English Spellings The Importance of Syllables in Spelling Consonant Blends Prefixes as an aid to spelling Suffixes - their importance in spelling Suffixes and Stressed Syllables Words ending -ly and -ect Words ending ic and ick Words ending -er, -or, and -ar Words ending with ation Changing verbs ending with -ate to nouns ending with – ation Words ending -able and -ible Words ending ical, icle and acle Magic e Words (often known as split digraphs) Vowels Plural Words i before e, or e before i? Apostrophe Homophones Word beginnings The Trouble with Spell Checkers Proofreading American and British Spelling - some differences Spelling Rules in brief 1
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English SpellingsThe Importance of Syllables in SpellingConsonant BlendsPrefixes as an aid to spellingSuffixes - their importance in spellingSuffixes and Stressed SyllablesWords ending -ly and -ectWords ending ic and ickWords ending -er, -or, and -arWords ending with ationChanging verbs ending with -ate to nouns ending with –ationWords ending -able and -ibleWords ending ical, icle and acle Magic e Words (often known as split digraphs)VowelsPlural Words i before e, or e before i?ApostropheHomophonesWord beginningsThe Trouble with Spell CheckersProofreadingAmerican and British Spelling - some differencesSpelling Rules in brief
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The Importance of Syllables in SpellingAll good spellers are skilful at breaking words up into syllables. Syllables are the individual sounds that make up a word:
o care-ful o hos-pit-al o u-ni-ver-si-ty
Breaking a word into syllables makes it easier to deal with one small bit at a time.
Practice: 1. Read aloud each of the following words, then break it into syllables. Try "clapping" the word: one clap for each syllable. Finally write it in the third column - without looking back! nowadays now-a-days probably shampoo impossible wondering ordinary
2. Read the following words aloud and then break them into syllables and write in the third column. Try to write the whole word without looking back. problem themselves neither spoonful sideways scrambled gentlemen autobiography continental intercontinental
3. Breaking words into syllables is an important skill in spelling. It's often better to place the dash between the double letters, for example ap-par- ent-ly. Break up the following words into syllables:
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apparently particular necessarysupervisor approximately technicianexaggerate outrageous responsible
Here are the answers to the first part of syllable 3:ap-par-ent-ly par-tic-u-lar ne-ces-sa-rysu-per-vi-sor ap-prox-i-mate-ly tech-ni-cianex-ag-ge-rate out-rage-ous re-spon-si-ble
Consonant Blends
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Some words start with a consonant blend. This is where two or more consonants run into one another or blend together. Here are some examples:
blanket plastic treat stripe grand
Consonant blends are often difficult to hear so say the words very clearly.
Practice:1. Here are some more examples. Use a dictionary to add 3 more words which
begin with each consonant blend. blunderbrokenclimatecrackerdreadful
2. Use a dictionary to add 3 more words which begin with the same consonant blend as the example:
3. Use a dictionary to add 3 more words which begin with the same consonant blend as the example:
shriekslipperysmokesnooze
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specialsplendidsprinklesqueezestatuestruggle
4. Use a dictionary to add 3 more words which begin with the same consonant blend as each example:
swindlethroattreasuretwinkle
5. Read the following passage aloud and underline the words starting with a consonant blend:
Steven dropped the stick into the stream and watched it float under the bridge. He started to cross the road but stopped when he heard a squeal of brakes and a tremendous crash. Running around the corner he saw that a Ford Transit van had plunged down a steep ravine. The driver was struggling to climb out but his legs appeared to be trapped beneath the steering column. "Try to keep still," shouted Steven. "I'll phone the emergency services."
Here are the words starting with a consonant blend: Steven dropped the stick into the stream and watched it float under the bridge. He started to cross the road but stopped when he heard a squeal of brakes and a tremendous crash. Running around the corner he saw that a Ford Transit van had plunged down a steep ravine. The driver was struggling to climb out but his leg appeared to be trapped beneath the steering column. "Try to keep still," shouted Steven. "I'll phone the emergency services."
Prefixes as an aid to spelling
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A prefix is a group of letters placed at the start of a root word to change its meaning. Some complicated words are less difficult to spell if you are familiar with prefixes. Prefixes are very useful in understanding and spelling some words - especially long words.
Here are some common examples in the following list:PREFIX MEANING EXAMPLESanti- against or opposite to anticlockwise, antibiotic auto- self autobiography, automatdis- not, or away dissimilar, disconnectin- not insane, inhumanil- not illogical, illegalim- not immature, improbableir- not irrelevant, irregularinter- between international, intermarry mis- wrong misunderstand, misspellpost- after postnatal, postscript pre- before prenatal, prehistoricpro- for, or forward propose, pro-British re- again, or back rewrite, reconsidersub- under submarine, substandardsuper- above supervisor, superhumantrans- across transport, transplantun- not, or in reverse unfinished, unarmed
un- and dis-Two common prefixes are un- and dis-, both meaning not, or the opposite of.Fill in the blanks in the following table: un + equal unequal dis + please displease
un + predictable dis + comfortunprofessional dis + possess
un + popular dissimilar
NOTICE: when the prefix ends with the same letter as the first letter of the base word, the letter is doubled, for example: dissimilar, unnecessary.
in-, il-, ir-, im-Another prefix meaning "not" or "the opposite of" is in- The spelling of this prefix often changes to match the first letter of the base word. This sometimes results in a double letter. So, if we want to say the opposite of legal we say "illegal" instead of "inlegal" (which would be awkward to get your tongue around!). The pattern is like this: *Use il- before words starting with l. So not legible = illegible. *Use ir- before words starting with r. So not relevant = irrelevant *Use im- before words starting with m but also in front of words starting with p. So: not mature = immature not perfect = imperfect.
