6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

63
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k¼³ WKH )UHQFK EHJDQ WKH $FDGHP\ )UDQDLVH VSHFLILFDOO\ WR UHJXODWH QHZ ZRUGV (QJOLVK KDV QR VXFK JRYHUQLQJ ERG\ KRZHYHU k¼³ ZKHQ (QJOLVK VSHDNHUV QHHG QHZ ZRUGV WKH WHUPLQRORJ\ LV HLWKHU PDGH XS RU WDNHQ IURP VRPHERG\ HOVH (QJOLVK VSHDNHUV DUH PDJSLHV JRRG QDWXUHG WKLHYHV ZKR DUH FRQVWDQWO\ DGGLQJ WR WKH PHVV\ QHVW RI ODQJXDJH 7KLV SURYLGHV XV ZLWK DQ LQFUHGLEO\ ULFK YDULHW\ RI ZRUGV WR GUDZ XSRQ ZKHQ ZH ZDQW WR H[SUHVV RXUVHOYHV 7KH SULFH ZH SD\ IRU WKLV GLYHUVLW\ DQG GHSWK LV D ODQJXDJH WKLV WRXJKHU WKDQ PRVW WR VSHOO (QJOLVK ORRNV RGG EHFDXVH XQOLNH PRVW RWKHU ODQJXDJHV LWV ZRUGV GRQW FRPH IURP D VLQJOH VRXUFH 0RVW )UHQFK ZRUGV DUH EDVHG RQ /DWLQ URRWV IRU H[DPSOH DQG ORZ UXOHV RI VSHOOLQJ EDVHG RQ /DWLQ JUDPPDU (QJOLVK KRZHYHU LW KDV QRW RQH VRXUFH EXW VHYHUDO 7KHUH DUH VRPH ZRUGV WKDW IROORZ )UHQFK UXOHV VRPH WKDW IROORZ *HUPDQ VRPH WKDW IROORZ ROG 1RUVH DQGk¼æ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

Transcript of 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

Page 1: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

Spelling Strategies: 100 Tips to Make it Easier

These 100 handy rules and simple exercises will let you be letter-perfect every time!

Introduction

Spelling ability has nothing to do with intelligence!

But it does have a lot to do with developing a familiarity with words, and ability to recognize them and,equally important, a similar ability to recognize when they don't "look right."

English is considered by many to be among the most confusing language is to spell correctly. Most of thealphabet-based languages seem to be much more consistent than English in their use of letters torepresent sounds.

Why does English, on the other hand, have so many maddening exceptions?

The problem with English is also its greatest strength: English is one of the most flexible and absorbentlanguages in the world, and has evolved simultaneously with Britain's complicated history. Over thecenturies, Britain was conquered by the Anglo-Saxons (who spoke a Germanic language), the Danes, andthe French. Over time, all of these languages were combined by the people living in Britain into what wenow recognize as English, and so we have words from all those different languages.

Moreover, English has never stopped developing. When new words are needed, some languages havetrouble creating them – the French began the Academy Française specifically to regulate new words.English has no such governing body however – when English speakers need new words, theterminology is either made up, or taken from somebody else! English speakers are magpies, good-natured thieves who are constantly adding to the messy nest of language. This provides us with anincredibly rich variety of words to draw upon when we want to express ourselves.

The price we pay for this diversity and depth is a language this tougher than most to spell. English looksodd because, unlike most other languages, it's words don't come from a single source. Most French wordsare based on Latin roots, for example, and low rules of spelling based on Latin grammar. English,however, it has not one source but several. There are some words that follow French rules, some thatfollow German, some that follow old Norse, and… Combine this with our unfailing readiness to createwords to describe new technologies or new ideas (microchip, deconstructionism, hip-hop, to name afew), and spelling quickly becomes complicated.

The trick is not to give up in frustration in learning how to spell correctly, but to understand that payingcareful attention to the words you use can help you spell them better over time.

Why bother? Because spelling counts. Anyone who says otherwise is trying to sell you something.Spelling mistakes are distracting to your reader, and if they are serious or frequent enough they canactually prevent someone from understanding what you are trying to say. Even if your meaning survives,though, your credibility as a writer does not.

No one knows how to spell every word, but everyone is capable of checking their work. If a writer handsin a writing project that is riddled with mistakes, it not only tells the world that they cannot spell, it sendsan even more serious message: that writer didn't care enough about either their work or their reader tocheck it over. And this can lead to the following line of thought: "Gee, if you didn't check your spelling,you probably don't check your facts either. Why should I trust you? In fact, why should I bother reading

Page 2: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

this? I'm outta here…"

A note about spellcheckers, which we will discuss in detail later on. A thing to keep in mind about themis quite simple: Although they are recommended tools for reviewing your work, they do not replace theneed for human proofreading. Do not rely solely on spellcheckers, or else your writing may end upcontaining typos that even a 5-year-old child would detect.

So let's get started…

Lesson 1: Don't be Afraid to Admit What you Don't Know

Many people don't like to ask how to spell words because they don't want to admit that they didn't knowthe word in the first place.

This is a common but foolhardy approach. Asking questions to avoid making mistakes is almost never abad idea; but charging blindly had when you don't know what you're doing almost always is!

Recognizing that you don't know something is the first step in dealing with almost any problem. Smartpeople know that it's wise to ask questions. People who are quick to pounce on other people's weaknessesare usually most concerned about hiding their own, so don't worry about them – this is actually one ofthe good points about spellcheckers: they offer a sense of anonymity, since no one else can tell howmuch help your getting.

Everyone has her or his own mental blocks and blind spots when it comes to spelling. Using the rules wegive you in these lessons will help you to find ways to approach a great many words, but if you are reallystuck, don't hesitate to ask for help. (Support ticket, anyone?)

Our reviewers and support personnel are getting paid specifically to catch other people's spelling andgrammatical mistakes when they review projects, and they use dictionaries and rulebooks more than mostpeople. Professionals know a lot about words, but they are also the first to admit when they don't knowsomething, and look for further assistance when they need it.

This means, for you as a WordGigs writer, that you only need to put in a support ticket and ask if you areunsure of the spelling of any word. We'll be glad to give you an authoritative answer!

Lesson 2: Always Find Out How to Spell Personal and Business Names (If You Are Unsure)

There is one instance where you must always ask how to spell something, and no dictionary or computerwill be of help: name spelling.

When referring to a person's name (first, last or both), always make sure that you have the correct namefully spelled out. Even the most common-sounding name can have an unusual spelling to it.

Proper names are problematic, because often there are two or more acceptable spellings and you have noway of knowing which way any given person spells his or her name, unless you get it from a verifiedsource.

Some examples here:

Michelle-Michele-Michel

Lyn-Lynn-Lynne-Lin

Page 3: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

Smith-Smyth-Smythe

Jamie-Jami-Jamey

Alyson-Allyson-Allison-Alison

The same also apples to corporate/business names. Pay special attention to them, since in the past severalyears it has become fashionable to use nonstandard capitalization in company names or products.Unfortunately, this fashion is spreading to other industries as well --

Kool-Aid (or is it Aide?)

Absolut (Vodka)

Quik (the chocolate drink)

Be careful about spelling personal names and corporate/business names -- and where there is the slightestdoubt, verify it. If the customer should be contacted, let us know via support ticket so we can reach out tothem -- better safe than sorry!

Lesson 3: British Spelling and American Spelling

There is an old joke about "America and England being two countries separated by a common language."That saying aside, the spelling differences that occur are not terribly difficult to handle.

It is important to get a handle on this because oftentimes you will find a WordGigs customer who isrequesting that you write in UK (British) English. This style and spelling is also used in countries such asAustralia, New Zealand, and even India.

One of the most noticeable differences is that the British and many words with -our while in the UnitedStates almost all of these words end in -or.

Common words such as color/colour, honor/honour, and behavior/bevaviour look subtly different, but themeaning is still clear.

The British also tend to spell some word endings as -re that Americans spell as -er (e.g., spectre vs.specter). Another is that the British are much more fond of doubling the letter L when adding suffixesthan Americans (see Lesson 93 to come). Thus, the British will discuss "travelling," while Americanswill discuss "traveling," but everyone is talking about the same thing.

The other well-known difference is that the British and many words with -ise or -yse that Americans andwith -ize or -yze. The only difference between "analyzing" and "analysing" something is whether thewriter is following British or American spelling rules.

Other American/British spelling differences will be discussed later, within the relevant lesson. The pointhere is that as you pay more attention to the ways in which words are spelled, you should be able torecognize and understand these differences, rather than perceiving them as errors. For writing gearedtoward American audiences, always stick with standard US spellings; otherwise you risk being labeled apretentious writer.

SPELL CHECK!

Page 4: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

Choose the preferred American spellings in the following sentences –

1. The meeting will be held in the Town (Centre/Center) on Tuesday evening.2. It is Bill's responsibility to (analyze/analyse) monthly sales figures.3. She was so grateful for the ride home that she dubbed me "her (savior/saviour)."4. The armadillos protective skin acts as its shield of (armor/armour).5. Parts and (labour/labor) are not included in the promotional sales price.6. The movers would appreciate your (labeling/labelling) all these brown boxes.

Lesson 4: Whenever Possible, Sound Words Out

Probably the first spelling rule you learned as a small child is this one: sound words out!

It is also probably the rule that left you feeling clearly betrayed the first time you realized how manydifferent ways the letter pattern -ough can sound.

Don't give up on it too quickly, though. Sounding a word out means saying it slowly, and taking itsyllable by syllable; once you spell all of the syllables, you've spelled the word.

This works in many cases, if not most, for 3 reasons. First is the fact that English is not completelyinsane! Yes, there are a great many words that are spelled audibly, and there are often different ways ofwriting the same sound. That said, there are still tens of thousands of common words that do followsounds and rules. Sounding them out will help you with them.

Second is that, as you get to know the rules better, you will still need to think about when to apply themto many cases. Again, sounding words out will help you.

The third reason has nothing to do with English and everything to do with the way we generally speak.Most of us are lazy – that's why we use contractions to shorten words. For example, "that is" to"that's," or "do not" to "don't." Often, when we speak, we slur our speech. This is not to say that mostpeople go around sounding like the town drunk, but simply a recognition of the fact that in normal speechwe drop endings, we run words together, and in general have all sorts of sloppy habits. Consciouslyslowing down and taking the time to actually pronounce each syllable of a word is often all you'll need tospell a word correctly. It's the equivalent of re-examining the instructions to a math problem; often, asecond reading gives people the information they need to get the answer.

Lesson 5: Understand the Limitations of Sounding Words Out

Part of the usefulness of any rule lies in knowing when it is applicable and when it is not, so it isimportant that you understand the limitations of sounding words out.

There are two main instances when sounding words out doesn't work. The first is when there are silentletters involved. The word bomb doesn't sound as though it has a B at the end, but it does. (However, youcan hear the B in the related word bombardment; see Lesson 18.) Many words also end in a silent final E(see lesson 44). The letter E is there to control the sound of another vowel, earlier in the word, but if youdon't know that, you might not know that that last letter E is there either. For instance, many peopleabbreviate their references to the Vietnam War, and talk about 'Nam. The word name sounds differentonly because the final E lengthens the sound of the letter A.

The other instance in which sounding words out won't help you is when you know what the sound is, butdon't know which of the multiple ways it could be spelled is correct.

Page 5: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

Take the word enough: The second syllable could be spelled -nough, -nuff, or just -nuf, since all theserepresent the same sound. Only the first is correct (despite the blandishments of advertisers), but how canyou tell? Luckily, the next 95 lessons are here to help you find out!

Lesson 6: Beware of Homonyms!

A homonym is a word that sounds like another word but has a different meaning and spelling.

Sometimes homonyms occur when a regular word is confused with the contraction (see Lesson 98 onusing apostrophes), such as the difference between your and you're. Simply remembering that homonymsexist and keeping an eye out for them is the key to avoiding much confusion and misleading language.

Examples: Here are some common homonyms with their respective definitions.

Allowed: permittedAloud: using the voice to be clearly heard

Bail: a prison paymentBale: a bundle of hay

Canon: an authoritative listCannon: an artillery piece

Serial: relating to a seriesCereal: a wheat product usually used as a breakfast food

Site: locationSight: seeing abilityCite: to indicate

Dual: relating to a group of twoDuel: a fight between two, usually with swords or pistols

To: in a direction toward, for, concerningToo: alsoTwo: the number

SPELL CHECK!

