burgled/burglarized

[sophie_1003]

Why is 'burglarized' used in place of 'burgled' in America and why do Americans spell words differently, e.g. with z in place of s, and in some cases use completely different words e.g. faucet instead of tap?

[Quizmonster]

Sophie, you might as well ask why dialect words in Aberdeen are different from those used for the same thing in Newcastle and why both of these are different from the words used in Bristol. All languages and the dialects thereof are constantly developing and evolving. Similarly, standard English in use today is very different from that spoken in Shakespeare's time.
It's hardly surprising, therefore, that American English vocabulary is frequently different from British English.
As regards ise/ize, the old rule - and one still largely followed by The Oxford English Dictionary (the English word-�bible') as well as American usage - was that words derived from classical Greek with the letter zeta in their suffix were rendered �ize' in English...ie retained the �z'. However, many modern publishers - including �The Times' newspaper - prefer the Latinate and more modern �ise' for most such words.
Thus, normal British usage has �organise', �apologise' and so on. Certain words - eg �capsize' - are never modified to have an �ise' ending. In the same way, there are others - such as �disguise', �analyse', �circumcise', �televise', �exercise' and �chastise' - which are never given an �ize' ending. Apart from the exceptions such as those mentioned above, you are basically free to use whichever form - ise/ize - you prefer!
I believe the ize form became the standard version in the USA when Webster produced his first dictionary there in the 19th century and opted for that variant.

[fredpuli47]

Many words we think of as American are English words which we no longer use but did long ago. Faucet is a perfect example. It is a Late Middle English word (1340-1485) .'Tap' is older, being an Old English word. We may surmise that the English colonists who settled in America came from places in England where 'faucet' was the commoner, or the regular, word for what we now call a tap..

Americans do like the longer word sometimes. An extra syllable appeals to them. They have 'transportation' where we have 'transport' and have some fondness for 'coronated' for 'crowned'. The Queen was 'coronated' in 1953 ! 'Coronate' is as old as 'faucet'. 'Burglarize' and 'burgle' are both back-formations from 'burglar' and are from the C19. We have preferred the shorter word but they like the longer one..

[heathfield]

The dreaded 'z' is creeping into English - at least it is in the form of pronounciation. Anyone else noticed the number of folk on TV who now say 'uz' instead of 'us'? Dr Ian Stewart, in his geology programmes, is a notable example.

[Quizmonster]

Uz is a northern dialect variant of us and, now that Received Pronunciation is no longer de rigeur among broadcasters, it is of little surprise that it is increasingly heard. And why not? Jocks, Geordies, Brummies and Uncle Tom Cobley and all are commonly employed as presenters/announcers nowadays.
I'm not familiar with Dr Ian Stewart, but his name suggests he might be Scottish, so a northern influence is not surprising.

[sophie_1003]

Thanks for all your answers, words and their possible origins always interest me! I prefer the 'ise' ending as it seems more English but I'm inclined to be more forgiving of 'ize' now I know it's history!

[jno]

I believe 'fall' was an older English word too... they took it with them when they emigrated; meanwhile, Brits ditched it in favour of 'autumn'.