As an American who works with some people who speak British English, the language differences are usually not a problem. Most words mean the same thing, and those that don't are usually concrete enough not to cause confusion (ex: lift, flat, chips). The tricky ones, though, are the ones that differ primarily in connotations. For example:

  • In American English (AE), "quite" is an intensifier, while in British English (BE) it's a mild deintensifier. So "quite good" is "very good" in AE but "somewhat good" in BE. I think "rather" works similarly, though it's less common in AE and I don't have a great sense for it.

  • "Scheme" has connotations of deviousness in AE, but is neutral in BE. Describing a plans or system as a "scheme" is common in BE and negative in AE.

  • "Graft" implies corruption in AE but hard work in BE.

These can cause silent misunderstandings where two people have very different ideas about the other's view:

A: "I can't believe how much graft there was in the procurement process!"

B: "Yes, quite impressive. Rather keen on going above and beyond, aren't they?"

A: "And did you see the pension scheme they set up?"

B: "Sounds like they'll be quite well off when they'll leave office."

In this example A leaves thinking B approves of the corruption, while B doesn't realize there was any. It could be a long time, if ever, before they realize they misunderstood each other.

Are there other words people have run into that differ like this?

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In American English (AE), "quite" is an intensifier, while in British English (BE) it's a mild deintensifier.

This does depend on context. In formal or old-fashioned British English, "quite" is also an intensifier. For example:

"Sir, you quite misunderstand me," said Mrs. Bennet, alarmed.

from Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen.

"Graft" implies corruption in AE but hard work in BE.

I think "graft" also often implies corruption in British English.

In BE 'quite' can also be used sarcastically, becoming a negative intensifier. If you say something's "quite nice" that could mean it really wasn't good at all. 

https://g.co/gemini/share/4c0707081d5d Gemini 2.5 Pro understood the gist and provided some examples that are more well known. 

In the one-shot, produced only one intriguing miscommunication,

 

Conversation 3: After the Party

 * American: "Man, I was so pissed last night when I realized I left my wallet at the restaurant." (Meaning: Very angry/annoyed.)

 * Brit: "Really? You seemed fine when you left! How much did you have to drink to get that pissed?" (Meaning: Very drunk.)

I (speaking American English) had difficulties on a project with another team (speaking British English) when we would agree to "table" something.  We we're all rather frustrated before we realized that I meant "set aside to deal with it later" while they meant "get into it now".

https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/16285/what-is-the-meaning-of-the-expression-we-can-table-this

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