How to master English spelling. How to remember the spelling of English words What is spelling in English
At the beginning of a syllable it represents the sound /ɡ/, as in the word ghost(pronounced /ˈɡoʊst/). Moreover, often the position of a letter (or letters) in a word prohibits a certain pronunciation. Yes, digraph gh cannot be pronounced as /f/ at the beginning of a syllable, and cannot be pronounced as /ɡ/ at the end of a syllable. (Thus, the pronunciation of the word ghoti How fish doesn't follow the rules.)
Origin of words
Other pronunciation features are related to the origin of words. For example, the letter y at the beginning or middle of a word means a sound in some Greek loanwords, while usually this sound is indicated by a letter i. Yes, word myth(pronounced /ˈmɪθ/) is of Greek origin, and pith(pronounced /ˈpɪθ/) - Germanic. More examples: th stands for /t/ (usually represented by the letter t), ph for /f/ (usually f) And ch for /k/ (usually c or k) - the use of this spelling often indicates the Greek origin of the words.
Some, such as Brengelman (1970), have argued that such spelling not only marks the origin of the words, but also indicates a more formal style of the text. However, Rollins (2004) considers this an exaggeration, since many words with this pronunciation are also used in informal text, e.g. telephone (ph read /f/).
Homophone differences
Letters are also used to differentiate homonyms, which would otherwise have the same pronunciation and spelling but different meanings. Words hour And our pronounced the same( /ˈaʊ(ə)r/) in some dialects, and differ orthographically by adding a letter h. Another example is homophones plain And plane, both are pronounced /ˈpleɪn/, but differ in the orthographic representation of the vowel /eɪ/.
In writing, this helps to deal with ambiguity that would otherwise arise (cf. He's breaking the car And He's braking the car). In written language (as opposed to spoken language), the reader usually cannot turn to the author for clarification (whereas in a conversation the listener can ask the speaker). Some spelling reform advocates believe that homophones are undesirable and should be eliminated. This would, however, increase orthographic ambiguities that would need to be distinguished by context.
Indication of changes in the sound of other letters
Another function of English letters is to indicate other aspects of pronunciation or the word itself. Rollins (2004) used the term “markers” for letters that perform this function. Letters can indicate different types of information. One of these types is an indication of the different pronunciation of another letter within a word. For example, the letter e in a word cottage(pronounced ˈkɒtɨdʒ) indicates that the previous letter g should be read /dʒ/. This is in stark contrast to the more common pronunciation g at the end of a word with the sound /ɡ/, as in the word tag(pronounced /ˈtæɡ/).
The same letter can indicate different pronunciation features. In addition to the previous example, the letter e may also indicate changes in the pronunciation of other vowels. For example, in the word ban letter a is read as /æ/, and in bane it is marked with an end e and is read /eɪ/.
Non-functional letters
Some letters have no linguistic function. In Old and Middle English, /v/ was an allophone of /f/ between two vowels. Removing the historical trailing neutral vowel at the end of words such as give and have, phonetically separates /v/. English orthography did not evolve along with pronunciation, so there is a general graphotactic restriction on words ending in v. Words that are written with ending v(For example, rev And Slav), are relatively rare.
Multiple functionality
One letter can perform several functions. For example, the letter i in a word cinema and denotes the sound /ɪ/ and indicates that the letter c should be read /s/, not /k/.
Implicit representation
Story
The most important rules
Reading rules
Vowels
As part of a generative approach to English spelling, Rollins identifies twenty basic vowels in stressed syllables, grouped into four categories: lax ( Lax), tense ( Tense), long ( Heavy), tense-r ( Tense-R). (This classification is based on orthography, so not all orthographically relaxed vowels are necessarily phonetically relaxed).
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The last two columns contain analogues of relaxed and tense vowels before r.
For example the letter a can represent a relaxed vowel /æ/, a tense /eɪ/, a long /ɑr/ or /ɑː/, or a tense-r /ɛr/ or /ɛə/.
Tense sounds are distinguished from non-tense sounds by the “silent” e ( English), added at the end of a word. So the letter a V hat- unstressed /æ/, but when added e in a word hate, letter a- tense /eɪ/. Likewise, long and tense -r vowels together follow a pattern: the letters ar V car- long /ɑr/, letters ar, followed by a silent e in a word care- /ɛər/. Letter u denotes two vowel patterns: one /ʌ/, /juː/, /ər/, /jʊr/, other /ʊ/, /uː/, /ʊr/. Long and relaxed -r vowels with letter o do not differ, but the letter u in the model /ʊ-uː-ʊr/ there is no long term option.
There is another way to indicate tense and tense -r besides silent e: An additional orthographically vowel is added, forming a digraph. In this case, the first vowel is usually the main vowel, and the second is the "pointer". For example, in the word man letter a- relaxed and pronounced /æ/, but adding i(digraph ai) in a word main indicates that the letter a tense and pronounced /eɪ/. These two methods produce words that are spelled differently but pronounced the same way, for example mane(not mine e), main(digraph) and Maine(both ways). Using two different methods allows you to distinguish between words that would otherwise be homonyms.
