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fill=\"currentColor\" d=\"M14.234 10.162L22.977 0h-2.072l-7.591 8.824L7.251 0H.258l9.168 13.343L.258 24H2.33l8.016-9.318L16.749 24h6.993zm-2.837 3.299l-.929-1.329L3.076 1.56h3.182l5.965 8.532l.929 1.329l7.754 11.09h-3.182z\"\u002F>",{"id":47,"title":48,"author":49,"body":50,"cefrLevel":1087,"date":49,"description":1088,"exercises":1089,"extension":1159,"faqs":1160,"gcseTier":49,"intro":49,"language":1173,"lastUpdated":49,"meta":1174,"navigation":1175,"path":1176,"seo":1177,"stem":1178,"verbSlugs":49,"__hash__":1179},"pages\u002Fenglish\u002Fgrammar\u002Fbritish-vs-american-grammar.md","British vs American grammar: have got, gotten, the team are, and the other quiet differences",null,{"type":51,"value":52,"toc":1070},"minimark",[53,74,86,91,102,135,166,184,210,213,226,254,268,282,286,299,335,356,367,371,378,395,401,437,440,457,461,464,599,613,617,624,657,661,672,690,732,736,774,778,819,823,859,863,880,883,919,923,926,1010,1014,1017,1047,1053],[54,55,56,57,61,62,65,66,69,70,73],"p",{},"Everyone knows the spelling differences: ",[58,59,60],"em",{},"colour"," and ",[58,63,64],{},"color",", ",[58,67,68],{},"centre"," and\n",[58,71,72],{},"center",". They are famous, they are trivial, and a spell-checker handles them\nfor you. The differences that actually change how sentences are built get far\nless attention, which is odd, because they are the ones that make a learner\nsound subtly foreign on the wrong side of the Atlantic.",[54,75,76,77,81,82,85],{},"The essential fact first, because everything else depends on it: ",[78,79,80],"strong",{},"both\nvarieties are correct."," American English is not British English with\nmistakes in it, and British English is not American English with a hat on.\nThey are two standards that drifted apart, and in several places - ",[58,83,84],{},"gotten",",\nthe subjunctive - it is the American side that preserved the older grammar.\nThis course teaches British English, for reasons given at the bottom, but\nevery American form on this page is standard English.",[87,88,90],"h2",{"id":89},"have-got-and-have","Have got and have",[54,92,93,94,97,98,101],{},"For possession, British English strongly prefers ",[78,95,96],{},"have got"," in speech;\nAmerican English prefers plain ",[78,99,100],{},"have",":",[103,104,105,123],"ul",{},[106,107,108,109],"li",{},"British: ",[58,110,111,112,114,115,118,119,122],{},"I ",[78,113,96],{}," two brothers. ",[78,116,117],{},"Have"," you ",[78,120,121],{},"got"," a pen?",[106,124,125,126],{},"American: ",[58,127,111,128,114,130,118,133,122],{},[78,129,100],{},[78,131,132],{},"Do",[78,134,100],{},[54,136,137,138,141,142,144,145,148,149,152,153,155,156,159,160,65,163],{},"The grammar follows the choice. ",[58,139,140],{},"Have got"," behaves like a perfect, so its\nquestion and negative use ",[58,143,100],{}," as the auxiliary: ",[58,146,147],{},"Have you got...?",",\n",[58,150,151],{},"I haven't got..."," Plain ",[58,154,100],{}," behaves like an ordinary verb and borrows\n",[58,157,158],{},"do",": ",[58,161,162],{},"Do you have...?",[58,164,165],{},"I don't have...",[54,167,168,169,171,172,175,176,179,180,183],{},"The forms cross the ocean freely - Americans say ",[58,170,96],{}," for emphasis\n(",[58,173,174],{},"I've got this","), and British speakers use ",[58,177,178],{},"do you have"," constantly,\nespecially in writing. What neither side says is the hybrid: ",[58,181,182],{},"Do you have\ngot a pen?"," crosses the two systems and belongs to neither.",[54,185,186,187,189,190,193,194,197,198,201,202,205,206,209],{},"Two limits worth knowing. ",[58,188,140],{}," lives almost