7 English dialects from around the world

7 English dialects from around the world

English is spoken differently around the world-from interesting words to unique accents!

With more than 1.5 billion English speakers around the world, you're bound to encounter hundreds of English dialects and accents. (There are even dialects within dialects, like the U.S.'s Boston English and Southern Indian English in India!)

Each dialect has its own rules and conventions, and they can be pretty different from what you're used to hearing in the media. All languages have dialects, and all dialects are equally "correct." (And they're all equally fun to learn about )

Here are 7 English dialects you'll find around the globe.

American English
British English
Indian English
Singaporean English
Jamaican English
Nigerian English
Australian English

American English

In addition to being known throughout the world in Hollywood movies and pop music, American English is what you'll hear at universities in the United States, which host more international students than any other country. Though there is a good deal of variation across the U.S., you'll probably hear some of these notably American features:

What it sounds like

When there is a "t" sound in the middle of the word, it often gets pronounced more like a "d" sound, which you'll hear in words like butterand water.

What's unique about it

The simple past (like ateand saw) is used more often in situations where speakers of other dialects would be more likely to use the present perfect (have eaten or have seen). For example, in the U.S. you might hear I just ate dinnermore than you would in the U.K., where I've just eaten dinnerwould be more common. You'll hear this in questions, too, like Did you eat yet?instead of Have you eaten yet?

There are also some vocabulary differences to listen out for:

• To give someone your
  John Hancock
  is to give them your signature
• Soccer
  is the sport most of the world calls football
• The U.S.
  first floor
  of a building is more often referred to as the ground floor elsewhere (and the
  second floor
  of a building in the U.S. would be the first floor in the U.K.!)
• Those aren't the only U.S.-specific terms you might hear!

British English

British English is the regional dialect spoken in the U.K., and along with American English, it's one of the most widely studied by learners around the world. It's also similar to the Englishes of many Commonwealth countries, such as Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa.

What it sounds like

The letter "r" is usually only pronounced when there is a vowel right after it. This leads to longer, or more stretched-out sounding, vowels than in other dialects (like American English). So in words like parkor caryou don't really hear an "r" sound in British English, but in American English you would.

What's unique about it:

Nouns for groups of people, like team or government, usually take a plural verb form-even though the nouns themselves look singular! In British English you say The government are making new lawsand Our team are winning.

There are also many words particular to British English and the other Commonwealth Englishes:

• Trousers
  (vs.
  pants
  in the U.S.)
• Nappy
  (vs.
  diaper
  )
• Bonnet
  of a car (vs.
  hood
  )
• Lift
  (vs.
  elevator
  )
• Trainers
  (vs.
  sneakers
  )
• Petrol
  (vs.
  gas
  )

Indian English

English is one of India's 22 official languages (though there are well over 100 languages spoken across the country). At least 125 million Indians speak English-so India has one of the largest English-speaking populations in the world! The language is also used in some contexts as a common language (or lingua franca) among people who don't know each other's language. English is also used extensively in higher education and is the primary language of the Indian judiciary.

What it sounds like

Indian English is known for having a rhythm quite different from other dialects. When it comes to consonant sounds, "w" often gets pronounced more like "v," like in went. Also, most "p" sounds don't have the puff of air that you'll hear in other countries. For example, can you hear the different "p" sounds in the American English partyand Indian English party? In Indian English, almost no puff of air happens there, making that "p" sound distinct from other English dialects.

What's unique about it

Hindi (and lots of other languages) have more words for different family members than most English dialects-so Indian English has developed special family vocabulary, too! For example, you'll hear cousin brotherfor male cousin and cousin sisterfor female cousin. Indian English uses lots of other innovative, unique words, too! In Indian English, trial roomisn't in a courthouse, but a fitting room where you try on clothes in a store. Pain is used as a verb, as in My head is painingto say that you've got a headache. And passing outdoesn't mean you've just fainted, but that you've graduated from school!

Singaporean English

English is one of the four main languages used by Singapore's multi-ethnic, multilingual population. You'll also hear a lot of Singlish, a creole language that developed from English and some of the other main languages in Singapore. Nearly half of all Singaporeans use English as their primary language at home, not to mention those who learn English in the community-it's the main language in Singapore's schools! If you're in Singapore, you might hear some of these features in Singaporean English and Singlish:

What it sounds like

"th" is often pronounced a bit differently, so thoughin Singaporean English sounds different than thoughin U.S. English, as does Singaporean English thingand U.S. English thing.