In addition, Rollins distinguishes the categories of reduced vowels (meaning the sounds /ə, ɪ/) and others (meaning the sounds /ɔɪ, aʊ, aɪr, aʊr/, as well as /j/ +vowel, /w/ +vowel, vowel+vowel).
Consonants
Using a table:
- The hyphen (-) has two meanings. A hyphen after a letter means that the letter must be at the beginning layer G A, for example j- in jumper and ajar. A hyphen before a letter means that the letter should not be at the beginning layer V A, for example -ck in sick and ticket.
- Particular rules take precedence over general ones, for example "c- before e, i, or y" takes precedence over the general rule for "c".
- The “at the end of a word” rules continue to apply even if an ending is added to the word to inflect it, for example catalogue s.
- The table uses standard (British) pronunciation.
- Rare words are indicated in small font.
- The table does not include rare words borrowed from other languages.
Writing | Basic Reading (MFA) | Examples | Other options (MFA) |
---|---|---|---|
b, -bb | /b/ | b it, ra bb it | |
c before e, i or y | /s/ | c entre, c ity, c yst, fa c e,prin c e | /tʃ/ c ello /ʃ/ spe c ial /k/ C elts |
c | /k/ | c at, c ross | |
-cc before e or i | /ks/ | a cc ept | /tʃ/ cappu cc ino |
-cc | /k/ | a cc ount | |
ch | /tʃ/ | ch in | /k/ ch ord, ar ch aic /ʃ/ ma ch ine, para ch ute, ch ef |
-ck | /k/ | ta ck, ti ck et | |
ct- | /t/ | ct enoid | |
d, -dd | /d/ | d ive, la dd er | /dʒ/gra d uate, gra d ual (both can also be pronounced /dj/ in standard English) |
-dg before e, i, or y | /dʒ/ | le dg er | |
f, -ff | /f/ | f ine,o ff | /v/ o f |
g before e, i or y | /dʒ/ | g entle, ma g ic, g yrate,pa g e,colle g e | /ɡ/
g et, g ive, g irl, be g in /ʒ/gara g e |
g, -gg | /ɡ/ | g o, g reat, sta gg er | |
gh- | /ɡ/ | gh ost, gh astly | |
-gh | Ø | dou gh, hi gh | /f/lau gh, enou gh |
-ght | /t/ | ri ght, dau ght er, bou ght | |
gn- | /n/ | gn ome, gn aw | |
h- after ex | Ø | ex h ibit, ex h aust | /h/ ex h ale |
h- | /h/ | h e, alco h ol | Øve h icle h onest, h ono(u)r |
j- | /dʒ/ | j ump, a j ar | /j/ Hallelu j ah /ʒ/ J ean Ø Mari j uana |
k | /k/ | k ey, ba k e | |
kn- | /n/ | kn ee, kn ock | |
l, -ll- | /l/ | l ine, va ll ey | |
-ll, -l- | /ɫ/ | a ll,wha l e | |
-ll, -l- in some dialects | /l/ | a ll,wha l e | |
m, -mm | /m/ | m ine, ha mm er | |
-mb | /m/ | cli mb, plu mb er | |
mn- | /n/ | mn emonic | |
-mn | /m/ | hy mn, auto mn | |
-n before /k/ | /ŋ/ | li n k, plo n k,a n chor | |
n, -nn | /n/ | n ice, fu nn y | |
-ng | /ŋ/ | lo ng,si ng i ng | /ŋɡ/E ng land, fi ng er, stro ng er /ndʒ/da ng er, passe ng er |
p, -pp | /p/ | p ill, ha pp y | |
ph | /f/ | ph ysical, ph otogra ph | /p/ Ph uket /v/ Ste ph en |
pn- | /n/ | pn eumonia, pn eumatic | |
ps- | /s/ | ps ychology, ps ychic | |
pt- | /t/ | pt omaine | |
q | /k/ | Ira q | |
r-, -rr | /r/ | r ay, pa rr ot | |
rh, -rrh | /r/ | rh yme, dia rrh oea | |
-r, -rr, -rrh before a consonant |
Ø in non-rhotic dialects such as standard English, /r/ in rhotic dialects such as American English |
ba r, ba r e, cata rrh | |
-s- between vowels | /z/ | ro s e,pri s on | /s/ hou s e, ba s e |
-s at the end of a word after a voiceless consonant | /s/ | pet s,shop s | |
-s at the end of a word after a vowel or voiced consonant | /z/ | bed s, magazine s | |
s, -ss | /s/ | s ong, a s k, me ss age | /z/ sci ss ors, de ss ert, di ss olve /ʃ/ s ugar, ti ss ue, agre ss ion /ʒ/vi s ion |
sc- before e, i or y | /s/ | sc ene, sc issors, sc ythe | /sk/ sc eptic /ʃ/fa sc ism |
sch- | /sk/ | sch ool | /ʃ/
sch ist, sch edule (also pronounced /sk/) /s/ sch ism |
sh | /ʃ/ | sh in | |
t, -tt | /t/ | t en,bi tt er | /ʃ/ra t io,Mar t ian /tʃ/ques t ion, bas t ion Ø cas t le,lis t en |
-tch | /tʃ/ | ba tch, ki tch en | |
th | /θ/ or /ð/ | th in, th em | /t/ th yme, Th ames /tθ/ eigh th |