Choose which homonym is correct –

1. George has a (flair/flare) for writing excellent proposals.2. That was a bad (break/brake) when your computer exploded.3. Gary loves ice cream for (desert/dessert), but would not (desert/dessert) his family and friends for a

piece of cake.4. (Your/You're) (to/too/two) tired (to/too/two) stay up late.5. The music recording (session/cession) seemed to go on and on forever.

Lesson 7: Beware of Words That Are Almost Identical in Pronunciation

There are many words that are not homonyms (see Lesson 6 on homonyms) but are yet close enough insound to cause their own variety of spelling confusion. Some of these are well known, and some are not!

Page 6: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

When in doubt, try to think of related words, to make sure that the one you are writing is really the oneyou want –

Examples:

affect: to influence something (verb); emotional aspect (noun)effect: to make something happen (verb); a result (noun)

ensure: to make certaininsure: to issue insurance for

merry: jovial, festivemarry: to bind in wedlock

weather: the condition of the atmospherewhether: if it be the case that

SPELL CHECK!

Choose the correct word from the two similarly pronounced words given in parentheses.

1. My older sister is the legal (air/heir) to my grandfather's estate.2. The legislature meets in the nation's (Capital/Capitol) building.3. That high school locker room (wreaks/reeks) of the smelly gym socks.

Lesson 8: Understand How Words Are Created

When tackling any aspect of the English language, it is often helpful to understand the various elementsof words.

Most words begin with a root or main word, which contains the basic core of meaning. Other pieces maybe tacked on to change or amplify the meaning in some way, but the core of the word will tell you what itis about.

Take the verb to walk, which means to move by action of one's legs. If you have added -ed to the end ofthe main word, you have created the past tense of the verb, walked. This means that someone performedthe action of walking, at some time in the past. There are many words involving walk, such as walkabout,walk-on, and walk up, but they all have that root word in there somewhere, and that tells the readersomething about that word. The root of the word explains something about the meaning of the word andalso something about how at least part of the word is spelled.

Words can be changed in two ways: by the addition of prefixes or suffixes. A prefix is a phrase orsyllable that is attached to the front of the word, while a suffix is attached to the end of the word (in theprevious example, the -ed stuck on to the walk is a suffix). Sometimes, both a prefix and a suffix can betacked on (as in the word re + visit + ed = revisited).

The useful thing about prefixes and suffixes is that they often carry meanings of their own. Put thattogether with the root word, and you can often tell both what the word means, and how to spell it. Forexample, the prefix pre- means "before," or "in front of" (from the Latin). Fix means "to place" or"fashion securely." So, even if you didn't know what a prefix was, you could figure it out by taking itapart into its component parts. Since you know how the prefix pre- is spelled, you'd have a good shot atspelling it right, even if you'd only heard it.

Page 7: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

Many reference tools and websites have a list of common word elements – prefixes, suffixes, and roots– along with their meanings. We would strongly urge you to learn some of those word elements andkeep that information at your fingertips.

SPELLCHECK!

Try to define the following words based on the prefix definitions that you might find on the Internet or ina reference book. Then ask a friend or family member to test you on spelling these 10 words frommemory –

1. Homogeneous2. Dyslexia3. Pseudonym4. Interrupt5. Pediatrician6. Television7. Centennial8. Ambidextrous9. Chronological10. Autobiography

Lesson 9: Keep the Meaning of the Word in Mind

The meaning of a word can often tell you a great deal about the word itself, including how it should bespelled. This is one of the strengths of our otherwise maddening spelling system in the English language.

Let's say you want to use a word meaning "someone who eats meat," and you know that there is such aword, that you not sure how it's spelled. You know that -vor is the general ending for "eating," and youknow that carn is the root for flesh or meat. Putting the two together gives you the word carnivore.

There is another way the keeping meaning in mind can help you, and that is with silent letters. Sincerelated words will share roots or elements, you can think of words that are connected to the word youwant, to make sure there aren't any letters you might be missing (see Lesson 5).

For example, many people get confused about the spelling of the word medicine, because they can'tremember what the middle letter is, and sounding it out isn't much help. Instead, think of the wordmedical, though, or medic, and that will help you recognize that the pesky middle vowel is in fact theletter I.

SPELL CHECK!

Define the following words, but this time, come up with at least one other related word for each. (Or, gowild: Find as many related words as you can.) Then get someone else to test you on spelling the originalwords.

1. Bombast2. Inflammatory3. Serendipity4. Thermos5. Judicial6. Reconcile7. Elephantine

Page 8: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

8. Penalty9. Legitimate10. Auditorium

Lesson 5: Learn to Recognize Letter Patterns

When you learn to recognize patterns of letters, it will help you develop a feel for good spelling. Manygood spellers don't know any spelling rules, but they do know when a word "looks right." Part of the waythey do this is by recognizing the characteristic letter patterns of their language.

One common set of letters in English is -ough (brought, cough, tough).

Here are some common English-language letter patterns and a few instances of words that contain them –

-ight right, flight-eigh weigh, height, slay-tion ration, function, explanation-sion extension, obsession-ounce announce, pounce, pronounce-eau beauty, Château

Part of understanding letter patterns is knowing which patterns relate to which sounds. Many peopleknow many more words by sound than they do by eye. Given that there are some very good reasons whyEnglish includes some of the more unusual letter patterns that it does, it behooves spellers to know whatthey are. (For one thing, if you can't spell the beginning of a word – or at least come close, you won'tbe able to find it in a dictionary.) In the following lessons we will discuss in detail letter pairings for eachof the vowel sounds. If you can remember the "sound" that may give you clues as to how the word isspelled.

Lesson 6: Learn to Recognize all the Possible Spellings for the Vowel A and Its Sound

Fortunately, English has limits to its insanity! Yes, there are often several ways to represent any givensound, but there is not an infinite number – usually, it doesn't even get to double digits. The short asound, for example, can be written in only eight different ways –

a– as in catau– as in laughteral– as in salveea– as in beare– as in Sergeant.aa– as in bazaarai– as in plaidi– as in meringue

The long a sound offers even more possibilities. You will notice that some of the patterns appear in bothplaces, of course, just to make life more interesting…

ay– as in payai– as in paida + consonant + e – as in nameea– as in break

Page 9: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

au– as in gaugeei– as in neighey– as in obeyae– as in Gaelic

Lesson 7: Possible Spellings for the Vowel E and Its Sound

E is said to be the letter most commonly used in the English language. Most Scrabble or Boggle playersfind this out the moment they play a round that lacks this crucial letter! There are 9 ways to represent theshort E sound, and an even dozen ways to represent the long E sound.

First, the short E –

e– as in petea– as in breadai– as in saiday– as in saysa– as in manyeo– as in Leopardei– as in heiferie– as in friendae– as in aesthetic

Next, the long E –

ee– as in beerea– as in peale + consonant + e – as in scenee– as in evangelicalie– as in fieldei– as in weirdey– as in donkeyeo– as in peopleoe– as in Phoenixi– as in policeae– as in Caesar

Lesson 8: Spellings for the Vowel I and Its Sound

The vowel I has two main sounds, its short version and its long version. It is one of the less complicatedvowel sounds to spell. Here are the spelling possibilities for the short version –

i– as in pity– as in hymnie– as in sievee– as in foreignai– as in mountaino– as in womenu– as in businesse– as in English

Here are the ways to spell the long version (notice that there are fewer of them) –

Page 10: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

i– as in isleai– as in aisleie– as in piei+ consonant + e– as in iceigh– as in lighteigh– as in heightei– as in eiderdowny– as in try

Lesson 9: Learn all the Possible Spellings for the O Vowel and Its Sound

As any singer knows, vowel sounds can get complicated. The O has two different sorts of sounds – thesecond pair will be covered here, and the next set in the following rule (see Lesson 10).

First, there's the regular short O sound. This isn't too bad, actually, since there are only five differentways to spell it –

o– as in potou– as in cougha– as in watchau– as in caughtaw– as in saw

Then there is a long O. There are 12 ways to represent the sound –

o– as in openo + consonant + e – as in soleoa– as in soapoe– as in toeoo– as in floorou– as in soulow– as in growew– as in sewol– as in folkeau– as in Bureau (from theFrench)au– as in mauveeo– as in yeomen

Lesson 10: Recognizing all the Possible Spellings for the Sounds AW, OW, and OI

There are 3 other major sounds that are based on the letter O (see Lesson 13 for the first ones). The firstis the AW sound –

aw– as in sawau– as in caughto– as in tortoiseoa– as in boarou– as in ought

The second one is the OW sound –

ow– as in now

Page 11: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

ou– as in outau– as in sauerkraut

Finally we have the OI sound, which can only be spelled in 2 ways –

oy– as in boyoi– as in poison

Lesson 11: Recognize all the Possible Spellings for the Vowel U and Its Sound

The vowel U has two main sounds, the long and the short. There are quite a few ways to spell the longversion, but only five letter combinations represent a short version. Here they are…

u– as in cutoo– as in bloodou– as in doubleo– as in sona– as in was

There are even more ways of representing the long U --

oo– as in bootu– as in truthue– as in glueo + consonant + e – as in moveoe– as in shoeeu– as in rheumatismui– as in fruitou– as in through

Lesson 12: recognizing all the Possible Spellings for the Sound YOO

This is a rather strange sound, since it seems to be a combination of the letters Y and O, but they don'tappear in spelling it!

Since Y can count as either a vowel or a consonant, this can be interpreted as its vowel sound. There aresome words where it can be particularly tricky, especially in the word ewe. Luckily, there are only 5ways of representing it –

ew– as in ewe, fewu– as in useue– as in cueeu– as in feudeau– as in beauty

Lesson 13: What are all the Possible Spellings For the Sound B?

Consonants are generally easier sounds to represent than vowels. Some combination sounds can bespelled in several ways, but overall, consonants present fewer chances for the ear to betray the eye (thismay also explain why irregularities seem somehow harder when they occur with consonants). The soundof the B for example, can only be spelled in 2 ways –

Page 12: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

b– as in bookbb– as in bubbly

Since BB can never start a word, knowing this rule can make it much easier to find words in dictionaries,when necessary.

There is one tricky thing about the consonant B, however. Silent b's occur in seemingly misleadingplaces, such as in the middle and end of words that don't contain a B sound –

Dumb – thumb – bombing – plumber

Be familiar with these "silent B's" – and stay tuned to a later lesson for more information on silentconsonants.

Lesson 14: The Sound of the Letter D In All Its Glory

There are only 4 ways of representing the sound of the D (and one of them requires the help of a vowel) –

d– as in deeddd– as in teddyed– as in walledld– as in could

The real confusion comes when people slur their speech enough to pick up a D sound with a T sound.There are some scientific, linguistic reasons why we often do so, but it still wreaks havoc on spelling.Careful enunciation is the only way to stay out of that little (not "liddle") trap.

Here are some words that may look right as spelled in the first column – followed by the properspellings in the second column –

Incorrect Correctkindergarden kindergartenlieutendant lieutenantpolluded polluted

Lesson 15: All Possible Spellings for the Sound of the Letter F

The letter F is one of the sounds that George Bernard Shaw famously made fun of, when he complainedthat English spelling was so illogical that the word fish could just as easily be spelled "ghoti" if oneapplied certain rules in the wrong circumstances – the GH as in laugh – the O as in woman – andthe letters TI as in motion. While it is true that the letters GH are one of the ways of spelling the sound ofthe letter F, Shaw was exaggerating just a bit. (For starters, the letters GH never sounds like the letter Fwhen used at the beginning of a word.).

Examples:

f– as in fifeff– as in off

Page 13: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

ph– as in phonygh– as in coughlf– as in halfft– as in soften

The letter F sound does not vary greatly in its pronunciation; almost always, a letter F at the beginning ofa word has the same sound as the letter F or even a double letter F (FF) in the middle of a word. Forexample: fudge, coffee, classify.

At the end of a word FF will usually have a soft sound, as in the word off. When there is a single letter Fat the end of a word, like the word of, it tends to be pronounced more like a V. Being familiar with thesepronunciation rules makes it easier to spell words containing the F.

The letter F has a special property: it often becomes the letters VE when it is made plural, as in the wordshalf and halves.

