Differences in American and British English grammar - article An article by Kerry Maxwell and Lindsay Clandfield on recognizing grammatical differences between American and British English. Introduction Speakers of American English generally use the present perfect tense ( have/has + past participle ) far less than speakers of British English. In spoken American English, it is very common to use the simple past tense as an alternative in situations where the present perfect would usually have been used in British English. The two situations where this is especially likely are: 1. In sentences which talk about an action in the past that has an effect in the present: American English (AmE) / British English (BrE) Jenny feels ill. She ate too much. (AmE) Jenny feels ill. She's eaten too much. (BrE) I can't find my keys. Did you see them anywhere? (AmE) I can't find my keys. Have you seen them anywhere? (BrE) 2. In sentences which contain the words alrea