v, -vv | /v/ | v ine,sa vv y | |
w- | /w/ | w e | Ø s w ord, ans w er |
wh- before o | /h/ | wh o, wh ole | /w/ wh opping |
wh- | /w/ (/hw/ in dialects where this phoneme is present) | wh eel | |
wr- | /r/ | wr ong | |
x- | /z/ | x ylophone | /ʒ/ X iao |
-xc before e or i | /ks/ | e xc ellent, e xc ited | |
-xc | /ksk/ | e xc use | |
-x | /ks/ | bo x | /ɡz/ an x iety /kʃ/ an x ious |
y- | /j/ | y es | |
z, -zz | /z/ | z oo, fu zz | /ts/pi zz a |
Combinations of vowels and consonants
Writing | Main reading option | Examples of the main option | Secondary option | Examples | Exceptions |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
qu- | /kw/ | qu een, qu ick | /k/ | li qu or, mos qu ito | |
-cqu | /kw/ | a cqu aint, a cqu ire | |||
gu- before e or i | /ɡ/ | gu est, gu ide | /ɡw/ | lin gu istics | |
alf | /ɑːf/ (British), /æf/ (American) | c alf, h alf | |||
alm | /ɑːm/ | c alm, alm ond | /æm/ salmon | ||
olm | /oʊm/ | h olm(oak) | |||
alk | /ɔːk/ | w alk,ch alk | |||
olk | /oʊk/ | y olk,f olk | |||
al, all | /ɔːl/ | b al d, c all,f al con | /æl/ shall | ||
ol | /oʊl/ | f ol d, ol d | |||
oll | /ɒl/ | d oll | |||
unstressed ex- before vowel or h | /ɪɡz/ | ex ist, ex amine ex haust | /ɛks/ | ex hale | |
unstressed ci- before a vowel | /ʃ/ | spe ci al, gra ci ous | /si/ | spe ci es | |
unstressed sci- before a vowel | /ʃ/ | con sci ence | |||
unstressed -si before a vowel | /ʃ/ | expan si on | /ʒ/ | divi si on, illu si on | |
unstressed -ssi before a vowel | /ʃ/ | mi ssi on | |||
unstressed -ti before a vowel | /ʃ/ | na ti on, ambi ti ous | /ʒ/ | equa ti on | /ti/pa ti o, /taɪ/ca ti on |
unstressed -ture | /tʃər/ | na ture, pic ture | |||
unstressed -sure | /ʒər/ | lei sure, trea sure | |||
unstressed -zure | /ʒər/ | sei zure, a zure | |||
unstressed -ften | /fən/ | so ften, o ften | |||
unstressed -sten | /sən/ | li sten,fa sten | /stən/ | tung sten, Au sten | /stɛn/ sten |
-scle | /səl/ | corpu scle,mu scle | |||
-(a)isle | /aɪəl/ | aisle, isle, en isle, l isle,Carl isle | |||
unstressed -stle | /səl/ | whi stle, ru stle | |||
-le after a consonant at the end of a word | /əl/ | litt le,tab le | |||
-re after a consonant at the end of a word | /ər/ | met re,fib re | |||
-ngue at the end of a word | /ŋ/ | to ngue | /ŋɡeɪ/ | distin gué, meren gue, den gue(+/ŋɡi/) | |
-gue at the end of a word | /ɡ/ | catalo gue, pla gue,collea gue | /ɡju/ | ar gue, redar gue, a gue, Monta gue | /ɡweɪ/ se gue |
-que at the end of a word | /k/ | mos que,bis que | /keɪ/ | ris que | /kjuː/ barbe que(barbecue) |
morpheme -ed at the end of a word after /t/ or /d/* | /ɪd/ | wait ed | |||
morpheme -ed at the end of a word after a voiceless consonant* | /t/ | topp ed | |||
morpheme -ed at the end of a word after a vowel or voiced consonant* | /d/ | fail ed, order ed | |||
morpheme** -es at the end of a word | /ɪz/ | wash es, box es |
* In some words, -ed is not a morpheme and does not follow this pronunciation rule. Wed. snak ed(/sneɪkt/, “crawled like a snake” - -ed is the ending of the past tense of the verb) and nak ed (/neɪkɪd/, "naked" - -ed is part of the root).
** In some words -es is not a morpheme and does not follow this pronunciation rule; Wed two pronunciations of the word ax es: /æksɪz/ (“axes” - -es is the plural ending) and /æksiːz/(“axes” - since here -es is borrowed directly from Latin, it is not perceived as a separate morpheme).
Rules for recording sounds
The table shows different recording options for each sound. The symbol "..." means an intermediate consonant. The letter sequences are ordered by frequency of use, starting with the most common. Some of them are very rare or unique, for example au denotes the sound [æ] in laugh(in some dialects). In some cases, a given spelling occurs in only one English word (for example, "mh" for /m/, or "yrrh" for /ər/).