entirely in the present\ntense: for the past, both varieties say ",[58,191,192],{},"I had a bike",", not ",[58,195,196],{},"I had got a\nbike",". And it covers possession, relationships and obligation (",[58,199,200],{},"I've got to\ngo","), never actions: ",[58,203,204],{},"I have breakfast at seven"," cannot become ",[58,207,208],{},"I have got\nbreakfast at seven"," without changing its meaning to ownership of a plate.",[87,211,212],{"id":84},"Gotten",[54,214,215,216,218,219,222,223,225],{},"The most famous \"Americanism\" in grammar is nothing of the sort: ",[78,217,84],{},"\nis the old English past participle of ",[58,220,221],{},"get",", exported to America and then\ndropped at home. British English now uses ",[78,224,121],{}," everywhere; American\nEnglish runs both forms with a genuinely useful distinction:",[103,227,228,238,247],{},[106,229,230,237],{},[58,231,232,233,236],{},"My English ",[78,234,235],{},"has gotten"," better."," (become - a change)",[106,239,240,246],{},[58,241,111,242,245],{},[78,243,244],{},"have gotten"," tickets."," (obtained - an acquisition)",[106,248,249,253],{},[58,250,111,251,245],{},[78,252,96],{}," (possession - I have them now)",[54,255,256,257,260,261,264,265,267],{},"So in American English, ",[58,258,259],{},"she has gotten a car"," means she acquired one, and\n",[58,262,263],{},"she has got a car"," means she owns one. British English collapses all of it\ninto ",[58,266,121],{}," and lets context do the work.",[54,269,270,271,273,274,277,278,281],{},"The giveaway that ",[58,272,84],{}," is native old stock: British English never\nstopped saying ",[78,275,276],{},"forgotten",", and the fixed phrase ",[78,279,280],{},"ill-gotten gains","\nsurvives in every British newspaper. The participle was not wrong; it was\nsimply abandoned - except where it wasn't.",[87,283,285],{"id":284},"the-present-perfect-and-the-recent-past","The present perfect and the recent past",[54,287,288,289,65,292,61,295,298],{},"British English insists on the present perfect for recent events that touch\nthe present, especially with ",[58,290,291],{},"just",[58,293,294],{},"already",[58,296,297],{},"yet",". American English\nhappily uses the past simple:",[103,300,301,319],{},[106,302,108,303],{},[58,304,111,305,308,309,312,313,315,316,318],{},[78,306,307],{},"have just eaten",". She ",[78,310,311],{},"has already left",". ",[78,314,117],{}," you\nfinished ",[78,317,297],{},"?",[106,320,125,321],{},[58,322,111,323,308,326,312,329,332,333,318],{},[78,324,325],{},"just ate",[78,327,328],{},"already left",[78,330,331],{},"Did"," you finish\n",[78,334,297],{},[54,336,337,338,341,342,345,346,69,351,355],{},"To a British ear, ",[58,339,340],{},"I just ate"," sounds clipped; to an American ear, ",[58,343,344],{},"I have\njust eaten"," sounds slightly formal. Both are answering the same question\nwith the same information. Learners drilled on the British rule - see\n",[347,348,350],"a",{"href":349},"\u002Fenglish\u002Fgrammar\u002Fpresent-perfect","present perfect",[347,352,354],{"href":353},"\u002Fenglish\u002Fgrammar\u002Ffor-since-already-yet-still","for, since, already, yet and still"," -\nare sometimes told the American versions are errors. They are not. They are\nthe reason American films fail to confirm your grammar homework.",[54,357,358,359,362,363,366],{},"Where the varieties agree completely: a finished time expression forces the\npast simple everywhere. ",[58,360,361],{},"I saw him yesterday"," - no variety on earth says\n",[58,364,365],{},"I have seen him yesterday",".",[87,368,370],{"id":369},"collective-nouns-the-team-are-the-team-is","Collective nouns: the team are, the team is",[54,372,373,374,377],{},"Nouns that name a group of people - ",[58,375,376],{},"team, government, family, committee,\nstaff, band, club"," - split the Atlantic cleanly.",[54,379,380,383,384],{},[78,381,382],{},"American English"," treats them as singular units: ",[58,385,386,387,390,391,394],{},"The team ",[78,388,389],{},"is"," winning.