Spelling strategies

The rule in one minute

English spelling looks messy, but much of it follows patterns. The rest you must learn word by word. Use the patterns where they work, and keep a list for the words that break them.

You do not need to memorise a dictionary. You need a few reliable rules and your own list of problem words.

These patterns do a lot of work:

• I before e, except after c: believe, receive.
• Doubling: for a short word ending in one vowel + one consonant, double the last letter before a vowel ending: run, running; stop, stopped.
• Silent e: drop it before a vowel ending: hope, hoping.
• Y to i: change y to i before most endings: happy, happiness; carry, carried.

Why spelling protects your marks

Spelling counts towards accuracy. One slip here and there does little harm.

The problem is repeated misspellings of common words. They tell a marker that the writer is not yet in control of the basics, and that can cap the accuracy mark however good the ideas are.

Most students misspell a small, steady set of words. Work on that set and you improve every piece you write.

Common mistakes, corrected

• definately becomes definitely. Think of the word finite inside it.
• seperate becomes separate. There is a rat in the middle: sep-a-ra-te.
• recieve becomes receive. I before e, except after c.
• tommorow becomes tomorrow. One m and two rs.
• occassion becomes occasion. Two cs and one s.
• goverment becomes government. It comes from govern, so keep the n.
• begining becomes beginning. Double the n before -ing.
• arguement becomes argument. The e of argue is dropped.

Try it yourself

Find and correct the misspelled word in each sentence, then check below.

1. It was definitly the best decision we made all year.
2. We recieved the letter a week later than expected.
3. The two teams played on seperate fields.
4. Their was no easy way to solve the problem.
5. She is planing to study medicine.

Answers: (1) definitely. (2) received, because of i before e, except after c. (3) separate.

Remember a rat. (4) There was. Their shows ownership, but there is used to say that something exists. (5) planning.

Double the n before -ing.

Make it a habit

Keep a personal spelling list. When a piece comes back with a spelling error, write the correct word in your list. Cover it, then write it from memory several times.

Your errors will cluster around the same words, so the list stays short, and it works better than studying spelling in general.

Use memory hooks for stubborn words, such as a small word hidden inside (a rat in separate). Also use word families to work out spellings: sign in signature, govern in government.

In the exam you cannot recheck every word. Scan only for your known problem words, and for endings where the rules apply.

Where students get stuck, and how we help

Students often try to learn long word lists and forget them. In our English as a Second Language lessons, a teacher builds your personal list from the errors in your own writing and teaches the patterns that stop mistakes before they happen.

Lessons start from RM70/hr. You can book a paid one-hour trial to try it.

Next step

Practise in the practice area. Then read about commonly confused words and plurals and possessives. The proofreading guide shows how to spot spelling slips in your own essays.

Next, visit our original practice tasks to use the rule in your own writing. Our IGCSE English tuition page explains how lessons run. When you are ready, the paid one-hour trial is the first step.