Fill in the blanks in the following table. not literate= illiterate not rational= irrationalnot mobile = immobile not proper = impropernot legitimate= not regular=not modest = not personal =not mortal = not responsiblenot possible = not logical =
Use in- before any other letter. So: not adequate = inadequate not capable = incapablenot decent = indecent not offensive = inoffensive
Another prefix meaning "not" or "the opposite of" is in-The spelling of this prefix often changes to match the first letter of the base word. This sometimes results in a double letter. So, if we want to say the opposite of legal we say "illegal" instead of "inlegal" (which would be awkward to get your tongue around!). The pattern is like this:
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*Use il- before words starting with l. So not legible = illegible. *Use ir- before words starting with r. So not relevant = irrelevant *Use im- before words starting with m but also in front of words starting with p. So: not mature = immature not perfect = imperfect.
Here's the table from prefix 3 worksheet with the answers: not literate= illiterate not rational= irrationalnot mobile = immobile not proper = impropernot legitimate = illegitimate not regular= irregularnot modest = immodest not personal = impersonalnot mortal = immortal not responsible irresponsiblenot possible = impossible not logical = illogical
Use in- before any other letter. So: not adequate = inadequate not capable = incapable not decent = indecent not offensive = inoffensive
Remember, you use:il- if the base word starts with l. For example not legal = illegalim- if the base word starts with m or p. For example not mobile = immobile, not proper = improperir- if the base word starts with r. For example not relevant = irrelevantin- if the base word starts with any letter other than l, m, p, or r. For example not adequate = inadequate
Choose the correct words in the following. 1 not literate inliterate illiterate irliterate 2 not effective imeffective ireffective ineffective3 not perfect inperfect imperfect ilperfect4 not reversible inreversible irreversible imreversible5 not legible inlegible imlegible illegible6 not eligible ileligible ireligible ineligible7 not relevant irrelevant inrelevant imrelevant8 not possible inpossible ilpossible impossible
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9 not responsible irresponsible inresponsible imresponsible10 not mature inmature immature ilmature11 not sufficient imsufficient insufficient irsufficient12 not logical illogical imlogical inlogical
in, im, il and irBefore the start of this exercise, look back at prefix 3 to remind yourself of the patterns concerning prefixes in-, im-, il-, ir-. Now write the negative versions of the following words by adding in-, im-, il-, or ir- to the base words. Base word Negative form Base word Negative formpolite audiblehuman reversiblevisible patientregular eligiblecompetent resistiblepossible logicalHere are the answers to exercise prefix4. Base word Negative form Base word Negative formpolite impolite audible inaudiblehuman inhuman reversible irreversiblevisible invisible patient impatientregular irregular eligible ineligiblecompetent incompetent resistible irresistiblepossible impossible logical illogical
Here are some common examples of prefixes:PREFIX MEANING PREFIX MEANINGanti- against, opposite to dis- not, or awayin- not il- notim- not ir- notinter- between mis- wrongre- again, or back un- not, in reverse
1. Here are some root words. Build new words by adding one of these prefixes to the root word. Root Word New Word Root Word New Wordtidy untidy behave honest complete legal understand mingle perfect edible heat relevant treat imaginative mortal like possible consistent contented septic appetizing
Here are the answers to Prefix 6 exercise:Root Word New Word Root Word New Wordtidy untidy behave misbehavehonest dishonest complete incompletelegal illegal understand misunderstandmingle intermingle perfect imperfectedible inedible heat reheatrelevant irrelevant treat mistreatimaginative unimaginative mortal immortallike dislike possible impossibleconsistent inconsistent contented discontentedseptic antiseptic appetizing unappetizing
con- and ex-Two words con- and ex- are at the start of words. They sounds to spell always in the same way.Complete the following sentences by using con- or ex- to fill in the blanks:
1. The hills seemed to ___tend for ever.
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2. The Queen ___gratulated the ___plorer on the success of the ___pedition.3.It's no ___aggeration to say that physical ___ercise leaves me totally ___hausted.
4. The firemen ___tinguished the flames with ___siderable ease.
5. We are seeking someone with ___cellent ___amination results, ___perience of dealing directly with ___sumers, and an ability to organize ___hibitions.
6. She ___sidered the ___tra ___pense of ___tinuing the course for a further year an unnecessary___travagance unless her parents were willing to ___tribute to the cost.
7. ___centrate on syllables and you will soon become a ___fident speller.
8. We hadn't realized we were in ___treme danger until the coastguard ___tacted us.
Here are a few more prefixes. Some of them are less common than the previous ones.
PREFIX MEANING EXAMPLESsemi- half semicircle, semiconsciousbi- two or twice biannual, biweeklytri- three triangle, triathlonmulti- many multilingual, multimillionairemono- one or single monorail, monoplanemicro- very small microscope, microchipultra- extreme ultrasound, ultrabasic hyper- too much hypersensitive, hypercriticalextra- outside, or beyond extraordinary, extrasensory
If you're not sure about the meaning of any of these words be sure to look them up in a dictionary.
Suffixes - their importance in spelling
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A suffix is simply an ending that's added to a base word to form a new word. Examples: Base word Suffix New Wordinterest -ing interestingnoise -y noisybreath -less breathlesspopular -ity popularitydrop -let droplet
A key thing to know about a suffix is whether it starts with a consonant or a vowel. Here are some widely used suffixes:ConsonantSuffixes Examples Vowel
When a consonant suffix is added to the base word, it doesn't change. When a vowel suffix is added, drop the silent e.
Adding suffixes to words ending -ce and -geWhen adding a consonant suffix: keep the silent eWhen adding a vowel suffix: drop the silent e
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So: blame+less = blameless but blame+ing = blaming
But there are a few exceptions. Here's the main one:Where the base word ends in -ce or -ge, then you keep the silent e before -able and -ous. So:
enforce + able = enforceablenotice + able = noticeableservice + able = serviceablecourage + ous = courageousoutrage + ous = outrageous
Doubling Consonants when Adding a Suffix
This is an area where lots of good spellers are unsure. For example, to write the word plan + ing, is it planing or planning?