\nThe government ",[78,392,393],{},"has"," decided.",[54,396,397,400],{},[78,398,399],{},"British English"," lets the meaning choose. When the group acts as one\nunit, singular; when the speaker sees the members, plural:",[103,402,403,411,420,429],{},[106,404,405,410],{},[58,406,386,407,409],{},[78,408,389],{}," top of the league."," (one unit in a table)",[106,412,413,419],{},[58,414,386,415,418],{},[78,416,417],{},"are"," arguing about the result."," (eleven people, arguing)",[106,421,422,428],{},[58,423,424,425,427],{},"My family ",[78,426,389],{}," large."," (a fact about size)",[106,430,431,436],{},[58,432,424,433,435],{},[78,434,417],{}," all doctors."," (the members, one by one)",[54,438,439],{},"The plural is not sloppiness; it tracks whether the sentence makes sense\nperson by person. A team cannot argue as a unit, so British grammar hands\nthe verb to the players.",[54,441,442,443,446,447,453,454,366],{},"One noun ignores the whole debate: ",[78,444,445],{},"police"," is plural in both varieties,\nalways. ",[58,448,449,450,452],{},"The police ",[78,451,417],{}," investigating"," - never ",[58,455,456],{},"the police is",[87,458,460],{"id":459},"prepositions-small-words-sharp-edges","Prepositions: small words, sharp edges",[54,462,463],{},"No logic here, only habit, which makes these the differences learners trip\non longest:",[465,466,467,480],"table",{},[468,469,470],"thead",{},[471,472,473,477],"tr",{},[474,475,476],"th",{},"British",[474,478,479],{},"American",[481,482,483,501,518,536,551,566,583],"tbody",{},[471,484,485,494],{},[486,487,488],"td",{},[58,489,490,493],{},[78,491,492],{},"at"," the weekend",[486,495,496],{},[58,497,498,493],{},[78,499,500],{},"on",[471,502,503,511],{},[486,504,505],{},[58,506,507,510],{},[78,508,509],{},"in"," Oxford Street",[486,512,513],{},[58,514,515,517],{},[78,516,500],{}," Main Street",[471,519,520,529],{},[486,521,522],{},[58,523,524,525,528],{},"Monday ",[78,526,527],{},"to"," Friday",[486,530,531],{},[58,532,524,533,528],{},[78,534,535],{},"through",[471,537,538,545],{},[486,539,540],{},[58,541,542,544],{},[78,543,492],{}," school",[486,546,547],{},[58,548,549,544],{},[78,550,509],{},[471,552,553,561],{},[486,554,555],{},[58,556,557,558,560],{},"write ",[78,559,527],{}," me",[486,562,563],{},[58,564,565],{},"write me",[471,567,568,576],{},[486,569,570,575],{},[58,571,572,574],{},[78,573,509],{}," hospital"," (as patient)",[486,577,578],{},[58,579,580,574],{},[78,581,582],{},"in the",[471,584,585,593],{},[486,586,587],{},[58,588,589,590,592],{},"a player ",[78,591,509],{}," the team",[486,594,595],{},[58,596,589,597,592],{},[78,598,500],{},[54,600,601,604,605,608,609,612],{},[58,602,603],{},"Monday through Friday"," is the one genuinely useful import: it says the\nrange includes Friday, which ",[58,606,607],{},"Monday to Friday"," leaves you to guess.