Favourite or favorite: which is correct?
Correct
favourite (UK) / favorite (US)
Avoid
favorite (in UK English)
Avoid
favourite (in US English)
Summary
Correct: favourite (UK) / favorite (US) — Avoid: favorite (in UK English) / favourite (in US English). Favourite / favorite = preferred above all others; the person or thing one likes best.
Both spellings are correct in their own variety; pick one and use it consistently.
- Part of speech
- adjective / noun
- Source
- Oxford / Merriam-Webster
Why
Oxford: favourite keeps the -our- of favour in British English, like colour and honour; Merriam-Webster gives favorite and favor as the American standard, following the -or spellings promoted in Webster's 1828 dictionary.
Examples
- Jazz is my favourite (UK) / favorite (US) kind of music.
- Which is your favourite tool in the editor?
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- Checked against
- Merriam-Webster / Oxford
- Spelling authority
- Merriam-Webster · Oxford English Dictionary / Oxford spelling · SCOWL
- Commonly confused and non-standard forms
- 64
- Dictionary
- Hunspell en_US / en_GB / en_AU / en_CA · Dictionary license: MIT AND BSD (SCOWL combined licence)