I’m an American and I use both spellings, and not exactly interchangeably.
For inanimate objects, I tend to use ‘gray’. For instance, “My house is gray.”
For animate objects, or features belonging to an animate object, I tend to use ‘grey’. For instance, “His brown hair was streaked with grey.”
Anyone else?
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I use “gray” for the color and “grey” for basically anything else
Americans generally use “gray” for everything except Earl Grey tea, and even that they get wrong much of the time.
What ever I’m in the mood for. I tend to use ‘gray’ for mood description, ambiguous social spaces and mud for some reason.
Grey is almost exclusively used for color descriptions.
Idk if this is correct or even makes sense?
Grey usually. Based on nothing.
I only use Grey because it looks nicer than Gray. Dumb reason but true.
I can’t defend this logically but to me they’re different shades. “Gray” is flat and boring. “Grey” has some nuances. Millennial interiors are gray. Cats are grey.
Interchangeable. So for me it’s a vibe based thing, which cannot and should not be explained.
American = gray
English = grey
In America, “gray” is typically for the color while “grey” refers to the name
I spell it “grey”. I only use “Gray” if it’s a name.
It depends on the mood I’m in. I prefer grey when I’m feeling more poised. Gray is when I’m writing more relaxed.
As long as it’s consistent within the exact text that I’m currently writing.
I’ve always been under the assumption that in (A)merica it’s gr(a)y and in (E)ngland it’s gr(e)y. Not because of that reason, but it’s made it easier for me to remember.
I didn’t even know grey was an option
I live in Portland, Oregon and I always write “grey” and always have since I was a kid. It just seems like a more interesting way to spell it for me. Call it stylistic.
i use both. Also spell it theatre. I don’t use theater often
I use “grey” for everything except people whose last name is Gray.
I just like the spelling of ‘grey’, so I use it exclusively unless I’m quoting someone else or it’s used as a proper noun, like in a name.
I grew up using grey and gray doesn’t look right. My predictive text wants me to use gray, though, so if I’m in my phone that’s what I end up using.
My spellings are interchangeable, but the actual rule is gray for Americans and grey for Brits.
It’s a gray area.
I think in the U.S., both spellings are considered acceptable, but gray is definitely the more standard one. That said, I use grey all the time because it just looks better to me. I also fantasize about moving to London on the daily, so your mileage may vary.
Gray for color. Grey for alien.
Why are there two spellings for this anyway?
Jesus I never know. I just alternate so I’m right at least sometimes.
American here, who tf spells grey like gray?????
Edit : I just mean I’ve never seen it spelled that way here in america so I didn’t know that americans were known for spelling it that way
American here, I spell it “grey” as a subtle shoutout to my roots
Gray for color, I’ve been reading Grey as a name forever so that’s my dividing line.
I don’t know if it’s a rule, but for me, gray is a color and Grey is a surname.
I am an American. I use grey because the “e” is right next to the “r” on the keyboard. Less effort and quicker.
I am often confused as to which one to use… So I just pick one.
I’ve used grey for “ grey area “ in writing. I’m so confused 😮
I use both interchangeably. What most likely influences the choice is if I’ve been reading a British or American author.
I only use Grey.
GrAy is America
GrEy is English
You’d think this would be a pretty black and white situation…
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I just like the spelling of GRAY. (American)
Hear me out….
greigh
I’m kidding, but I like it so much better than the other two 😅
I mostly use grey, but I probably use gray too.
I use grey when I feel fancy. It’s a pretty looking word.
Usually depends on if you’re talking about a Person or the Color. I spell it ‘Grey’ most of the time unless it’s a name though.
It’s pedantic in most situations and look no further than the replies for why that is the case.
Whichever one my brain chooses at the time, genuinely I have no clue which one is “correct” and it tends to be 50/50 which one I use.
I just use “grey”
When describing English food, it’s “grey.”
i use em interchangeably depending on how i feel that day. vibes based.
I use both, interchangeably and with little to no rhyme or reason.
Vibes and aesthetics. Sometimes I type it out one way and go “oh yah no that doesn’t look right” and switch it.
I thought gray is gray & grey is silvery.
I am an American, but grey looks more “right” to me – so unless Gray is someone’s name – I use grey.
Always “grey” for me…
I just prefer the English spelling, so “grey”. I also prefer “creme” to “cream” and use it instead.
Gray seems friendlier to me, so I use it for happy stuff. Grey seems more more serious.
For example:
My dad had started going gray.
