truck)
Boot (trunk of car)
Petrol (gasoline)
Biscuit (cookie)
Queue (line)
Tap (faucet)
Post (mail)
Solicitor (attorney)
American English:
Sidewalk (pavement)
Pants (trousers)
Sweater (jumper)
Garbage (rubbish)
Diaper (nappy)
Faucet (tap)
Flashlight (torch)
Attorney (solicitor)
Gasoline (petrol)
Mail (post)
Canadian English:
Serviette (napkin)
Knapsack (backpack)
Runner/scuff (sneaker)
Pencil crayons (colored pencils)
Toque (woollen hat)
Grades (school years)
Garbage bin (trash can)
Hydro (electricity)
Canoe (beverage-container deposit)
Coworker (colleague)
Australian English:
G’day (hello)
Arvo (afternoon)
Brolly (umbrella)
Brekkie (breakfast)
Footy (football)
Billabong (a pond in a dry riverbed)
Swag (rolled-up bedroll)
Bikkie (biscuit/cookie)
Thongs (flip-flops)
Chemist (pharmacy)
South African English:
Robot (traffic light)
Boot (trunk of a car)
Braai (barbecue)
Bakkie (pickup truck)
Lekker (nice, good, enjoyable)
Boet / bru (brother, friend)
Eina (ouch)
Cooldrink (soda)
Chips (french fries and also potato chips/crisps)
Madiba (Nelson Mandela’s clan name used as a respectful alternative name)
These diverse synonym sets highlight the vast linguistic richness present in different English dialects around the world. The unique vocabulary found in each dialect often reflects the specific cultural and historical contexts of each region, enriching the language with local color and meanings.