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Christopher Davies

Divided by a Common Language Paperback – January 22, 1998

by Christopher Davies (Author), Jason Murphy (Illustrator)

4.0 85 ratings

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DIVIDED BY A COMMON LANGUAGE is a comprehensive reference book about the differences between British English and American English. It covers pronunciation and spelling differences along with a comprehensive dictionary of the words which have a different meaning or are unknown in the other country. The comparison of idioms and expressions has everyone in stitches! A must for the traveler.

Print length

200 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Mayflower Pr
Publication date

January 22, 1998
Dimensions

6.25 x 0.75 x 9.25 inches
ISBN-10

0966094573
ISBN-13

978-0966094572
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Claudine Dervaes and John Hunter
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Norman W. Schur
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Editorial Reviews

From the Author

Serious reference or humorous, yours to decide... Having grown up in England, I ventured forth at the aged 20 to visit relatives in New Zealand. How could I possibly know at that time that England was never going to be home again.... After seven years down under, I settled in the United States in 1980. Twenty years later I am still fascinated by American culture. The linguistic differences are enormous. The words "tailback" and "dustman", mean nothing to the average American and probably never will in the foreseeable future. Brits coming over on "holiday" still use the terms, "bathing costume", and "flannel", much to the amusement of Americans within earshot.

In this book, I have tried to cover every aspect of the differences between British and American English, from spelling differences to pronunciation differences; even comparing different idioms and expressions used on the other side of the pond. I hope you enjoy the book with all its intrinsic humor, but I think having read the book, you'll be just as fascinated as I am by the vast linguistic gulf that separates the two countries. By the way, did you know that Americans have not always driven on the right? The details are in the book. Christopher Davies (CDavies324@aol.com)

About the Author

Christopher Davies, born in England, has lived in Australia, New Zealand and the U.S. He moved to Florida in 1980 where he currently resides. He is a member of the Southwest Florida English Speaking Union.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Mayflower Pr; 2d Ptg. edition (January 22, 1998)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 200 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0966094573
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0966094572
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 12.8 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.25 x 0.75 x 9.25 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #11,208,275 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1,079 in Slang & Idiom Reference Books
- #3,014 in Word Lists
- #5,947 in Words, Language & Grammar Reference

Customer Reviews:
4.0 85 ratings

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Christopher Davies

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Growing up in England I watched television from America, read the National Geographic and thought I was fully conversant with American English. I was surprised to find that upon arriving in the USA I was barely understood by the staff at the counter. Cultural differences assaied me and without the help of a dear friend who had spent much of her adult life in the US I would have not have mastered the learning curve of surviving in America quite so easily.

I have endeavoured to save fellow Brits the indignity of asking the most rudimentary of questions as to the meaning of words such as: ornery, check mark and skycap. Many may feel that learning the differences in cuture and speech when arriving in America is all part of the travel experience. I think the savvy traveller needs to be ahead of the game and know when and how much to tip, the names of the coins and most importantly the faux pas' that one can make that get you noticed, but for the wrong reason.

I hope that readers of this book will get a chuckle from time to time and also question the origin of words and expresions they use without thinking.

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Reviewed in the United States on July 6, 2022

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We found this book to be interesting, but not always accurate. My social media buddies include one Brit, an Aussie, an American living in the U.K., and Americans living all over the country. We found that many of us Americans use the words he said were British English, and not the words he thought were American. This was particularly true of Americans living in Southern states. Our British friend agreed with most of what the author said, but not always. For example, most of us say grade school, not primary school. None of us wait on line, we wait in line. Our British friend disagreed with his definition of gravel.
Still it was a lot of fun. We spent a lot of time talking about it, and enjoyed the book. I’d say, he gets a lot of his idea of American English from New York City

8 people found this helpful

Reviewed in the United States on January 16, 2002

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"England and America are two countries divided by a common language."
-George Bernard Shaw, quoted on the Table of Contents
Christopher Davies has written a dictionary to bridge the divide. He begins by explaining: "... Most English speaking people are unaware of the vast differences between British and American English. This book is designed to enlighten the reader about these differences, and briefly explain how these differences came about. ... An estimated 4,000 words in everyday use in Britain, have a different meaning or are used differently in the U.S."(p.1)
This reader is not a linguist nor lexicographer, but I do read a lot. I have noticed, when reading British books, that my mid-western USA mind is sometimes totally befuddled. This handy-dandy British English-American English Dictionary is a great companion and fun to read! Written with wit and humor (or is that humour?) it also illuminates how the differences came to be:
"The early settlers in the U.S. had no verbal contact with the folk they left behind in England, and the division of the language began. Over the years many Europeans settled in the U.S., bringing their languages with them. English remained the dominant language in America, though German was widely spoken in the 1800's. There were numerous French colonies, and New York was originally a Dutch settlement, called New Amsterdam. Each language left its mark on spoken English [this reviewer would here note that Native languages also enhance American English] ...
Noah Webster, the well known American lexicographer, forecast in 1789 that eventually American English would be as different from British English as Dutch, Danish and Swedish are from German, or from each other." p. 1-2
But with improved transportation and communication, British and American English have remained close enough to cause confusion. In addition to essential cross lexicons, "Rules of the Road," and cartoons with Uncle Sam speak vs. John Bull speak, Mr. Davies provides useful sections on words and phrases with different connotations that can get one in big trouble on the other side of the "pond."
And, finally, God Bless the Canadians, who have their own section in the book and an absolutely charming way of pronouncing the "out" sound. Eh? Listen to Peter Jennings.