I noticed that they had remodeled the McDonald’s, and it is now that depressing Millennial grey they are painting all the things that were bright, fun colors when I was a kid.
It looks wrong with an “a”.
-An American
I use the English spelling because I think grey looks cooler than gray.
I always use grey. No idea why.
Light black
American and I use grey exclusively for no reason other than I like it better.
I spell it grey…it just looks nicer to me wordwise.
Interesting distinction.
I’ve used grey my whole life, just because I prefer how it looks, and my (US) second grade teacher said we could use either.
I think it’s the only “British” spelling I use; yall can keep yer uppity -ise and -our!
for me the distinction is that ‘gray’ is when the color is darker/has more black in it, and ‘grey’ is when the color is lighter/has more white in it 🤷🏽
I pause each time the word comes up choose not to Google it and then pick whichever one I feel like
I honestly don’t know. Depends on my mood.
I use grey because gray just looks and feels wrong.
I switch back and forth with 0 rhyme nor reason
American here. I was taught grey was the British form of our gray.
Gray for just about everything except when describing the weather as ‘grey and gloomy’.
I like “grey” because it seems classier somehow.
In my opinion: Gray is a color. Grey is a name.
I use grey, but I’m told I’m wrong. lol
Edit: am American
In my head, I’ve always used the mnemonic “A America E England.” No idea if it’s accurate but no one’s ever gotten upset about my spelling of the word
What makes things a little trickier is in the US both are common as a last name
As a Canadian, it amused me that you’d choose when to use the English spelling vs your own. Why wouldn’t you use your spelling?
Gray squirrel in the US.
American (California mostly) and have always spelled it grey. I’ve only ever spelled Gray for someone’s last name. I didn’t realize there was a regional difference (just always heard there were two ways to spell it) until I was an adult and I never got marked down for it in school.
Canadian = grey
= colour.
Lol
I prefer gray but will, without pattern or rhyme, change the spelling to grey.
Usually Gray is a name, grey is the colour. Unless you’re an Earl apparently.
If I’m being judged on my spelling I use gray. If I’m feeling whimsical I use grey. The rest of the time is up for grabs. I like grey better.
As I understand it, “gray” is the U.S. spelling and “grey” is the U.K. way. Personally, I like the look/spelling of grey over gray, so i typically just use grey.
No, I use them interchangeably. If I’m writing something and use either spelling, I do try to stick to that spelling throughout though.
I use grey almost every time but I think both are acceptable. From the west coast usa
Gray always
I pretty much use which ever one depending on the day. I never even realized I was using 2 different spellings until recently. Spelling is a very weak point for me so grey vs gray is completely random for me.
American, and I’ve only ever used Grey. Gray looks … weird.
Always “grey” because “e” is a cooler letter than “a” imo.
grAy in America, grEy in England
A for America – grAy. E for England – grEy.
I’m american. I also speak for all Americans. I don’t give a shit. Have a nice day
No rules. Just whatever my stoned self chooses.
I use “grey” because it’s more aesthetically pleasing to me.
I don’t know why but I always think “gray” is a lighter shade than “grey”
A is American English.
E is English
and Eh is Canadian 😛
Grey is someone’s last name while the color name is gray. I grew up in Texas and it’s always been this way.
Whatever the Crayola Crayons say is the correct answer.
Grey, because it feels more like how implications of the word do
I use grey for everything because gray just seems incorrect.
No
I always thought “Gray” was a name and “Grey” was a color. Then I became an adult and saw people use them interchangeably.
Now I am confused.
This is a gray topic
I use grey for everything. I accept gray as valid when I see it. But I don’t use it.
To me, “grey” is more of a solemn and somber color, while “gray” is more happy like a child’s crayon.
It’s all screwed up, we have English, Spanish, French, Native American, Dutch, and German words and they are spelled and pronounced different. Then there is the slang and regional differences. American English is messed up
Washington State…It’s always grey here…never used the “gray” spelling it looks weird.
I like to use grey because of the aesthetic lol. Also I guess I have some vague mental association of the letter A with the color red, so it feels less at home in the word ‘grey’.
Half the novels I loved reading as a kid must have been European, because I saw both spellings very frequently. They’re basically interchangeable to me.
Gray is American English. Grey is British English.
Did anyone else read the comments and say “gray…grey” so many times that the word doesn’t even sound real anymore? lol
I actually do it pretty similarly. I also use grey for abstract concepts like mood
I usually use grey but I think most Americans use gray. Idk why I use grey mostly.
I’m in the US, I prefer grey. Gray makes me think of clay, but grey doesn’t.
