British English grammar help for an American

So I'm trying to learn proper Brit-speak while learning German, both for work. We deal with customers in both the USA and the UK. While I could probably also use some help with my American grammar too, the little differences in punctuation (commas mainly, also hyphens), diction, prepositions and, occasionally, word order are hard for me to recognize.

Spelling is not such a big deal as I can just switch languages in Word (even though I'm realizing it allows some American spellings even when English (U.K.) is selected).

Searching Amazon I found this one book -- has anyone used it or recommend another?

Also, I'd be interested in hearing people's opinions on which is better to use when the recipients are both American and British and the document oiginates from a German company.

It depends on which companies you're dealing with. I teach English at some companies who deal almost exclusively with American companies and therefore requested American English. Other companies will want British English. Is it really that important though? A lot of business English books refuse to go one way or the other, teach a bit of both American English & British English, and call it "International English for Business Purposes" or some such nonsense.

Edit: I would imagine that as long as you are consistent (not switching back and forth between the two in a letter or in a document) then it shouldn't be such a big issue. Or not?

Here is a link which may be helpful...
http://esl.about.com/library/weekly/aa110698.htm

Our company uses American English for both UK and USA clients...to be consistent and to be honest, most of the Germans here are more comfortable with US English...no idea why as UK is nearer!

I agree with Jenny. Which you use is not so important, just be consistent at least within a document and always use the same form with any one customer.

While "common usage" may differ between UK and US English, there is very little difference in "correct" grammar for the two (apart from minor spelling deviations). When in doubt consult the company guidelines and follow them. The document detailing preffered language(s) is usually filed next to the one that tells you which greens, blues and cyans you are allowed to use in official presentations.

I could recommend buying "The Language of Meetings" by Malcome Goodale. It's a very good book for explaining the hidden meanings behind many British phrases. But it doesn't exactly focus on grammar. Still a good book to recommend to non-native speakers or to American speakers.

Great help, thanks. That website, SarahKT, was very informative.

I agree with your approach, Jenny, when drafting my own documents. The problem arises when reviewing/editing others' work. Sometimes it's very difficult to know whether something is wrong or just British.

The book I found is probably overkill regardless.

That hidden meaning book may be worth a look.

May I quote you?

From SarahKT's website above:


I'd say that sounds wrong to every American, but is evidently correct usage. Knowing whether something is wrong can be very tricky when dealing with different dialects, especially when asked to review a superior's writing.

How would an American say that sentence?

gotten vs. got.

He has gotten much better at Tennis.
Although to be perfectly correct, I think you would say ' He has become much better at English' - at least in written form.

I really enjoyed Eats, Shoots & Leaves. There is discussion of English grammar and punctuation in general, typically with differences of American English vs. the other kind.

But you might want to check out Eats, Shites & Leaves. I haven't read it, but it is obviously a parody of the first book - but according to reviews has its own lessons.

I would opt for British English using Oxford Spelling. In my view that would be the most sensible solution.

Look, it's dead simple. If you want the Brits and the Americans to understand you just use the universally understood (in GB and the US) 'Sean Connery-speak'. The above quote would therefore read:
'I would opt for British English yooshing wikipedia Ockshford Shpelling. In my view that would be the mosht shenshible sholushion.'

I write articles all the time with people from around the world and I just cringe when I get anything other than US English documents to edit and or merge. On a recent global collaboration, it was requested that all use US English. AFAIK, most business MBA courses now focus on using US English because of the flexibility and universality.

To each their own. I cringe sometimes when I see the American spelling, but who cares? To know both cannot hurt. Knowledge of both cannot possibly be a disadvantage.