Lesson 16: And Now... The Letter G (and Infamous "Silent G") and Their Spellings

The hard G sound can be represented in English in one of five ways. It would have been four, but the firstEnglish printer (of books), William Caxton, had spent many years abroad and liked to insert an H aftermany GS. (This was in the days before dictionaries, so no one could tell him he was wrong.)

Examples:g- as in gaggg- as in gigglegh- as in ghostgu- as in guardx- example

Note that the letter X (as in example, above) is really a bombination of the sound GZ. However, the Xcan also have a KS sound (as in the final syllable of Xerox).

The real problem with the letter G is that it can often appear silently in a word, lurking with no apparentpurpose other than to trip up unwary spellers. A later lesson will cover the case of words spelled with a Gpronounced as a J, like usage.

Lesson 17: Now Presenting ... The Incredible Letter J and All Its Sounds

Ahhh... The letter J. Sometimes confusion arises here, between the sound of a soft G and the normalsound of a J.

Often a GG will sound like a hard G (as in aggregate), and in other instances (such as with the wordexaggerate) it will be a pure J sound.

Do not allow yourself to be fooled by such seeming inconsistencies! The important thing is to recognizeall of the eight different possibilities, which are listed below, and your visual senses will take over fromthere -

j- as in judgedg- as in judgmentdge- as in edgeg- as in gem

Page 14: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

ge-as in agegg- as in exaggeratedj- as in adjustd-as in graduate

Lesson 18: The Letter K, Its Sounds, and Its Spellings

The "K" sound has the most possible letter combinations and the greatest number of phoneticrepresentations. Take a look at the list below to see how many different ways that the K sound can bewritten --

k- as in keyc- as in conck- as in stickcc- as in accountqu- as in opaquech- as in chaoticcqu- as in acquirecch- as in saccharinesch- as in schismlk- as in walkkh-as in khakix- as in extra [ks sound] or in luxury [ksh sound]

The letter K also apprears quite frequently in words that don't have a K sound at all! In these cases, the Kpreceeds another consonant and the word is pronounced with the sound of the second consonant (whichis usually an N) --

Examples:

knowknifeknightkneel

An upcoming rule will talk more about the letter K that is silent.

Lesson 19: Mmm ... The Letter M and All Its Sounds and Spellings

"M" is a sound that causes many problems in spelling because it is frequently combined with other lettersthat remain sneakily silent!

Don't panic, and don't go into fits trying to pronounce words like phlegm, either. Instead look at thefollowing list of ways to represent the sound M --

m- as in mommm- as in commonmn- as in solemnmb- as in bomblm- as in calmgm- as in paradigmchm-as in drachm

Page 15: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

nm- as in government

Many of the words that involve these silent letters are good examples of how related words can help youspell the one you want.

The word phlegm, for example, is pretty tricky spelling it by sound, but remembering phlegmatic canhelp, since the silent g becomes a hard g sound. You might leave the final -N off of the word solemn ifyou are trying to spell it as it is pronounced, but not if you think of the word solemnity first.

Lesson 20: Learning to Recognize All the Possible Spellings for the Sound N

There are only a half dozen ways to spell the sound N, but they cause more than their fair share ofspelling trouble.

This is because several of them have silent letters that tend to appear at the beginning of words. Thismakes them both difficult to spell, and difficult to look up – a double whammy! The silent K and thesilent G have both been previously discussed (see Lessons 18 and 16, respectively).

Examples:

n– as in nonn– as in sunnykn– as in knitgn– as in gnarlpn– as in pneumoniamn– as in mnemonic

Other than being familiar with such oddities of the English language, there is no infallible way,unfortunately, to remember silent KS, GS, and PS or to distinguish among variances in silent letters thatform n (KN and GN).

But, luckily, if you can't seem to understand why some words are spelled with a single letter N and othersare spelled with NN, you can think about the pronunciations. More often than not, N following a vowelmakes the vowell sound long (as in pony or dine). With NN, the vowel sound is shorter, as in funny andfanning.

Lesson 21: Eat All Your "P's" -- All the Spellings for This Sound You Need to Know

The letter P could be a very nice letter for spellers, since there are only three ways of representing itssound.

Unhappily though, one of those ways involves another one of those pesky silent letters.

Moreover, the letter P itself is one of the letters that tends to be silent (and mess up others!)

Examples:

p- as in poppp- as in happyph- as in shepherd

To understand why some words are spelled with a single P and others are spelled with PP, think about

Page 16: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

the pronounciations.

Usually, P following a vowel makes the vowel sound long (as in Pope or grape). With a PP, the vowelsound is shorter, as in dipping and happening.

P's are used in other words such as telephone and pneumonia, but remember that ph may have an F soundand that P may be silent before some consonants, as in the example pheumonia.

The reason the PH combination (in words like shepherd) has a distinguishable P sound is the"syllabication" -- shep'herd.

Lesson 22: All You Need to Know About Spellings for the Sound R

The nice thing about all the representations of the sound R is that all of them do indeed include the letter-- as our other spelling lessons have shown, this is not always the case!

Another nice thing about the spellings for the sound R is that there are only five in total --

r- as in roarrr- as in furrywr- as in wryrh- as in rhymerrh- as in diarrhea

The problem -- again! -- is that several of these possible spellings can occur at the beginning of a word,making it tougher to find the word in reference works. Keep the above spellings firmly in mind to avoidsuch problems.

Note that a word can begin with an R or WR to make the R sound (ring meaning the sound of a phone orwring to mean to compress or squeeze or twist). A later lesson will cover the case of the silent Wspelling.

Lesson 23: Everything You Wanted to Know About the Possible Spellings for the Sound S – ButWere Afraid to Ask

The S sound is another one of those pesky sounds that can be represented in several different ways.

Some involve silent letters, while others require the doubling of consonants.

In the case of the letter C, matters can become truly confusing because it only takes the S sound in frontof certain vowels: E (cent), letter I (cite), and Y (cyborg). Vowels such as letter a (cab), O (cover), and U(cube) take the hard C sound only. Other hidden traps are noted below –

s– as in sellss– as in pussycatci– as in cityce– as in certifiedcy– as in cystsc– as in scentps– as in psychologyst– as in fastensw– as in sword

Page 17: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

There are only four times that the letter C is pronounced S: in the letter combinations CE, CI, SC, and CT(as in cereal, city, scene, and cyberspace). Remember these instances to help you conquer some of themany S-sounding words.

Lesson 24: "T" Anyone? (The T Sound and All Its Spellings)

The letter T by itself doesn't cause all that many spelling difficulties.

It's when other letters are added that spelling becomes confusing, especially since many of theseadditions are silent.

With non-silent letters, the pronunciations change to varying degrees; often, as noted below with the THcombination, the T takes on a new sound entirely with another letter attached. The general combinationsare noted below --

t- as in tattt- as in battleth- as in Thomaspt- as in pterodactyl, or receipt (at the end of a word)bt- as in doubtct- as in indictght- as in light

Luckily, there are not many cases in which TH is pronounced "T"; it usually takes on the traditional TH(as in the or thing) sound. One exception would be Thomas, another would be Thailand. For the mostpart, proper nouns aside, you can assume that there is no TH involved in a hard T sound.

As for the strange-looking GHT, know that this is a commonly used English language pattern, and that italmost always carries the vowel sound that precedes it, sliding right into the T as in caught, might, orheight.

To understand why some words are spelled with a single T and others are spelled with TT, think abouttheir pronounciations. Usually, T following a vowel makes the vowel sound long (as in fate or smite).With a TT, the vowel sound is shorter, as in witty and putty.

Lesson 25: "V" for Victory - Its Sounds, Its Spellings

The sound of the letter V is relatively uncomplicated when it comes to spelling.

There are five ways of representing it; the only trouble arises from the fact that the letter itself onlyappears in three of its representations --

v- as in vanityvv- as in savvyve- as in valvef- as in ofph-as in Stephen

If you have any difficulty with this rule, remember that many men named Stephen prefer being calledSteve.

The most common spellings of the V sound are simply the letter V itself, and this should be easy to

Page 18: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

remember providing your enunciation is clear. Also, you should remember that some plural F's become -VES as in knife/knives and leaf/leaves.

Lesson 26: The Letter W - It's Sounds and Spellings

Hooray! There are only four ways of representing the sound W. Two of them are fairly obvious, but theothers are less so. Try saying the following examples, to make sure you get them down --

w- as in withwh- as in whenu- as in quieto- as in one

W is one of the consonants that can lurk silently before certain other consonants, usually RS. In mostcases, one can visually recognize the absence of a silent W - restle looks incorrect, compared to wrestle -but the trouble typically arises in the case of homonyms (words that sound the same but are spelleddifferently and have different meanings).

For example, the word wring is correct as is, but only if you mean to indicate you are squeezing a wettowel; if you mean to indicate the sound of a doorbell, you woule require the homonym ring. Someadditional words with "silent W's" are wrench, wrist, write.

Lesson 27: Y Sound - All Possible Spellings

The sound of the letter Y in and of itself is represented in only a few ways. A couple of them may besomewhat unexpected --

y- as in yesi- as in opinionj- as in hallelujahu- as in putridew- as in ewe

The letter J sounds like Y only in extremely rare cases. This deviant spelling should not be a big concernas you master English spelling.

Usually, words ending in y have the E sound (like hardly), words beginning in Y are generallypronounced the way they look (like yellow).

The word ewe is notable for two reasons: first, because it is pronounced with a Y sound withoutcontaining a Y, and second, because it is the only word beginning with the letter E that is pronouncedlike Y.

Lesson 28: Time to Z Out -- All Its Sounds and Spellings

Although the letter Z is used relatively rarely in spelling, its sound is more common than you mightthink. There are five different ways of representing it, in fact --

z- as in zebra (or size)zz- as in fuzzyss- as in scissorss- as in was

Page 19: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

x- as in xylophone

Note that the letter X as in the word example is really a combination of the sounds GZ.

Also be aware that many words with the letter S are pronounced with a Z sound. If you remember thatnot too many words actually contain a Z, you will be better equipped to spell z-sounding words.

Lesson 29: H and L - The Sounds, the Spellings

In today's spelling strategies lesson we are combining two letters, H and L, since there only two ways ofrepresenting either of them.

First, the sound H -

h- as in hatwh- as in who

The letter H at the beginning of a word is never followed by a consonant, except Y (which passes onoccasion as a vowel anyway).

Examples: hydrate - hybrid

The letter combination WH is only pronounced as H when it is followed by O, as in whole. But note thatthis is not a rule, just a potential case. Words such as whoop combine the WH sound for the samecombination as in when.

Next, the sound of the letter L -

l- as in lid (or needle)ll- as in well

The LL combination is almost always found at the end or in the middle of a word. Only in a fewexceptions, such as with llama and Lloyd, are the two LL's put together at the beginning of a word.Remember that it is highly irregular (non-standard) to see this spelling.

Lesson 30: The CH Sound – All Its Possible Spellings

Now that the letters of the alphabet have been taken care of individually, it is important to look at howcertain combinations sounds are represented. The first one that we will deal with is the CH sound. Thereare 5 ways of spelling it –

ch- as in chunktch- as in matcht- as in futurec- as in cellocz- as in the Czech Republic

CH is one of the English language's special compound consonants, along with many others such as SH,TH, and GH. We will have lessons on these letter combinations coming up soon. You must recognize CHas a letter combination that takes on a specific pronunciation.

The combination UTU (as in the example above, future) takes on a CH sound simply because few make

Page 20: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

the effort to enunciate clearly enough to separate the T from the letter U. Therefore, it becomes a moreeasily pronounced CH.

Lesson 31: Sound-NG Out all the Possible Spellings for the Sound NG

In these Spelling Strategies lessons, we have looked at single letters, their sound variations and how theyare spelled.

Now we have started letter combinations (last Lesson dealt with the CH sound/spellings).

Another common combination sound is that of NG. This is represented in three ways, all of which havethe letter N in them somewhere. This sound never begins a word, but always comes either in the middleor at the end of one --

ng- as in singingngue- as in tonguen- as in plank

Many people are tempted to pronounce handkerchief with an NG sound in the middle of the word.However, strictly speaking this pronunciation is incorrect. It help you to see the syllable markings ofhand'ker'chief. Speakers who are not careful about this are subject to being misinterpreted.

Lesson 32: SH and ZH – Their Sounds and Spellings

SH and ZH – many people get these two sounds confused, but they shouldn't.