Consonants | ||
---|---|---|
MFA | Writing | Examples |
/p/ | p, pp, ph, pe, gh | p ill, ha pp y, Ph uket, ta pe,hiccou gh |
/b/ | b, bb, bh, p (in some dialects) | b it, ra bb it, Bh utan, these p ian |
/t/ | t, tt, ed, pt, th, ct | t en,bi tt er, topp ed, pt erodactyl, th yme, ct enoid |
/d/ | d, dd, ed, dh, th (in some dialects) | d ive, la dd er, fail ed, dh arma, th em |
/ɡ/ | g, gg, gue, gh | g osta gg er, catalo gue, gh ost |
/k/ | c, k, ck, ch, cc, qu, q, cq, cu, que, kk, kh | c at, k ey, ta ck, ch ord, a cc ount,li qu or, Ira q, a cq uint, bis cu it, mos que, tre kk er, kh an |
/m/ | m, mm, mb, mn, mh, gm, chm | m ine, ha mm er, cli mb, hy mn, mh o, diaphra gm,dra chm |
/n/ | n, nn, kn, gn, pn, nh, cn, mn, ng (in some dialects) | n ice, fu nn y, kn ee, gn ome, pn eumonia, pira nh a, cn idarian, mn emonic, fighti ng |
/ŋ/ | ng, n, ngue, ngh | si ng,li n k, to ngue, Si ngh |
/r/ | r, rr, wr, rh, rrh | r ay, pa rr ot, wr ong, rh yme, dia rrh(o)ea |
/f/ | f, ph, ff, gh, pph, u, th (in some dialects) | f ine, ph ysical, o ff lau gh,sa pph ire, lie u tenant (British), th in |
/v/ | v, vv, f, ph | v ine,sa vv y,o f, Ste ph en |
/θ/ | th, chth, phth, tth | th in, chth onic, phth isis, Ma tth ew |
/ð/ | th | th em, brea th e |
/s/ | s, c, ss, sc, st, ps, sch (in some dialects), cc, se, ce, z (in some dialects) | s ong, c ity, me ss, sc ene,li st en, ps ychology, sch ism, fla cc id, hor se,jui ce, city z en |
/z/ | s, z, x, zz, ss, ze, c (in some dialects) | ha s, z oo, x ylophone, fu zz, sci ss ors, bree ze, electri c ity |
/ʃ/ | sh, ti, ci, ssi, si, ss, ch, s, sci, ce, sch, sc | sh in, na ti on, spe ci al, mi ssi on, expan si on, ti ss ue,ma ch ine, s ugar, con sci ence, o ce an sch mooze, cre sc endo |
/ʒ/ | si, s, g, z, j, zh, ti, sh (in some dialects) | divi si on, lei s ure, g enre, sei z ure, j eté, Zh ytomyr, equa ti on, Per sh ing |
/tʃ/ | ch, t, tch, ti, c, cz, tsch | ch in, na t ure, ba tch, bas ti on (some accents), c ello, Cz ech, Deu tsch mark |
/dʒ/ | g, j, dg, dge, d, di, gi, ge, dj, gg | ma g ic, j ump, le dg er, bri dge, gra d uate, sol di er, Bel gi an, dun ge on, DJ ibouti,exa gg erate |
/h/ | h, wh, j, ch | h e, wh o,fa j ita, ch utzpah |
/j/ | y, i, j, ll | y es, on i on, hallelu j ah, torti ll a |
/l/ | l, ll, lh | l ine, ha ll o, Lh asa |
/ɫ/ | -ll, -l | ba ll, ha l t |
/w/ | w, u, o, ou, wh (in most dialects) | w e, q u een, ch o ir, Ou ija board, wh at |
/hw/ | wh (in some dialects) | wh eel |
Vowels | ||
---|---|---|
MFA | Writing | Examples |
/i/ | e, ea, ee, e…e, ae, ei, i…e, ie, eo, oe, ie…e, ay, ey, i, y, oi, ue, ey, a | b e,b ea ch, b ee, c e d e, C ae sar, dec ei t, mach i n e,f ie ld, p eo ple, am oe ba, hyg ie n e,qu ay, k ey,sk i, cit y, cham oi s, Portug ue se, g ey ser (British), kar a oke |
/ɪ/ | i, y, ui, e, ee, ie, o, u, a, ei, ee, ia, ea, i…e, ai, ey, oe | b i t, m y th, b ui ld, pr e tty,b ee n (some accents), s ie ve,w o men, b u sy,dam a ge, counterf ei t, carr ia ge, mil ea ge, medic i n e, barg ai n, C ey lon, oe dema |
/u/ | oo, u, o, u…e, ou, ew, ue, o…e, ui, eu, oeu, oe, ough, wo, ioux, ieu, ault, oup, w | t oo l, l u minous, wh o,fl u t e, s ou p, j ew el, tr ue, l o s e, fr ui t, man eu ver (Amer), man oeu vre (British), can oe,thr ough,t wo, S ioux, l ieu tenant (amer), S ault Sainte Marie, c oup, c w m |
/ʊ/ | oo, u, o, oo…e, or, ou, oul | l oo k,f u ll, w o lf, g oo s e berry,w or sted,c ou rier, sh oul d |
/eɪ/ | a, a...e, ay, ai, ai...e, aig, aigh, ao, au, e (é), e...e, ea, ei, ei...e, eig, eigh, ee (ée), eh, et, ey, ez, er, ie, ae, eg | p a per, r a t e, p ay, r ai n, coc ai n e, arr aig n, str aigh t, g ao l (British), g au ge, ukul e le (caf é ),cr e p e, st ea k, v ei l,b ei g e, r eig n, eigh t, matin ee(soir ee), eh, ball et,ob ey,ch ez, dossi er, linger ie(amer), regg ae,th eg n |
