How do you spell “winning”?
Merriam-Webster marked America’s upcoming 250th birthday with a sharp, patriotic jab at the United Kingdom, taking aim at British spelling in a post that quickly caught fire online.
“Why is it ‘cancelled’ in the U.K. but ‘canceled’ in the U.S.?” the country’s oldest dictionary publisher asked on X.
“Because we gave them that L in 1776.”
By Saturday morning, the post had drawn more than 12 million views and over 2,400 replies, with many users applauding the Independence Day-themed burn.
“Solid burn from the dictionary!!!” one wrote.
“Imagine getting roasted by a book of words. The disrespect is off the charts,” another added.
“I wonder what the Oxford dictionary is going to say about this,” a third chimed in, referencing the UK dictionary publisher.
In a follow-up post, Merriam-Webster admitted that both spellings are acceptable, while sharing a bit of history on the two variations.
“FWIW Noah Webster’s 1806 dictionary has ‘cancelled’, but in his 1828 edition the word is spelled as ‘canceled,” the post read.
