Despatch vs Dispatch
Since despatch and dispatch are two words very confusing for people as they think they might be using inaccurate spelling, it is necessary to understand the difference between despatch and dispatch. This might come as a relief to such people that both spellings are correct and in fact both words have same meanings. It is just that British English favors the word despatch whereas Americans make use of the word dispatch. According to Oxford dictionary, both spellings are correct and are synonymous for all meanings of the word. Then, why are there two words with different spellings? This article attempts to answer this question as clearly as possible.
More on Dispatch and Despatch…
If there is any issue pertaining to the use of i instead of e in the word, it has more to do with difference in American and British English and can be explained by the use of color instead of colour in America. While despatch is a variant of the word that was more popular in the early nineteenth century, in modern writings, dispatch is preferred over despatch. Despatch has more or less disappeared from modern language, though British still insist on using the word despatch as they feel it is correct spelling.
Some point out that the preference of the British to use despatch over dispatch comes from the phrase Despatch Box, which refers to the lectern in the British House of Commons. Also, it is said that despatch appears in the place of dispatch about a third of the time.
It is seen that some British Publications sometimes use despatch as the noun meaning of the act of sending. However, it should be noted that even the Oxford English dictionary identifies both dispatch and despatch as words that can be used as noun and verb. There is no such thing as despatch is the noun form of dispatch in grammar books. It is mostly rules made by people is using words.
While we are talking about the history of the words, there are a few more facts to be told about dispatch. Dispatch actually came into use in the early 16 th century. It is believed that dispatch came into English from either the Italian word dispacciare or the Spanish word despachar. Other than this history of the word dispatch, we can also see that there is another noun that is known as a derivative of the word dispatch. It is dispatcher.
What is the difference between Despatch and Dispatch?
• The difference between despatch and dispatch is simple. Despatch is another spelling method for the word dispatch used by the British. Though by now the word dispatch has gained prominence and popularity over despatch there still are occasions where British use the spelling despatch instead of dispatch.
• Americans do not use the spelling despatch ever.
• Occasionally, British publications use the word dispatch as the noun meaning of the act of sending.
So whether you use the word despatch or dispatch, they both mean the same act of sending and no one can say that you have spelled it incorrectly. No American would ever use the spelling despatch though many Britons have started to make use of dispatch seeing its popularity all over the world.