Is this a correct sentence, "All over the world, English is spoken?"

Question

1. English is spoken all over the world

2. All over the world, English is spoken

Are they both correct sentences? Is there any difference in meaning?

Answer 1

Both are correct sentences. In both cases, "all over the world" functions as an adverbial of place, and "English is spoken" is in the passive voice - which is appropriate, as lots of different people speak English. You could say "people speak English", but that might create the impression of all people.

The sentence is quite simple, and the difference between the two is simply the position of the adverbial phrase all over the world.

Any preference for the two is stylistic, though the version with the adverbial after the verb will be easier for English learners to understand, as you have perhaps demonstrated.

Answer 2

English is spoken all over the world. Is correct, the spoken is the verb and the subject would be English, so it would be the first answer. They are both correct, but the first one flows better. But the meanings are the same.