\nBritish English has no equally tidy way to say it and mutters ",[58,610,611],{},"inclusive","\nin contracts instead.",[87,614,616],{"id":615},"different-to-different-from-different-than","Different to, different from, different than",[54,618,619,620,623],{},"Three prepositions compete after ",[58,621,622],{},"different",", and each variety has a\nfavourite and a forbidden one:",[103,625,626,635,642],{},[106,627,628,634],{},[58,629,630,631],{},"Different ",[78,632,633],{},"from"," - correct everywhere, safe everywhere. When in\ndoubt, use it.",[106,636,637,641],{},[58,638,630,639],{},[78,640,527],{}," - common British, rare American.",[106,643,644,649,650,653,654,366],{},[58,645,630,646],{},[78,647,648],{},"than"," - common American, resisted in British writing,\nthough it earns its keep before a clause: ",[58,651,652],{},"the city is different than it\nwas"," is tidier than ",[58,655,656],{},"different from how it was",[87,658,660],{"id":659},"shall","Shall",[54,662,663,665,666,61,669,101],{},[78,664,660],{}," is alive in British English in exactly two jobs: offers and\nsuggestions with ",[58,667,668],{},"I",[58,670,671],{},"we",[103,673,674,682],{},[106,675,676,681],{},[58,677,678,680],{},[78,679,660],{}," I open a window?"," (an offer)",[106,683,684,689],{},[58,685,686,688],{},[78,687,660],{}," we start?"," (a suggestion)",[54,691,692,693,696,697,700,701,704,705,707,708,711,712,715,716,719,720,723,724,727,728,366],{},"American English uses ",[58,694,695],{},"should"," or ",[58,698,699],{},"want to"," for both (",[58,702,703],{},"Should I open a\nwindow? Want to start?",") and keeps ",[58,706,659],{}," only for law and ceremony, where\n",[58,709,710],{},"the tenant shall pay"," means ",[58,713,714],{},"must",". The old schoolroom rule that future ",[58,717,718],{},"I\nshall"," is more correct than ",[58,721,722],{},"I will"," is dead in both varieties; nobody under\nninety follows it. But the British offer is worth learning, because\n",[58,725,726],{},"Shall I...?"," remains the shortest polite way in the language to volunteer\nfor something. The full story is in ",[347,729,731],{"href":730},"\u002Fenglish\u002Fgrammar\u002Fmodal-verbs","modal verbs",[87,733,735],{"id":734},"neednt","Needn't",[54,737,738,739,159,742,753,754,756,757,759,760,763,764,61,767,770,771,773],{},"British English keeps a bare negative of ",[58,740,741],{},"need",[58,743,744,745,748,749,752],{},"You ",[78,746,747],{},"needn't"," pay. You\n",[78,750,751],{},"needn't have"," worried."," It behaves like a modal - no ",[58,755,158],{},", no ",[58,758,527],{}," - and\nthat last form carries a meaning worth having: ",[58,761,762],{},"you needn't have worried","\nmeans you did worry, and it was unnecessary. American English says ",[58,765,766],{},"you\ndidn't need to pay",[58,768,769],{},"there was no need to worry",", and finds ",[58,772,747],{},"\nquaint. If you learn it, you have learnt a distinctly British reassurance.",[87,775,777],{"id":776},"the-subjunctive-america-the-traditionalist","The subjunctive: America the traditionalist",[54,779,780,781,65,784,61,787,790,791,802,803,806,807,810,811,814,815,366],{},"The neatest reversal of stereotypes. After ",[58,782,783],{},"suggest",[58,785,786],{},"demand",[58,788,789],{},"insist",",\nAmerican English keeps the old bare subjunctive as its everyday form:\n",[58,792,793,794,797,798,801],{},"I suggest he ",[78,795,796],{},"go",". They demanded she ",[78,799,800],{},"be"," present."," British English\nmostly softened it to ",[58,804,805],{},"should go"," or plain ",[58,808,809],{},"goes"," generations ago. If you\nthink of American English as the newer, looser variety, here it is the\ncareful museum keeper and British English is the one that let things slip.