Luckily there's a very useful pattern. It might sound complicated at first but it's one of the most useful patterns to know about.
If the base word has: one syllable, one short vowel (the short vowels are ham, bed, lip, rot, gun),one consonant at the end you double the final consonant when you add a vowel suffix. Examples:slip has one syllable, one short vowel (i) and one consonant (p) at the end so:
slip + ed = slipped (double p) and:bed + ing = bedding, flat + est = flattestfun + y = funny hot + er = hotter
In case of a consonant suffix, the base word doesn't change:bag + ful = bagful, wet + ness = wetness
Now make new words by adding suffixes to the following base words. hot + est hottest fat + ishgrin + ed stop + ingpot + er gun +ed
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sun + y wrap + ingspot + y step + edrun + ing spot + edcan + ed bat + ingfit + ing net + ing
Here are some sentences. Cross out the incorrect word.1. "What are you grining/grinning at?" said Nigel.2. Sue took up joging/jogging to improve her fitness.3. Ali took a jugful/juggful of orange juice into the garden.4. We wraped/wrapped the gift in silver paper.5. July was the hotest/hottest month of the year.
Answers to Suffix 4Bhot + est hottest fat + ish fattishgrin + ed grinned stop + ing stoppingpot + er potter gun +ed gunnedsun + y sunny wrap + ing wrappingspot + y spotty step + ed steppedrun + ing running spot + ed spottedcan + ed canned bat + ing battingfit + ing fitting net + ing nettingHere are the sentences. The incorrect words have been removed.1. "What are you grinning at?" said Nigel.2. Sue took up jogging to improve her fitness.3. Ali took a jugful of orange juice into the garden.4. We wrapped the gift in silver paper.5. July was the hottest month of the year.
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Suffixes and Stressed SyllablesThere is another group of words which cause many people to make mistakes. Once again, the problem is to decide whether or not to double the final consonant of the base word when adding a suffix. Read the following words aloud and try to decide where you place the stress or emphasis: profit target enter orderbegin equip regret commit
You should notice that in the top line you stressed the first syllable. And in the bottom line you stressed the second syllable. Like this: profit target enter orderbegin equip regret commit
If the stress is on the first syllable the base word doesn't change:profit + able = profitable; and enter + ed = entered
If the stress is on the last syllable, double the final consonant before adding a vowel suffix: begin + ing = beginning; and equip + ed = equipped (No change if a consonant suffix is added so: equip + ment = equipment )
Practice:1. Use the pattern to add suffixes to the following: 1st syllable stressed 2nd syllable stressedgarden + er forget + ablelimit + ed begin + ingorder + ing occur + ingalter + ation omit + edmarket + ing regret + ful
Suffixes and Stressed Syllables
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Answers to Suffix 51st syllable stressed 2nd syllable stressedgarden + er forget + able forgettable gardenerlimit + ed begin + ing beginning limitedorder + ing occur + ing occurring orderingalter + ation omit + ed omitted alterationmarket + ing regret + ful regretful marketing
So don't write regrettful for the final example: -ful is a consonant suffix so don't need to change the base word! But regret + ing would have been regretting because -ing is a vowel suffix.
Stressed Syllables and Suffixes - another activity
Spelling Pattern: For words of two syllables ending in one vowel and one consonant If the stress is on the first syllable the base word doesn't change:profit + able = profitable; and enter + ed = enteredIf the stress is on the last syllable, double the final consonant before adding a vowel suffix:begin + ing = beginning; and equip + ed = equipped (No change if a consonant suffix is added so: equip + ment = equipment )
Tick or highlight the correct spelling in the following sentences:1. "I don't think Julie's very commited/committed to her school work," said her mother."I don't agree," said the teacher, "I feel that she's shown a great deal of commitment/committment this year."
2. Dave submited/submitted his enrolment/enrollment form two days after the closing date.
3. Nathan and Kim admited/admitted they had forgoten/forgotten their homework assignments.
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4. "Let's begin at the begining/ beginning," said the detective.
5. Part of the marketing/ marketting manager's job involved budgeting/ budgetting for the advertising schedule.
6. Sandy regreted/regretted not ordering/orderring the very latest equipment/equippment. He had omited/omitted to consider the efficiency savings and now realized that his business could have been much more profitable/profittable.
7. The security guard patroled/patrolled the fence, prefering/preferring to stay awake by keeping busy.
8. Refering/referring to the boss by her Christian name was strictly forbiden/forbidden.
Suffixes and Stressed Syllables:Adding a suffix to words ending yNotice if there is a vowel or a consonant immediately before y. For example:
Words endingvowel +y
Words endingconsonant +y
delay replyconvey busydestroy pity
There are two important patterns:
* If the word ends in a vowel +y the base word doesn't change: delay + ed = delayedemploy + ment = employment
* If the word ends in a consonant +y, when you add any suffix except -ing,then change the y to i:
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reply + ed = repliedbusy + ness = businesspity + ful = pitifulbut reply + ing = replying
Copy the new word into the third column of this table. Base word + suffix New word Copy new word
herebusy + ly busilypity + ful pitifulcarry + ed carriedcarry + ing carryingbury + al burialsupply + er supplierhappy + ness happinessempty +ing emptyingempty + ed emptied
Fill in the blanks in the following table: Base word Suffix New Wordpretty est prettiestnoisy lyeasy easiest
ed suppliedtry ergloomy estmarry married
ment employmentmystery ousapply appliance
ous enviousage marriage
Answers to Suffix 7BBase word Suffix New Wordpretty est prettiest
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noisy ly noisilyeasy est easiestsupply ed suppliedtry er triergloomy est gloomiestmarry ed marriedemploy ment employmentmystery ous mysteriousapply ance applianceenvy ous enviousmarry age marriage
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words ending -ly and -ectListen carefully to the way people speak. Notice how they often run one word into another or drop the end off a word altogether. Ask someone to read this sentence aloud a few times: "Sally popped down to the shops."Listen particularly to "popped down". Did it sound like "popt" or did they just miss out the -ed completely? Very often the sound of a word isn't much help in telling you how to spell it.