One hint is that there are many ways of representing the SH sound but fewer ways of spelling the ZHsound, so when in doubt – go with the odds!

Here are the spellings for SH –

sh- as in sheep (or fish)ch- as in chivalrouss– as in suress– as in missionsc– as in consciencec– as in oceansch– as in schoolt– as in attention

Now, by contrast, there are only 3 ways to spell the ZH sound –

s– as in unusualz– as in seizurege– as in rouge

SH is another of the English language's special compound consonants. You must recognize SH and itsvarious spellings as a letter combination that takes on a specific pronunciation.

One small detail that may confuse things: Sometimes, but not often, SS can be pronounced ZH instead ofSH. The word fissure is a good example. Also, don't forget that SS is usually pronounced S. See Lesson23 for more information on the S sound.

Page 21: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

Lesson 33: All the Possible Spellings for the Sound TH

TH is another one of the English language's special consonants. The two letters T and H together almostalways take on the specific pronunciation TH.

There are two different sound variations of the compound consonant TH. See if you can tell thedifference between the long and the short pronunciations in the examples below --

Examples:

thin, tooth, withhold

then, smooth, they

Practice saying both sets of words out loud a few times, so you can hear the difference. The first exampleset above is short TH sounds -- the second example set is long TH sounds.

Lesson 34: GH Spellings - Sounds Like F (or Nothing at All!)

We're still with double consonant...Next up today is the sound of GH spellings.

The double consonant-configuration GH is often pronounced FF when found at the end of a word (seeLesson 15).

These words do not seem to make sense phonetically,, meaning that they are not spelled as they sound, soit may be easiest to simply memorize the spellings of such GH words --

enoughtoughroughcough

All of the above sound like "FF" (and notice that the GH is at the end of the word)...

But GH can also be silent -

throughboroughthought (see Lesson 16)

In these words, the GH acts as an "extension" of the vowel sound preceding it and does not take on an FFpronunciation.

Lesson 34: Know That GH Can Sound Like F or be Silent

The double consonant configuration GH is often pronounced FF when found at the end of a word (seeLesson 15). These words do not seem to make sense phonetically, meaning that they are not spelled asthey sound, so it may be easiest to simply memorize the spellings --

enoughtoughrough

Page 22: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

cough

GH can also be silent, as in --

throughboroughthought (see Lesson 16)

In these words, the GH acts as an extension of the vowel sound preceding it and does not take on an FFpronunciation.

Lesson 35: PH and F -- Don't Confuse Them!

The double consonant configuration PH is almost always pronounced FF (see Lesson 15).

This is true for words that begin, end, and contain the letters PH.

Being familiar with the pronunciations and spellings of the following examples will help you detectspelling errors and will also enable you to pronounce such words without difficulty --

graphpharmacyphosphatephantomphilosophyphotography

Lesson 36: This Email Has Been Brought to You by Silent H

Some spellers forget that silent H's can hide at the beginnings of words that sound as if they begin withvowels.

There are several such words in the English language --

heirhonorhour

Cockney (UK) English is one dialect that constantly leaves H's off the beginnings of words, even if theyaren't silent. The sentence "How heavy is his head?" would be pronounced by them as "Ow evvy is ised?"

While most American speakers don't have to worry about this, they do have to recognize when the H ispresent and silent. Without it, words such as herbal and homage would look very funny.

In addition, spellers should recognize that an H at the beginning of a word and in front of a U, as inhubris, is always pronounced. The H does not necessarily change the sound of the U pronunciation,however, as evient in the short U sound as in hum.

Lesson 37: "I Before E ..."

Words containing IE in the middle have plagued even the most proficient of spellers for what seems like

Page 23: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

an eternity!

While the I before E rhyme that you may have learned as a youngster has become the most familiarspelling rule in the English language, it also continues to hold the most relevance.

The reason for all of the difficulty may be explained by the fact that there are nearly as many exceptionsto the rule as there are basic examples that "prove" it.

Thus the only way to conquer the I before E syndrome is to first memorize the words that follow thestandard logic:

achievebelievefieldfriendniecepiece

Repeat these words to yourself five times and then spell them out loud five times. When you're done,note that in all six words above, a consonant other than C comes before the I.

Lesson 38: "I Before E ..." (The Exceptions)

I before E ... Except after C ... Or when sounded like AY ... As in neighbor and weigh ...

These are the two main exceptions to the basic I before E rule.

The first, "Except after C," only means that if the IE combination follows the consonant C, the orderbecomes EI.

Memorize these common EI words and remember that in all these cases, the EI follows the letter C --

ceilingdeceivereceiptreceive

Repeat the words to yourself and then spell them out loud five times.

The other exception to the rule is "Or when sounded like AY."

There is a rule you can follow to find some of these words, since many of them include the silent GHcombination. In other words, the EI -- when formed with GH -- is pronounced as an AY sound:

eightfreightinveighneighborsleighweigh

Again, repeat these six common EIGH words to yourself and then spell them out loud five times.

Page 24: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

There are also several words this rule applies to that do not involve an EIGH pattern.

These too should be memorized:

deignfeignheinousinveiglereignreinskeinvein

Exceptions: Of course, English wouldn't be English if it didn't have some words that are completeexceptions!

And once again, memorization is the way to go here:

caffeinecounterfeitforfeitsurfeiteitherneitherforeignsovereignheiferheirleisureproteinseizesheikh (can also be pronounced AY)veilweirweird

Tomorrow's Lesson: "Silent E" ... Stay tuned, you don't want to miss it!

Lesson 39: Do Not Forget the Silent E

One very important kind of letter pattern to be aware of is how words end.

Remember that very few English words end in the letters I, U, or V. They are generally followed by asilent E. This applies to both root words and suffixes.

So, when you are sounding a word out, and it seems to end in one of these sounds, don't forget the silentE --

-ies (suffix) cue havepie due salvevie glue -sive (suffix)

Page 25: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

Of course, there are some exceptions, but they represent other facts about English as a language. Theytend to be of two types: They are either abbreviations that have come to be accepted as words, or wordsfrom other languages that have been adopted into English relatively recently.

Exceptions:

mini (from miniskirt) emu (the Australianbird)

ski (from Norwegian) ecru (from French)taxi (from taxicab) guru (from Hindi)

Lesson 40: Words Ending in J - Far and Few Between

Another ending you almost never see in English is the letter J.

That sound is usually formed by a combination of letters, either -GE or -DGE (see Lesson 17).

If you are sounding words out (trying to spell them) and you encounter this sound, again remember yoursilent final E --

budge age collegecadge gorge garagehedge huge marriage

The only exceptions to this rule come to us from India --

raj taj

Lesson 41: AE and OE - M.I.A. In American English

One of the holdovers from Latin that you still see every now and then in English is the connected pairingof the two vowels A and E, as in AE, as well as the connection of the vowels O and E as OE.

The connection of two letters to form one is known as a ligature, and when they are printed out the twoletters are actually joined physically together, as if they were a single letter.

When writing, know that in American English these forms are almost never required, and can be replacedsimply by E.

British English (UK English) however, still requires their use (see Lesson 3), and many older books andpublications using them are still around, so you should be able to recognize them when you see them --

encyclopaedia encyclopedia

Page 26: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

haemoglobin hemoglobinpaediatrics pediatricsoesophagus esophagus

Lesson 42: When You Add a Prefix, the Spelling Gets Tricky!

When joining prefixes to base words, keep in mind that prefixes do not affect the spelling of the rootword.

One of the most basic rules here states that if the last letter of the prefix is the same as the first letter ofthe base word, there will be a double letter when the two are joined.

The reverse is also true: If the last letter of the prefix is not the same as the first letter of the base word,there will not be a double letter there.

Huh?

A few concrete examples will clarify this instantly:

First rule illustrated:

dis + solve = dissolve

inter + rupt = interrupt

un + natural = unnatural

Second rule illustrated:

dis + trust = distrust (no double letters)

inter + national = international

un + happy = unhappy

Notice that this rule only applies to double letters that appear where the prefix joins the base. It saysnothing about double letters that might appear elsewhere in the base word, such as the double P in"happy" above.

Lesson 43: Adding Prefixes, Part 2

Last lesson, we talked about situations where a prefix is attached to a word.

The second basic rule for attaching prefixes to base words states that sometimes the prefix will change tomatch the first letter of the base word -- and once again we will have a double letter when the two arejoined.

But this is easy to handle -- because the prefix -IN (meaning "not something," or "in/into/on something")is the only one that does this.

Page 27: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

Occasionally, the prefix will change, not to create a double letter, but to make the resulting word easier topronounce (for example, "imbibe" rather than "inbibe").

IN- can appear as IG-, IL-, IM-, IN-, IR-, depending on what letters it precedes. Unfortunately (oh-oh!)there are exceptions in every case.

OK, here are the examples:

1. IG- before a few words beginning with N (all are exceptions to words that would normally takeIN-)

ig + noble = ignobleig + nominy = ignominyig + norant = ignorant

2. IL- before words beginning with L

il + legal = illegalil + legible = illegible

Exceptions:inlandinlayinlet

3. IM- before words beginning with B, M, or P

im + balance = imbalanceim + becile = imbecileim + mature = immatureim + mobile = immobileim + perfect = imperfectim + potent = impotent

Exceptions:inborninbredinmateinmostinpatientinput

4. IN- before all other letters (including N)

in + ability = inabilityin + finite = infinitein + tangible = intangible

in + nate = innatein + nocence = innocencein + novation = innovationin + nuendo = innuendo

Page 28: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

in + numerable = innumerable

5. IR- before words beginning with R

ir + rational = irrationalir + regular = irregular

Exceptions:inroadinrush

Lesson 44: Adding ALL- As A Prefix - One L or Two?

Keep in mind that both prefixes (added at the beginning) and suffixes (added at the end) can both changetheir spellings when they join up with the words.

This usually happens to make the resulting words easier to pronounce, or to avoid some sort of confusionthat might otherwise result.

Once such change is that when you add ALL- to the beginning of a word (as a prefix), you only use oneL.

Examples:

all + mighty = almightyall + most = almostall + one = aloneall + ready = alreadyall + so = alsoall + though = althoughall + together = altogetherall + ways = always

You must also remember that two of the above combinations mean different things when they are left astwo words.

Already is an adverb (modifying verbs) that has to do with time, referring to something that hashappened -- "I went to the vet as fast as I could, but Eliza had already had her kittens."

All ready is a phrase, and it means "completely prepared" -- "Is he all ready to go?"

All together refers to a group of things, which are all in one place. Other words can appear between theword all and the word together, and the meaning will not change -- "Will the kittens all stay together, orwill the litter be split up?"

Altogether means "completely" or "all things considered." It is one word, and cannot be split up --"Altogether Jim's article was well written, even though the customer didn't like it." It also has a moreinformal meaning, meaning "naked" -- "I was in my altogether when the boss came to the door!"

There is another ALL + combination which deserves some mention here, and that is "all right."

Following the above rule, you would get "alright."

Page 29: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

Many people do in fact use this, but many others frown upon it as substandard.

The safe course is to avoid it.

If you are certain that your audience (and customer!) would approve, or if you are writing somethingvery casual, go ahead -- but otherwise stick with the more accepted form.

Lesson 45: ANTE- and ANTI- Know the Difference

There is one pair of prefixes that causes endless trouble when people try to sound words out (when tryingto spell them) -- and that is ANTE-/ANTI-.

The issue here is that they sound the same, but their meanings are quite different.

If you want to spell a word and you are not sure which prefix to use, stop and think about what you wantto say.

If you want to talk about something that is before something else, you want to use ANTE-.

If you are discussing something that is against something, you need to use ANTI-.

Unfortunately, the prefix ANTI- is so much more common than ANTE- that many people forget all aboutthe possible alternative meaning.

One of the clearest examples of this confusion can be seen with the words antebellum and antiwar.

They both sound as though they refer to feelings against war, but they don't. The word antiwar does, butantebellum means before the war (specifically the Civil War, according to convention).

Lesson 46: Words Beginning with EQUI- and How to Spell Them

Another prefix that causes spelling trouble is EQUI-.

People tend to remember what it means (equality) but they forget what vowel it takes in any given word.This can be tough because you often can't hear it when you try to sound it out.

A helpful hint is that when you are using the word equal with its precise original meaning -- items thatare the same in quantity, size, etc. -- it is usually spelled with an A (as in equality, equable, orequanimity).