\nThe full construction - and the other ghosts like ",[58,812,813],{},"if I were you"," - lives in\n",[347,816,818],{"href":817},"\u002Fenglish\u002Fgrammar\u002Fsubjunctive-and-unreal-past","the subjunctive and unreal past",[87,820,822],{"id":821},"learnt-burnt-dreamt","Learnt, burnt, dreamt",[54,824,825,826,829,830,159,833,836,837,840,841,845,846,61,849,852,853,61,856,366],{},"British English keeps a set of irregular past forms in ",[78,827,828],{},"-t"," alongside the\nregular ",[78,831,832],{},"-ed",[58,834,835],{},"learnt, burnt, dreamt, spelt, spoilt, leant",". American\nEnglish uses ",[58,838,839],{},"learned, burned, dreamed, spelled, spoiled, leaned"," almost\nexclusively. Both sets are past tenses of the same verbs and mean the same\nthing; the -t forms simply look wrong to Americans and normal to Britons.\nThis course uses the -t forms. See ",[347,842,844],{"href":843},"\u002Fenglish\u002Fgrammar\u002Firregular-verbs","irregular verbs","\nfor the verbs where the two varieties genuinely part company, such as\nAmerican ",[58,847,848],{},"dove",[58,850,851],{},"snuck"," for British ",[58,854,855],{},"dived",[58,857,858],{},"sneaked",[87,860,862],{"id":861},"which-side-does-this-course-teach-and-why","Which side does this course teach, and why",[54,864,865,866,65,868,65,871,148,874,65,876,879],{},"British English, throughout: ",[58,867,96],{},[58,869,870],{},"at the weekend",[58,872,873],{},"the team are",[58,875,747],{},[58,877,878],{},"learnt",". Partly because the author is British and pretending\notherwise would slip within a paragraph, and partly because a course must\npick one variety and stay consistent - the alternative is teaching you a\ndialect spoken by nobody.",[54,881,882],{},"But the working rules for you are these:",[884,885,886,898,913],"ol",{},[106,887,888,891,892,696,894,897],{},[78,889,890],{},"Both varieties are correct."," Never \"fix\" ",[58,893,84],{},[58,895,896],{},"the team is"," in\nsomeone else's English.",[106,899,900,903,904,906,907,909,910,912],{},[78,901,902],{},"Consistency beats loyalty."," An essay in flawless American English\nscores full marks in a British exam. An essay that says ",[58,905,60],{}," in one\nline and ",[58,908,84],{}," plus ",[58,911,870],{}," in the next reads as unsure.",[106,914,915,918],{},[78,916,917],{},"Recognise everything, produce one thing."," Films, songs and the\ninternet will feed you both varieties for the rest of your life. Let\nthem in; just decide which one comes out.",[87,920,922],{"id":921},"common-mistakes","Common mistakes",[54,924,925],{},"Ranked by how often learners actually make them.",[884,927,928,944,956,973,984,993],{},[106,929,930,933,934,937,938,696,941],{},[78,931,932],{},"The hybrid question."," ",[58,935,936],{},"Do you have got a pen?"," mixes the two systems.\nEither ",[58,939,940],{},"Have you got a pen?",[58,942,943],{},"Do you have a pen?",[106,945,946,933,949,65,951,69,953,955],{},[78,947,948],{},"Treating the other variety as an error.",[58,950,212],{},[58,952,340],{},[58,954,896],{}," are not mistakes, and telling an American they are is a\nquick way to lose an argument you started.",[106,957,958,933,963,966,967,312,970,972],{},[78,959,960,962],{},[58,961,140],{}," in the past.",[58,964,965],{},"I had got a headache yesterday"," should be\n",[58,968,969],{},"I had a headache yesterday",[58,971,140],{}," is a present-tense creature.",[106,974,975,980,981,366],{},[78,976,977,366],{},[58,978,979],{},"The police is"," Plural in every variety, no exceptions: ",[58,982,983],{},"the police\nare",[106,985,986,933,989,992],{},[78,987,988],{},"Random switching.",[58,990,991],{},"My favourite color"," - one word from each side. Pick\na passport per document and keep to it.",[106,994,995,933,1000,1003,1004,1006,1007],{},[78,996,997,999],{},[58,998,660],{}," for everything future.",[58,1001,1002],{},"I shall go to the bank tomorrow"," is\ngrammatical and sounds like a Victorian novel. Keep ",[58,1005,659],{}," for offers\nand