English is a confusing language and packed with inconsistencies, so anyone learning English for the first time will find it easy. Spelling in English is no different. While it is best to write and read a lot, you will improve your spelling skills significantly by learning some spelling rules (and their exceptions), by using clever tricks and memory aids, and by practicing as much as you can. If you stick to those things, you'll quickly understand unspoken vowels, confusing consonants, and how to pronounce them!
Step
Part 1 of 2: Spelling Rules
Step 1. Learn the "i" rule before the "e"
The rule "i" before "e", except after "c" is very useful to remember. This means that the letter "i" usually always comes before the letter "e" when two letters are located side by side in a word (for example, "friend" or "piece"), except when they are next to the letter "c", the letter "e" usually comes before the letter "i" (for example, receive). Remembering these rules can help you spell many common words where the "i" and "e" placements are confusing.
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Say:
Another useful way to remember the placement of the letters "i" and "e" is to pronounce the word. If the combination of the letters "e" and "i" sounds like the letter "a" ("ay"), then the letter "e" should be placed before the letter "i". For example, the word "eight" or "weigh".
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Understanding exceptions:
However, as a rule of thumb, there are exceptions - words that don't follow the rule of placing the letter "i" before "e" except after the letter "c". For example the words: "either", "leisure", "protein", "their" and "weird". Unfortunately, there are no other tricks to help you remember these rules, you have to learn them.
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Other exceptions:
Other exceptions include words containing the letter "cien", such as "ancient", "efficient", "science", and words containing the letter "eig" (even when the letters "e" and "i" do not make the "ay" sound)., such as "height" and "foreign".
Step 2. Learn how to decipher vowels
When you come across a word with more than one vowel (or two vowels next to each other), sometimes it's hard to tell which one came first. You're in luck because there is another very useful rhythm to help you remember which vowel to spell first, as follows:
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When two vowels are side by side, the first vowel is pronounced.
This means that the vowel you hear when spoken is usually first, followed by the vowel you don't hear.
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Listen for the vowels pronounced longer:
When two vowels are next to each other, the first vowel is pronounced longer and the second is not pronounced. When you say "boat", for example the letter "o" is pronounced, but the letter "a" is not.
- So, if you're not sure how to arrange vowels into a word, say it – which vowel sounds longer? Put that at the beginning. Words that follow this rule include the words team (you hear “e”), mean (you hear “e”) and wait (you hear the letter “a”).
- Exception: As always, there are exceptions to the rule that must be learned. Some words like “you” (you hear more of the letter “u” than the letter “o”), “phoenix” (you hear more of the letter “e” than the letter “o”) and “great” (you hear more of the letter “a” compared to the letter "e").
Step 3. Be careful with the piggyback pair
It's not uncommon for pairs of consonants to be spelled so that one is definitely not spelled – thus appearing as “piggybacks” to the other sound.
- "Piggybacking" can make words that consist of pairs of consonants difficult to spell, as it's easier to ignore consonants you don't hear and write only what you "can" hear.
- So it's very important to familiarize yourself with piggyback pairs and learn some of the commonly used consonant combinations, so you can spell words correctly.
- Some of the common piggyback pairs include below:
- Gn, pn and kn – in the piggyback pair on the side, you can only hear the letter “n”, the consonants before the letter “n” are not heard. For example, the words "gnome", "pneumonia" and "knife".
- Rh and wr – in the piggyback pair on the side, you can only hear the letter “i”, other consonants are not heard. For example, the words "rhyme" and "wrestle".
- PS and sc – in the piggyback pair on the side, you can only hear the letter “s”, the letters “p” and “c” are not spelled. For example, the words “psychic” and “science”.
- Wh – on the piggyback pair on the side, you can only hear the letter “h”, the letter “w” is not heard. For example, the word "whole".
Step 4. Be careful with homonyms and homophones
Homonyms and homophones are two types of words that can be difficult for spellers. However, before you learn to pay attention to homonyms and homophones, you must first understand their definitions.
- Homonym are one or two words that are spelled the same and are pronounced the same, but have different meanings. Good examples are the words bank (which means embankment) and bank (which means a place to keep money).
- Homophone is one of two or more words, such as night and knight, that are pronounced the same but have different meanings. The two words are sometimes spelled the same – such as “rose” (which means flower) and “rose” (which means the past tense of rise) – and they are sometimes spelled differently, such as “to”, “too” and “two”.
- So, all homonyms are also homophones because they are pronounced the same way. However, not all homophones are homonyms because not all homonyms are spelled the same.
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Example:
Some common homonyms and homophones are "here" and "hear"; "eight" and "ate"; "wear," "ware," and "where"; "lose" and "loose"; and "sent," "scent," and "cent."