If you are using the prefix to create a word that is further away from the original meaning, the vowel ismore likely to be I. This is only a rule of thumb, but it can be truly helpful --

equidistantequilateralequivalent

Lesson 47: The Rule of "EX-" as a Prefix

The prefix EX- can mean two different things: "out of" but also "former."

When you are using it in the sense of "former" it should always be hyphenated when it is attached(joined) to its base word.

Page 30: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

This required separation is one reason this prefix has taken on a life of its own as an abbreviation --someone talking about his or her "ex."

Examples:

(These use EX- as "former." Hyphenated.)

ex-baseball starex-husbandex-wife

(These use EX- as "out of." Not hyphenated.)

exitexcavateextrude

Lesson 48: FOR- and FORE-

Many people find themselves in a tangle when they try to spell a word beginning with FOR- or FORE-but they needn't.

This is simply another case where meaning has a lot to do with spelling.

FORE- means "beFORE," "in front," or "beFOREhand."

FOR- means "not," "against," "away," or "utterly."

Think carefully about the meaning of the word you are trying to spell, since it should tell you what prefixto use --

foreheadforeseeforeshadowforetell

forbidforlornforsake

Exception: foreclose

Of course, if you're not sure of the meaning involved, it doesn't hurt to know a couple of hints.

First of all, the prefix FORE- is much more common than FOR-. So if you have to guess blindly, go forFORE-.

In addition, FOR- has become outdated and is no longer being used to create words, while FORE- is.

Lesson 49: Making Singular Nouns Plural - Just add -S

The formation of plurals may drive people crazy, but there is always one basic rule to fall back on toform the plurals of most nouns --

Page 31: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

Just add -S

(Remember, a noun is a word representing a person, place, thing, or idea.)

Examples:

teacher + s = teacherscigar + s = cigarsclock + s = clockspencil + s = pencilsdeath + s = deaths

For compound nouns (nouns made up of two or more words), the last word is the one that takes the final-S when plural --

amusement park + s = amusement parkshot-water bottle + s = hot-water bottlesswimming pool + s = swimming poolsWordGigs writer + s = WordGigs writers

This doesn't sound so complicated, but occasionally people do get mixed up, especially when adding thesuffix -FUL:

Example:

If the doctor gives you a spoonful of nasty cough medicine, and then a second one, you have twospoonfuls to face, not two "spoonsful."

Naturally, there are exceptions to this rule, which are frequent enough to earn their own rules (watch forthese in the next 6 lessons or so).

Lesson 50: Making Plurals - Nouns Ending Silently

There are times when sound can help your spelling and this is one of them!

Sibilant sounds are the sounds ch, sh, s, ss, x, and z.

When you need to form the plurals of nouns ending in a sibilant sound... just add -ES.

Examples:

beach + es = beachescrash + es = crashesbias + es = biasesloss + es = lossestax + es = taxeswhiz + es = whizzes

Note that when you add -ES to a word ending in -Z or -S, you usually double the final consonant --

gas + es = gasses

Page 32: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

For many of these words, the plural noun form is identical to the verb form, so to avoid trouble thinkcarefully about how you want to use a word in a given sentence. Are you referring to a thing (noun) or tothe performance of an action (verb)?

Examples:

Don't you hate it when your computer crashes? (verb)

David was in three separate car crashes last year. (noun)

Lesson 51: Making Plurals - Nouns Ending in -F, -FF or -FE

There are a couple of things to keep in mind when you form the plurals of most nouns ending in -F or -FF. In most cases, you just add -S.

For most nouns ending in -FF or -FE, you change the final -FE to -VE, and then add -S.

"Some examples, please."

Sure:

roof + s = roofshandkerchief + s = handkerchiefscliff + s = cliffscuff + s = cuffs

knife = knivesloaf = loavesshelf = shelves

However, there are some common exceptions you need to watch out for.

The good news here is that in several cases, both the regular form and the irregular are acceptable, so it'shard to go wrong --

safe - safeshoof - hoofs or hoovesscarf - scarfs or scarveswharf - wharfs or wharves

Lesson 52: Making Plurals - Nouns Ending in -O

This is the famous spelling rule that embarrassed former vice-president Dan Quayle, when he famouslymisspelled the word potato.

Quayle's real tragedy was that he actually remembered part of the rule, but he applied it incorrectly!Here's how to avoid these errors --

To form the plural of most nouns ending in -O (or -OO) just add -S. For most nouns in which the -O ispreceded by a consonant, add -ES.

Examples:

Page 33: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

tattoo + s = tattoosradio + s = radioscameo + s = cameos

As it happens, there are relatively few -O words that take -ES as a preferred spelling; the problem is thatthey are among the most common --

buffalo - buffaloes | lingo - lingoescargo - cargoes | mango - mangoesdingo - dingoes | Negro - Negroesdomino - dominoes | no - noesecho - echoes | potato - potatoesembargo - embargoes | tomato - tomatoesgo - goes | torpedo - torpedoeshero - heroes | veto - vetoeshobo - hoboes | volcano - volcanoes

Just to complicate matters further (smile), there are some -O words that can take either an -S or -ES.

Whether -S or -ES is used in these cases depends on a particular "style" that is used -- the important thinghere at WordGigs is to be consistent!

Examples:

archipelago(e)s | memento(e)sbanjo(e)s | mosquito(e)sdesperado(e)s | motto(e)sfiasco(e)s | peccadillo(e)sflamingo(e)s | portico(e)sgrotto(e)s | salvo(e)shalo(e)s | tornado(e)sinnuendo(e)s | virago(e)slasso(e)s | zero(e)smanifesto(e)s

Lesson 53: Making Plurals - Nouns Ending in -Y

The last group of nouns that tend to be troublemakers in spelling are those that end in -Y.

Fortunately, the rules for dealing with them are fairly simple.

To form the plurals of most nouns ending in -Y, change the Y to an I and add -ES:

berry - berriesfancy - fancieslady - ladiesoddity - oddities

For most nouns in which the Y is preceded by a vowel, keep the Y and add -S:

convoy - convoysdonkey - donkeys

Page 34: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

Lesson 54: Making Plurals - Words From Other Languages

As you probably know, many of the "irregularities" in English stem from our freewheeling approach totaking words from other languages.

These "loan words" often follow the rules of the original language they were taken from, rather thanEnglish rules, when forming plurals.

Fortunately, you can often tell which words are going to cause such problems, since they contain letterpatterns that are not normally a part of English --

beau - beaux (from the French)criterion - criteria (from the Latin)datum - data (from the Latin)

The word data reveals another common problem caused by our "linguistic theft," and that is the use ofplural forms as singular. Data, as spelled, refers to more than one data item, datum is the singular form.The same is true of criterion/criteria --

New WordGigs writers are evaluated using several criteria. [not criterion - that's singular; this sentencehas a subject that is plural]

Bob the WordGigs Operational VP is constantly monitoring a whole host of data pertaining to writerperformance. [again, the usage requires data, not datum, if more than one data item is being referred to -"a whole host"]

We have now covered all the rules for making NOUNS plural.

So try this exercise:

Look around the room where you are at, and for the next five minutes, write down the plural ofeverything that you see!

Lesson 55: Making Plurals - Beware of Irregular Forms

Some of the most well-known pitfalls in the English language occur in the area of irregular plural forms.

People learning English as a second (or third) language marvel at the seeming arbitrariness of it all:"How do you remember all this?" is a frequent question, generally asked in a tone of completeexasperation!

The preceding rules we have covered have given you a rational way to approach many irregularities informing plurals.

The problem is that many words are so irregular that there are no rules to cover them -- there's nothingleft but case-by-case memorization:

ox - oxengoose - geesemoose - moose (!)tooth - teethfoot - feet

Page 35: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

mouse - micelouse - licehouse - houses

As you can tell from the above list of examples, among the worst trouble areas are animal names.

(BTW, the collective nouns used to refer to animals are just as bad, from a vocabulary point-of-view: agaggle of geese, a school of fish, and so on.)

If it's any comfort, linguists argue that when children acquire language, they tend to learn the rules first,and their mistakes involve over-applying them (not knowing the exceptions).

As language-learners (and there's always more to learn about our English language!) we should notchange this approach, but simply be aware -- early on -- of the existence of irregular plural forms, toknow how to deal with them before they become a problem.

Here are some more plural forms that are irregular -- happy memorizing!

alumna - alumnaealumnus - alumni(a good dictionary will enlighten you as to how these two above word pairs are different...)

appendix - appendixes, appendicesbasis - basesbrother - brothers, brethrenoasis - oasesopus - opera, opusesox - oxenradius - radii

Lesson 56: Adjectives - Comparative and Superlative Forms

Unlike nouns, which are words that represent things, adjectives modify, or describe words.

Many adjectives change their spelling to allow different levels of description

-- When you compare two things only, you use the comparative form of an adjective.

With the comparative, you are saying that while something has a certain quality to it, a second somethinghas "more" of that quality.

For adjectives of one syllable, add -ER to form the comparative. If the word already ends in -E,you just add -R --

rich + er = richerdumb + er = dumberblue + r = bluer

Of course, a "quality" could refer to a lack of something, so in such cases the comparative means that thesecond has even less.

For example, if I didn't have very much money, but you had even less, I would be poor, but you would be

Page 36: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

poorer.

-- If you are comparing three or more things, you use the superlative form, which shows the end of thecomparison, by describing the thing that has the most of whatever is being discussed.

For adjectives of one syllable, the superlative is usually formed by adding -EST to the end of anadjective. AS with the comparative form, if the word already ends with -E, you just add -ST --

tall + est = tallestclever + est = cleverestwhite + st = whitest

For adjectives of two or more syllables -- other than those ending in -Y (see next Lesson) -- thespelling doesn't usually change. Instead, you use the words more (comparative) or most(superlative) before the adjective (exception: the word clever) --

intellectual - more intellectual - most intellectualdisagreeable - more disagreeable - most disagreeableBUT... clever - cleverer - cleverest[That's the exception mentioned above...]

Lesson 57: Comparative/Superlative Adjective Forms Ending in -Y

Adjectives that end in -Y have to be treated a little differently from other adjectives.

In English, the letter Y, when acting as a vowel, cannot be followed by another vowel, so you have tofollow a slightly different rule when forming your comparatives and superlatives.

Fortunately, it's quite simple:

For adjectives ending in -Y, change the Y to an I, then --

Add -ER to form the comparative (funny ...funnier)Add -EST for the superlative (funniest)If the adjective has a vowel before the -Y, the -Y remains

As always, some quick examples will serve to make all very easy to understand:

happy - happier - happiestsunny - sunnier - sunniest

Vowel before the Y, so Y is kept --

gray - grayer - grayest

Some exceptions though:

shy - shyer - shyestsly - slyer - slyestspry - spryer - spryestwry - wryer - wryest

Page 37: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

(Note that these exceptions are the preferred spellings. Using the letter I for the Y is also acceptable --shier, shiest, etc.)

Lesson 58: Regular and Irregular Adverbs

Adverbs are words that modify, or describe, verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs.

The good thing about adverbs is that it's quite simple to spell the regular ones (ones that follow a pattern).

The bad thing ... is that there are QUITE a few irregular ones -- that don't follow the usual rule -- andthose have to be memorized if you are to spell them correctly.

Let's take the regular forms first:

Add -LY to the base word.If the base word already ends in -Y, you change the Y to an I and then add the -LY --

quick + ly = quicklysad + ly = sadlyBut busy (ends in Y) = busily (change Y to I and add -LY)

In spoken usage, people often forget to add the -LY. However, when writing, it doesn't make your worklook colloquial or casual to omit it; it merely makes it look sloppy --

INCORRECT: Steve was real tired after his first day of work as a WordGigs proofreader.

CORRECT: Steve was really tired after his first day of work as a WordGigs proofreader.

Now let's talk about irregular adverb forms.

Sadly, some of the most common adverbs are the irregular ones. Memorizing them sounds scary, untilyou realize you already know most (if not all!) of them --

almost notalready nowherealways onlybefore quitehow sojust tooless verylittle wellmore whenmuch wherenever whyno yes

Make sure you memorize these so that when you see them, you know that they do not follow the regularpatterns.

Page 38: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

Lesson 59: Making Adverbs out of Adjectives Ending in -LE

One of the basic ideas in language is that of economy -- you only make changes if you really have to.