suggestions: ",[58,1008,1009],{},"Shall I...? Shall we...?",[87,1011,1013],{"id":1012},"practice","Practice",[54,1015,1016],{},"Rewrite each sentence in the variety named. Answers are below.",[884,1018,1019,1025,1031,1037,1042],{},[106,1020,1021,1024],{},[58,1022,1023],{},"Do you have a car?"," (make it British)",[106,1026,1027,1030],{},[58,1028,1029],{},"I've just spoken to her."," (make it American)",[106,1032,1033,1036],{},[58,1034,1035],{},"The committee is unable to agree."," (make it British, members in view)",[106,1038,1039,1030],{},[58,1040,1041],{},"You needn't have brought anything.",[106,1043,1044,1024],{},[58,1045,1046],{},"See you on the weekend.",[54,1048,1049,1052],{},[78,1050,1051],{},"Answers:"," 1. Have you got a car? 2. I just spoke to her. 3. The committee\nare unable to agree. 4. You didn't need to bring anything. 5. See you at the\nweekend.",[54,1054,1055,1056,1058,1059,1061,1062,69,1064,1066,1067,1069],{},"For the machinery behind these differences, see\n",[347,1057,350],{"href":349}," for the just-already-yet\ndivide, ",[347,1060,731],{"href":730}," for ",[58,1063,659],{},[58,1065,747],{},", and ",[347,1068,818],{"href":817},"\nfor the construction America kept and Britain let go.",{"title":1071,"searchDepth":1072,"depth":1072,"links":1073},"",2,[1074,1075,1076,1077,1078,1079,1080,1081,1082,1083,1084,1085,1086],{"id":89,"depth":1072,"text":90},{"id":84,"depth":1072,"text":212},{"id":284,"depth":1072,"text":285},{"id":369,"depth":1072,"text":370},{"id":459,"depth":1072,"text":460},{"id":615,"depth":1072,"text":616},{"id":659,"depth":1072,"text":660},{"id":734,"depth":1072,"text":735},{"id":776,"depth":1072,"text":777},{"id":821,"depth":1072,"text":822},{"id":861,"depth":1072,"text":862},{"id":921,"depth":1072,"text":922},{"id":1012,"depth":1072,"text":1013},"B1-B2","The grammar, not the spelling, that separates British and American English: have got and have, gotten, the present perfect with just and already, collective nouns like team and government, at the weekend, different to and than, shall, and needn't. Both are correct; this course teaches British.",[1090,1111,1132],{"type":1091,"instructions":1092,"options":1093,"items":1094},"which-one","Choose the form that fits the variety named in each sentence.",[96,84,121,417,389,492,500,659],[1095,1097,1099,1101,1103,1105,1107,1109],{"prompt":1096,"answer":96},"British: I ___ two brothers.",{"prompt":1098,"answer":84},"American: My English has ___ better this year.",{"prompt":1100,"answer":121},"British: My English has ___ better this year.",{"prompt":1102,"answer":417},"British: The team ___ playing well this season.",{"prompt":1104,"answer":389},"American: The team ___ playing well this season.",{"prompt":1106,"answer":492},"British: See you ___ the weekend.",{"prompt":1108,"answer":500},"American: See you ___ the weekend.",{"prompt":1110,"answer":659},"___ we dance? (a very British offer)",{"type":1112,"instructions":1113,"items":1114},"fill-blank","Write the missing word in each sentence.",[1115,1117,1119,1121,1123,1125,1128,1130],{"prompt":1116,"answer":117},"British English asks: ___ you got a pen?",{"prompt":1118,"answer":132},"American English asks: ___ you have a pen?",{"prompt":1120,"answer":291},"British: I have ___ eaten, thanks. (a moment ago)",{"prompt":1122,"answer":297},"American: Did you eat ___? British: Have you eaten yet?",{"prompt":1124,"answer":417},"The police ___ looking for a grey van. (both varieties)",{"prompt":1126,"answer":1127},"British: You need ___ have worried.","not",{"prompt":1129,"answer":535},"American: the store is open Monday ___ Friday.",{"prompt":1131,"answer":633},"Both