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Click on the common mistakes related to homonyms/homophones below for more detailed instructions on how to use them:
- How to Use You're and Your
- How to Use There, Their and They're
- How to Use Than and Then
- How to Use Effects and Effects Properly
- How to Use Its and It's
Step 5. Be careful with prefixes
A prefix is a part of a word that can be added to the beginning of another word in order to change the meaning. For example, adding the prefix "un-" to the word "happy" to form the word "unhappy" (which means "not happy"). Adding prefixes to words can make spelling more complicated, however there are a few pairs of rules you can follow to make things easier for you:
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Do not add or subtract letters:
Keep in mind that the spelling of a word doesn't change when you add a prefix, even if you add the same two letters right next to one. In other words, you should never add letters or subtract letters, even if you think the result looks a little weird. For example, look at the spelling of the words “misstep”, “preeminent” and “unnecessary”.
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Understand when to use hyphens:
In certain situations, you may have to put a hyphen between the prefix and the root word. For example: when the prefix precedes a noun or number (e.g., un-American), when using the prefix “ex-“which means “used” (e.g., ex-military), when using the prefix “self-” (e.g., self-indulgent, self-important), when you need to separate two “a”s, two “i”s or certain letter combinations for the purpose of increasing readability (e.g., ultra-ambitious, anti-intellectual or co-worker).
Step 6. Learn the proper way to make nouns in the plural
Learning the proper way to make plural nouns is another difficult spelling task, because there are so many different ways to make plurals in English (though most of the ways are by adding an "s").
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Look at the last letter of the word:
The correct key to making plurals is to look at the last letter or the last two letters of the word to be plural, as this will give you the right clue. Some general rules are as follows:
- Most singular nouns ending in "ch", "sh", "s", "x" or "z" can be changed to the plural by adding the letter "es". For example, the word "box" becomes "boxes", the word "bus" becomes "buses" and the word "prize" becomes "prizes".
- Most singular nouns ending in a vowel, followed by the letter "y" can be changed to the plural by adding the letter "s". For example, the word "boy" becomes "boys" and the word "day" becomes "days".
- Most singular nouns that end in a consonant, followed by the letter "y" can be changed to the plural by removing the letter "y" and adding the letter "ies". For example, the word “baby” becomes “babies”, the word “country” becomes “countries” and the word “spy” becomes “spies”.
- Most singular nouns ending in "f" or "fe" can be changed to the plural by removing the letter "f" or "fe" and adding the letter "ves". For example, the word “elf” becomes “elves”, the word “loaf” becomes “loaves” and the word “thief” becomes “thieves”.
- Most singular nouns ending in "o" can be changed to the plural by adding the letter "s". For example, the word "kangaroo" becomes "kangaroos" and the word "piano" becomes "pianos". However, sometimes when a letter ends in a consonant followed by an "o", the proper way to convert it to the plural is to add the letter "es". For example, the word “potato” becomes “potatoes” and the word “hero” becomes “heroes”.
Part 2 of 2: Spelling Practice
Step 1. Break the word into syllables and look for the word within the word
Not just because a word is long, it doesn't mean it's difficult to spell – all you need to do is break the word into syllables, and look for smaller or simpler words within the larger or more complex words.
- Break it down into smaller or simpler words: For example, the word “together” can be broken down into three simpler words: “to,” “get,” and “her” which are not at all difficult to spell!
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Break it down into syllables:
Even if you can't spell words correctly, breaking long words into simpler syllables can be very helpful. For example, you could break the word “hospital” into “hos-pit-al”, or the word “university” into “u-ni-ver-si-ty”.
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Break it down into sections:
You can even remember the 14 letters of a seemingly difficult word like “hypothyroidism” by breaking it down into sections: one prefix, one root, and one suffix: “hypo-”, “thyroid,” and “-ism.”
- Remember that you can significantly improve your spelling by learning all of the commonly used prefixes and suffixes, as most words contain one or both.
Step 2. Say the word
Pronouncing a word (in an exaggerated way) can help you figure out how to spell it. However, this method will yield the correct answer when you pronounce it correctly.
- So you should get into the habit of spelling words correctly (don't omit consonants or vowels that shouldn't be omitted) and you'll have a better chance of spelling the word correctly.
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Example:
Some words that are often mispronounced – thus mispronounced – include: "probably" (usually pronounced like "probly"), "different" (usually pronounced like "difrent"), "Wednesday" (usually pronounced like "Wensday") and " library" (usually pronounced like "libry").
- Another word you should pay attention to when you use this method is the tendency to say things too quickly, such as "interesting" or "comfortable". Because we often pronounce the word quickly, it becomes very difficult to spell it correctly.
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Slow down:
When pronouncing words, try to slow down and pronounce each syllable. Pronounce “interesting” with “in-TER-esting” so you don't forget the middle “e”, and pronounce “comfortable” with “com-FOR-ta-ble” to help you remember where the vowels are.
Step 3. Use memory aids or “mnemonics”
Mnemonics are tools that can help you remember important information, such as how to spell words. Mnemonics have many different forms, some of which are described below:
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Funny sentence:
A fun mnemonic way to remember difficult words is to make them into sentences where the first letters of each word relate to each other and form the word you're learning to spell. For example, to remember how to spell the word “because”, you can use the sentence “Big Elephants Can Always Understand Small Elephants”. Or to remember the word "physical" you can use the phrase "Please Have Your Strawberry Ice Cream And Lollipops". The funnier the sentence, the better!