As you know, most adverbs (words modifying verbs) are formed by adding -LY to an adjective (wordsmodifying nouns).

However, adjectives that end in -LE save themselves the trouble of adding -LY to form adverbs; they justchange the final -E to -Y.

Add -LY to the adjective to form the adverb:

poor - poorlyrich - richly

Ending in -LE, change the final -E to -Y:

double - doublysimple - simplysubtle - subtly

Lesson 60: Adjectives - Comparative and Superlative Forms

Like adjectives, adverbs can be used to compare things.

There are three degrees of comparison with adverbs: the positive, the comparative and the superlative.

There are two basic ways to form comparison adverb forms --

First, if the adverb doesn't end in -LY, just add -ER to form the comparative; add -EST to form thesuperlative.

Examples:

soon - sooner - soonestfast - faster - fastest

Secondly, if the adverb does end in -LY, you need to use the modifiers more or less to form thecomparative, and the modifiers most and least to form the superlative.

Luckily, the spelling of the root word (also known as the positive form of the adverb) does not change atall for either the comparative or the superlative.

Examples:

simply - more simply - most simplynicely - more nicely - most nicelyabruptly - less abruptly - least abruptly

Lesson 61: Double Consonants - Beware!

Double consonants have caused more than their share of trouble for spellers:

Page 39: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

1. Sometimes they are created at the beginnings of words (see Lessons 42-44).2. Sometimes they appear at the end of words (see Lesson (we will cover them in the next two

lessons).3. And sometimes they appear in the middle!4. Finally, the letter L, when it doubles, causes different spelling problems entirely (we will have a

lesson on that as well).

In general, double consonants appear in the middle of words to control the sounds of vowels. Take theword middle from the previous sentence. If it only had one D, the short I sound would be lengthened (itwould be pronounced my'dle instead of mid'dle).

Important lesson here: Sounding words out is the best way to think about double consonants that arepart of root words.

As with many other things in life, once you know what problems to look out for, half the battle is won.

Studying the rules regarding double consonants will at least help you look out for the problem.

A later lesson will present the most commonly misspelled double consonant words.

Lesson 62: When to Double a Final Consonant

The first thing to realize when adding a suffix is that when the suffix begins with a consonant, the finalconsonant of the root word remains single:

wish + ful = wishfuldoubt + less = doubtlessquick + ly = quicklyship + ment = shipmentslow + ness = slowness

For suffixes that begin with vowels, there is a rule. It sounds a bit complicated, but it's harder to statethan to follow it:

IF the root word ends in a single consonantIF the consonant is preceded by a single vowel sound written with a single letter, andIF the vowel is stressed,THEN the final consonant is doubled.

BUT if any one of these conditions is not met, then the consonant is not doubled.

Take the word control. Let's say you want to add the suffix -ING. The question is, Do you double thefinal consonant, or not?

Test the word control against the rule given above:

1. First of all, it does end in a single consonant.2. Next, the last syllable does have a single sound, and it is spelled with only one letter (the second

o).3. Finally, that vowel is stressed, meaning that it is the sound you emphasize when you say the word.4. Since all the "IF" conditions are met, the rule says that yes, you should double the final L, and that

is correct. The word you want to spell is controlling.

Page 40: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

Let's try another!

Try the word gleam, this time trying to add the suffix -ED.

1. Does it end in a single consonant? Yes.2. It has only one vowel sound, so that must be the one being stressed.3. BUT... that vowel sound is spelled with two letters (EA) and the rule says that if you are to double

the consonant, the vowel sound has to be spelled with only one letter.4. So you don't double the consonant: gleamed.

There are two points that you have to keep in mind with this rule.

1. The first has to do with the letter Q. In English, Q is always followed by U; this rule is so strongthat the U counts as a consonant for the purposes of the the consonant doubling rules. Therefore, inthe word quit, even though it looks as though there are two vowels (UI), only one "counts." Sincequit then meets all the other conditions listed above, the final T is doubled in words like quitter orquitting.

2. Second point: Even if a consonant is silent in a word, it still counts for this rule. Since the worddelight ends in three consonants (GHT), it fails the first condition of the doubling rule, even thoughit only sounds as though it ends in one consonant. So, you don't double the final consonant indelighted.

Either a single H or a single W at the end of a word is an exception to this; neither counts as a consonant,so neither is doubled:

hoorah + ing = hoorahingfollow + ing = following

Unfortunately, there are several other notable exceptions, which are numerous enough to require theirown rule, which we will cover in the next lesson. (For more on double T, see lesson 24.)

Lesson 63: When Not to Double A Final Consonant

Naturally, there are many exceptions to the basic rule about doubling consonants, which was presented inthe previous lesson. These can be grouped by the letters or syllables they affect.

The final consonant of a compound words -- (a word made by combining two or more shorterwords) -- is always doubled, regardless of the stress pattern the compound has created, if it wouldbe doubled when not in a compound.

brim, brimmed, brimmingbroad + brim + ed = broadbrimmed

There are also a few words that pretend they are compounds, and follow this rule --

hobnob, hobnobbed, hobnobbinghumbug, humbuggery, humbuggedzigzag, zigzagged, zigzagging

Most of the words that end in the syllable -FER follow the rules. However, when they are followedby the suffixes -ABLE or -ENCE, the emphasis shifts from the -FER syllable to the first one, andso the final R is not doubled. In the word transfer, the emphasis does not shift, but the final R still

Page 41: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

isn't doubled --

confer, conferred, conferring -- but conferenceprefer, preferred, preferring -- but preferabletransfer, transferred, transferring -- but transference

Words that end in the syllable -GRAM always double the final M before a vowel, no matter wherethe emphasis goes --

program, programmed, programmer

In American English, most words ending in -L follow the basic rule given above. But there areexceptions --

The final L in parallel is never doubled -- see unparalleled

Certain adjectives that end in -OUS do not double their final -L --

miraculousperilouspopulousquerulousridiculousscandalousscurrilous

The final -L is not doubled before the following suffixes: -IZE, -ISM, -IST, and -ITY --

civil, civility, civilizeequal, equality, equalizefinal, finalist, finality, finalizenormal, normality, normalize

There are a few verbs that end in -P for which the preferred spelling does not follow the main ruleregarding doubling of final consonants --

handicap, handicapped, handicappingkidnap, kidnapped, kidnapper, kidnappingworship, worshipped, worshipper, worshipping

Since the letter X is pronounced KS in English when it falls at the end of a word, it counts as twoconsonants, not one. Thus, words that end in -X fail to meet the first condition of the rule fordoubling consonants, and do not double the final -X --

box, boxed, boxer, boxingmix, mixed, mixer, mixes, mixingsex, sexes, sexy

Finally, there are a few words where you can use either a single or a double final consonant, andboth are acceptable --

focus, focused or focussed

Page 42: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

gas, gases or gassesplus, pluses or plusses

Lesson 64: Know When to End Words With -ABLE

Although sounding words out is generally a good idea, it can also lead to problems, especially whenthings sound alike.

Many people get confused about whether a word should end with -ABLE or -IBLE, for instance. Thereare a couple of rules that can help you know when to end words with -ABLE (see the next lesson forguidance on ending words with -IBLE).

If the word in question ends with either a hard C sound (pronounced as a K) or a hard G sound(pronounced as a G), it must end in -ABLE:

amicabledespicableimplacablenavigable

If it were to end with -IBLE, the I would soften the C and the G and change the pronunciation to S and J,respectively.

If the stem of the words makes up a complete English word in and of itself, the suffix is usually -ABLE:

adapt + able = adaptablebreak + able = breakablefashion + able = fashionablelaugh + able = laughablepay + able = payable

Unfortunately, there are quite a few exceptions to these rules, which we will be discussing in upcominglessons.

Next lesson: Ending words with -IBLE...

Lesson 65: Know When to End Words With -IBLE

Both the -ABLE and the -IBLE suffixes come from Latin. That language had its own rules about whenthe different forms should be used, but unfortunately those rules have not translated well into English,leaving us with a muddle, to be honest. Here are a couple of rules that can help you identify words thatend in -IBLE:

If the stem of the word is not a complete English word, the suffix is usually -IBLE.

Words such as "aud," "cred," "elig," and "vis"are not words unto themselves, and therefore -IBLE is theappropriate suffix for them.

This would produce the words audible, credible, eligible, and visible. If you try to use -ABLE there itwould look funny and incorrect to your well-practiced eye.

Page 43: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

If you can add -ION to the root word (not -ATION or -ITION, just -ION) and create a related word,then the correct suffix will most likely be -IBLE --

corrupt + ion = corruption corrupt + ible - corruptible

interrupt + ion = interruptioninterrupt + ible = interruptible

perfect + ion = perfectionperfect + ible = perfectible

Once again, there are (unfortunately) many exceptions to the above rules -- so look for lessons coveringthose.

Lesson 66: Exceptions in Words Ending With -ABLE or -IBLE

English being the language of exceptions, there are quite a few exceptions to the rules governing whethera word ends in -ABLE or -IBLE.

Perhaps the most helpful rule is this: Know that many more words end in -ABLE than in -IBLE. If youmust guess, odds are in -ABLE's favor.

Then again, remember that there are a few words which waffle, and take either -ABLE or -IBLE. Theseare annoying if you are the type of speller who goes by the look of a word, but they are marvelous if youare the type who cannot remember which ending to use:

collectable - or collectiblecorrectable - or correctibledetectable - or detectible

Here is a list of fifteen words that take -IBLE even though the rules say they should take -ABLE:

collapsible forciblecontemptible gullibleconvertible indestructibleconvincible inflexiblededucible irresistiblediscernible reducibleflexible responsiblesensible

Now, to be fair, here is a list of seventeen words that, according to the rules, should end in -IBLE butactually end in -ABLE:

affable inexorableamenable inscrutablearable malleableculpable memorableequitable palpableformidable predictableindomitable probable

Page 44: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

ineffable unconscionableinevitable vulnerable

Lesson 67: Knowing When to End Words With -ACY or -ASY

Another pair of endings that often causes trouble is -ACY and -ASY.

Fortunately, keeping these straight is not terribly difficult.

To begin, with, there are are very few words that end in -ASY:

apostasyecstasyfantasyidiosyncrasy

Words ending in -ACY are generally related to words ending in -CRAT and -ATE:

aristocrat - aristocracybureaucrat - bureaucracydemocrat - democracydelicate - delicacyintimate - intimacyprivate - privacy

Actually, the word people most often get confused about doesn't end with either -ACY or -ASY,although these are the common choices.

The word most people mess up is HYPOCRISY.

In that case, remembering the related forms of the word can help: They are hypocritical and hypocrite.

Lesson 68: Know When to And Words With -ANCE

Also problematic are the endings -ANCE and -ENCE.

2 rules are included here that can help you know when to and words with -ANCE (see the next lesson 4words ending in -ENCE). The good news is that these rules also apply to words ending in -ANT or -ANCY (most of the time!).

For starters, if the letter before the ending is a hard C or a hard G (pronounced K or G), then theword will end with -ANCE:

arroganceelegancesignificance

Exceptions occur when the G is a soft J sound. In these cases, a letter I or a letter an E precedes the-ANCE, as in the two examples below:

allegiancevengeance

Page 45: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

Words that are related to verbs ending in-ATE or nouns ending in -ATION generally and in -ANCE:

domination-dominanceresonate-resonancesubstantiate-substancetolerate-tolerance

Exception: violate-violence

Nouns formed from verbs ending in -EAR, -URE, or -Y and in -ANCE:

appear-appearanceforebear-forbearanceassure-assurance

Lesson 69: Know When to End Words With -ENCE

In our continuing adventure in good spelling, we now come to the point where you need to know when toend words with -ENCE.

Once again, there are some useful rules, and some annoying exceptions.

As with words ending in -ANCE, -ANT, and -ANCY, these rules also apply (in most cases) to wordsending in -ENT or -ENCY.

One good basic rule states that nouns formed from verbs ending in -ERE will end in -ENCE:

adhere - adherencecohere - coherenceinhere - inherenceinterfere - interference

But note exception: persevere - perseverance

Sound can give you some clues. If the letter before the ending is a soft C or G (pronounced S or J),then the word will end with -ENCE. Many of these words have -ISC or -ESC in the second-to-lastsyllable:

adolescenceeffervescenceintelligencenegligencereminiscencereticence

There are also several syllables that are usually followed by -ENCE; these include --

-CID-FID-SID-VID

Page 46: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

-FLU-QU-SIST

Examples:incidenceconfidencesubsidenceprovidenceinfluencesequenceinsistence

But note exceptions: assistance, resistance

Lesson 70: The Eight Words That End in Either -ANT or -ENT

There is a set of exceptions to all of the previous rules dealing with suffixes, and they refer to eight luckywords that can end in either -ANT or -ENT, depending on whether they are being used as nouns oradjectives.