It’s a bit of a græy area
My rule: I like “grey” better, so that’s all I use unless referring to a proper name, like NFL coach Jerry Gray.
I always spell it gray.
I use whichever I happen to write in the moment. And then autocorrect changes it to the opposite.
No. I switch between the two.
I never use gray
No rules, but I tend to use gray for everything.
I use “gray” for everything unless it’s someone’s name & it’s specifically spelled “Grey”
Gray is the americanized spelling, grey is the British spelling. That’s all there is to it.
Same with the various U’s British insist on putting between every O and R.
A book I reference for color identification in soils uses gray as such I don’t wanna risk it actually having a difference lol.
Personally, I use gray for a darker shade and grey for a lighter shade
Gray is grey with a capital
Gray is a name, Grey is the color
My hair is grey.
My mood is gray.
Grey is a little redder to me; gray a little more bluer
I mix it up to keep em guessing
i use “grey” all the time because i saw it as a kid and thought it was the prettier spelling 🤣
I think grey looks better. I never use that other one.
I always thought of it as gray is the color and grey would be someone’s last name.
I am an American and I spell it “grey” regardless of what I am describing.
My solid rule to myself is, American spelling =grAy. European spelling grEy
I never use gray. Just never felt like the right spelling.
I think I use gray for literal uses of the color, and grey for more figurative uses.
Gray is always for US audiences and grey if it’s going out internationally.
Gray is a color.
Grey is a colour.
I’m in Canada. I always use grey.
I mostly use gray because it’s the more commonly used American spelling. Grey is more common in British English.
Despite that the dictionary says, to me the color is “grey”.
I’ve always liked grey better, so I use it. Probably because of my neopets addiction as a child honestly.
One is a name and one is a color.
I much prefer how “grey” looks, so i use that like 99% of the time.
The other 1% if for when someone else has already used “gray” and I will just follow suit in that case.
Always grey never gray
I just love it with the A, for no reason
I think the spelling “grey” somehow looks like it sounds more like the color actually appears to me. “Gray” doesn’t have the same…class?
I always use grey these days. I feel like I’m too old to care lol
My rule: gray is a color; grey is a colour.
I use both interchangeably.
But I read once that “gray” is American (A) and “grey” is English (E)
It’s grey.
As an artist (and non American lmao) I use gray for warm tones and grey for cool, can’t tell you why
I use both and usually don’t realize or think about why I used a particular one.
I do have a personal rule about it, at least when using the word to describe color values. Gray is for values that are lighter, and grey for values that are darker. Grays are closer to white than black, and greys are closer to black than white. For me, it is just a simple mental organizational thing.
I’ve been a professional digital artist for more than 30 years, working alongside and supervising other artists the whole way, and I don’t think anybody has ever picked up on that particular eccentricity of mine.
Nephew is Grayling……or Greyling? For the life of.me i will never remember how it is spelled!🤷🏼♀️
They both mean the same, just one is American and one is British. It’s not like blond and blonde
I pretty much exclusively use grey.
That’s just you. They are both accepted spellings.
It doesn’t look like a word anymore but I just use ‘grey’
I’m American and a full-time editor and I always use “gray” when writing/editing something that will primarily be read by Americans because that’s the traditional American spelling.
I use “grey” when I’m editing something that will be read by British or European people (my company publishes all over), or if it’s a proper noun.
I was told. In America it’s spelt grAy in Europe it’s grEy
Nope, interchangeable depending on which spelling my brain comes up with first, no difference in pronunciation.
I was taught:
British use grey.
Americans use gray.
Google grey vs gray.
I use them interchangeably, but tend to prefer grey. I don’t mind how people use them.
I use grey when the thing I am describing is beautiful or moving in some emotional way, and gray when it is not. I just realized this. Grey, to me, is mist, kittens, oceans, clouds, pewter and so on — gray is gravel, watertanks, Toyotas and cutlery
Unless it’s being used as someone’s name, it really doesn’t matter how you spell it.
I was taught that its grAy in America and grEy in Europe and since I’m American, I pretty much exclusively use gray
i use “grey” because it looks better to me
𝓖𝓻𝓪𝔂 𝓲𝓼 𝓪 𝓬𝓸𝓵𝓸𝓻 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓰𝓻𝓮𝔂 𝓲𝓼 𝓪 𝓷𝓪𝓶𝓮
Either/or for me
I heard “Gray” is A for America and “Grey” is E for England.
It’s gray unless you’re limey or were invaded by limeys and prefer their grey