What's unique about it

It's not uncommon for verb endings to be simplified in Singaporean English, so you might hear He never go there. There are also different rules for articles like the and a, so you might not hear them as much, as in I want to get new car.

A handful of short words do a lot of heavy lifting in Singaporean English:

• You might hear
  leh
  ,
  ah
  , or
  meh
  added to the ends of sentences to give extra nuance to the meaning, for example, to show that the speaker was surprised or confused.
• For example, if you've just taken a great photo, you might say
  This is Insta-worthy siah!
  -the siah adds emphasis to what you've said.

Jamaican English

English is the official language of Jamaica, but Jamaicans also speak Jamaican Creole (a distinct language that evolved from English and West African languages like Akan). Just like other regional dialects, Jamaican English has unique features and many of its own rules:

What it sounds like

Many words are pronounced with a "w" or "y" sound before the vowel, like in the words boyand girl. Jamaican English also has different rules about combining sounds, so many words have fewer consonants, especially at the end. You might hear friendwhere a U.S. English speaker would say friend, justwhich would sound like justin U.S. English, and something(compared to somethingin U.S. English).

What's unique about it

In Jamaican English, Wah gwaan?is a common greeting that's used for How are you? This dialect also has its own second person plural pronoun, unuh-this is used the way some U.S. dialects use y'all or yinz.

Nigerian English

Nigeria is another example of a country where English is an official language, but Nigerians speak many (hundreds!) of other languages, too-in most cases their native language or languages and English for communication with speakers of other languages. About 53% of Nigerians (over 100 million people!) speak English, so Nigeria is another one of the largest English-speaking countries in the world!

What it sounds like

Nigerian English uses a different set of vowel sounds than other regional dialects, so some words that sound different in other places will sound basically the same in Nigerian English. For example, chipand cheapare pronounced the same!

What's unique about it

Nigerian English is also influenced by its multilingual speakers and some of the indigenous languages of Nigeria. One grammar feature from these other languages is that all nouns can be made plural-for example, you might hear My friend gave me some good advices, with advice becoming plural! Nigerian English also has different rules about the subject of a sentence, so you're likely to hear two subjects (sort of like in French!), such as Me I am happyor even no subject at all, as in Is because she is a new student.

Australian English

Australian English shares some similarities with British English, but several centuries of being half a world away from each other means that Australian English has developed plenty of unique features. Australia also has hundreds of indigenous languages that have impacted Australian English, as have centuries of immigration and interacting with many different cultural and linguistic groups.

What it sounds like

Like in British English, you usually won't hear the "r" sound in words unless it comes right before a vowel, so Australian parkand carsound different than U.S. parkand car. Many Australian English vowels are different from the vowels in any of the other Englishes we've covered here. Examples of this include the "ou" in mouth(which sounds like mouthin U.S. English), the "i" in hide(which sounds like hidein U.S. English), and the "o" in no(which sounds like noin U.S. English).

What's unique about it

Australian English-like U.K. English-also has some irregular past-tense verbs that are regular in U.S. English: For example, an Australian might say learnt, smelt, or burntwhere an American would say learned, smelled, or burned.

Australian English also has lots of unique slang:

• Some of the most famous examples include saying
  barbie
  instead of barbecue, informally referring to people from Australia as
  Aussies
  , and the exclamation
  Crikey!
  , used to express surprise
• Other Australian slang words are formed by shortening the original word and adding -o at the end, such as
  arvo
  (meaning afternoon) or
  servo
  (short for service station, or what a U.S. English speaker would call a gas station)

Listen out for the Englishes all around you!

So, which is the best dialect of English? Trick question: No dialect is inherently better than another! Our dialects reflect where we're from, who our community is, and many other parts of our identity, too. Each dialect tells a story, and the case of many English dialects, that story is one of colonization, struggle, resilience, and creativity. And part of the fun of learning a language is appreciating all of the diversity and possibilities it has!

People also have their own reasons for studying a certain dialect: Maybe it's the one spoken where you want to study, or it's the most common one you'll hear at work, or it's how people speak at your favorite travel destination.

A great way to get a taste of these different flavors of English is by checking out TV series and music from those places. For example, I just finished watching Eternally Confused and Eager for Love on Netflix, which was a really interesting way to explore Indian English. And Heartstopper, a Netflix series from the U.K., is a cool opportunity to hear British English. Jumping into the community's culture is fun *and* will help you learn more about their dialect!

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