/ə/ | a, e, o, u, ai, ou, eig, y, ah, ough, gh, ae, oi | a nother, anth e m, awesome o me, atri u m, mount ai n, call ou s, for eig n, ber y l, Messi ah, bor ough(British), Edinburgh gh,Mich ae l,porp oi se |
/oʊ/ | o, o…e, oa, ow, ou, oe, oo, eau, oh, ew, au, aoh, ough, eo | s o,b o n e,b oa t, kn ow, s ou l,f oe,br oo ch, b eau, oh, s ew, m au ve, phar aoh,furl ough, y eo man |
/ɛ/ | e, ea, a, ae, ai, ay, ea…e, ei, eo, ie, ieu, u, ue, oe | m e t, w ea ther, m a ny, ae sthetic, s ai d, s ay s, cl ea ns e, h ei fer,j eo pardy, fr ie nd,l ieu tenant (British), b u ry,g ue ss, f oe tid |
/æ/ | a, ai, al, au, i | h a nd, pl ai d, s al mon, l au gh (some accents), mer i ngue |
/ʌ/ | u, o, o…e, oe, ou, oo, wo | s u n, s o n, c o m e, d oe s, t ou ch, fl oo d,t wo pennce |
/ɔ/ | a, au, aw, ough, augh, o, oa, oo, al, uo, u | f a ll, au thor, j aw,b ough t, c augh t, c o rd, br oa d,d oo r, w al k, fl uo rine (British), s u re (some accents) |
/ɑ/ | o, a, eau, ach, au, ou | l o ck,w a tch, bur eau Cracy, y ach t, s au sage, c ou gh |
/aɪ/ | i…e, i, y, igh, ie, ei, eigh, uy, ai, ey, ye, eye, y…e, ae, ais, is, ig, ic, ay, ui | f i n e, Chr i st, tr y, h igh,t ie, ei dos, h eigh t, b uy, ai sle, g ey ser (Amer), d ye, eye,t y p e, m ae stro, ais le, is le, s ig n, ind ic t, k ay ak,g ui de |
/ɑr/ | ar, a, er, ear, a…e, ua, aa, au, ou | c ar,f a ther, s er geant, h ear t, a r e, g ua rd, baz aa r, au nt, ou r (some accents) |
/ɛr/ | er, ar, ere, are, aire, eir, air, aa, aer, ayr, ear | station er y (some accents), v ar y, wh here, w are, million aire, h eir, h air, Aa Ron, aer ial, Ayr,b ear |
/ɔɪ/ | oi, oy, aw, uoy oy…e, eu | f oi l,t oh, l aw yer, b uoy, garg oh l e,Fr eu dian |
/aʊ/ | ou, ow, ough, au, ao | ou t, n ow,b ough,t au, L ao s |
/ər/ | er, or, ur, ir, yr, our, ear, err, eur, yrrh, ar, oeu, olo, uer | f er n, w or st, t ur n,th ir st, m yr tle, j our ney, ear th, err, amat eur, m yrrh gramm ar, hors d" oeu vre,c olo nel, G uer nsey |
/ju/ | u, u…e, eu, ue, iew, eau, ieu, ueue, ui, ewe, ew | m u sic*, u s e,f eu d, c ue,v iew,b eau tiful*, ad ieu*, q ueue, n ui sance*, ewe,f ew, * in some dialects, see en:Yod dropping |
Diacritics
There are words in the English language that can be written using diacritics. Mostly these words are borrowed, usually from French. However, superletter marks are used less and less often in common words, even in very formal texts. The strongest tendency is to retain superletter marks in words with atypical morphology for English and therefore perceived as slightly foreign. For example in words cafe And paté final is pronounced e, which according to general rules should be “dumb”
Examples: appliqué, attaché, blasé, bric-à-brac, brötchen, café, cliché, crème, crêpe, façade, fiancé(e), flambé, naïve, naïveté, né(e), papier-mâché, passé, piñata, protégé, raison d'être, résumé, risqué, über-, vis-à-vis, voilà.
Previously, in some words borrowed from French (like role or hotel) superscripts were used. Now their origin is almost forgotten and superscripts are not used ( role, hotel). In some cases there are regional differences, such as a stroke in a word elite disappeared in the USA, but persists in England.
For those who have not had time to enter English or use non-standard foreign expressions, italics with the appropriate signs are usually used: adiós, coup d'état, crème brûlée, pièce de résistance, raison d'être, über (übermensch), vis-à-vis.
No one argues that English spelling is still a task for any unprepared person. Even native speakers themselves are not always sure of the correct spelling of words. They, like us, often have to check spelling in the dictionary. It is not surprising that English schools often organize “spelling contests” - competitions in which the winner is the one who spells a difficult word correctly.
We, who study English in our homeland, simply have to memorize the correct spelling of words. Luckily, there are a few tricks that can make our lives a little easier.
