English language

English is a West Germanic language in the larger Indo-European language family. It started in early medieval England and is now very important around the world. Because of the British Empire and the United States, many people speak English globally. It is the most widely learned second language, with more people speaking it as a second language than as their first.

English is either the official language or one of the official languages in 57 sovereign states and 30 dependent territories. In places like the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, and New Zealand, English is used every day, even if laws do not always name it the official language. It is also important in groups like the United Nations and the European Union.

The story of English began with the Anglo-Saxons, who spoke West Germanic dialects. Over time, the language changed a lot. It borrowed many words from Old Norse, French dialects, and Latin. Even with these borrowed words, English keeps its Germanic roots in sound and basic words. Today, English keeps changing and connects people worldwide.

Classification

English is part of the Indo-European language family, in the West Germanic group of Germanic languages. Like other Germanic languages such as Dutch, German, and Swedish, English shares features because they all came from a common ancestor language called Proto-Germanic.

Old English was spoken by West Germanic people near the North Sea around the 5th century. When these people moved to the British Isles, their language became Old English. Over time, Old English changed into Middle English, and then into the Modern English we speak today. During this time, English changed in its words, structure, and sounds, making it different from other Germanic languages.

History

Main article: History of English

Old English, also called Anglo-Saxon, was the first form of English spoken from around 450 to 1150. It came from languages spoken near the coasts of Frisia, Lower Saxony, and Jutland by groups called the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes. These people moved to Britain after the Roman Empire left, and Old English became the main language there by the 7th century.

Old English was very different from today’s English. It had more complicated rules for word endings and sentence structure. Over time, the language changed a lot.

Between the 8th and 11th centuries, English was influenced by Old Norse, a language from the Vikings who settled in northern Britain. This added new words like “give,” “sky,” and “egg” to English.

The Middle English period started around 1066 after the Norman Conquest, when French-speaking Normans took over England. This brought many French words into English, especially for important topics like government and law. English also became simpler in its word changes.

The Early Modern English period, from 1500 to 1700, had big changes like the Great Vowel Shift, which changed how many vowel sounds were said. This time also had famous writers like William Shakespeare and the first English Bible.

By the late 18th century, the British Empire spread English around the world. Later, the United States also helped make English a global language. Today, English is spoken and written more than any other language in history.

Geographical distribution

See also: List of countries and territories where English is an official language, List of countries by English-speaking population, and English-speaking world

About 400 million people speak English as their first language, and 1.1 billion speak it as a second language. English is the largest language by the number of speakers, with communities on every continent. The number of people who speak English as a second or foreign language can vary a lot. In some countries, many people learn English in school and use it in daily life.

Three circles model

Braj Kachru grouped countries into the Three Circles of English model. This shows how English spread in each country, how people learn it, and how they use it.

"Inner-circle" countries have many native English speakers. These include the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, Canada, Ireland, and New Zealand. In these countries, most people speak English. Children learn English from their families. People who speak other languages learn English to talk with others in their jobs and communities.

"Outer-circle" countries, such as the Philippines, India, and Nigeria, have fewer native English speakers. But English is important in schools, government, and business. People in these countries learn English to use in everyday life and school. The way they speak English can be different from how people in inner-circle countries speak.

"Expanding-circle" countries teach English as a foreign language. Even in these countries, many people can speak English, especially in schools and when talking to people from other countries.

Pluricentric English

English is a pluricentric language, meaning no one country decides the rules. People in different countries speak English in their own way. Most English speakers can understand programmes and films from other English-speaking countries. English in writing follows standards that people agree on, without any government rules.

In countries like the United States, most people speak only English. Each country may have different official languages. For example, Canada has both English and French as official languages.

• Australia has no official languages.
• In Canada, English and French are both official.
• English is an official language in Ireland, but Irish is the first language.
• New Zealand’s official languages are Māori and New Zealand Sign Language.
• The United Kingdom has no official language.
• In the United States, English became the official language in 2025.

English as a global language

Main article: English as a lingua franca

See also: Foreign-language influences in English and Study of global communication

English is often called a global language. It is used in newspapers, books, science, business, entertainment, and diplomacy. It is one of the official languages of the United Nations. Many international groups use English as their working language.

English is the most common foreign language that people learn. Many learn English for practical reasons, like getting a job. In many countries, knowing English is important for certain jobs, such as in medicine and technology. English is now the main language for scientific research and publishing.

After countries gained independence from Britain, many kept English as an official language. For example, English is an official language in India. Many people in India use English in media and books. English continues to be important around the world.

Dialects, accents, and varieties

Dialectologists identify many English dialects. These are regional types of English that differ in grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation. The way people say words in different places makes each area’s accent unique. The main native types of English are usually grouped into British English (BrE) and North American English (NAE).

