Britain vs English - What's the difference?
britain | english |
The island of Great Britain, consisting of England, Scotland and Wales.
(loosely) The United Kingdom.
(in the plural) The British Empire.
* 1874 , The Times , 14 July 1874:
* 2002 , L. C. Lambdin and R. T. Lambdin, Companion to Old and Middle English Literature , 2002, p. 12:
(obsolete) Briton; British.
* 1596 , (Edmund Spenser), The Faerie Queene , IV.11:
Of or pertaining to England or its people.
English-language; of or pertaining to the English language.
Of or pertaining to an Englishman or Englishwoman.
*
, title=(The Celebrity), chapter=2
, passage=Sunning himself on the board steps, I saw for the first time Mr. Farquhar Fenelon Cooke. He was dressed out in broad gaiters and bright tweeds, like an English tourist, and his face might have belonged to Dagon, idol of the Philistines.}}
Of or pertaining to the avoirdupois system of measure.
(Amish) Non-Amish.
(collective plural) The people of England; Englishmen and Englishwomen.
The language originating in England but now spoken in all parts of the British Isles, the Commonwealth of Nations, North America, and other parts of the world.
(Amish, collective plural) The non-Amish.
(surname)
One's ability to employ the English language correctly.
The English-language term or expression for something.
Specific language or wording; a text or statements in speech, whether a translation or otherwise.
(countable) A regional type of spoken and or written English; a dialect.
(printing, dated) A kind of type, in size between pica and great primer.
(North American) Spin or side given to a ball, especially in pool or billiards.
(archaic) To translate, adapt or render into English.
*, page 214 (2001 reprint):
*:severe prohibuit viris suis tum misceri feminas in consuetis suis menstruis, etc. I spare to English this which I have said.
As nouns the difference between britain and english
is that britain is while english is (us) spinning or rotary motion given to a ball around the vertical axis, as in billiards or bowling.As a proper noun britain
is the island of great britain, consisting of england, scotland and wales.As an adjective britain
is (obsolete) briton; british.britain
English
Etymology 1
(etyl) Breoton, Bryten etc., from (etyl) Britannia; later reinforced by (etyl) Britaine, (etyl) Bretaigne, from (etyl) Brittannia, variant of Britannia, from (see Etymology 2, below).Proper noun
(s)- The name of 'Britain' [...] ought to answer every purpose, or if that be thought too condensed, it may be pluralized into ‘The Britains ’.
Etymology 2
From (etyl) Britannus (adjective and noun, plural ), apparently from (w) (compare (etyl) Priten).Noun
(en noun)- The Britains'’ struggles with the Scots and Picts [...] led to the ' Britains asking the Romans for help in constructing a great wall.
Adjective
(en adjective)- mightie Albion, father of the bold / And warlike people which the Britaine Islands hold […].
See also
* Great Britain * the British Isles * the United Kingdomenglish
English
Adjective
(en adjective)Proper noun
(en proper noun)- The Scottish and the English have a history of conflict.
- English is spoken here as an unofficial language and lingua franca.
Usage notes
* The name of the language, English , when it means "the English language", does not assume an article. Hence: "Say it in plain English!" * The people as a collective noun require the definite article "the" or a demonstrative adjective. Hence: "The English are coming!" or "Oh, those English, always drinking their tea..."Noun
(en-noun)- My coworker has pretty good English for a non-native speaker.
- How do you say ‘à peu près’ in English ?
- The technical details are correct, but the English is not very clear.
- Put more English on the ball.