✓
Write “i” before "e"(fr ie nd, dr ie d, f ie ry)
This rule works in almost all cases. But there are two exceptions:
If your phrase i+e comes after the letter "c", then here you need to write the other way around, that is, e+i (rec ei ve).
If the syllable sounds like “” (for example, as in the word n ei ghbor). Examples: w ei gh,h ei r)
✓
Letter "q" almost always haunted by a letter "u" (qu ick qu een, qu ack)
Of course, there are few exceptions to this rule, and “q” sometimes manages to hide. But you are unlikely to ever come across these words. Then these are most often either abbreviations (QA = quality assurance - technical control department), or proper names (Qaanaaq - Qaanaaq - a village in north-west Greenland), or rarely used borrowings from other languages (qorma - an Indian dish based on sour cream) .
✓ Letter "s" never follows a letter "x"
✓ Don't be afraid to "throw away" "e", if the word ends with this letter, and you need to add an ending that begins with a vowel (hope–hoping, use–using). But if you want to attach a suffix to a word that begins with a consonant, then you really need the silent “e” (use – useful, hope – hopeful).
✓ If you want to add an ending to a word that ends in “y” and there is a consonant before “y”, then feel free to change “y” to “i” (beauty – beautiful, hurry – hurried)
✓ Do you want to add an ending? –ing? Double a consonant if the word ends with a consonant preceded by one vowel! For example: swim – swimming, begin – beginning. This rule, by the way, applies if you want to add other endings (–er, - ed) – swimmer, beginner.
✓ If you write the word “all” by itself, then it’s worth remembering the two letters “l”. Well, if “all” is attached to another word, then we write one letter “l” (almost, always). By the way, if a word ends in “ful”, then such “ful” is always written with one “l” (useful, helpful)
✓ When changing singular to plural, pay attention to words ending with the letter “y.” If there is a consonant before “y,” then drop the “y” and write “i” instead, adding the desired ending (lady – ladies). And if there is a vowel before “y”, then leave everything as it is and just add your ending (toy – toys).
✓ Many words that end in “-f” or “-fe” like to change their plural tails to “-ves” (calf – calves, half – halves)
✓ Remember to add “-es” when changing singular to plural in words ending in -s, -ss, -z -ch -sh –x. This rule was invented many years ago so as not to add too many consonants in a row and accidentally break the tongue (business → businesses, watch → watches)
These are the basic rules of English spelling. Unfortunately, many words do not fit into the general schemes. So you just have to cram such words. Well, to make it less boring, try to read more. This way you can visually remember the correct spelling of words. We also recommend that you download various word games to your phone. For example, scrabble (scrabble, something like our “erudite”). In such an entertaining manner, you are more likely to remember how to spell these difficult English words correctly.
Shutikova Anna
English spelling is a sore subject for many of those who study it. The same sound can be recorded in several different ways at once! Remember that famous example of pronouncing the word “ghoti” like “fish”? And there’s just something you need gh pronounce as in tou gh, o as in w o men, and ti as in na ti on. If all these subtleties make you despondent, this article is ready to lend you a helping hand and explain a couple of difficult moments!
Steps
Spelling
- Write “i” before “e” except when it comes after “c” or when it sounds like a long “a” (as in eighty or weigh).
- This rule does not apply to the word weird.
- Other exceptions: either, leisure, protein, their.
- Words ending in -cien also fall outside of this rule: ancient, efficient, science.
- Words containing the syllable -eig, which does not sound like “ay”, also fall out of this rule: height, foreign.
- As they say, “When two vowels go walking, the first one does the talking.” When two vowels are next to each other, the first becomes long, and the second... silent. So, for example, in the word boat the “o” is drawn out, but the letter “a” is not pronounced. Therefore, when you are not sure which letter to write first, say the word to yourself and write the long sound first. Examples: team, mean, wait. Exceptions: you, phoenix, great.
- The spelling of a word does not change by adding a prefix, even if it turns out that there are two identical letters next to each other. Examples: misspell, misstep, preeminent, unnecessary.
- Remember how to form the plural of nouns ending in “y”. If there is a vowel before “y” (a, e, i, o, u), then the plural form is formed by adding “s”. Examples: toy - toys; buoy - buoys. If there is a consonant before “y”, then the plural of the word is formed by adding the ending “ies”. Examples: lady - ladies, ferry - ferries. The same rule applies to third person singular present tense verbs: He/she carries, he/she marries, he/she worries.
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Remember about difficult words. Of course, it's good when you have an editor with amazing spelling knowledge, or at least a spell checker in a text editor. And if not? Then you will have to carefully look at all those words in which you usually make mistakes. At the end of the article there will be a list of words where mistakes are most often made - you can check it.
Speak the words. Some words are written the same way as they are pronounced. Alas, there are few of them. In many complex and problematic words, silent vowels or consonants are necessarily hidden. You can find them if you pronounce the word almost letter by letter. Example: Pronounce the word “beautiful” as “Bee--a---ooooootiful” (prefix beau French origin), put the emphasis on “a”, which is usually not pronounced and therefore is often skipped in writing. And there are also words where the sound is not pronounced simply because everyone is used to it: “interesting” instead of “int” e resting" or "comfortable" instead of "com o ratable"). Get into the habit of pronouncing words correctly, without missing vowels and consonants in the wrong places, and you will immediately notice how your spelling will improve.