Britain and Ireland

English has been spoken in England for 1,500 years, so there are many regional dialects. In the United Kingdom, Received Pronunciation (RP) is an accent linked to South East England. It has often been used in broadcasting and is seen as the most respected British accent. As RP spread through media, many older rural dialects changed, with younger people using the more common accent instead.

English in England has four main regions: South East English, South West English (or West Country English), Midlands English, and Northern English. Each region has several local dialects. Since the 15th century, South East England, centred around London, has been the source of new dialect features that spread elsewhere.

Scots is now a separate language from English but comes from early Northern Middle English. It changed over time with influences from Scottish Gaelic and Old Norse.

In Ireland, English has been spoken since the Norman invasion of the island in the 11th century. Today’s Irish English comes mainly from English presence in the 17th century. Irish English includes Ulster English in Northern Ireland, which has strong links to Scots, along with many other dialects.

North America

North American English used to be thought of as quite similar across regions. But today, experts say it has many differences in sound, words, and local use. This includes varieties such as African-American English, Chicano English, Cajun English, and Newfoundland English.

Canadian English, except in Atlantic Canada and maybe Quebec, is often grouped together. It sometimes changes how certain vowel sounds are made before quiet consonants. Atlantic Canadian English is different from Standard Canadian English and includes Maritime English and Newfoundland English.

Australia and New Zealand

English has been spoken in Oceania since 1788. Australian English is the main language of Australia, with General Australian as its common accent. The English of neighbouring New Zealand is also an important standard. Australian and New Zealand English are very similar, followed by South African English and the English of South East England.

Southeast Asia

English is an official language of the Philippines. It is used everywhere, from street signs to government papers, courts, media, entertainment, and business. It grew important during American rule from 1898 to 1946. Taglish is a common way of mixing Tagalog and English.

Africa, the Caribbean, and South Asia

English is widely spoken in southern Africa and is official in several countries. In South Africa, English has been spoken since 1820, alongside Afrikaans and many African languages.

In the Caribbean, English is spoken in places like Jamaica, the Leeward and Windward Islands, Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados, the Cayman Islands, and Belize. Each area has its own English and an English-based creole mixing English with African languages.

Indian English often aims toward RP as a model, with closeness to RP often linked to social class.

Non-native varieties

Non-native English speakers might say words differently because English is new to them. This can happen when they apply the speech rules of their first language to English or use learning strategies from first language acquisition. They might create new ways to say sounds not found in their native language.

Phonology

English sounds and speech change from one dialect to another, but people can still understand each other. Differences in sounds affect how words are pronounced.

This overview talks about Received Pronunciation (RP) and General American (GA), the standard ways of speaking in the United Kingdom and the United States.

Most English dialects share the same 24 consonant sounds. The consonant sounds work for California English and for RP.

For pairs of strong and weak sounds such as /p b/, /tʃ dʒ/, and /s z/, the first sound is strong and the second is weak. Strong sounds are pronounced with more muscle and breath than weak sounds.

In RP, the sound /l/ has two ways of speaking: the clear sound, as in light, and the dark sound, as in full. GA has dark l in most cases.

All liquids /l, r/ and nasals /m, n, ŋ/ lose their voice when after a sound without voice.

The way vowels are said changes a lot between dialects. The table below lists the vowel sounds in RP and GA, with example words. The vowels are shown with symbols from the International Phonetic Alphabet.

In RP, the length of vowels shows meaning. In GA, vowel length does not show meaning.

In both RP and GA, vowels are shorter before strong consonants.

The vowel /ə/ only happens in unstressed syllables.

An English syllable includes a vowel sound. A syllable can start with up to three consonant sounds, as in sprint, and end with up to five, as in (for some dialects) angsts.

Stress is important in English. Certain syllables are stressed, while others are not. Stress is a mix of how long a syllable is said, how loud it is, and the quality of the vowel. Stressed syllables are said longer and louder than unstressed syllables.

Stress in English shows meaning. For example, the word contract is stressed on the first syllable when used as a noun, but on the last syllable when used as a verb. Stress is also used to tell words and phrases apart.

In terms of rhythm, English is usually a stress-timed language, meaning that the time between stressed syllables tends to be the same.

Types of English change most in the pronunciation of vowels. The best-known national types used as standards for teaching in non-English-speaking countries are British (BrE) and American (AmE). Countries such as Canada, Australia, Ireland, New Zealand and South Africa have their own standard types.

English has gone through many changes in sound. Most standard types are affected by the Great Vowel Shift, which changed the pronunciation of long vowels.

Some types have fewer or more consonant sounds and speech sounds than the standard types.