This distinction is blurring in our language as time goes by, and dictionaries have begun to accept bothforms, but for the sake of clarity you should know the rule -- and the eight words involved.

When used as nouns:dependantdescendantpendantpropellant

When used as adjectives:dependentdescendentpendentpropellent

In other words --

If a child depends on you, he/she is dependent on you (adjective)...

... so you can claim him/her as a dependant on your tax forms (noun).

Of course, English being English, there is one word which is an exception to this exception!

There is only one correct spelling for the word independent, no matter how it is used.

If you do not belong to any political party you are not only politically independent (adjective), you are anindependent (noun).

Lesson 71: Words Ending in -ARY, -ERY, or -ORY

Once again, we come across this helpful guideline: thinking about the meaning of the word you want to

Page 47: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

use can help your spelling of it.

For example, there are several ways you can tell when to end words with -ARY, -ERY, or -ORY.

Verbs or "doer" nouns ending in -ER are often related to words ending in -ERY, while similarwords ending in -AR or -OR often end in -ARY or -ORY:

baker - bakerydeliver - deliverydirector - directoryburglar - burglary

Almost all of the words that end in -ERY are nouns.

Think about the word you want to spell: Is it a noun? If not, it probably won't end in -ERY:

stationery (a noun, a kind of writing paper)stationary (adjective, meaning immobile)

Exceptions:

blisteryblusteryplasterysplinteryslippery

If you can replace the -RY ending with -ION and create another English word, then the correctending is most likely -ORY:

access + ion = accessionaccess + ory = accessory

direct + ion = directiondirect + ory = directory

If the stem of a noun ending in -RY is a recognizable English word, then the ending is most likelygoing to be -ERY. If not, it will probably be -ORY or -ARY:

cream - creamerydebauch - debauchery

Notice that "vocabul" is not a word in English, nor is "laborat" so we make them vocabulary andlaboratory (with -ORY).

Exceptions (ugh!):

dictionaryhonoraryinfirmarylegionarymissionary

Page 48: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

secretarytributaryvisionaryartillerycemeterydysenteryeffronterygallery

(Don't you just love the English language? Soooo consistent, right?)

Lesson 72: Spelling Words That End in -C

Sometimes spelling changes occur for logical phonetic reasons, such as preserving particular sounds.

One such change is that words ending in -C often add a -K before suffixes beginning with E, I, orY to protect the hard C (K) sound --

panic - panicking - panicked - panickypicnic - picnicking - picnicked

Exceptions:

arctalczinc

Of course, if the word in question doesn't keep the hard C sound, no K is added --

critic + ize = criticizeitalic + ize = italicizedomestic + ity = domesticityelectric + ity = electricity

Lesson 73: Words Ending In -CE ... or Should It Be -SE?

Another popular pitfall for spellers is recognizing when words should end in -CE or -SE. Fortunately,there are several helpful rules to guide you --

Words that are pronounced with a Z sound are spelled -SE:

advisedeviseexerciserefuse (when pronounced as the verb "re-fuse," not as the noun "ref-use," which means garbage)revise

Words that are pronounced with an S sound immediately following a vowel are spelled -CE:

advicedevicejustice

Page 49: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

liceofficevoice

However, there are some exceptions (words pronounced with S after the vowel, but NOT spelled -CE)

houselousemouseobtuseprofuserefuse (the noun)

Words that are pronounced with an s sound following a consonant can be spelled with either an -SE or a -CE. When in doubt, be aware that the -CE ending is far more common:

-CEadvancecommencecommercedancefencefinancehencepencepronounceromancesince

-SEendorserecompensesense

Adjectives ending in an -ENS sound are spelled -SE:

denseimmensetense

Finally, nouns that are related to adjectives ending in either -ANT or -ENT are spelled with -CE:

absorbent - absorbencedifferent - differencetolerant - tolerance

Lesson 74: Words Ending in -CEDE, -CEED, and -SEDE

People often get tangled in trying to remember whether a given word ends in -CEDE, -CEED, or -SEDE.Fortunately, the rule here is actually quite clear: Most end in -CEDE --

Page 50: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

accedeprecederecede

The good news is that there are only three words in English that end in -CEED:

exceedproceedsucceed

And the best news is that there is only one word in the English language that ends in -SEDE:

supersede

You should commit the above spellings to memory as there are so few of them...

Lesson 75: When to Spell Words With -CH and When to Spell Them With -TCH

As is often the case, people get confused when there is more than one way to represent a given sound.

This often happens with -CH and -TCH, since both of these spellings give a -CH sound. Luckily, there isa three-part rule that covers almost every instance where this choice arises --

(1) If the letter that precedes the CH sound is a consonant, use -CH:

archbranchtorch

(2) If the letter that precedes the CH sound is a vowel sound written with a single letter, use -TCH:

catchfetchwatch

(3) If what precedes the CH sound is a vowel sound written with more than one letter, use -CH:

approachbroochmoochleechtouch

There are only 11 English words that do not fit this overall pattern.

One of them, the spelled-out name of the letter H, adds a T after a double vowel, where it does notbelong (aitch).

All the others have -CH where a -TCH would normally be expected:

attachdetach

Page 51: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

enrichmuchostrichrichsandwichspinachsuchwhich

Lesson 76: Words Ending in -E (Pt.1)

I wonder, how many would-be spelling champions has the pesky final -E dethroned over the years? Oneshudders to think!

The "final e" plays an important part in the spelling of many words, since it often governs an earliervowel, but the real trouble arises when words that end in -E have to be combined with suffixes.Sometimes it's easy -- but all to often it's not.

We will delve into the deep mysteries of "final e" in the next few lessons, but for this lesson we presentthis one basic, fundamental rule:

When words end in -E, they generally drop the final -E before suffixes that begin with vowels --and keep the final -E before suffixes that begin with consonants:

Drop the -E (suffix begins with a vowel):

note + able = notableculture + al = culturalguide + ance = guidanceadore + ation = adorationadmire + er = admirer

Keep the -E (suffix begins with a consonant):

use + ful = usefultime + less = timelessawe + some = awesomesafe + ty = safety

Alas, however, there are a great many exceptions to this "base rule" which will be discussed in the nexthalf-dozen lessons ...

Lesson 77: Words Ending in -E (Pt.2)

Among the many exceptions to the basic rule of when to keep or drop a final -E (see last lesson), onesays the following:

In order to preserve soft C and G sounds (sounding like S and J), the final -E should not bedropped before suffixes beginning with A or O:

change + able = changeablecourage + ous = courageous

Page 52: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

peace + able = peaceableknowledge + able = knowledgeable

Lesson 78: Words Ending in -E (Pt.3)

There are times when spelling rules must bend for the sake of coherence and sanity, and this is one ofthose times.

Verbs that end in -E keep their ending, even before an -ING suffix, if necessary to distinguishbetween words that would otherwise look the same.

In other words, there are a few cases where dropping the final -E would create two identical words withdifferent meanings.

To avoid mass confusion, a little spelling confusion is preferable --

singe - singeing (as distinct from sing - singing)tinge - tingeing (as distinct from ting - tinging)

Fortunately, these are the only examples of this rule left in modern English (the other words it applied tohave fallen into disuse over the years).

Lesson 79: Words Ending in -E (Pt.4)

Continuing our tour through "final E" spellings ...

There are some spelling rules that do make sense, given certain fundamental rules of the language as awhole.

For example, English does not generally recognize a double i as an acceptable letter pattern (there are afew exceptions: skiing, etc.).

Therefore, if verbs which end in -IE followed the basic rule (of dropping the final -E before suffixesbeginning with vowels) these verbs would have a double I whenever -ING was added.

This is unacceptable, so we have this exception rule:

Verbs that end in -IE change to a -Y before an -ING suffix:

die - dyinglie - lyingtie - tying

Lesson 80: Words Ending in -E (Pt.5)

Today, for a different approach, we'll just state the spelling rule, and then discuss it:

Verbs ending in -OE, -EE and -YE keep the final -E before all suffixes except those beginningwith E.

This rule holds true for the simple reason that the words would be almost impossible to say if you didn'tfollow this rule. You would wind up with something unpronounceable, or simply non-English (such as atriple E combination).

Page 53: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

Examples:

agree - agreeing - agreeable (but watch out for agreed)dye - dyeing (but dyed)hoe - hoeing (but hoed)

Imagine if there were no -E exception to this rule.

We would see words such as she fleed, or he examineed!

In the interest of avoiding such spelling chaos, it has become necessary to modify such verbs whenadding suffixes.

Lesson 81: Words Ending in -E (Pt.6)

There is yet another time when you keep the final -E when you would not otherwise expect to, and that isbefore the suffix -Y in words that end in -UE:

glue - gluey

You also hold onto the final -E with the following, random-seeming list of words (although alternatespellings that drop the -E have become acceptable in a few cases) --

cage - cagey [alternate spelling cagy is acceptable]dice - diceymate - mateyprice - pricey [ alt. spelling pricy]nose - nosey [alt. spelling nosy]

Keep in mind that different spellings can change meanings: Holy means "sacred," holly is a type of plant,while holey means "full of holes."

Lesson 82: Words Ending in -E (Pt.7)

In our final installment about spelling words that end in -E, there are a bunch of exceptions to all therules regarding what to do with words ending in -E. These are grouped as follows:

There are four adjectives that end in -E which have odd adverbial forms:

due - dulytrue - trulyeerie - eerilywhole - wholly

Some words have alternate spellings that are acceptable; the first is regular, the other irregular:

cuing or cueinglikable or likeablemilage or mileagemovable or moveablesizable or sizeable

Page 54: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

Some words are just "exceptions":

acreage, not acrageageism, not agismawful, not awefulfledgling, not fledgelingninth, not nineth

You now know all the rules for dealing with words that end in -E. Congratulations!

Lesson 83: Words Ending in -IFY and -EFY

Sometimes people get mixed up when they try to remember which words end in -IFY and which end in -EFY. Fortunately, this mix up is easy to sort out --

There are only four common English words that end in -EFY:

liquefyputrefyrarefystupefy

All the rest end in -IFY:

falsifyrectifybeautify

Lesson 84: The Most Commonly Misspelled Words With Double Consonants

In previous Spelling Strategies lessons we have covered spelling the double letter combinations CC,MM, RR, and SS.

But... How does one recognize which words are spelled with single consonants and which have double?

Is it accomodate, acomodate, or acommodate?

Actually, all three are wrong and if you guessed any of them you shouldn't be embarrassed, because youare in the majority.

The correct spelling is accommodate, with two C's and two M's.

Perhaps the best way to remember this fact is through a memory device: the word needs room toaccommodate the two C's and two M's.

Other troublesome words that wreak havoc among spellers are:

accessibleaccompanyaccomplishmentaccurateaccustomed

Page 55: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

commissioncurriculumoccurrenceomissionrecommendation

Memorize the spellings of all the above words.

If it's easier for you, put into separate memory all of the words that use double letters and all of those thatuse single letters.

Once you get the hang of it, you'll find that the bad spellings actually appear wrong to your eye.

On those occasions, trust your now well-developed instincts and sound out the pronunciation.

If ever in doubt, consult your dictionary before submitting any writing with questionable spelling.

Lesson 85: Know When to End Words With -IOUS or -EOUS

When choosing whether or not to spell a word with either -IOUS or -EOUS as the ending, be aware thatonce again, the English language plays favorites.