Make up a sentence (the funnier the better). Based on the sentence, you can always remember the spelling features of the word. Example: the phrase I want accommodation in castles and mansions will remind you that there are two “cs” and the same number of “m”s in the word accommodation.
Don't forget about homonyms and homophones. Homonyms sound and are written the same, but have different meanings (bank - shore - bank). Homophones are pronounced the same, but they are spelled differently (night and knight), and they have different meanings.
- Words and particles such as “two,” “to,” and “too” are often confused; "and" and "end"; "here" and "hear"; "eight" and "ate"; "wear," "ware," and "where"; "lose" and "loose"; and "sent," "scent," and "cent."
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Be aware of the “moving pair sounds”. These are unusual combinations of consonants, where one of the sounds is not pronounced, but seems to “move out” at the expense of the other. For example:
- gn, pn, kn = n (as in gnome, pneumonia, knife)
- hr, wr = r (as in rhyme, wrestle)
- pt, gt = t (as in ptomaine, height)
- PS, SC = s (as in psychic, science)
- wh = h (as in "whole")
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Use mnemonic techniques. Try to come up with some association hints for words that you constantly get wrong. For example:
- Desert and dessert. Why are there two “s”s in dessert? Because you always want another portion.
- Are you missing the “a” in “separate”? Remember that there is “a rat” in this word.
- When “stationery” is with “e”, it means envelopes. When with “a” (stationary), it means something arrested and motionless.
- There is a lot of “o” in loose because there is a lot of space. And in lose there is one “o”, since the second one is lost!
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Look for affixes and words within words. For example, “together” breaks down into “to-get-her”. What about “together”, even the 14-letter monster “hypothyroidism” can be remembered this way, decomposing it into one prefix, one full word and one suffix: “hypo - thyroid - ism”. And “hypo” and “ism” are two very common affixes that appear here and there. By learning to highlight such affixes, you will improve your spelling.
Don't forget that the pronunciation of prefixes can vary from word to word. Thus, “meta-” in “metabolism”, “metaphor” and “metabolic” are not pronounced the same. Different pronunciations can be observed even in words with the same root; moreover, even the stress can change, as, for example, in Jap a n and J a panese.
Practice. Make a list of words where you most often make mistakes, and write these words correctly 10-20 times. Work through each word: pronounce it, highlight the syllables, think about what spelling rules they obey. This way you will train your brain and hands to write and perceive the word correctly. You can test yourself with a dictation - and don’t forget to work on your mistakes!
Write the word whose spelling you want to learn, highlighting the silent sounds with a different color or capital letter. Say a word, look at it, write it - and you will remember it... sooner or later.
Write words with your finger - tracing on paper, a table or even on the sand. The more senses you use, the better. So SPEAK, LISTEN, LOOK AND FEEL the word.
Check the spelling of someone's work. One of the best ways to learn something is to explain the material to another person. Train yourself to pay attention to other people's spelling and look for mistakes (even in books). You can start by editing Wikihow articles - and don't forget to register!
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Don't forget about apostrophes. Unfortunately, the misuse of apostrophes remains a harsh reality today. So, remember: an apostrophe with an “s” is a possessive case (a semantic, not a grammatical category) or a contraction (it is -> it’s). Possessiveness: "The banana"s skin turned brown." Contraction: "The banana"s too mushy." But to form the plural of nouns, an apostrophe is not needed. So, in the sentence “Special on banana"s: 49 cents.” he is completely redundant.
Problem words in English
Incorrect spelling Correct writing acheive achieve address address alot a lot thethiest atheist begging beginning beleive believe bisness business catagory category college college commitment commitment concieve conceive copywrite copyright decaffinated decaffeinated decathalon decathlon definitely definitely definitely desireable desirable diety deity dissapoint disappoint dispell dispel embarass embarrass enviroment environment expresso espresso excercise exercise
extreme extremely fascist fascist February February flourescent fluorescent fourty forty freind friend guage gauge government government grammer grammar harrass harass hemorage hemorrhage heroes heroes hieght, heigth height hygeine hygiene independence independence inate innate innoculate inoculate irregardless regardless it's its (possessive pronoun) judgment judgment knowledgelege knowledge laser laser libary library lightening lightning loose lose (misplaced something) lose loose (untie something) maintenance maintenance managable manageable midevil medieval millennium millennium mischievous mischievous mispell misspell mit mitt monestary monastery monkies monkeys morgage mortgage mountian mountain necessary necessary neice niece nickle nickel nineth ninth ninty ninety noone no one or no-one noticable noticeable occassion occasion
occured occurred occurence occurrence oppurtunity opportunity original original parallel parallel pasttime pastime pavilion pavilion peace piece perceive perceive perserverance perseverance persue pursue pheonix phoenix posession possession pertend pretend potatoe potato preceeding preceding pronounciation pronunciation privilege privilege publicly publicly recieve receive reccomend recommend rediculous ridiculous reguardless regardless remeber remember roomate roommate or room-mate rhythm rhythm sacred sacrilegeous seige siege sentance sentence seperate separate sieze seize similiar similar sincerely sincerely speach speech speek speak Sponsor Sponsor stationary stationery (office supplies term. Stationary is a fixed position) stragedy / stradegy strategy suggestable suggestible supercede supersede suppositively supposedly suprise surprise thier their throughly thoroughly tommorrow tomorrow tone tongue triathalon triathlon ukelele ukulele vaccuum vacuum vegetarian vegetarian villian villain Wednesday Wednesday wierd weird (exception: Wierd programming language) writting writing
Learn the rules of spelling. There are rhymes and rules by which children are taught spelling, but, alas, there are exceptions to them, and therefore you should not rely solely on them. However, if you don’t know how to spell a word, they may be useful.