GA and RP differ in their pronunciation of historical /r/ after a vowel at the end of a syllable. GA is a rhotic type, meaning that it says /r/ at the end of a syllable, but RP is non-rhotic, meaning that it loses /r/ in that place.

Orthography

English has been written with the English alphabet since the 9th century. Before that, Old English sometimes used special letters called Anglo-Saxon runes, but most writings used the Old English Latin alphabet.

English spelling can be tricky because it mixes rules from French, Latin, and Greek with older Germanic rules. The way words are spelled doesn’t always match how they sound, unlike some other European languages. There are small spelling differences between British and American English.

Even though English spelling can be hard to learn, it helps show the history of words. For example, the words photograph, photography, and photographic all look similar because they share the same root. Most letters usually make the same sounds, but there are exceptions, especially with the letters c and g. Vowel sounds can be tricky because there aren’t enough letters to cover all the sounds, so sometimes extra letters or silent letters are used.

English also uses punctuation marks to help readers understand sentences better and know where to pause when reading aloud.

Grammar

English grammar, like many languages, has a pattern called accusative morphosyntactic alignment. English mostly dropped complex word changes, choosing simpler ways instead. Only personal pronouns keep some of these changes.

English uses seven main types of words: verbs, nouns, adjectives, adverbs, determiners (including words like "the" and "a"), prepositions, and conjunctions. Some studies also separate pronouns into their own group and split conjunctions into two types, adding interjections. English also has helper verbs, such as "have" and "do," that help show timing. Questions are formed using these helpers and changing the order of words.

Some features from older languages remain in English, such as changing the word stem (like "speak/spoke") and adding endings (like "love/loved"). We see older forms in the pronoun "he/him," and in the verb "to be."

The seven word classes are shown in this sample sentence:

Nouns and noun phrases

English nouns change only for number (single or more than one) and possession (showing ownership). New nouns can be created by adding endings or joining words together. They are divided into proper nouns (names) and common nouns. Common nouns are split into concrete nouns (things you can touch) and abstract nouns (ideas), and also into count nouns (you can count) and mass nouns (you cannot count).

Most count nouns add an "-s" to make them plural, but some have special forms. Mass nouns can only be made plural by using a word like "one" or "two," such as "one loaf of bread" or "two loaves of bread."

Regular plural formation:

• Single: cat, dog
• More than one: cats, dogs

Special plural formation:

• Single: man, woman, foot, fish, ox, knife, mouse
• More than one: men, women, feet, fish, oxen, knives, mice

Possession can be shown with the "-'s" ending or the word "of." The "-'s" ending is written with an apostrophe after the "s" for single nouns and after the "s" for nouns already ending in "s."

Possessive constructions:

• With "-'s": "The woman's husband's child"
• With "of": "The child of the husband of the woman"

Nouns can form noun phrases, which are groups of words acting together as a single noun. These can be simple, like "the man," or more complex with descriptors. No matter how long, a noun phrase works as one unit in a sentence.

The class of determiners, words like "the," "a," "some," and "many," come before nouns to show if they are definite (already known) or not known. They also show quantity, like "one" or "many," and must match the noun in number.

Adjectives

English adjectives are words like "good," "big," "interesting," and "Canadian" that describe nouns. They usually come before the nouns they describe and after determiners. In English, adjectives do not change form to match the noun they describe. For example, "the slender boy" and "many slender girls" both use "slender" without change.

Some adjectives change to show comparison, like "small," "smaller," and "smallest." Some have special forms, like "good," "better," and "best." Others use "more" or "most," like "happier" or "more happy."

Determiners

English determiners are words like "the," "each," "many," "some," and "which" that come before nouns in sentences. They help show if the noun is definite or not known and often match the noun in number.

Pronouns, case, and person

English pronouns keep some old features. Personal pronouns change between subjective and objective forms, like "I/me" or "he/him." There is also a way to show if something is living or not, and a choice between feminine, epicene (they), and masculine.

Possessive pronouns come in two forms: one that works like a determiner before a noun ("my chair") and one that stands alone like a noun ("the chair is mine"). English no longer uses the old second person single pronoun "thou."

Both second and third person pronouns share the same forms for single and more than one in most cases, except for reflexive forms. Some dialects have new forms like "y'all" or "youse." In the third person, "they" is used for both more than one and single, especially as a gender-neutral option.

Pronouns help point to people or objects in a conversation or refer back to things already mentioned. Reflexive pronouns are used when the action comes back to the subject, like "he sent it to himself."

Prepositions

Prepositional phrases combine a preposition with a noun, like "with the dog" or "to school." English prepositions describe movement, place, relationships, and help build sentences.

