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For changing one's home from one place to another, I've heard people in western part of the world using the sentence:

I'll be moving next month.

In India, even in the English news channels, I've heard many people using the phrase:

I'll be shifting next month.

Which one is the correct usage? Or are both of them correct and the difference in usage is regional?

Mari-Lou A
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Shobhit Puri
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  • I think you have answered your own question; whatever is regionally defined is acceptable. Is it in an English - Hindi dictionary? – anongoodnurse Jan 04 '14 at 08:51
  • I haven't checked the dictionary actually. I've head it many a times and other always correct me and say that moving... is correct usage. – Shobhit Puri Jan 04 '14 at 09:14
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    'shifting' would not be understood in American English. But in India it might be just fine. – Mitch Jan 04 '14 at 14:22
  • I live in Australia and the first time I've ever heard the phrase "I'm shifting house next week" is from a friend who just came from India. I've never heard it otherwise. And that's why I'm here. I was looking it up to see if that's the correct phrase to use or not. –  Oct 21 '15 at 01:41

1 Answers1

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In American and British English, "to move" is the standard verb to express the idea of relocating one's belongings from one dwelling to another (among other connotations):

I moved from Baker Street to High Street.

"To shift," when referring to objects, generally has more of a temporal sense associated with it:

I shifted my class from Monday to Wednesday.

or an internal reorganization:

I shifted the remaining funds from renovations to education.

aeismail
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    "Shift" for changing house is commonly used in Australia and New Zealand. Is this not the case in Britain? – nxx Jan 09 '14 at 23:11
  • I've never seen or heard that usage, so I can't say it's "common" usage. Of course, Australian and New Zealander English has evolved away from British English significantly in the last few centuries. – aeismail Jan 10 '14 at 06:15
  • Interestingly, I looked up "shift" in New Zealand dictionaries and that particular meaning was not there. Yet it is certainly used that way, at least as much so as "move". It is also, of course, not in the Oxford dictionary with that meaning: strange that it is seemingly common in both NZ and in India, yet is not recorded as having come from Britain. – nxx Jan 10 '14 at 11:48