let me disagree. writing takes a lot of time. There is simply no time to do this in class. gapped words & puzzles don't count - they disappear in seconds, because... their mechanism is simple and often simply guessed, but practically no image of the word remains in memory. In addition, I do not use reading by syllable type or reading type in teaching, only syllables, parts of words, whole words.Children should not have many homework assignments, but they still need to write in class.
My little children also have this problem: their speech is excellent, but there are mistakes in their writing. I do this: new words in almost all educational systems are introduced using dialogues or mini-texts. I get out of the situation like this: a story based on a model, a mini-project, for example, sports were covered. the girl made a plasticine picture and signed who is depicted and what sport this person is into. at the same time, according to the material covered, clothing. You can look at samples in textbooks or printouts. Students do this task for almost every lesson. it is focused training in productive writing. and spelling errors will pass over time - in grades 2-4 the interference is felt most acutely.
about your words about writing one line at a time: writing words one line at a time is not much at all. when the words are difficult, I also ask. well, 8-12 words is not a lot at all. at least my kids have gotten used to large amounts of work over the years of classes. It took a long time to get used to homework - I often explain to parents that they need to study for 20-25 minutes a day, they can’t do everything in one day. Just think: with 2 times a week, there are 2-3 days between classes. write 4-6 lines a day - quite a bit. Naturally, often such tasks cannot be asked - only the most difficult words.
When I assign a task (I always write the task to the students myself in a notebook, which everyone has. I also write comments there if the task is not completed so that the parents can see), then I always discuss where to start teaching, what needs to be done every day. for example: to learn a dialogue for dramatization (we organize a puppet theater for each dialogue), you just need to listen once, if you forgot a word, look it up in the dictionary (every home has a linguo with sound). then listen with pauses, repeating each sentence. then just listen again. total 3-5 minutes. the next day, do the same thing, but repeat the phrases 2-3 times - 6-7 minutes. Here is the dialogue learned.
words line by line: if you forgot how to pronounce them, look them up in the dictionary. writing 5 words takes 8-6 minutes. depending on age. Is it a lot to spend 8 minutes a day at home writing new words? not at all. It’s just that in addition to English, you need to learn how to use your time rationally. Well, if we talk about boredom, then spelling itself is boring. You can only diversify with tasks such as those described by the Teacher.
read the topic "learning to read and write." there are a lot of useful tips there
There are many difficult words in the English language that are written contrary to the rules. The old adage “rules were made to be broken” is absolutely true when it comes to English spelling rules. Some English words cannot always be spelled correctly even by native speakers, so language learners need to find ways to remember the spelling of words such as beautiful , desert , dessert , accommodate , Wednesday , Renaissance and others.
How to remember the spelling Wednesday?
One of the easiest ways to remember the spelling of a word Wednesday , is to break it into three syllables and pronounce each syllable: Wed —nes —day . Then you won't forget to write the letter d in the first syllable and letter e in the second.
Another way is to use it as a way to improve your ability to remember information. A common mnemonic trick is to create an abbreviation from the first letter of each word. For example, a mnemonic method for remembering the planets of the solar system could be like this:
The first letter of each word in the phrase is the first letter of the planet's name.
Try to remember the spelling of the word Wednesday
with the following sentences or come up with your own:
How to remember Weird?
The best way to remember how to spell a word weird
(strange), this is just to remember that it is strange and does not obey the rule: I before e except after c
. If that doesn't help, try remembering this:
How to remember Renaissance?
Everything is very simple here: you break it down into three words - Rena is a chance . All you have to do is say it out loud a few times to cement the connection, and you will remember it.
How to distinguish Dessert and Desert?
Dessert
- dessert
Desert
[ˈdɛzət] - desert
It's difficult because it seems like it should be the other way around: dessert
there should only be one s
which produces a long vowel sound ɜː
, and to the word desert
need two s
to avoid the same. The following sayings are useful for remembering which word has one letter s
, and which one - two:
Of course, dessert is twice as good as desert!
How to write Beautiful?
The first thing that can help is it is important to be a beautiful person inside and out
. This way you will remember that beautiful
begin with be a
.
The second option is that you can try to remember the following mnemonic phrase:
How to write Accommodate?
Remember that the word accommodate so big that two letters fit in it c and two letters m .
How to write Together?
Word together easily broken down into three words to get her , which are very easy to remember.
How to remember the spelling of the word Separate?
There is often a mistake in a word separate-after r I want to write e. An easy way to remember is to imagine that in the middle of the word there is a rat (rat).
Almost any word can be memorized thanks to such simple methods, be creative, come up with your own ways of memorizing the spelling of English words!