What is the difference between English(US) and English(UK)? originally appeared on Quora, the place to gain and share knowledge, empowering people to learn from others and better understand the world. You can follow Quora on Twitter, Facebook, and Google Plus.

What is the difference between English(US) and English(UK)? Less than there used to be. Samuel Johnson interposed his considerable body between any single American word and his dictionary. That was in 1785, but even when I edited The Times of London in the 80s, various readers were cross that I wrote a headline quoting Reagan after he’d been shot: “Honey, I forgot to duck.” The grumps thought it an ugly Americanism. The flavor of the old disputations is best tasted by dipping into H.L. Mencken’s American Language, and there’s an entertaining essay in the Paris Review of April 2016 by Carson Vaughan. Quick, in English, write the meaning of hitch-hiker, rubbernecker, gangster, cover girl.

I forgot a five letter word that still leads to confusion. If you tell an American his photograph or essay or drawing is “quite” good, he’ll be pleased. “Quite” in American English is a superlative. It means very. Not so in UK English. It is a diminisher – meaning somewhat less than good. Telling a cook his British beefsteak is “quite” good is a risk.

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