Some of the commonly used words in English include the words ‘cancelling’ and ‘canceling’. From the look, these words come from the verb ‘cancel’ only that they are in their present continuous tense. To start with, the word ‘cancel’ as a verb means the act of not taking place. For instance, events get canceled every now and then. If something gets canceled, it does not take place at the planned date or time.
In this case, it might take place at a later date. Generally, both ‘canceling’ and ‘cancelling’ have the same meaning. The only difference between these two words is their spelling. Depending on the type of English you want to use, the spelling of the each one of them will differ. This is usually the case if you are either told to use British English or American English. In this article, we shall take a closer look at these words so that you can know their differences clearly.
What Does the Word ‘Canceling’ Mean?
Like we mentioned above, the word ‘cancelling’ comes from the word ‘cancel’, which means to call off something. This means that a certain event or occasion will not take place. It can also mean the act of making void or annulling something. For instance, you can say:
- Canceling the magazine subscription was the best decision he ever made
- Canceling today’s event inconvenienced many people.
- Canceling yesterday’s meeting was not a good idea.
Simply put, if something is canceled, it does not take place as planned. Therefore, you can use the word ‘canceling’ to show that something that was planned did not take place as it ought to be. However, the word ‘canceling’ is usually used by Americans or in American English. Therefore, if you are told to use American English, you should use the word ‘canceling’. Typically, this word has a single ‘l’ in its present continuous tense.
What Does the Word ‘Cancelling’ Mean?
The above-mentioned word is not very different from the word ‘canceling’. In fact, the only difference between these two words is that ‘cancelling’ is used in British English while its counterpart is usually used in American English. You can readily use the word ‘cancelling’ to show that something was annulled or called off. It can either be a meeting, occasion, activity, or subscription. Here are some examples that can help you understand this:
- Peter was cancelling events one after the other.
- Cancelling the meeting yesterday enabled us to rethink about the meeting’s agenda.
- Cancelling the subscription made him incur more money
In this case, you can still use the word ‘cancelling’ instead of ‘canceling’ and still pass the same message. It all depends on the language you have been instructed to use.
Main Difference Between the Word ‘Cancelling’ And ‘Canceling’
Like we mentioned above, these words have the same meaning. However, they are usually used in different contexts. For instance, when instructed to use British English, you should use the word ‘cancelling’. However, if you have been instructed to use American English, you should use the word ‘canceling’. Also, when told to use Australian English, you should use the word ‘cancelling’. Finally, when told to use Canadian English or Irish English, you should use the word ‘cancelling’ instead of ‘canceling’.
From this illustration, it shows that other forms of English used outside the US usually appreciate the word ‘cancelling’. Here, the final ‘l’ is always doubled in most of the words used outside the US. In fact, the difference between the word ‘cancelling’ and ‘canceling’ can be likened to the difference between ‘travelling’ and ‘traveling’. The word ‘travelling’ is commonly used outside the US, while its counterpart ‘traveling’ is used in the US. Therefore, your dialect will inform the right word to use between these two.
Besides the difference mentioned above, you will note that the word ‘cancelling’ is widely used compared to the word ‘canceling’. In fact, in most blogs and articles, this aspect is very evident. Most people like using the word ‘cancelling’ instead of ‘canceling’.
Final Words
For many years, most people have been wondering the main difference between the words ‘cancelling’ and ‘canceling’. Although these words have the same meaning, they are usually used in different contexts. If you are told to use American English, it is correct to use the word ‘canceling’. However, when told to use British English, you should use the word ‘cancelling’. Generally, the latter is used in Canada, New Zealand, Australia, and other countries outside the US. Note these differences today, and you will no longer confuse these two words again.
