Is Canadian spelling the same as us?
Canadian spelling isn't quite the same as anyone else's. It's no secret that we Canadians spell differently from our cousins in the United States: We put a “u” in words like “colour” and “favour”; Americans leave it out. We spell “theatre” and “centre” with an “re” at the end; they spell them with an “er”
In Canada, both versions are acceptable, but again with regional differences. Some Canadian dictionaries prefer the American spelling, others prefer the British spelling. For scientific writing, the British spelling is preferred in both British and Canadian journals.
These results confirm those in published studies that find Canadians also prefer “z” in the –ize/ise suffix (realize, finalize). spectervs. spectre Most respondents chose the –re ending which is associated with British usage; however a large number chose the American –er spelling.
For the bank order, the preferred Canadian spelling is cheque, while check is favoured in the United States.
In other words, where many US speakers will pronounce "sorry" like "sari", (i.e. in the lot Lexical Set), Canadians make the first syllable like "sore." In fact, when Canadian actors learn that US speakers say "sorry/sari" in the same manner, they often remark "where's the pain in that?" For us, "sorry," the word many ...
Another difference between American English and Canadian English is in how each adds suffixes to words. Canadians prefer to use double consonants, while Americans keep their consonants single. For example, Canadians will turn “travel” into “travelled,” but Americans will use “traveled” instead.
Israel, Japan, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, the Philippines, Indonesia, Taiwan and United States articles all use US English spelling.
- In Canada, February is one of the coldest months of the year, whereas in countries in the Southern Hemisphere it is one of the hottest.
- We are going on a family skiing trip to Colorado next February and I can barely wait.
Canadian - American
Canadians say sohrry. Tuesday - Toosday. Semi - Semeye on its own.
Canadians prefer the spelling grey, although gray is also correct. Grey is the preferred spelling in Britain, while gray is favoured in the United States.
Do Canadians say bill or check?
Bill vs. check at a restaurant: Although Americans may ask for the "check" after a meal, Canadians almost always request the "bill", and requests for the "check" may sometimes cause a little confusion. And it's spelled cheque here. Pop vs.
For the bank order, the preferred Canadian spelling is cheque, while check is favoured in the United States.

- On the Review tab select Language > Language Preferences.
- Under Office authoring languages and proofing, select the language you want to use.
- Select OK.
How do Canadians say hello? Most Canadians will simply say “hello,” with French Canadians sticking to the usual greeting of “Bonjour”. How do you greet someone in Canada? In Canada, the customary way to greet someone is by shaking their hand.
"An example would be ... 'paw-sta' is the American pronunciation but 'pa-sta' is the Canadian pronunciation and really sounds weird to Americans," says Boberg. Those on Canada's West and East Coasts pronounce words differently than those in the central provinces.
Canadians often say words like process, project, and progress with an /oʊ/ sound (think of how you pronounce the letter “o”, whereas most Americans say these words with the vowel /ɑ/ (think “ahh”). Not every Canadian does this, but if you happen to hear it, chances are, they are Canadian and not American.
Of the 436 Native Camp users who took part in the survey, 78.2% chose American English, whilst 21.8% favored British English. These numbers don't really surprise, when noticing the majority of schools and eikaiwa across the country prefer to teach American English.
The “American English” we know and use today in an American accent first started out as an “England English” accent. According to a linguist at the Smithsonian, Americans began putting their own spin on English pronunciations just one generation after the colonists started arriving in the New World.
In the main, British English and American English are very similar, even with differences in spelling. In today's world, American spelling is probably winning thanks to Microsoft's spell checker. There are vocabulary differences and some can cause embarrassing situations if you only know one flavour.
In such words as colour, Canadians generally prefer the British ending ‑our to the American ending ‑or (as in color).
Is it GREY or gray in America?
Gray and grey are both common spellings of the color between black and white. Gray is more frequent in American English, whereas grey is more common in British English.
English. The date can be written either with the day or the month first in Canadian English, optionally with the day of the week. For example, the seventh day of January 2016 can be written as: Thursday, 7 January 2016 or Thursday, January 7, 2016.
Water – wader. Kitty – kiddy. Teeter-totter – teeder-todder.
At the root of it all is the North American accent that Canadians and Americans seem to share. While certain regional dialects persevere on both sides of the border—take Newfoundland or Texas, for example—to anyone outside of the two countries, the difference between a Canadian and American accent is non-existent.
In such words as behaviour, Canadians generally prefer the British ending -our to the American variant -or.
Favorite without a U is the preferred spelling if you live in the U.S. and use American English, while favourite with a U is the preferred British spelling. Canadian English, New Zealand English, and Australian English also spell the word favourite with a U.
