Mechanics: Spelling

One of the most difficult aspects of the English language can be spellings, because many English words are not spelled phonetically. However, there are some basic rules that can make spelling certain words easier.

Ie/ei

In words such as receive and chief the order of the i and and e can often be confusing. However, there is a little rhyme that can help you remember the order:

Write I before e, except after c or when sounded like a as in neighbor and weigh.

So, in words like grieve, the I comes first because it is not after a c. In words like ceiling, the e is first because the letters occur after a c. In words like reindeer, the e is first because the two vowels make a long a sound.

Exceptions: either, foreign, heir, seize, neither, forfeit, their, height

Plurals

Typically in English, plurals are formed by adding -s or -es to the end of a word. You can typically tell if an -s or -es is needed by the end of the noun.

Suffixes

With prefixes, spelling doesn’t change. With suffixes, spelling sometimes does change. You can typically tell if the spelling will change by the ending letters.