1. Some endings can be heard clearly enough to help us spell them. Here are two of them. Copy out the following words:
words ending ic and ickThe end of a word is often hard to hear because we tend to run one word into another when speaking. A sound you can usually hear quite clearly is -ick or -ic. Same sound but two spellings. However there is a simple way to spot the difference.
1. Look at the following words and copy them in the spaces: Ending -ick Ending -ickick trafficclick panictrick Titanicchick ethnicsick clinic
Did you spot the difference? The words with only one syllable end in -ick. The words having more than one syllable end in -ic. There are only a few exceptions to this pattern and these usually happen where two words are joined together as in homesick and candlestick.
2. On a spare piece of paper write down all the words you can think of that end with -ick. Work your way through the alphabet, not forgetting words that start with two consonants such as brick.
Words ending ic1. Notice that each of the following words has more than one syllable
and ends in -ic. Copy each word in the space alongside. mimic scientific tonic magic horrific tonic Arctic Antarctic traffic comic logic tragic
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2. Look at this e-mail. Some of the words have been left out.Hi Mac,I was late for school today because of the heavy 1 . We were doing a new 2 in Geography about the world's oceans. Our teacher told us about the two largest oceans, the 3 and the 4 . Then she went on to describe the 5 and the 6 at the very north and south of the globe. In 7 we were doing long multiplication sums. We're hoping to go on a 8 in the woods on Saturday if the 9 gets our car fixed in time. It would be 10 if you could come too. Let me know as soon as possible.Love, Elizabeth
Answers to worksheet on words ending icThe e-mail should have read as follows: Hi Mac. I was late for school today because of the heavy 1 traffic. We were doing a new 2 topic in Geography today about the world's oceans. Our teacher told us about the two largest oceans, the 3 Pacific and the 4 Atlantic . Then she went on to describe the 5 Arctic and the 6 Antarctic at the very north and south of the globe. In 7 Arithmetic we were doing long multiplication sums. We're hoping to go on a 8 picnic in the woods on Saturday if the 9 mechanic gets our car fixed in time. It would be 10 terrific if you could come too. Let me know as soon as possible.Love, ElizabethNow write down the words on a separate paper.
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Words ending -er, -or, and -arThere are lots of words in English which end with the -er sound. But it is difficult to be sure whether the sound is made by -er, -or or -ar. There's no easy rule but there are a few helpful word patterns: 1. There are more than ten times as many words ending with -er than -or and -ar together. So, if you guess -er then there's a good chance that you'll be right! 2. Verbs ending in a silent e usually change to nouns by ending -er: dive/diver wade/wader write/writer avenge/avenger
3. -er is also the most common way of ending a word for someone carrying out an action:
Action Person carrying out the actionreporting reporterplaying playerfighting fighterlistening listenerprinting printercleaning cleaner
Choose the correct words in the following: 1 operater operator operatar2 spectaculor spectaculer spectacular3 reportar reporter reportor4 trespassor trespasser trespassar5 collecter collectar collector6 quizmastar quizmastor quizmaster7 instructor instructar instructer8 aligater aligatar aligator9 similar similer similer10 inspecter inspector inspectar11 glassmakar glassmaker glassmakor12 accelerator accelerater acceleratar13 rectangular rectanguler rectangulor14 manufacturor manufacturar manufacturer
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15 musculer musculor muscularWords ending with ation1. There are many words in English which end with -ation. This is a very useful
pattern to learn. Here are just a few common examples. Read them out aloud.
Here are the answers to Ends 7A: lubric- lubrication imagin- imaginationveget- vegetation civiliz- civilizationconsider- consideration punctu- punctuation
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Changing verbs ending with -ate to nouns ending with –ation1. Change the following verbs to nouns. Take away the -ate and add -
ation.
Root Verb Noun Root Verb Noun educate education create operate demonstrate concentrate exaggerate retaliate abbreviate2. Write down the root verbs of these nouns. Check in the dictionary if you need help. Noun
Words ending -able and -ibleTwo common endings are -able and -ible. But which one to use? There are no simple rules to follow. But there are three tips that may be useful:
If the base word is not altered in any way then add -able.This works most of the time:understand —> understandable, predict —> predictable,comfort —> comfortable, and so on.
There are many more words ending -able than -ible.have a capability to guess and choose -able
learn the most common –ible words and use -able for the rest. many of the -ible words are rarely used. Have you ever written fungible for instance?
Here are the most common -ible words: edible: fit for eatingcredible: can be believedaudible: can be heardlegible: easy to readnegligible: of no importanceterrible: causing terrorhorrible: awfulfeasible: can be donevisible: can be seensensible: reasonableresponsible: trustworthypossible: liable to happendigestible: can be digestedflexible: easily bentpermissible: allowablecompatible: suitable
Many of them have negative forms by adding in-, il-, ir-, or im- . For example: inedible, illegible, irresponsible, and impossible.
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Words ending ical, icle and acle 1. Look at the following words. Their endings sound rather similar. Read them out aloud.
2. Sort the words into three groups:-ical (adjectives) -acle (nouns) -icle (nouns)
Notice how the adjectives all end with -ical, and the nouns end with -acle or -icle. Handy Tip: Nearly all the words that end with this sound will be adjectives and will therefore end with -ical.
