🇺🇸 Favorite
Correct in the United States. The standard spelling in American English.
🇬🇧 Favourite
Correct in the UK & Commonwealth. The standard spelling in British, Canadian, and Australian English.
Seeing a red underline on your screen while typing can be frustrating, especially when you are certain you spelled the word correctly. If you are stuck between writing favorite or favourite, here is the good news: both spellings are technically correct. The only difference lies in geography and the intended audience of your writing. Neither word changes the pronunciation or the meaning; it is simply a matter of preference based on which side of the Atlantic Ocean you are standing on.
Where To Use Each Spelling
Choosing the right version depends entirely on who will be reading your text. If you want your writing to feel natural to your readers, you need to match their local spelling conventions. Mixing them up won’t make your text unreadable, but it might look slightly careless or inconsistent.
- Favorite (No “u”): This is the standard spelling in American English. If you are writing for a US audience, blogging on a US-based site, or submitting a paper to an American university, drop the “u”.
- Favourite (With “u”): This is the standard spelling in British English. It is also the preferred spelling in countries that follow British conventions, such as Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Ireland.
Why Is There A Difference?
You might wonder why we have two versions of the same word. The history of this split is actually quite fascinating and dates back to the early days of the United States. The word originally comes from the Latin favor. When it entered Old French, it picked up a “u” to become faveur, which heavily influenced the British spelling favourite.
However, after the American Revolution, a man named Noah Webster—the father of the American dictionary—wanted to simplify spelling. He believed that words should be spelled the way they sound and that superfluous letters borrowed from other languages should be removed. As part of his 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language, he chopped the “u” out of many words. That is why Americans write favorite, color, and honor, while the rest of the English-speaking world keeps the “u”.
Real-World Examples
To ensure your writing is impeccable, you simply need to stay consistent. Don’t switch back and forth between the two styles in a single document. Here is how you would see the word used in different contexts:
| Region | Sentence Example |
|---|---|
| United States 🇺🇸 | “Chocolate is my favorite ice cream flavor.” |
| United Kingdom 🇬🇧 | “Chocolate is my favourite ice cream flavour.” |
| Australia 🇦🇺 | “She is the teacher’s favourite student.” |
The “-or” vs “-our” Pattern
This spelling rule doesn’t just apply to “favorite.” Once you recognize the pattern, it becomes much easier to spot the British vs. American difference in other words. If you see a “u” next to an “o” at the end of a word, you are likely looking at British English.
Here are a few other common words that follow the exact same rule:
How To Remember The Difference
If you struggle to remember which one goes where, try this simple memory trick. The word You contains a “u”. If you are writing for the United Kingdom, you need to include the “u”.
Conversely, America ends in “a”, not “u”. Therefore, American spellings generally leave the “u” out. Keeping this small detail in mind will help you avoid mixing up your spelling in emails, essays, or social media posts.
