adviser or advisor
May 13, 2005
Someone asked today in a comment whether "documentor" or "documenter" is correct. The correct word is "documenter." The question got me wondering, though, about another spelling dilemma: "adviser" or "advisor."
According to the Cambridge Guide to English Usage (Pam Peters, 2004):
Both these spellings are in current use, though adviser is the dominant spelling in both the US and the UK. The ratio in American data from CCAE is 20:1 and in British data from the BNC it's 6:1. Curiously, advisor is sometimes said to be "the American spelling." �Ķwhatever its past, advisor is registered alongside adviser in major British, American, Canadian and Australian dictionaries.
The Columbia Guide to Standard American Usage tersely states, Both spellings are Standard.
For this word, my preference is to go with common usage and write "adviser."
Comments (7)
According to Google the common spelling is advisor with 78,700,000 search results compared to adviser's 33,800,000
Aug 1, 2007 ; 8:04 AM
There are a lot of non native English on the Internet. Most of them tend to use advisor, whereas the native English speakers that I have met tend to use adviser.
Nov 22, 2007 ; 7:36 PM
I'm a native English speaker (American) and I've never come across the spelling "adviser".
I'm no scholar, but I'm fairly well read and it just looks wrong (like memorise, aluminium or defence) so I would place this spelling in the British camp.
For example, I'm a Financial Advisor.
If my business cards stated I was a "Financial Adviser" my clients, colleagues and prospects would think I was illiterate and my business would be damaged.
It would do me little good to point out that a dictionary says they're both correct or that "advisor" is incorrect.
It has become correct, on this side of the pond anyhow. I'll even go so far as to predict that "adviser" has become incorrect as an American spelling and future editions of the dictionaries will reflect this.
Of course we'll always treat it like a quaint spelling. Americans love to spell things like: theatre, centre, mediaeval & draught, but we always do so with a sense of novelty.
We love the Brits, we think of them as our cranky, old grandfathers with all their funny words, top hats and monocles. Who or whom? Whom cares grandpa! Nice spats!
May 4, 2008 ; 2:30 PM
As Vampire Weekend says,
"So if there's any other way
To spell the word
It's fine with me, with me"
Jun 17, 2008 ; 3:57 PM
Aha, Germ, you mention the American problem with noun forms having a "c" versus an "s" (e.g. advice versus advise). British English very usefully uses a "c" for the nounal forms of a word. E.g. a banker can be said to "advise someone" or "give advice to someone". Doctors "work in a medical practice" and "practise medicine" (latter being a rather scary use of practise in this context). While British English may seem as cranky, in instances such as these it helps convey the meanings with less ambiguity. There are some instances where American English improves upon British English. The absence of the nounal "c" form in American English represents a regrettable loss of clarity, particularly in abbreviated language uses (e.g. SMS messaging, summary presentations, etc.).
In relation to the subject at hand, I used to work in an Arab bank with an American boss who recommended that we call ourselves "financial advisors" on our business cards, rather than "advisers". He was a Yale educated honours graduate who had majored in English. His reasoning was that "although 'advisers' is more commonplace, 'advisors' looks and sounds a bit smarter." Incidentally, the majority of the British bankers preferred "adviser" but recognised "advisor" as a legitimate spelling. We adopted this spelling, and it seems to be the dominant one among financial types. (Thankfully my boss did not feel the same about 'utilize' sounding better than 'use', the former being incorrectly used all too frequently, perhaps by those wishing to sound posh or clever.
Aug 4, 2008 ; 11:29 AM
Please CORRECT the fourteenth word in this webpage: http://www.englishrules.com/writing/2005/adviser-or-advisor.php
See the mistake between ***:
Someone asked today in a comment whether "documentor" or "documenter" is correct. The ***corect*** word is "documenter."
Jul 18, 2007 ; 6:06 PM