Consider the following riddle?Think of words ending in -gry. Angry and hungry are two of them. There are only three words in the English language. What is the third word? The word is something that everyone uses every day. If you have listened carefully, I have already told you what it is. Three things you need to know about this puzzle are:
1. There are only two common words ending in -gry. They are angry and hungry. There are several other words which end like this such as aggry, meagry, puggry and some others. But none of these could be described as common words.
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2. This is a riddle rather than a genuine question - so you need to be on guard for some trickery in the wording of the question.
3. Sometimes this riddle is misquoted. If you don't have the correct wording it becomes impossible to solve.
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MAGIC E WORDS (often known as split digraphs)Read the following words out aloud. Notice how the "magic e" affects the way we say the previous vowel. cap cape slop slope The way we say the -a- in cape is different to the way that we say it in cap. This is because of the magic e.
1. Copy the following magic e words. Then highlight or underline the vowel that is affected by the magic e. made made stage face close wake whale joke bagpipe exercise promoted space museum escape hopeless arrive craze hikers surprise diversion lately
More "magic e" words 1. Read the following story. Then highlight or underline the words which use a magic e.
Dave rode his bike down the slope. He was going far too fast so he put on his front brake. This was a bad mistake as the front wheel locked and he was thrown over the handlebars. He landed face-first among some stones. He was quite dazed and for a moment he didn't know where he was.
A neighbour phoned for an ambulance and it soon arrived. At the hospital they decided that he had a broken nose and they gave him an ice pack to reduce the swelling. Dave's Mum picked him up from the hospital and drove him home. "You had a lucky escape," she said. "You need to be much more careful in the future."
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Vowels:When a vowel sound isn't stressed then it's often difficult to work out how to spell it. Read the following words and listen to way you say the underlined vowels: relative cigarette information The chances are you didn't pronounce them very clearly and you might guess that any of the vowels would fit: a; e; i; o; or u.
Here's a tip: if the vowel sound is not clear then try to think of another word which comes from the same root and find one in which the vowel is stressed. relative relation (the -a- is stressed) cigarette cigar (the -a- is stressed) information inform (the -or- is stressed)
1. Put the missing vowels in the following words. Then copy the whole word in the third column.
Long vowel sounds: -a- Long vowel sounds: -e-When you hear a long -e- , particularly in the middle of a word, it's often spelled -ea- or -ee- , like the words here:
cheap reason leaf loudspeaker steal meal revealed
green freezing keep between wheel sweetness proceed
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But there's no advice to decide which one it is. Try writing the word both ways on a scrap of paper, first with -ea- and then with -ee. Nearly always you'll spot the one you want! 1. In the following pairs, underline the word that you think is correct:
2. Now make some more words by writing -ea- or -ee- in the blanks: gr___dy tr___tment fr___zing m___ningpl___sed bl___k t___th w___kendb___troot f___ture cr___ture str___ticecr___m agr___ment gr___se b___chboy
Long vowel sounds: -i-1- As is usual with long vowel sounds, most long -i- sounds are written using
the magic e. (See the magic e page if you're not sure about this) For example: fine silent entitled
Underline the i-e combination in each of the following words. lively mice untimely deadline idle stalactite miserly quite bridle title write fertile decided trifle dynamite
2- But -igh- and -y also make the long i sound. -igh is usually found in the middle of a word and the long i right at the end of a word is nearly always -y.
Write the correct letters in the following words: repl__, n_____tfall, br____t, suppl__, del_____t, t_____t, moonl_____t, appl__, terrif__, midn_____t.
3. Try to guess the following words which use -igh or –y for the long I sound.
The pen is m_____tier than the sword.Starboard is the _______ hand side of the ship. The victim couldn't identi___ the robber. You need to m__________ the total by 3 to get the answer. "Find something to occu___ yourself with," said Toby's Dad. Thunder and l_____tning can be quite fr______eningI admit it was my fault. I can't de___ it.
1- Long vowel sounds: -i-2- The answers to question 3 on page vowels 4 were:
mightierrightidentifymultiplyoccupylightning and frighteningdeny
3- Long vowel sounds: -o-4- 1. As is usual with long vowel sounds, most long -o- sounds are written
using the magic e. (See the magic e page if you're not sure about this) For example: lonely coke rodent stove
Underline the o-e pattern in each of the following words. slope poker telephone dozed stolen homework stonemason
2. But -oa- and -ow- also make the long o sound. -oa- is usually found in the middle of a word and the long o right at the end of a word is nearly always -ow.
Write the correct letters in the following words: elb___, fl___t, r___dworks, borr___, c___stguard, narr___, g___lscorer, f___ming, foll___, kn___.
3. Try to guess the following words which use -oa- or –ow for the long o sound.
Robin Hood used a b__ and ______ .I b______ ed some money from my Dad.. Sw______ the pill. You kn___ it will make you feel better. What a misery Sam is. He's always m___ning and gr________. In alphabetical order, l___f is bel___ l___d. Foll___ that truck as far as the narr___ bridge.Molly lives inland but Sarah lives at the c_______.5- Long vowel sounds: o6- The answers to question 3 on page vowels5 were:
bow and arrowborrowedswallow and knowmoaning and groaningloaf, below and loadfollow and narrowcoast
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Plural WordsMost words in the English language, an 's' to the end of the wordis added to make a plural:
Singulara tableone cakea planet
becomesbecomesbecomes
Pluraltwo tablesthree cakesmany planets
However, there are a few words that behave differently. These are: words ending in 'y'words ending in 'x', 'sh', 's', 'ss', and 'ch'.