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Smart hint:
Some other creative ways use the clues in the word to help with proper spelling. For example, if you have trouble remembering the difference between the word “desert” (which means dry land) and the word “dessert” (which means sweet dessert), remember that the word “dessert” has two “s” because you always want more.
- If you have trouble with the letter "separate", remember that there is a rat in the middle of the word. If you've always forgotten the difference between the words "stationery" and "stationary", remember that "stationery" is spelled with the letter "e" as it relates to "envelope" and other writing instruments. If you have trouble distinguishing the words "principal" (which means the person with the highest authority) and "principle" (which means the fundamental truth), remember that the principal or head of the company is your friend "pal".
Step 4. Try to memorize words that are usually misspelled
Even if you learn all the rules and try all the spelling tricks, there are always some words that have formed the wrong shape in your scramble and will always be misspelled. For these words, memorizing is one of the best ways.
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Identify problem words:
First, you have to identify the words that are particularly problematic for you. You can do this by going back to the previous post and checking the spelling. This will be easier if you have electronic data and use a spell-checking program, but the best way to do this is to give your work to be edited by a perfect speller (someone skilled at spelling). Which word do you often misspelt?
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Make a list:
Once you've identified words that are often misspelled, make a neat list, then rewrite each word (using correct spelling) at least 10 times. Look at each word, pronounce it, look at the syllables, and always try to memorize the spelling.
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Practice makes perfect:
Do the exercises every day. Basically, all you have to do is train your mind and hands to spell words correctly. Later, you can test yourself by writing down words spoken by other people (or recording your own). Then take a look and see what went wrong.
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Use labels and flashcards:
Another method you can use to learn how to spell difficult words is to use flashcards and labels. Attach labels with proper spelling of household appliances, such as "faucet", "duvet", "television" and "mirror". Then every time you use the tool, you will be reminded how to spell the word. You can also stick a flashcard with 2 or 3 words next to the sink or on top of the coffee maker – then every time you brush your teeth or wait for coffee, you can remember the correct spelling!
- Use your senses: You can also try using your finger to 'write' the spelling – follow the traces of the letters on your books, on your desk, even on the sand on the beach! The more often you use your senses, the better you will train your brain.
Tips
- Correct your work. We can be very busy while writing, so it's easy to not pay attention to sound – like the word 'reef' for 'wreath'; and you can be oblivious to the mistakes you made… until you realize…then you mumble, “Wow, did I write that?”
- Check the compound words in the dictionary. There's no way of knowing whether to write “stomachache,” “stomach-ache,” or “stomach ache” unless you look at a dictionary. There are a lot of changes to the rules regarding splitting words these days, so check with the latest dictionary according to your stream of English – British or American.
- It can be very helpful to get used to spelling words in other languages, and to know where they come from. You can then use tricks that come from different languages. For example, in French, the letter “sh” is spelled with “ch”, thus forming words like “cliche” and “chic”
- Don't be afraid to use a dictionary. The English word comes from Anglo (Northern Germany), Saxon (South Germany), Norman or Bordeaux, British colonies. Many other words are of Latin or Greek origin. A good dictionary can tell you where words come from, and as you learn them, you'll begin to recognize patterns.
- There are many ways to write a single sound theoretically, you can pronounce the word "ghoti" like "fish" (If you pronounce gh on the word tou gh, letter o on the word w omen and letters ti on the word na tion).
- Think about editing other people's work. Sometimes the best way to learn something is to try to teach it to someone else. Train yourself to spot other people's spelling mistakes, even in books (This can happen). You can start editing articles on wikiHow. Please click “edit” and you can start editing. Consider creating an account so you can become a member of the wikiHow community.
- Read books and newspapers, catalogs, billboards or notices, posters with the aim of learning how to spell. If you come across a word you don't normally see, write it down, even if you only have a tissue. When you return home, look up the word in the dictionary. The more you look for clues, the more you read, the better you spell.
- Arrange the letters into words and write sentences using each of them. For example, you might learn to spell "arithmetic" with the sentence "A rat in the house might eat the ice cream." Or the sentence 'I want accommodation in castles and mansions' will remind you that there are 2 'c's and 2 'm's in accommodation..
Warning
- Don't think that just because a letter is printed on a book, it's spelled correctly; there are many mistakes made. It happened!
- Keep in mind that some words ("color," "colour"; "goiter," "goitre"; "gray," "grey"; "checkered," "checkered"; "theater," "theatre") can be spelled more than once. method. A different spelling is correct, but may be more likely in American, British English, or even Australian English.
- Misspelled words are often accepted by spell checking programs. A very good thing is not to depend completely on the program.
- Don't rely on spell-checking programs, as they are NOT completely trustworthy and allow incorrect sentences like: "Eye tolled ewe, eye am knew at this."
- Take care to find out which English version is used in spelling, For example, Was this article written by the author using British or American? If you did, do you know who added and/or “checked” it? Spell checking is a dangerous job.
