Floors of a House

See also: Floors Of A Commercial Building

There are some important differences between British English (BrE) and American English (AmE) in talking about the floors in a house.

In BrE the floor at the level of the surrounding land or ground is called the ground floor (this is the floor where you usually enter a house). In AmE the same floor is called the first floor. The floors above are numbered starting from the ground or first floor, so there is usually a difference of one level in BrE and AmE usage, as follows:

• BrE: ground floor, 1st floor, 2nd floor, 3rd floor etc
• AmE: 1st floor, 2nd floor, 3rd floor, 4th floor etc

This diagram shows a two-storey house that also has a basement level underneath.