Plurals of Words Ending in 'y'These follow a fairly simple pattern which is easy to follow as long as you remember the difference between a vowel and a consonant.(Vowels are 'a', 'e', 'i', 'o' and 'u'. All the other letters are consonants)
If the word has a consonant before the final 'y' then the plural ends with 'ies': Singularbullyponycanaryspy
becomesbecomesbecomesbecomes
Pluralbulliesponiescanariesspies
If the word has a vowel before the final y then you just add an 's': Singulardaydelaysurveytoy
becomesbecomesbecomesbecomes
Pluraldaysdelayssurveystoys
Now fill in the missing words in the following table:
Plurals of words ending in 'x', 'sh','s', 'ss', and 'ch'.Some people describe these as words that "hiss" at the end. It is not sure that 'ch' hisses exactly, but you get the idea. Add '-es' to make the plurals, like this:
Singularboxbushatlasglasschurch
Pluralboxesbushesatlasesglasseschurches
Now fill in the missing words in the following table:Singular Plural Singular Pluralsandwich guesstax brushcrash octopusbeach circuswitness reflexvirus address
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i before e, or e before i?Spelling rules aren't a lot of use. Usually they are far too complicated. But here is one that works quite well - as long as you remember the whole rule:When you want to say -ee-it's i before e except after c.
Try to remember always to say the start of the rule:When you want to say ee ....
1. Work at the rule by separating the following words into two groups and writing them in the boxes below.
brief ceiling perceive thief field deceive achieve receipt piece conceited relief chief diesel receive i before e e before i
However, when you add -s to words like policy, vacancy and agency, you follow the normal rule for words ending in -y:Change the -y to -ie- and add -s
policy + s = policies vacancy + s = vacancies
Notice also, two common exceptions to the i before e rule:protein seize
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Apostrophe The apostrophe is used above a word for two reasons:
to show ownership: o Helen's exercise book - the book belongs to Helen so the
apostrophe goes after Helen. o The boys' changing room - the changing room belongs to all the
boys, so the apostrophe goes after boys. to show that one or more letters are missing:
They've built a new stadium on the outskirts of town - the apostrophe shows that ha is missing from They have.
1. Write the shortened form of the following, making sure you put the apostrophe in the correct place. The first one is done for you. do not don't should not it is could have let us will not would not does not we have he will
Apostrophe TestHere's a test to see if you know when and where to put an apostrophe in a word. Look at the following sentences. Each sentence has at least one apostrophe missing somewhere. Try to decide which words need an apostrophe and then write the sentence correctly. Go back to the apostrophe guide if you're not sure. Hint: some of the gaps have been put there just to fool you!
1. I ask_ed her if she_s coming to see us this weekend.
2. Fred_s the talles_t boy in his class but he still can_t reach top shelf.
5. It wasn't that he could't play cards, it's just that he didn't enjoy any indoor games.
6. They'd once lived in London's West End but now they've moved to the countryside.
7. Jenny doesn't care for women's clothes but prefers to wear a shirt and jeans.
8. You're going to have an accident if you don't put that knife down.
9. There's a chance that Graham's match will be cancelled as the weather's expected to get worse.
10. We'd like to go to the wedding but we're sitting an exam on that day.
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Homophonesthey're, their and thereThese three homophones often lead to difficulty. Try to make sure that you know which is which:
"they're" is perhaps the easiest to remember. It is the shortened form of "they are". For example: They're catching a flight at 11.45.
"their" means "belonging to them". For example: Their house is in Elm Street. "there" has two uses: 1) to mean a place For example: The post office is over there. 2) with the verb "to be" (in phrases like "there is", "there are" etc) For example: There are 26 letters in the alphabet.
See if you can choose the correct words to fill the gaps in the following sentences. Click on the button alongside a word to see if you're right.
1. They always take ......... dog with them on holiday.
their they're there
2. Let's wait ......... alongside the entrance.
their they're there
3. Ask them if ........ coming tomorrow.
their they're there
4. ........ building an extension to our school.
Their They're There
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5. ........ are over 1200 students at our school.
Their They're There
6. We'll call in at Mcdonalds if ........'s time.
their they're there
7. ........ football team is at the top of the league.
Their They're There
8. Sam is always ........ in good time.
their they're there
9. Dad was pleased that they had done so well in ........ exams.
their they're there
10. I'm afraid ........ going to find the move very stressful.
their they're there
11.My parents won't be coming as ........ both working on Saturday.
their they're there
12. The teacher told them to leave ........ books on her desk.
their they're there
Homophones: Its and it'sThese two homophones are often confused. You can see them spelled incorrectly every day. Try to make sure that you know which is which:
"it's" is the shortened form of "it is" or "it has". For example: He's replacing his computer because it's very old. It's become very unreliable.
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"its" means "belonging to it". For example: The dog wagged its tail.
See if you can choose the correct words to fill the gaps in the following sentences. Click on the button alongside a word to see if you're right.
1. If ....... possible I'd like to see you tomorrow
it's its
2. The football club always has ....... annual meeting in January.
it's its
3. The bike is in good condition but ....... gears need adjusting.
it's its
4. Please remind me when ....... due for renewal.
it's its
5. The crowd slowly made ....... way home.
it's its
6. ....... rained every day since Monday.
It's Its
7. Ask Bill if ....... convenient to arrive about 7pm.
it's its
8. Luigi's restaurant is famous for ....... vegetarian meals.
it's its
9. The factory pays ....... workers very poor wages.
it's its
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10. ....... been a close game but the best team won in the end.
It's Its Homophones: two, too, toSome people find these three homophones cause them difficulty. Try to make sure that you know which is which:
"Two" is always a number - the number 2 For example: The two boys shivered in the cold.
"Too" can be used in 2 ways: to mean "excessively" e.g. too far, too expensiveto mean "also" or "as well" e.g. Will you be skating too?
"To" is used in 2 ways: to show direction e.g. He passed the ball to his brotheras part of a verb e.g. He wanted to read the new Harry Potter book.