As mentioned, “neighbor” is the correct spelling in US English. However, the correct spelling in British English is “neighbour” with a “u.” This is also the standard spelling in other English-speaking countries, including Australia and Canada: My next-door neighbour is having a barbecue this weekend!
“Canuck” is a nickname for a Canadian — sometimes bearing a negative implication, more often wielded with pride.
B'y. What it means: An affectionate way to refer to a friend (usually of the same gender), and simply another word for “hey you,” “buddy,” “dude,” or “guy."
- Toque. Less cultured folk might refer to a winter hat as a “beanie,” but cold weather headwear is strictly referred to as a toque in Canada. ...
- Chesterfield. Technically a couch, but a chesterfield is so much more. ...
- Newfie. ...
- Keener. ...
- Give'r. ...
- Double-Double. ...
- Toonie. ...
- Mickey.
Why do Canadians say I'm sorry?
Saying sorry in Canada has been labelled reflexive courtesy. It's a social convention. In some cases it's the person who didn't do anything wrong who says 'sorry' to acknowledge that, although they might be upset, they aren't going to take it personally.
In Canada, a chesterfield is a couch or sofa; that is, a large, cushioned seat that can fit more than one person.
As zed is the British pronunciation and zee is chiefly American, zed represents one of the rare occasions in which most Canadians prefer the British to the American pronunciation.
“-our” / “-or”:
Words ending in an unstressed “-our” in English and Canadian (e.g. “honour”, “colour”, “flavour”, “armour”) are usually spelled without the “u” in American usage (e.g. “honor”, “color”, “flavor”, “armor”). The Prairie provinces of Canada, however, tend to follow the Americans on this.
In Canadian English, the spellings omelette and omelet are both encountered. Omelettes (or Omelets) will be served at both breakfast and lunch.
The spelling labour is preferred in Canada, although labor is also accepted.
References
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk%3ACanadian_English/Archive_1
- https://www.noslangues-ourlanguages.gc.ca/en/writing-tips-plus/behaviour-behavioural-behaviourism
- https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/zed
- https://japantoday.com/category/features/lifestyle/which-is-more-popular-in-japan-british-english-or-american-english
- https://medscicommunications.com/2020/01/22/spelling-american-vs-british-vs-canadian/
- https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/canada-accents-film-tv-1.4178680
- https://www.ebc-online-tefl.com/blog/british-english-versus-american-english-one-best/
- https://www.btb.termiumplus.gc.ca/tpv2guides/guides/wrtps/index-eng.html?lang=eng&lettr=indx_catlog_c&page=912PlUijaM1s.html
- https://www.rd.com/article/american-british-accents/
- https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/gray-vs-grey-usage-difference
- https://www.artonetranslations.com/do-you-speak-canadian-english/
- https://prowritingaid.com/favourite-vs-favorite
- https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/canuck
- https://www.noslangues-ourlanguages.gc.ca/en/writing-tips-plus/grey-gray
- https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/check-spelling-and-grammar-in-a-different-language-667ba67a-a202-42fd-8596-edc1fa320e00
- https://www.gowfb.ca/pages/chesterfield
- https://gonaturalenglish.com/5-differences-between-canadian-and-american-pronunciation/
- https://www.noslangues-ourlanguages.gc.ca/en/writing-tips-plus/check-cheque
- https://www.thrillist.com/travel/nation/a-guide-to-canadian-slang-according-to-canadians
- https://the-pigeon.ca/2020/07/17/canadian-accent/
- https://proofed.com/writing-tips/spelling-tips-neighbor-or-neighbour/
- https://www.noslangues-ourlanguages.gc.ca/en/blogue-blog/canadian-spelling-eng
- https://journeyinggiordanos.com/hello-in-canada/
- https://wikitravel.org/en/Wikitravel:Spelling
- http://www.yorku.ca/earmstro/ontario/north_force.html
- https://www.grammarly.com/blog/canadian-english-american-english/
- https://www.noslangues-ourlanguages.gc.ca/en/writing-tips-plus/omelet-omelette
- https://www.btb.termiumplus.gc.ca/tpv2guides/guides/wrtps/index-eng.html?lang=eng&lettr=indx_catlog_c&page=9QUtiL5X35j0.html
- http://www.lukemastin.com/testing/spelling/cgi-bin/database.cgi?action=rules
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Date_and_time_notation_in_Canada
- https://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g153339-s604/Canada:Important.Phrases.html
- https://www.noslangues-ourlanguages.gc.ca/en/writing-tips-plus/labour-labor-laborious
- https://www.queensu.ca/strathy/sites/stratwww/files/uploaded_files/Spelling%20Results.pdf
- https://writingexplained.org/spelling-dictionary/february
- https://blog.cdnrg.com/blog/10-canadian-slang-words-you-should-know
- https://www.imt.ie/opinion/why-canadians-say-sorry-30-06-2016/