should I learn Canadian English
There are differences between American and Canadian spelling. Canadian spelling uses a British-American mixture. If you're serious about learning Canadian English, I'd suggest buying the Canadian Oxford English Dictionary, which is the official reference for most newspapers and the Canadian government.
Some common differences:
Canadian American
neighbour neighbor
favourite favorite
centre center
travelling traveling
Oh, shit, are we Americans supposed to be spelling "travelling" with one L, and not two? Naughty, naughty Uriel! I'll never keep that straight!
Dan, that's true about the spelling but I think we were mostly talking about pronunciation here, as there are no pronunciation differences represented by "travelling/traveling" "centre/center" etc.
You will also occasionally see "centre" and "theatre" in the US, when people want to be fancy.
i need to learn a canaidian accent. i think it would be cool.
I seen a few airports and train stations use 'cancelled' instead of 'canceled'.
I even came across the word 'catalogue' more often in the US lately.
I personally tend to use travelling, cancelled, levelled, etcetera. I'm not sure if I should attribute this to a Canadian father who was house husband while I was growing up. No one ever tried to correct me though.
I think it has to do with that rule about doubling the final consonant before adding a suffix, when the final vowel is a short vowel. I spell all those words the same way you do, and I never thought it was wrong, either -- and that's without any Canadian influence in my life.
>>..the quickest way to irritate a Canadian is to ask them where in America they come from...
How could a Canadian possibly get irritated about that? They have adopted almost all of the features of US pronunciation, so naturally they sound like Yanks; no one forced them to sound that way, and no other country (as yet) has aped US speech so well, so they must expect such natural confusion on the part of others. The alternative would be to develop a truly distinctive accent of their own, something other countries have managed without any difficulty.
<< I'm not sure if I should attribute this to a Canadian father who was house husband while I was growing up >>
-- Househusband ? - - I just found out that the word existed, now I just can't stop laughing. I wonder what sort of man would like to be called a househusband, it is very very very funny indeed.
<< The alternative would be to develop a truly distinctive accent of their own, something other countries have managed without any difficulty. >>
I thought the essence of being able to speak English was to be understood?, I do not think Canadians need to develop a distinctive accent, they have regional accents just as it is elsewhere (even in the U.S and Britain).
And enough with the Canadian accent issue, I think people are bored of it already, there are other countries with real issues.
« -- Househusband ? - - I just found out that the word existed, now I just can't stop laughing. I wonder what sort of man would like to be called a househusband, it is very very very funny indeed. »
Interesting, we use that word quite a lot in England. What else would you have thought to call such a person?
I think the notion of a "househusband" (as funny as it sounds), or a man who concedes the status of the breadwinner to his wife - is ridiculous and outrageous. It is comical...I'm still laughing.
Why is it 'outrageous'? Ultimately though, both housewives and househusbands are rather unusual in England today — even when a couple has children, both parents usually work here. If there's a 'couple' at all that is, since there isn't about half the time.
<<I think the notion of a "househusband" (as funny as it sounds), or a man who concedes the status of the breadwinner to his wife - is ridiculous and outrageous. It is comical...I'm still laughing.>>
??? So if I told you my mother stayed at home when we were children, how would that be any different?