33. Spelling

For a list of commonly confused homonyms, see D2 in the Quick Editing Guide. See also A Glossary of Troublemakers, in 34.

English spelling so often defies the rules that many writers wonder if, indeed, there are rules. How, then, are you to cope? You can proofread carefully and use your spell checker. You can refer to lists of commonly misspelled words and of homonyms, words that sound the same, or almost the same, but are spelled differently.

You can also use several tactics to teach yourself to be a better speller.

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  1. Use mnemonic devices. To make unusual spellings stick in your memory, invent associations. Using such mnemonic devices (tricks to aid memory) may help you with whatever troublesome spelling you are determined to remember. Weird behaves weirdly. Rise again, Britain! One d in dish, one in radish. Why isn’t mathematics like athletics? You write a letter on stationery. Any silly phrase or sentence will do, as long as it brings tricky spellings to mind.
  2. Keep a record of words you misspell. Buy yourself a little notebook for entering words that invariably trip you up. Each time you proofread a paper you have written and receive one back from your instructor, write down any words you have misspelled. Then practice pronouncing, writing, and spelling them out loud until you have mastered them.
  3. Check any questionable spelling by referring to your dictionary, your good-as-gold best friend. Use it to check words as you come up with them and to double-check them as you proofread and edit. If you are multilingual and originally learned British English, a good dictionary will distinguish American and British spellings (color, colour; terrorize, terrorise).
  4. Learn commonly misspelled words. If you know that you are likely to confuse different words that sound alike, turn to the list of Commonly Confused Homonyms in the “Quick Editing Guide” (see p. A-39) and the Glossary of Troublemakers in the next section. Checkmark the words that you consider the trickiest — but don’t stop there. Spend a few minutes each day going over them. Spell every troublesome word out loud; write it ten times. Do the same with any common problem words that your spell checker routinely catches, such as nucular for nuclear or exercize for exercise. Your spelling will improve rapidly.