Why do British say maths?

Math is an abbreviation of mathematics, which is a count noun in British English because there are different types of maths (geometry, algebra, calculus, etc.) and a mass noun that happens to end in an 's' in American English (like gymnastics in both dialects).

Do they say maths in the UK?

Americans and Canadians tend to say math while Brits and Australians opt for maths. In defense of our star-spangled convention, “math” is more consistent with the way English speakers abbreviate disciplines like economics (econ) and linguistics (ling).

Why do people say maths?

If you ask someone why they say “maths” instead of “math,” they'll probably give what seems like a logical answer. It's because the word “mathematics” is plural. See the S on the end? 'Mathematics' is singular.

What is math called in British English?

Math is the preferred term in the United States and Canada. Maths is the preferred term in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, and other English-speaking places. There's no real logical explanation as to why math became preferred in some places while maths was elsewhere.

How do British people spell math?

To North American speakers of English, the word to use is “math”, as in “I majored in math”, and “maths” would sound wrong. Speakers of British English, however, would always say “maths”, as in “I took a degree in maths”. They would never say “math”. There are logical arguments for both spellings.

Why Do British People Say 'Maths' While Americans Say 'Math'? And Which is Actually Correct?

Why do British say maths and not math?

Math is an abbreviation of mathematics, which is a count noun in British English because there are different types of maths (geometry, algebra, calculus, etc.) and a mass noun that happens to end in an 's' in American English (like gymnastics in both dialects).

Why do British people say bloody?

Don't worry, it's not a violent word… it has nothing to do with “blood”.”Bloody” is a common word to give more emphasis to the sentence, mostly used as an exclamation of surprise. Something may be “bloody marvellous” or “bloody awful“. Having said that, British people do sometimes use it when expressing anger…

Why do British people say Zed?

English speakers in other Commonwealth countries also prefer the pronunciation zed. 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.

Why do Americans say aluminum?

The American Chemical Society adopted “aluminum” because of how widely it was used by the public, but the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry officially designated the metal as “aluminium” as recently as 1990.

What is the British word for mail?

The public service by which letters and parcels are collected and delivered is usually called the post in British English and the mail in American English. Mail is also sometimes used in British English, for example in the name Royal Mail. Winners will be notified by post.

Is it correct to say maths?

Math and maths are equally acceptable abbreviations of mathematics. The only difference is that math is preferred in the U.S. and Canada, and maths is preferred in the U.K., Australia, and most other English-speaking areas of the world. Neither abbreviation is correct or incorrect.

Does maths have an apostrophe UK?

Perhaps, originally, the written form with the apostrophe, math's, was more common in Great Britain but over time the apostrophe became obsolete. In fact the apostrophe in math's has no effect on its pronunciation.

Is elevator a British word?

For example, what Americans would refer to as an “elevator”, the British would call a “lift”. Both groups of people are referring to the same object, but a different word is being used by each group to describe that object.

When did maths become plural?

The word Mathematics was first used in English in 1581, coming from the Latin word Mathematica. Since the -a suffix in Latin denotes a plural, the word was automatically pluralised when translated to English, even though the word itself is always used as a singular.

Why do English say leftenant?

According to military customs, a lower ranking soldier walks on the left side of a senior officer. This courtesy developed when swords were still used on the battle field. The lower ranked soldier on the "left" protected the senior officers left side. Therefore, the term leftenant developed.

Why do Americans say period?

In 19th-century texts, both British English and American English were consistent in their usage of the terms period and full stop. The word period was used as a name for what printers often called the "full point", the punctuation mark that was a dot on the baseline and used in several situations.

Why do British say pants?

In British English, pants means underpants or, informally, nonsense. In American English, pants means trousers; the singular form is used as adjective. [BrEn] He thought we were going to be absolute pants. [AmEn] His pant leg was broken.

Why do British people say mum?

Originally Answered: Why do most British people say 'mum' and most American people say 'mom'? Because vowel sounds change with accent. That's it.

Why do British say oi?

"Oi" has been particularly associated with working class and Cockney speech. It is effectively a local pronunciation of "hoy" (see H-dropping), an older expression. A study of the Cockney dialect in the 1950s found that whether it was being used to call attention or as a challenge depended on its tone and abruptness.

Do British swear a lot?

The study, by Dr Robbie Love at Aston University, found there was a 27% drop in swearing in Britain over the 20-year period, down from 1,822 to 1,320 swearwords per million. Men still swear more than women, and swearing still peaks in people's 20s and declines thereafter, Love found.

Is Frick a swear word?

I know there are certain individuals who think c r a p is a swear word (even though it really isn't), but “frick” isn't a swear word by any sense of the meaning of “swear word”. No one is going to get offended by someone saying “frick”. If someone says “Frick”, they aren't going to start World War 3.