Seminar 2 Regional Varieties of English

I. Speak on the following topics.

1. Standard English and RP.

2. Development of British dialects.

3. Standard American English and dialects.

4. Groups of Americanisms.

5. Peculiarities of American English compared to British English.

II. Do the following assignments.

Assignment 1.

Give the British equivalents to the following Americanisms.

Apartment, store, baggage, elevator, candy, truck, sidewalk, schedule, fall, movies, subway, bulletin, homely, corn.

Assignment 2.

Translate the following words giving both the British and American variants.

Каникулы, бензин, осень, радио, трамвай, консервная банка, брюки, перекресток, печенье

Assignnment 3.

Give the synonyms for the following American shortenings. Describe the words from the stylistic point of view.

Gym, mo, circs, auto, g.m., dorm, cert, b.f.

Assignment 4.

In the following sentences find the examples of Americanisms. State whether they belong to :

1)historical Americanisms

2)proper Americanisms

3)American borrowings

4)American shortenings

5)Words with spelling peculiarities

1.As the elevator carried Brett downward, Hank closed and locked the apartment door from the outside.

2.A raw fall wind swirled fall leaves and dust in small tornadoes.

3.In a plant bad news traveled like burning gasoline.

4.The bank was about equal in size to a neighborhood drugstore.

5.He guessed this three-storey building contained two dozen or so apartments.

6.Auto companies regularly invited design school students in, treating them like VIPs.

Assignment 5.

Look through the following list of words and state what spelling norms are accepted in the USA and Great Britain so far as the given words are concerned.

BE AE BE AE

a) favour –favor e) defence - defense

honour – honor practice – practice

b) centre – center e) marvellous - marvelous

fibre – fiber jewellery - jewelry

c) to enfold - to infold f) cheque – check

to encrust – to incrust catalogue –catalog

d) anaesthesia – anesthesia

orthopaedics - orthopedics g) through – thru

doughnut - donut

Assignment 6.

Write the following words according to the British norms of spelling.

To instill, color, encyclopedia, flavor, dialog, meter, humor, to impanel, program, theater, offence, traveler, woolen.

Assignment 7.

Write the following words according to the American norms of spelling.

Honour, labour, through, armour, cigarette, gramm, amoeba, citrous, checker, draughtsman, wagon, anaemia.