Verbs and verb phrases

English verbs change for tense (past or present) and how an action happens, and they match with a subject. Only the verb "to be" still changes for more than one and first and second person subjects. Helper verbs like "have" and "be" work with main verbs to make complex tenses. These helpers can be used at the start of questions and with negations.

Most verbs have six forms: plain present, third person single present, past, plain form (used as infinitive), gerund-participle, and past participle. The verb "to be" is special because it has different forms depending on the subject, like "am," "is," and "are." Its past participle is "been," and its gerund-participle is "being."

Tense, aspect, and mood

English has two main tenses: past and not past. The past tense is shown by adding "-ed" for regular verbs or changing the stem vowel for strong verbs. The not past form is usually unchanged except in the third person single, where it adds "-s."

English does not have a future tense. Instead, it uses helper verbs like "will" or "shall," or phrases like "be going to."

Aspect is shown with helper verbs like "have" and "be," such as "I have run" versus "I was running." We also have compound tenses like "I had been running" and "I have been running."

For mood, English uses modal helpers like "can," "may," "will," "shall," and their past forms "could," "might," "would," "should." There are also subjunctive and imperative moods, which use the plain verb form.

An infinitive form uses the plain verb with "to," like "to go," and is used in clauses that depend on a main verb. Finite verbal clauses have a verb in present or past form, and when helper verbs are used, the main verb is in infinitive form.

Phrasal verbs

English often uses phrasal verbs, which are verbs combined with prepositions or particles to make new meanings. Examples include "to get up," "to ask out," and "to put up with." These can have meanings that are not obvious from the individual words.

Adverbs

Adverbs change how verbs happen by adding information about manner, place, time, or degree. Many adverbs come from adjectives by adding "-ly," like "quickly" from "quick." Some adjectives have special adverb forms, like "well" from "good."

Syntax

Modern English sentence structure is fairly simple. It has developed features like modal verbs and word order to show meaning. Helper verbs are used to form questions, negatives, passive voice, and progressive aspect.

Basic constituent order

English moved from an older word order to mostly subject-verb-object (SVO). This order, along with helper verbs, often creates groups of two or more verbs in a sentence, like "he had been hoping to try opening it."

In most sentences, word order shows grammatical roles. The subject comes before the verb, and the object comes after. When a pronoun is used, it shows its role both by position and by case, like "he" as subject and "him" as object.

Indirect objects can come before the main object or after it in a prepositional phrase, like "I gave Jane the book" or "I gave the book to Jane."

Clause syntax

Main article: English clause syntax

English sentences can have one or more clauses, which are groups of words with a verb. There is always at least one main clause, and other clauses depend on it. Subordinate clauses act as parts of the main verb, like in "I think that you are lying," where "you are lying" is a subordinate clause. Relative clauses add details to nouns, like "I saw the letter that you received today."

Auxiliary verb constructions

English relies on helper verbs to show tense, how an action happens, and mood. They form main clauses, and the main verbs act as parts of subordinate clauses. Subject-helper inversion is used in questions, negatives, and focus.

The verb "do" can be a helper in declarative sentences for emphasis, like "I did shut the fridge." In negatives and questions, "do" is needed because English rules require a helper verb. Negation uses "not," and contractions like "don't" are common. Passive constructions use helper verbs like "to be" or "to get."

Questions

Yes/no questions and wh-questions are mostly formed with subject-helper inversion, sometimes needing "do"-support, like "Am I going tomorrow?" or "Do you like her?" Wh-words like "who," "what," "when," "where," "why," and "how" often come first in questions. If the wh-word is the subject, no inversion is needed, like "Who saw the cat?" Prepositional phrases can also be moved to the front in questions.

Discourse level syntax

English often uses a topic-comment structure at the discourse level, where known information comes before new information. Because of the strict SVO order, the topic is usually the subject. When the topic is not the subject, it can be moved to subject position using passive constructions or cleft sentences. Dummy subjects like "it" or "there" are used when there is no real subject, like in "it is raining" or "there are many cars."

Focus constructions emphasize new or important information by stressing certain words. Cohesion between sentences is created with pronouns and discourse markers like "oh," "so," or "well," which help connect ideas and show the speaker's attitude.

Vocabulary

English has many words, with estimates ranging from 170,000 to 1 million. These words include nouns, adjectives, and verbs. English often borrows words from other languages, which makes it rich and varied.

New words in English can be created in different ways, such as using a word in a new way (like turning a noun into a verb) or combining words together (like "babysitter"). Words from Greek and Latin are common, especially in science and technology. English has also influenced many other languages, with many English words being used around the world, especially in technology and new ideas.

Main article: Foreign-language influences in English and Lists of English words by country or language of origin

See also: Linguistic purism in English

Main article: Englishisation