Thursday November 22, 2007
Which is more widely used here?
YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED by FADZILAH AMIN
WHAT’S the difference between British English and American English? Which is more widely used in Malaysia?
2. Would someone who studied English in the United States be able to get a job as an English instructor in Malaysia? Or would a degree from Britain be more of an advantage?
3. Also, is a degree in TESOL or a degree in English more in demand if one wants to teach English?
– Fiona
1. There are some differences between British English and American English, but these two varieties of English are not so different as to make communication difficult or impossible. They are like the differences between Bahasa Malaysia and Bahasa Indonesia. The differences can lead to some embarrassing misunderstandings, though.
It would take a few pages or even a chapter of a book to list all the differences in vocabulary, spelling, pronunciation and grammar between British English and American English, but here are some examples. I shall put the British English word/spelling/pronunciation first, followed by the American English equivalent in brackets:
Vocabulary: lift (elevator), pavement (sidewalk), windscreen (windshield)
Spelling: colour (color), travelling (traveling), jewellery (jewelry)
Pronunciation: “route” pronounced /ru:t/ (raut), “vase” pronounced /va:z/ (veiz), “card” pronounced /ka:d/ (ka:rd) [a colon ( : ) after a vowel indicates that it is a long vowel]
Michael Swan in the latest edition of his Practical English Usage (2005) discusses “American-British differences” in various parts of the book (see his Index).
The second part of your question, “Which is more widely used in Malaysia?”, is hard for me to answer with any degree of certainty, since I know of no survey to determine the answer.
From my observations, when English is used officially (e.g. in school, in government dealings with foreigners, etc), and when it is used by older Malaysians, British English tends to be used. This has to do with our history as a British protectorate.
But American English is very common among young people, partly because of the influence of television, since most of our television programmes in English come from the United States.
2. I don’t see why not. I know several people who studied English in the US and who were or are working as English teachers or lecturers in Malaysia. I am not sure if a degree from Britain would be an advantage in seeking such work. I think what is important is how good the person is.
3. Looking at advertisements for English language teachers/lecturers put in by institutions of learning in Malaysia, it looks to me as if such institutions favour TESL (Teaching of English as a Second Language, which I think is similar to TESOL or Teaching of English to Speakers of Other Languages) degrees to the traditional English degree in Literature and Language.
Is it tea or lunch?
I’VE always had the impression that tea was a meal that came after lunch and that it was normal to have an afternoon tea anytime between 3pm and 6pm.  |
Hence, I was surprised to note (see pic above) that this hotel had its buffet high tea from noon to 3pm. Should it not be lunch?
– P.S.
I agree with you. It should be called lunch.
Tea should come in the late afternoon or early evening, i.e. between 4pm and 6pm, and “high tea” just means a more substantial meal (i.e. with cooked food) at tea time.
In northern England, Australia and New Zealand, what we call dinner here is called tea, and usually served at about 6pm. I’ve heard of Christmas dinner at noon or thereabouts, but never “high tea” at that time!
Various questions
I WOULD like to know if it is:1. foreseeable or forseeable?
2. cause of action or course of action?
3. defendant or defendent?
4. confidant or confidante?
5. “admitted unless disproved” and “proved unless admitted” – do they mean the same thing?
6. The shuttle has “docked with the International Space Station.” Does this mean the ship has landed on earth or is there a station in space?
– Angel
1. “foreseeable”.
2. “course of action”.
3. “defendant”.
4. “Confidante” is the female equivalent of “confidant”. But “confidant” is now often used for both sexes.
5. I don’t know the context of your phrases, but if they refer to evidence that is accepted/allowed or “admitted” in court (i.e. admissible evidence), “admitted unless disproved” makes sense, but “proved unless admitted” makes no sense to me. They cannot mean the same thing.
6. There is an international station in space. When a space shuttle has landed on earth, the word “landed” is usually used.
‘Shall’ and ‘should’
I AM confused about “shall” and “should”.I have checked the dictionary and it says that “shall” is an auxiliary verb used with “I” and “we” to express future tense but I think “should” is also likely the same.
Can you explain it to me and teach me how to use the words?
– A Form Three Student
You are right that “shall” is used with “I” and “we” to express the future tense, although “will” is more common nowadays.
“Shall” is more commonly used in making a suggestion, e.g. in “Shall we go now?” and in questions, e.g. in “Shall I invite her to the party?”
“Should” is used mainly to mean “ought to” when giving advice, as in “You should work hard if you want to succeed.” But “should” can also be used when you expect something fairly certain to happen in the future, e.g. in “I posted his birthday present yesterday and it should arrive before his birthday.”
In reported speech, “should” is used as the past form of “shall”, e.g. if we were to report someone saying “Shall I invite her to the party?”, we would write: “He asked me if he should invite her to the party.”
There are a few other uses of “should” but the above are the most common.
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