See if you can choose the correct words to fill the gaps in the following sentences. Click on the button alongside a word to see if you're right.
1. There were ......... trains standing in the station.
two too to
2. I usually go ........ the swimming pool on Saturdays.
two too to
3. The question was ........ hard for me.
two too to
. 4. My best subject is Geography but I'm quite good at English ........ .
two too to
5. Maisie tries ........ train at least four times a week.
two too to 43
6. The music was far ........ loud for Joe's parents.
two too to
7. Twice ........ is four.
two too to
8. Jack's ambition is ........ become an actor.
two too to
9. ........ heads are better than one!
two too to
10. "I'd like a cookie please," said Emma. "Me ........ !" shouted Mick.
two too to
11. I wouldn't bother ........ much about what to wear at the party.
two too to
12. "Remember ........ bring a change of clothes in case we get wet.
two too to
Test yourself on these homophonesSee if you can choose the correct words to fill the gaps in the following sentences. Click on the button alongside a word to see if you're right.
1. Katie will be coming .......... tomorrow.
here hear
2. Sorry, I didn't .......... you shouting.
here hear
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3. Bill .......... the shopping mall every day on his way to work.
past passed
. 4. The weather has been terrible during the .......... few weeks.
past passed
5. I'm not sure if I .......... the answer to this one.
no know
6. Our team had .......... luck in the final match of the season.
no know
7. Joe was completely .......... in History lessons.
bored board
8. They placed the injured man on a wooden .......... to carry him indoors.
bored board
9. Kate is .......... to invite a friend for a sleepover on Saturday night.
allowed aloud
10. Darren enjoys reading .......... to his older sister.
allowed aloud
11. The Grimm brothers were famous for writing fairy .......... .
tails tales
12. Little boys are made of slugs and snails and puppy dogs' ......... .
tails tales
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13. We'll have to buy a .......... TV set if this one goes wrong again.
knew new
14. I .......... that was the right answer.
knew new
15. The cyclists went out of .......... over the hill.
sight site
16. The new school is being built on the .......... of an old steelworks.
sight site
17. Please .......... this small gift. Thanks very much for all the work that you've done for us.
except accept
18. The store is open every day .......... Christmas Day.
except accept
19. I'm not sure .......... to choose the large or the medium size.
weather whether
20. If the .......... is fine we'll be going for a bike ride tomorrow.
weather whether
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Word beginningsThe most helpful part of a word is the start. If you can work out the first syllable then you stand a good chance of finding the word in a dictionary. Always listen to it carefully. But sometimes there are different ways of writing the firstsound. Here are some examples: 1. Use your dictionary to find words starting with the sameletter and fill in the spaces.
Three ways of writing the sound "c" as in catcabbagekitchenChristmasTwo ways of writing the sound "f" as in fishfingerphotographTwo ways of writing the sound "j" as in jellyjewelGerman
Words beginning s-, sc-, c-, w-, wh-The most helpful part of a word is the start. If you can work out the first syllable then you stand a good chance of finding the word in a dictionary. Always listen to it carefully. But sometimes there are different ways of writing the first sound. Here are some examples. 1. Use your dictionary to find words starting with the same letter and fill in the spaces.
Three ways of writing the sound "s" as in sicknesssuddenlycertainlyscenery Two ways of writing the sound "w" as in wishweatherwhether
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2. Make sure that you know the difference between "weather" and "whether". Look them up in the dictionary if you're not sure.Then fill in the gaps in the following sentences:I'm not sure we'll go camping this weekend. A lot will depend on the .
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The Trouble with Spell CheckersAren't spell checkers great? I use mine all the time (when I remember) even though I’m a reasonably good speller. So, what’s the problem? Well the trouble is that a spell checker can’t tell the difference between homophones. Homophones are words that sound the same but have different meanings and different spellings. There are lots of examples in the English language. Here are a few:piece/peace, flower/flour, beech/beach, rode/road, rain/rein/reign.
Have a look at this poem:Ode to My Spell Checker (author unknown)Eye have a spelling checker, it came with my pea seaIt plainly marks four my revue miss steaks eye kin knot sea.Eye strike a quay and type a word and weight for it to sayWeather eye yam wrong oar write, it shows me strait a weigh. As soon as a mist ache is maid it nose bee fore two longAnd eye can put the error rite its rare lea ever wrong.Eye have run this poem threw it I'm shore your pleased to noIts letter perfect awl the way, my checker told me sew.
I counted at least 42 mistakes concerning homophones. Now try this experiment: copy the poem into your clipboard and paste it into your word processor. Then check it with your spell checker. The result: your word processor will be happy with the spelling.
Of course you’re unlikely to make as many errors as this. But beware, your spell checker might let the odd mistake through. The solution is to make sure that you always proofread important documents before you print them.
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ProofreadingYou will have been told many times to proofread your work before handing it in to your teacher. But sometimes, although you have proofread very carefully, you still find that you haven't spotted all your mistakes.
It might be problems with:o spelling - even words that you know quite well - but you've made
a careless mistake o punctuation - especially:
using commas instead of full stops mistakes with apostrophes
o using the wrong word, for example: "there" instead of "their" writing "alot" when you really mean "a lot" (There's no
such word as "alot"!)Here are some tips on proof reading:
o If possible, read your work aloud. This slows your reading and you're more likely to spot errors.
o Sometimes it's impossible to read aloud - in class, or in an exam for example. In this case "mouth" the words. Move your lips as if you are reading aloud. To practise this try whispering the words to yourself at first. After you've tried this a few times, do it completely silently.
o Look especially for your own "bogy words" - errors that you make regularly - those your teacher nags you about!
o Anything you're not sure about, use a dictionary. A Proofreading Exercise
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Here is a leaflet that was pushed through my door. I've copied it out exactly as it's printed except that I've removed the name of the company and their telephone number. You will see that the information is perfectly understandable and as a piece of communication it works adequately in getting over its message. However the number of mistakes does tend to make it seem rather unproffessional. See if you can spot all the errors and then try to write an improved version of the leaflet.
