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A Dozen Quick Ways to Better Spelling
By Doug Fisher
When historians
write about the great innovations of the 20th century, the
spell-checker probably will rank right up there —
at least if journalists have a say.
Freed
on deadline from the tyranny of the dictionary, from those
flashback nightmares of Miss Snipe drilling into us “i
before e,” from the drudgery of having to minutely
check every word to make sure we haven’t dropped a
hard-to-spot letter. A squiggly red line here, a pop-up
warning box there and presto, all is good.
Well, yes
– and no. Spell-checkers have become indispensable.
But they won’t always catch that dropped or changed
letter that turns a good word into an embarrassing faux
pas. Not all are created equal. Sometimes they let through
disputed spellings, miniscule vs. minuscule, for instance.
After all, a spell-checker is only as good as its programmers.
And, let’s
admit it, sometimes on deadline we make changes knowing
that electronic safety net is in the background. We know
we should spell check again, but we forget.
So it’s
useful to know some quick guides. I use guides, not rules,
because in this bouillabaisse we speak and write, every
rule seems to have a dozen exceptions. But a dozen guides
probably will cover most of the spelling challenges you’ll
run up against. At least you’ll be more alert to reach
for that dictionary. So here are the quick dozen in an easy-to-clip-and-stick-on-the-cubicle
form.
1.
I before e, except after c ...
Most of us had this drilled into us in school, so we
know the correct spellings are fierce, wield, hierarchy,
grievance and the like. But I’m always surprised
by the number of people not taught the rest: ... and as
sounded like “a” as in neighbor and weigh
(and heir, inveigh, etc.).
Then come the exceptions. Remember that seize is weird
and at your leisure that neither science nor protein can
change ancient rules.
2.
Consonants: Double or not?
If the stress is on the first syllable, generally do
not double the consonant when adding a suffix. If the
stress is on the last syllable, double it. Thus: canceled
(but cancellation), benefited, traveled and occurred,
omitted, deferred.
Single-syllable words generally double the consonant:
stopped, hemmed, matted, for instance. But be careful;
bussed means kissed. Bused refers to riding in a bus.
However, with two vowels before the final consonant (hailed,
hooked, poured) or two consonants at the end (hinted,
punted, harmed) the last consonant generally is not doubled.
Words ending in x (taxed, mixed) don’t double the
consonant, and four common words defy the rules: kidnapped,
handicapped, programmed and transferred.
With
dis and mis as prefixes, double the s only if the root word
begins with s. So it’s dismissed but dissimilar, mistake
but misspelled (one of the most misspelled words in English).
4.
This will make you “able” to spell
“Able”
usually is the suffix if the root word can stand alone:
perishable, acceptable, fixable, stoppable. Cousin “ible”
is when the root is not really a word: invincible, permissible,
terrible.
But there are some “ible” cases where the root
is a word: flexible, collectible. And there are some “able”
words where the root isn’t a word: capable, durable.
If the root looks like a word but ends in a soft c followed
by an e, sometimes you drop the e and add “ible”:
forcible. However, there are a lot of exceptions because
of another guide – that you usually keep the silent
e after a c or g: noticeable, enforceable, manageable.
When a word ends in a single e after a consonant, drop
the e: likable, usable (not useable), lovable, salable
(none of those will likely trigger spell-check if you
leave the e in because the alternate spellings are accepted
in some quarters).
“Able” and “ible” are two of
the most confusing and exception-riddled suffixes. Keep
your dictionary handy and spell-check tuned up.
Consensus
has everything to do with consent, but nothing to do with
the census. So while we might debate to reach a consensus,
there is no debate about its spelling – not concensus.
Only one word ends in –sede: supersede.
Only four double-syllable words take –eed: proceed,
exceed, succeed, indeed.
Single-syllable words usually take eed: freed, bleed,
need. The rest usually take ede: precede (often misspelled
because of the confusion with proceed), concede, recede.
When joining two words at the same consonants, generally
keep all the letters: withhold, barroom, bookkeeping.
But note that these are two words: locker room, work
force, under way (except for ships).
8.
This can make you ornery
If you
ignore “ornery,” the experts generally point
to seven common words that end in -ery: cemetery, monastery,
stationery (paper), distillery, millinery, periphery, confectionery.
Use -ary for the rest, for instance, stationary (at rest).
Unlike the British, we like our nouns with a c and our
verbs with an s. Noun: prophecy, advice, device. Verb:
prophesy or prophesize, advise, devise.
Two major exceptions – same form noun and verb:
license, practice.
The British
probably have it right when they spell the word judgement.
It makes the soft g clearer. But on this side of the pond,
we spell it judgment.
11.
Don’t be “ify” on this
That
soft drink in your hand is a liquid, but the verb is to
liquefy. The other –efy verbs are rarefy, putrefy
and stupefy. Otherwise, use –ify, as in purify.
Because
English is a wonderful mongrel language, sometimes there
are no rules (or the rules are really style, not spelling);
you’ve just got to know the word. Some sticky ones:
-
Fiery:
about fire, but not spelled that way.
-
Battalion:
think of battle and you’ll get the t’s and
l straight.
-
Among:
not amongst.
-
Minuscule:
not miniscule.
-
Sacrilegious:
this is one time not to be religious.
-
Quandary,
temperament: don’t forget the extra “a.”
-
Upward:
not upwards.
-
Toward:
not towards.
-
But
remember, beside and besides both are valid words with
different meanings.
Along with your desk dictionary, you might check www.yourdictionary.com.
It has a list of the 100 most misspelled words and some
ways to remember the correct spellings. It also has the
100 most mispronounced words.
These dozen guides are available as a PowerPoint file.
If you’d like it for newsroom training or reference,
e-mail me and I’ll send you the relatively small
(124 kb) file.
Doug Fisher, a former AP news editor, teaches
journalism at the University of South Carolina and can be
reached at dfisher@sc.edu
or 803-777-3315.
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