Most words that end with this sound end in -IOUS:

anxiouscautiousglorioustedious

Most of the words that end in -EOUS are technical or scientific words (many of them which end in-ACEOUS). Here are the common -EOU words:

aqueous herbaceousadvantageous heterogeneousbeauteous hideousbounteous homogeneousconsanguineous instantaneouscontemporaneous miscellaneouscourageous nauseouscourteous outrageouscurvaceous piteousdiscourteous righteouserroneous simultaneousextraneous spontaneousgorgeous vitreous

Lesson 86: Know When to End Verbs With -ISE or -IZE

This is just not a question of American versus British usage (see Lesson 3). In American English, mostverbs take -IZE, but there are some which must take -ISE:

braise

Page 56: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

raisepromisereprise

If the -ISE is part of the root word, instead of being a suffix, the word will be written -ISE:

advertise franchiseadvise improviseapprise incisechastise premisecircumcise revisecomprise risecompromise surmisedevise surprisedisguise televiseexcise

If the ending is being added to a recognizable English word, it should be spelled -IZE:

critic + ize = criticizeitem + ize = itemizemodern + ize = modernize

Lesson 87: Some Verbs End With -YZE, not -IZE

Okay, so now you know how to tell when a word is likely to end in either -ISE or -IZE.

Here comes the curve: There are a few verbs that end with -YZE. Don't panic though, as there are notvery many:

analyzebreathalyzeparalyzepsychoanalyze

Paralyze is really the exception here, since the others are really just variants on analyze. Breathalyze is arather (ugly) new verb, formed from the name of the machine that police use to analyze the breath ofsomeone suspected of being drunk (a breathalyzer).

The only other thing you need to remember about these words is that in British English, they are alwaysspelled -YSE.

Lesson 88: Know What to do With the Letter L

For some reason, the letter L causes a lot more trouble in the English language than most others. TheJapanese, of course, are well known to have difficulty pronouncing it, but native English speakers oftenhave just as much trouble knowing what to do with it when it comes to spelling.

To make life even more fun, this is one of the areas where American and British usage different the most(see Lesson 3). Here are some rules that should help clear up some of the confusion.

Perhaps the most basic question that arises is, should there be one L or two at the end of a

Page 57: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

word? If the word is only one syllable and has only one vowel letter, it will probably end in twoL's. (Words that are based on compounds of these, such as recall or hell-bent, still follow the rule.)If not, then it ends with one L –

bell appealcall initialfill soilmull trailtoll wool

Exceptions:

galgelnilpal

The big difference between American and British usage comes when it is time to use (or not use) doubleL's. For a full discussion of this, see Lessons 62 and 63 on doubling consonants.

Keep in mind that a final double LL drops one L before the suffix -LY; this is easy toremember, because English never allows the same letter to repeat three times in a row (which iswhat would happen if you kept LL and added -LY = LLLY).

In general, though, the double LL remains before suffixes that begin with consonants. (This istrue in American English, but not British; the only suffix it is true for in England is -NESS.)

Examples:

dullnessenrollmentskillfulthralldomwillful (or willful; both spellings are acceptable)

Exceptions:

fulsomethe suffix -T (smell, spell, spill + T = smelt, spelt, split)

And finally there are, as always, a few specific words that do their own thing. In this case, thesecond L drops out for no discernible reason:

belfry (from bell)chilblain (from chill)welfare (from well)

Lesson 89: Words Ending In -OUS and -US

Another area of confusion arises concerning the difference between words ending in -OUS or -US.

Page 58: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

Happily, there is an easy rule to remember:

Words that end in -OUS are adjectives and words that end in -US are nouns.

The only exceptions are adjectives that are taken directly from the Latin (which use -US as an adjectivalending).

Adjectives:

dangerousdesirousimpetuousfamousspacious

Nouns:

cactusimpetusopusvirus

Exceptions: emeritus (an adjective, but has the noun ending of -US)

Lesson 90: Know Which Words End in -CION and -CIAN

Today's lesson has a rule which actually amounts to being a trick, since there are actually only twocommon words in the whole English language that ended in -CION:

coercionsuspicion

However, there are a bunch of words that end in -CIAN, which creates some difficulties now and then.

As it happens, the words that end in -CIAN are almost all based on words ending in -IC, -ICS, or -ICAL.Pay special attention to the rule that words ending in -AL, such as clinical, drop these two letterswhen forming a -CIAN word, such as clinician. The majority of -CIAN words describe anindividual's job or occupation:

magic – magicianmusic – musiciantechnical – technician

Lesson 91: Which Words End in -TION

It is much more complicated to know which words end in -TION than in -CION (see last lesson).However, there are some ways to approach the problem --

After a vowel, if the ending of the word is pronounced [SHUN] it will be written -TION:

addition

Page 59: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

educationpositionstation

EXCEPTION: There are some words that end in a [SHUN] sound, but are spelled with a -SSIONending. Fortunately, they are a limited group – they are almost always based on words which endin -SS, -MIT, or -CEDE:

discuss – discussionobsess – obsessionproceed – processiontransmit – transmission

Words that have any other letters than L, N, or R (see next lesson) preceding the suffix almostalways take -TION:

actiondefectionreception

EXCEPTION: torsion

Four words related to or based on words or roots of words which end in -T or -TAIN, after theconsonants N or R, the ending is usually spelled -TION:

abstain – abstainassert – assertioninvent – intervention

EXCEPTIONS:

attentioncontentionintentionmentionportionproportion

Lesson 92: Words Ending in -SION

The final piece of the -ION puzzle involves knowing which words end in -SION. Again, there are somerules to help you.

After a vowel, if the ending of the word is pronounced [ZHUN], it will be written -SION:

adhesiondecisionpersuasionvision

After the consonant L, the ending is written -SION:

Page 60: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

emulsionexpulsionpropulsion

Words that are related to or based on words ending in -D or -SE also take an -SION ending:

ascend – ascensioncomprehend – comprehensionimmerse – immersion

Exceptions:

Conversiondiversionextroversionintroversionaspersiondimensionexcursionincursionmansionpensionrecursionscansiontensionversion

Lesson 93: Remember to use Apostrophes Correctly

Apostrophes are the little punctuation marks that are used to indicate contractions and possession: Theylook like this (').

Generally, of course, their use is discussed in grammar and punctuation books, and we also touched onthe use of apostrophes in our lesson series Grammar Guidance. However, misuse of apostrophes cancreate spelling mistakes, so they deserve some mention here as well.

One common source of error is how to use apostrophes after abbreviations. The rule is thatabbreviations followed by periods take apostrophes, but others do not.

A store offering a sale on"CD's" should cut not only their prices but also that incorrect apostrophe! (i.e.,it should be CDs not CD's) On the other hand, if a Ph.D. candidate wants to talk about her dissertation,she needs that apostrophe, since it is a Ph.D.'s thesis (and Ph.D. has periods).

There are some' rules to keep in mind when spelling words that indicate possession. Possessivesare nouns that indicate ownership. To form the possessive of a singular noun, add 's. This holdstrue even if the word already ends with S –

Charles's hathorse's tailrecord's jacket

Apostrophes for surnames can be confusing, especially when referring to a possessive plural. If

Page 61: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

one is referring to a husband and wife who have a shared surname ending in the S, it's typical toadd an -ES' to let the reader know that both individuals are included in the possession –

Herb Smith – Mr. Smith's dogHerbert and Myrtle Smith – the Smiths' dogJane and John Williams – the Williamses' cat

Possessives for plural words are formed by adding only the apostrophe –

Two clubs' joint meeting placestudents' study areabooks' covers

Finally, apostrophes are also used to indicate omission. Contracted words always require anapostrophe to show that letters have been left out –

don't (represents the omitted O)y'all (represents the omitted OU)can't (represents the omitted NO)she'll (represents the omitted WI)

Lesson 94: Remember What "etc." Stands for and How to Spell it

Another example of the mischief abbreviations can make in spelling comes with the term etc. It iscommonly used, but many people forget (or fail to realize altogether) that it is an abbreviation of theLatin phrase et cetera meaning "and other things." Forgetting where it comes from, people have foundsome creative new spellings for the term (such as typing ect instead of etc or leaving out the period at theend). Stick with the correct one!

Since English is, to a certain extent, taking over the word, there is also now an acceptable English pluralform: etceteras. This is used (occasionally) to refer to a miscellany of odds and ends. The standardabbreviation etc. should generally be kept only in fairly casual writing.

Lesson 95: When All Else Fails, Use Memory Devices

If you find that rote memorization is not always a reliable way to remember tricky spellings, try usingmemory devices.

Try to come up with phrases or ideas that you can associate with the spelling of particular words.

Also known as mnemonic devices, these memory aids work best if you make them up yourself.

The most popular spelling device is the adage "I before E except after C, or when sounded like ay as inneighbor or weigh," which is helpful for spelling many words such as friend and receive.

Here are some more memory devices that you may want to remember –

Weird: weird is spelled weirdly, an exception to the "I before E" rule.Secretary: a secretary can keep your secrets. (This will prevent you from spelling it "secratary.")Principal: a principal is a person who is your pal. (This will help avoid confusion with "principle,"meaning doctrine.)Knowledgeable: a knowledgeable person remembers the "silent E".

Page 62: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

Omission: your mission is not to forget the second S in omission.Cemetery: the cemetery gravestones are full of cement.Manageable: you can make the spelling of this word manageable if you manage to include theletter E.Parallel: remember that the word parallel as two L's, running parallel to each other.Governor: remember that the word govern governs in the spelling of Governor.

Lesson 96: Don't Trust Your Spell-Checker!

One question that may have been in the back of your mind as we have been going through these spellinglessons is this: Why should anyone bother to learn how to spell anymore, when it seems that computersall have spell-check programs?

The reason why learning how to spell using only your mind-power is important, is because no matterhow weak a speller you are, and no matter how powerful your computer is, you are still 1 million timessmarter than any spell-check program that is yet available.

Computers seem smart, because they can do certain operations with incredible speed. But, all they'rereally doing is following the instructions they are given, no more. There isn't a spell-check programavailable today smart enough to recognize the error in this sentence:

BAD: "I just came form the dentist."

Why won't a spell-checker spot that error? Because the word form is a legitimate English word.Unfortunately, in the above example, it is a typo for the word from.

A human proofreader would catch this, because he or she would read the sentence and see at once that, incontext, this is not the right word.

This is exactly the sort of thing many spelling mistakes come down to – and in such cases spellcheckers are of no help. If your error creates an unrecognizable pattern, then the spell-checker will catchit, but otherwise it may not.

Alternatively, if the error is serious enough, the spell-checker may suggest a completely different wordthan the one you want. If you are depending on it too heavily, you may have no way to find the correctspelling of the word that you do want.

Moreover, you have to keep in mind that not all spell-checkers are created equal. If you are used torelying on a full-scale, customized dictionary as part of your spell-check program, you will be in for arude shock the first time you use another system that isn't as sophisticated as yours.

This doesn't mean you shouldn't use your spell-checker at all. On the contrary, it can be very helpful incatching typos and some misspellings. Just don't think that they can take the place of your ownknowledge.

In the end, your judgment and ability to reason will prevail over the technical capability of any machine.

Lesson 97: Some Final Thoughts

Today we present the last of our Spelling Strategies lessons. Congratulations on making it this far!

In these lessons, as you have seen, we have presented a lot of "rules" and "strategies" to help you become

Page 63: 6SHOOLQJ 6WUDWHJLHV 7LSV WR 0DNH LW (DVLHU

a better speller.

There is one thing left to discuss -- How will all these rules help you? After all, you can't memorize (oreven partially recall) all of them. So what use are they?

Let us leave you with a practical, step-by-step strategy to implement:

1. Think about the words you most often misspell -- perhaps try to come up with a specific list writtendown (or typed out). What types of words get that "red underline" when your copy is spell-checked? Do you find the same words being tagged over and over? These are the words you needto focus on.

2. Look over these spelling lessons and see which of the rules we have presented apply to thosewords.

3. In particular, be on the lookout for certain types of words that you misspell often, and find therule(s) that would apply, that would help you.

4. That "short list" of rules that apply particularly to your types of spelling mistakes are the rules thatyou should review, understand and (if necessary) memorize. There is no need to focus onspelling rules for words that you know how to spell correctly.

5. If you are (horrors!) a really bad speller, and need to learn a good number of rules, don't panic.Begin with the rule that will help you to learn to spell the greatest number of words correctly,and focus on one rule/strategy per week. Take it slow -- review often -- if you get confused backaway and give yourself some time. You'll eventually get them all under your belt, but it will taketime.

6. You can test yourself: do some writing in a text editor that has no automatic spell-checker. Typeout your copy and then copy/paste it in an application that will spell-check it. See how well you do-- and strive to improve your results!

7. Remember that English is a complex and nuanced language and learning to spell can be a difficultslog -- but it can be done with effort and a plan.