10 people found this helpful

Wonderful reference for American or British

Reviewed in the United States on June 12, 2004

Verified Purchase

This is a wonderful reference for someone on either side of the pond. Christopher Davies goes very in depth, and gives some helpful advice for those stumped by the not-so-subtle differences in what is supposed to be the same language. The only downside to this reference is that it's near obvious that Davies learned his American in the South. There are a few phrases brought forward that I never heard until I'd move to Florida, and have never heard anywhere outside the South. Despite this, I'd recommend this book for those curious about linguistic differences, or someone considering relocating from one side of the pond to the other.
To the Author: You've done wonderful research, however there is one GLARING mistake in this book (unless you were trying to make it "family friendly". To flip someone the bird is actually to give them the middle finger, not to make a V sign. V sign is the
peace sign - a definite counter-gesture to the middle finger.
Thank you for all your hours of hard work. If you're intending on putting forth another edition, I'd be happy to make some contributions.

3 people found this helpful

A very usefull book indeed !

Reviewed in the United States on November 17, 2012

Verified Purchase

It has been recommanded by some English person I met in the waiting-room of my veterinary !!! It was a great meeting for me because I have now the answer for so many words used by my son-in-law who is American and the most, from NY (woof ! the accent is terrible)... And I'm French which is a piece of courage to try to understand each other in my own family...lol

One person found this helpful

Reviewed in the United States on September 28, 2012

Verified Purchase

I plan to go to the UK next year and wanted to be understand their version of English. I love the show "Doc Martin," and wanted to understand some words I didn't know, such as "jumper" for sweater.

3 people found this helpful

A Semi-Interesting Mess

Reviewed in the United States on June 3, 2012

Verified Purchase

The book is largely a glossary - perhaps almost half - which doesn't exactly make for Interesting reading. Some terms were terribly out of date, others wildly obscure, and at worst, just plain useless and random. I love both the UK and language, and I found this book a badly done bore. Also, shame on the publisher for the crappy formatting. I finished about 60% of it before giving up, and I normally eat this stuff up.

7 people found this helpful

Divided by a Common Language

Reviewed in the United States on June 4, 2013

Verified Purchase

Very interesting book detailing some of the British and Amercan English and helps decifer the discrepancies. It is a wonderful addition to my resource library.

One person found this helpful

HIGHLY DISRESPECTFUL TO THE UNITED STATES!

Reviewed in the United States on September 8, 2022

Verified Purchase

I permanently deleted this book from my Kindle library after about four pages because The United States were always abbreviated as "us" instead of "US". HIGHLY DISRESPECTFUL!

Top reviews from other countries

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Amazon Customer

Out of date, and too broad a topic

Reviewed in Canada on March 1, 2022

Verified Purchase

Date on book is 2007. A lot has happened since then e.g. electric cars. Brexit. Pandemic. Trump. Even major dictionaries get left behind in such times. Sadly, no print handbook can compete with up-to-date online translation offerings.
Since this is intended mainly as a tourist handbook, why the lengthy section comparing the workings of US and UK toilet tanks/cisterns, which tourists seldom open up?
The book offers mainly lists of words as used in USA and UK, with pronunciation unclear because shown in the author’s own system, not IPA. The section on rhotic accents misses the mark because the topic is too huge for one chapter.
It does try to touch on the vast differences between regional speech forms within the two countries, but merely scratches the surface.

SHORTER

Language is culture-dependent

Reviewed in Japan on January 11, 2003

Verified Purchase

But this book tells us they are not. I could find many words in this book which I had not been aware to be 'American' or 'British,' and it was my purpose to get this book. But from this book I have learned more than that. The differences between American English and British English are not trivial lexicographical information. The most characteristic feature of this rather little book is that it provides us not only with a substantial word list but also explanations of the cultural differences behind them; we can READ it. Two cultures are compared in several categories, in which some confusing word usages are explained. Seen from this viewpoint, each entry in the lexicon of this book is a gateway to the cross-cultural understanding.

5 people found this helpful

stefano tamburrano

soddisfatto

Reviewed in Italy on September 15, 2014

Verified Purchase

Ho acquistato questo libro per lo sconto e per la velocità della spedizione. arrivato bene e integro e nei tempi indicati. molto soddisfatto.

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hiragi

DIDIDED by a COMMON LANGUAGE

Reviewed in Japan on April 5, 2003

Verified Purchase

英語の学習をしていると、簡単な単語でもアメリカとイギリスでは違うことがけっこうあるのですが、
この本ではそのような単語の違いや発音の違い、
またちょっとした文化の違いなども簡単な文で説明されていて
なかなか面白いと思います。中級レベルの人以上向けでしょう。

4 people found this helpful

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Dyl

What planet is he on?

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 20, 2020

Verified Purchase

This is an excerpt from page 1, paragraph 1:

"Words such as clapboard, bleachers and busboy are everyday words in the US, but they would perplex the average speaker of British English. On the other hand, there are words in British English that an American would find a little strange: mailshot, crosspatch and gymkhana".

Right, how is that as a Brit I know all three of the "American" words but don't have a clue what the three "British" words are?

The book seems a little bit just knocked together with no bigger plan than to have huge lists in places. Wasn't what I expected.

Toodle-o, chaps, I'm off for toad-in-the-hole and a quick how's-your-father at the gymkhana.

4 people found this helpful

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