As Winston Churchill noted, America and England are two countries dividied by a common language. The aparently geographically impared Churchill was presumably unaware of the small matter of the 3000 miles of ocean also dividing America and England. Yet it is true to say that Americans and Brits use the same language differently.
While America generally suffers from a lack of history, this disposition is at it's worst on the West Coast where the history barely spans a century. San Diego, the first settlement in California, has an urban conurbation with 3 million people in it. Until the start of the Gold Rush about a 100 years ago, 1500 people lived in San Diego. This creates an interesting use of the terms "old", "antique" etc. A friend of mine recently bought an "old" house that dates all the way back to the late 60s – yes the late 1960s. My "new" home in England was built in 1963!
Along with abuses of the term ‘new’, a similar abuse of the language occurs in San Diego when the weather is talked about. It can be cold if the temperature drops into the 60’s. A day of fine misty rain is a storm. An inch or two of rain is a wet season. Adjusting to the climate out here takes some getting used to. I still get a kick out of saying, "shut the door you’re letting the cold out," and "what is the weather like back home, Mum?" I intend to spend at least part of Christmas day on the beach, sun bathing.
From a linguistic point of view, the most interesting anomalies arise when Americans apply their lack of knowledge of grammar to concocting new words. I was automatically on my guard after my first day when I noticed the local bookshop referred to itself as a "learningsmith". And no word is safe. Words like commercialization, and trafficability spontaneously arise in conversations with Americans. Back home communities occasionally recieve public money for a 'facelift'. In America a similar project is more likely to be called an 'urban environmental beautification project'.