Elements of American English
A Handbook for Teachers and Learners
Summary
Excerpt
Table Of Contents
- Cover
- Title Page
- Copyright Page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Acknowledgments
- Introduction
- Overview
- Chapter 1 A Brief History of American English
- Welcome to American English
- Why Study American English?
- How Many Words Are in American English?
- The Influence of Native Americans: The 1600s
- The 1700s: A New Nation and New Words
- The 1800s: Noah Webster, Growth, War, and Inventions
- An American Dictionary
- The Nation Expands
- American Inventions
- The American Civil War
- The Twentieth Century
- The First Half
- The Second Half
- The Twenty-First Century
- References
- Chapter 2 Figurative Language
- Chapter Overview
- Idioms
- Old Idioms Still in Use
- Famous Writers Used Idioms
- American Originals
- Many Idioms Originally Were Literal
- An Alphabetical List of Idioms
- Euphemisms
- Similes and Metaphors
- Hyperbole
- Personification
- Chiasmus
- Tautophrases
- Synecdoche
- Irony
- Oxymorons
- References
- Chapter 3 Proverbs in America
- What Is a Proverb?
- Proverbs from Around the World
- Contradictory Proverbs Used in American English
- Proverbs That Originated in America
- American Regional Proverbs
- Undated American Proverbs
- Are Some Popular Proverbs True?
- Categories of Proverbs
- References
- Chapter 4 Shades of Meaning in American English
- Tired Words and Their Synonyms
- Synonyms and Bias
- The Shades of Meaning
- Degrees of Synonyms
- Similar but Different
- References
- Chapter 5 American Names
- Onomastics: The Study of Names
- The Economic Importance of Names
- Food Names
- Names in Real Estate: Odonyms
- State Names
- Town and City Names
- Names of Natural Features
- Weather-related Names
- Names of Hurricanes
- Names of Wildfires
- Names of Snowplows
- People
- Eponyms
- Nicknames of People, Places, and Things
- City and State Nicknames
- Sports Teams
- Demonyms
- References
- Chapter 6 American Catchphrases, Slogans, and Mottoes
- Catchphrases
- Slogans
- Safety Slogans
- Slogans to Rally People
- Political Slogans
- Mottoes
- Mottoes from History
- State Mottoes
- Northeast
- Midwest
- Southeast
- Southwest
- West
- References
- Chapter 7 Ambiguities and Easily Confused Words Found in American English
- Polysemy, Words That Have More Than One Meaning
- Easily Confused Words
- Advice/Advise
- All Ready/Already
- Among/Between
- Different From/Different Than
- Each Other/One Another
- Farther/Further
- Fewer Than/Less Than
- Principal/Principle
- Quote/Quotation
- References
- Chapter 8 Words That Are Familiar to Most Americans
- References
- Chapter 9 Word Formations
- Acronyms
- Initialisms
- Texting
- Airports
- Reduplicatives
- Compound Words
- Blended Words
- Clipped Words
- Common Prefixes
- Common Suffixes
- References
- Chapter 10 Vocabulary Development: In-Betweens and Word Associations
- In-Betweens
- A Time-Honored Word Game
- The Hink Pink Family
- More Hink Pinks with Answers
- More Hinky Pinkies with Answers
- The Hink Hink Family
- More Hink Hinks with Answers
- More Hinky Hinkies with Answers
- More Hinkety Hinketies with Answers
- The Pink Pink Family
- More Pink Pinks with Answers
- More Pinky Pinkies with Answers
- References
- About the Authors
- Index
Acknowledgments
We are grateful to Dr. Laurel Plapp, Senior Acquisitions Editor, Peter Lang Oxford, for her support of this volume from start to finish. We also acknowledge Ms. Janani Vadivelou for her careful copy editing, and Marta Podvolotskaya for her detailed and thorough publishing management.
