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I seem to only find Honoree in the web, but Word spell corrector indicates me that I should write HonoUree. Which form is correct?

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2  
Have you checked in a dictionary? What did it say? (-1 for no research shown and voted to close as general reference.) – Hugo Jan 20 '12 at 5:33
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@John It's great that you checked those sources, and I think you ought to include them in the body of your question, otherwise some folks will mistakenly think this is general reference and vote to close it. – KitFox♦ Jan 20 '12 at 18:22
BBC News: "For the UK, that means that traditionally the Queen, not the prime minister, is the honouree at such a dinner." bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-10470615 [emphasis mine] – Kris yesterday
The Guardian: "Despite having paid a $20 door charge for the privilege, Considine didn't stick around, spending most of the time with Sundance honouree James Marsh ..." (webcache.googleusercontent.com/…) [emphasis mine] – Kris yesterday

closed as general reference by Carlo_R., Kristina Lopez, Brian Hooper, choster, Mr. Shiny and New 安宇 yesterday

This question is too basic; it can be definitively and permanently answered by a single link to a standard internet reference source designed specifically to find that type of information. See the FAQ for guidance on how to improve it.

3 Answers

up vote 2 down vote accepted

The Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary includes "honouree", and lists "honoree" as the US variant. (The OED doesn't seem to include either word.)

If the rest of your document uses British spellings (-ise, -our etc), "honouree" might be better--otherwise, you can safely stick with honoree.

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up vote 2 down vote

Honouree is the British word for the American word Honoree. Both are correct. You should decide the usage of the word depending on who is going to read it . If you are writing to a British use "Honour" else use "Honor".

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1  
Did you mean 'Honoree' for the American word? – Mitch Jan 20 '12 at 18:18
yes.. sorry about the spelling... – Apoorva Jan 23 '12 at 4:09
up vote 3 down vote

I happen to know a bit about UK honours and I have never until now come across the word honouree, with or without the 'u'.

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How do you refer to someone being honored? – John Assymptoth Jan 20 '12 at 14:15
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@JohnAssymptoth: By saying 'the person being honoured'. – Barrie England Jan 20 '12 at 14:18
The British Embassy in Washington use honouree: ukinusa.fco.gov.uk/en/news/?view=PressR&id=614489182 – Noirin Jan 23 '12 at 1:26
@Noirin: They would! – Barrie England Jan 23 '12 at 8:08
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I've never heard the word before (regardless of the spelling). It sounds Americanised. I'd much rather plump for recipient. – Brad Apr 26 '12 at 19:35
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