US or UK spelling – Which one is right in IELTS?

Should I spell British or should I spell American?

by Kasra Sharifan | Aug 7, 2019 | Vocabulary, Writing

We know spelling is definitely important in IELTS. Both British and American spelling variations are acceptable. The list below contains words from Oxford 3000 and Longman frequent words and different, yet correct spellings.

1) – our / – or

behaviour		behavior
colour		color
endeavour		endeavor
favour		favor
flavour		flavor
glamour		glamor
honour		honor
humour		humor
labour		labor
neighbour		neighbor
rumour		rumor
vapour		vapor

2) – re / – er

centimetre		centimeter
centre		center
fibre		fiber
kilometre		kilometer
litre		liter
metre		meter
theatre		theater

3) double “ll” / single “l”

channelled		channeled
jewellery		jewelry
labelled		labeled
marvellous		marvelous
traveller		traveler
tunnelled		tunneled

4) – ise / – ize

accessorise		accessorize
authorise		authorize
capitalise		capitalize
categorise		categorize
centralise		centralize
characterise		characterize
civilise		civilize
colonise		colonize
computerise		computerize
criticise		criticize
crystallise		crystallize
customise		customize
empathise		empathize
energise		energize
exorcise		exorcize
familiarise		familiarize
finalise		finalize
generalise		generalize
globalise		globalize
hospitalise		hospitalize
idealise		idealize
initialise		initialize
internalise		internalize
maximise		maximize
memorise		memorize
minimise		minimize
mobilise		mobilize
moisturise		moisturize
nationalise		nationalize
naturalise		naturalize
neutralise		neutralize
optimise		optimize
personalise		personalize
prioritise		prioritize
publicise		publicize
realise		realize
recognise		recognize
reorganise		reorganize
socialise		socialize
specialise		specialize
standardise		standardize
summarise		summarize
symbolise		symbolize
sympathise		sympathize
urbanise		urbanize
utilise		utilize
visualise		visualize

4) other words

aeroplane		airplane
ageing		aging
analogue		analog
analyse		analyze
archaeological		archeological
buses		busses
cheque		check
connexion		connection
cosy		cozy
defence		defense
dialogue		dialog
disc		disk
encyclopaedia		encyclopedia
enrol		enroll
fulfil		fulfill
gaol		jail
gases		gasses
gramme		gram
grey		gray
judgement		judgment
kilogramme		kilogram
licence		license
misspelt		misspelled
monologue		monolog
moustache		mustache
offence		offense
omelette		omelet
organisation		organization
programme		program
pyjamas		pajamas
sceptic		skeptic
storey		story
tonne		ton
yoghurt		yogurt

Kasra Sharifan

Co-founder and CFO

British Council certified English teacher, IDP-trained IELTS instructor, content writer, editor-in-chief, co-founder, and Chief Financial Officer (CFO) at IELTS Juice Online Academy.