Introduction
There are different varieties of the English language spoken across the globe: British English, Australian English, Canadian English, and more, each differing in aspects of vocabulary, pronunciation, and grammar. This volume addresses elements of American English. It was written for teachers of English as a second language whose students are high school or adult learners. The chapters are comprised of components of the language that students will commonly encounter and should become familiar with while living, studying, and working in the United States. According to the pre-service and in-service teachers of English as a New Language (ENL) we have worked with, these components are often areas of confusion for ENL learners. The book was not written as a scholarly treatise on each topic—although reference sections show that scholarship was not overlooked—but as a user-friendly handbook for those to whom second-language learning is entrusted. The book contains many individual and group activities (also provided in Spanish for ENL educators working in bilingual settings) to further explore topics. Upper-grade content area educators also might find the handbook helpful in working with struggling ENL readers across subjects.
Few words or expressions stand alone; many are embedded in at least one discipline: history, sociology, psychology, economics, geography, political science, and more. The foundation of learning American English is learning its words—its vocabulary.
Would you eat a koolickle? The word is American in origin. Koolickles can be traced to America’s Mississippi Delta (history, geography). They are tantalizingly brightly colored (psychology), often sold at fundraisers (economics, political science), and usually are homemade (sociology). The ingredients for koolickles include dill pickles, Kool-Aid, and sugar. Koolickles might be short on nutrition, but they are long on uniqueness and are a testament to a people’s inventiveness, sense of humor, and somewhat tough stomachs.
American English, as the reader will find in this book, is a joyful, dynamic mixture of words that, like the country, is ever-changing.
Overview
Chapter 1 presents a rationale for studying American English. The chapter also travels through the years of American history with acknowledgments of additions to the American vocabulary.
Figurative language is especially challenging for anyone learning a language. Chapter 2 defines and exemplifies numerous categories of figurative language: idioms, euphemisms, similes, metaphors, hyperbole, personification, chiasmus, tautophrases, synecdoche, irony, and oxymorons.
Characteristics of proverbs are described in Chapter 3. Among the Chapter’s sections are proverbs that originated in America and American regional proverbs.
Chapter 4 addresses shades of meaning in American English. Degrees of synonyms and similarities and differences among synonyms are exemplified.
Onomastics, the study of names, is the topic of Chapter 5, and American names are in the spotlight. The economic importance of names, state names, town and city names, names of natural features, weather-related names, nicknames, and more are examined.
Chapter 6 is a walk through decades of American history via catchphrases, slogans, and mottoes. Television catchphrases that became a part of the language, state slogans, political slogans, and state mottoes are included.
Words with more than one meaning are discussed in Chapter 7, and exercises on the topic are provided. A section on easily confused words completes the chapter.
Chapter 8 is comprised of words that are familiar to most Americans. Excerpts from documents and speeches throughout American history are presented.
Word formations are the subject of Chapter 9. Acronyms, initialisms, reduplicatives, compound words, blended words, clipped words, and prefixes and suffixes are explained and exemplified.
Chapter 10 is designed to enhance vocabulary development through in-betweens and word games that use synonyms, word associations, and rhyme.
We wish you an enjoyable trip as you travel the Interstates, expressways, back roads, and streets of learning American English.
CHAPTER 1 A Brief History of American English
Welcome to American English
When learning American English, there is no need to feel like a fish out of water. From a one-horse town to the rat race of big city living, most Americans understand that their language is a vibrant, fluid one that reflects the forward-looking, creative minds of the people. Some vocabulary words are as fleeting as a New York City subway car at top speed. Others have been a part of the language for many years. As readers progress through this volume, it is hoped that the ingenuity and multicultural influences on the American way of speaking and writing shine through, and that the book becomes an enriching experience.
Why Study American English?
A former chief editor of the Oxford English Dictionary (Simpson, 2016) enumerated the reasons why even the venerable record of the English language included the entry “American operations” in compiling a more recent edition of the Dictionary. Simpson explained:
Details
- Pages
- XIV, 152
- Publication Year
- 2026
- ISBN (PDF)
- 9781803748030
- ISBN (ePUB)
- 9781803748047
- ISBN (Softcover)
- 9781803748023
- DOI
- 10.3726/b22407
- Language
- English
- Publication date
- 2026 (August)
- Keywords
- Yvonne Pratt-Johnson Bonnie Johnson Elements of American English topics in American English language learning American English vocabulary development figurative language
- Published
- Oxford, Berlin, Bruxelles, Chennai, Lausanne, New York, 2026. xiv, 152 pp.
- Product Safety
- Peter Lang Group AG