varieties accept: different ___ the others.",{"type":1133,"instructions":1134,"pairs":1135},"match","Match each British sentence to its American twin.",[1136,1139,1142,1145,1147,1150,1153,1156],{"left":1137,"right":1138},"Have you got a minute?","Do you have a minute?",{"left":1140,"right":1141},"I have just seen him.","I just saw him.",{"left":1143,"right":1144},"The government are divided.","The government is divided.",{"left":1146,"right":1046},"See you at the weekend.",{"left":1148,"right":1149},"Shall we start?","Should we start?",{"left":1151,"right":1152},"You needn't pay.","You don't need to pay.",{"left":1154,"right":1155},"It has got cold in here.","It has gotten cold in here.",{"left":1157,"right":1158},"The shop in Oxford Street.","The store on Oxford Street.","md",[1161,1164,1167,1170],{"q":1162,"a":1163},"Is American grammar wrong?","No, and neither is British. They are two standard varieties of the same language, each internally consistent, each with its own dictionaries, style guides and centuries of use. The team is and the team are, gotten and got, at the weekend and on the weekend are all correct - in their own variety. What reads as a mistake is mixing them at random in one piece of writing.",{"q":1165,"a":1166},"Is gotten bad English?","It is the opposite: gotten is the older form. British English used it for centuries, then dropped it in favour of got, while America kept it. Modern American English uses gotten as the past participle of get when it means obtain or become (my English has gotten better) and keeps got for possession (I have got two brothers means I have them). British English uses got for everything, but still says forgotten and ill-gotten - fossils of the form it abandoned.",{"q":1168,"a":1169},"Why do British people say the team are winning?","Because British English lets a singular group noun take a plural verb when the speaker is thinking of the members rather than the unit. The team are arguing among themselves (eleven people), the team is top of the league (one unit). American English uses the singular almost without exception. Neither side is confused; they are answering slightly different questions about what a team is.",{"q":1171,"a":1172},"Which variety should I learn?","Whichever surrounds you, and then be consistent. Examiners for Cambridge, IELTS and TOEFL all accept both varieties; what loses marks is switching between them mid-essay. This course teaches British English throughout, so its pages say have got, at the weekend and the team are - but every American form on this page is fully correct English, and you need to recognise all of them.","english",{},true,"\u002Fenglish\u002Fgrammar\u002Fbritish-vs-american-grammar",{"title":48,"description":1088},"english\u002Fgrammar\u002Fbritish-vs-american-grammar","AUMHFNYWpXaRFWderx3-veT6hEPcdcbD7ak1vqgHG10",{"left":4,"top":4,"width":5,"height":5,"rotate":4,"vFlip":6,"hFlip":6,"body":1181},"\u003Cpath fill=\"none\" stroke=\"currentColor\" stroke-linecap=\"round\" stroke-linejoin=\"round\" stroke-width=\"2\" d=\"M13 21h8M15 5l4 4m2.174-2.188a1 1 0 0 0-3.986-3.987L3.842 16.174a2 2 0 0 0-.5.83l-1.321 4.352a.5.5 0 0 0 .623.622l4.353-1.32a2 2 0 0 0 .83-.497z\"\u002F>",{"left":4,"top":4,"width":5,"height":5,"rotate":4,"vFlip":6,"hFlip":6,"body":1183},"\u003Cpath fill=\"none\" stroke=\"currentColor\" stroke-linecap=\"round\" stroke-linejoin=\"round\" stroke-width=\"2\" d=\"M11 4.702a.705.705 0 0 0-1.203-.498L6.413 7.587A1.4 1.4 0 0 1 5.416 8H3a1 1 0 0 0-1 1v6a1 1 0 0 0 1 1h2.416a1.4 1.4 0 0 1 .997.413l3.383 3.384A.705.705 0 0 0 11 19.298zM16 9a5 5 0 0 1 0 6m3.364 3.364a9 9 0 0 0 0-12.728\"\u002F>"]