IMPORTANT NOTICE There is an estimated 35,000 tones of rubbish abandoned in our homes, garages, sheds and yards. Last year 11480 tonne ended up on our streets and ally ways. We appreciate that a lot of people have not got the facilitys to get to there local tip as a result a free I.T. and metal collection service has been organized in conjunction with xxxxx waste collections for your area on THURSDAY 8 APRIL we hope that this gives you enough time to sort out anything that you would like to be taken away all you have to do is place any items mentioned out side your gate collection will start 9 oclock we will take away any computer equipment ie towers, printers, scanners, photocopiers, keyboards etc etc basically eny computer equipment you want taking away
We will take away all your unwanted metal ie old cookers, washers, dryers, car batteries, old bicycles, lawnmowers, hovers basically anything with metal in it will be taken away for you free of charge the only exception to this is T,V,s, fridges and fridge freezers these items are classed as hazardous waste and will be taken away by contacting your local council the council will charge you for taking items away if you have any queries please do no hesitate to call us on xxxxxxxxxxxxxx this service is free all we ask is that you help us to keep your town tidy thank you for your time we hope you take advantage of this service
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American and British Spelling - some differencesSome differences in American and British spellings may lead to confusion.
But they can't be avoided. Here are the main ones: American British Comments
-ize -ise
We tend to prefer -ise to -ize. However -ize is becoming more acceptable in Britain so this is the spelling I've tried to use (when I can remember) for words like memorize, recognize etc
-or -our
We use -our at the end of colour, humour, favour, and a few others. But words which indicate a person who does something always end with -or, for example actor, survivor, curator
-er -re We use -re at the end of words such as centre, metre, theatre
Where Americans use a totally different word (for example American fall is our autumn and your sidewalk is our pavement) I just try to avoid the word altogether.
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Spelling Rules in brief:
1. "q" is always written as "qu". It never stands by itself. e.g. quick, queen, quarrel.
2. We double "l, f, and s" after a single short vowel at the end of a word. e.g. call, tall, toss, miss, stiff, stuff. Exceptions: us, bus, gas, if, of, this, yes, plus, nil, pal.
3. The sound of "ee" on the end of a word is nearly always "y". Exceptions: committee and coffee.
4. "y" and not "i" is used at the end of an English word and is usually pronounced as a short "i". Exceptions: macaroni, spaghetti, vermicelli (Italian), and taxi (short for taxicab).
5. A silent "e" on the end of a word makes the vowel in front say its own alphabetic name. e.g. hate, ride, cube, bake, shire, mare, lobe.Exceptions: done, come, some, give and have.
6. "ck" may only be used after a single vowel that does not say its name at the end of a syllable or root word. e.g. track, pick, rocket, wreckage.
7. To form plurals of words with a hissing ending, add "es". i.e. after "s, x, z, sh, and ch". e.g. buses, foxes, buzzes, wishes and churches.
8. Words ending in an "o" preceded by a consonant usually add "es" to form the plural. e.g. potatoes, volcanoes. Exceptions: pianos, solos, Eskimos
9. Nouns ending in a single "f" change the "f" to a "v" before adding "es"
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to form the plural. e.g. leaf – leaves; wolf – wolves. Exceptions: dwarfs, roofs, chiefs.
10. If a word ends in a consonant plus "y", change the "y" to and "i", before adding any ending. Except: "ing". e.g. party – parties, heavy – heaviness, marry – married, funny – funnily, carry – carriage, pretty – prettier.Exceptions: cry – crying, hurry – hurrying.
11. When "w" comes before "or" it often says "wer" as "worm". e.g. worship, worst, worth, work. Exceptions: worry, worried, wore.
12. Words ending in both a single vowel and a single consonant always double the last consonant before adding an ending. e.g. stop-stopped-stopping, flat- flatter-flattest, swim-swimmer-swimming. Exceptions: fix, box, fox, mix. "x" is the same as "ck"; that is it counts as a double consonant ending.
13. When "c" is followed by "e", "i" or "y", it says "s". Otherwise it says "k". e.g. centre, ceiling, circle, cycle. cottage, cave, cream, curious, clever.
14. When "g" is followed by "i", "e" or "y", it says "j". Otherwise it says "g" as in gold. e.g. gentle, giant, gymnastic, gallon, gold, guide, glass, grow. Exceptions: get, got, begin, girl, give, gear, geese, gift, girth, geyser, giddy.
15. Drop the final "e" from a root word before adding an ending beginning with a vowel, but keep it before a consonant. e.g. love-loving-lovely, drive-driving- driver, settle-settled-settling, grace-graceful.
16. "ti", "ci" and "si" are three spellings most frequently used to say "sh" at the beginning of all syllables except the first. e.g. national, patient, palatial, infectious, gracious, ancient, musician, financial.; session, admission, mansion, division. Exceptions: "ship" as a suffix, e.g. "worship".
17. "i" comes before "e" when it is pronounced "ee", except when it follows "c" – or when sounding like "a" as in "neighbour, or weigh". e.g. brief, field, receive, deceive, ceiling, priest.
18. "all" and "well" followed by another syllable only have one "l". e.g. also, already, although, welcome, welfare.
19. "full" and "till" joined to another root syllable, drop one "l". e.g. useful, cheerful, until.
20. Almost no English words end in "v" and none in "j". Exception: "spiv".
21. For words ending in a single "l" after a single vowel, double the "l" before adding a suffix, regardless of accent. e.g. cancelled, traveller, signalling, metallic.
22. If a word of more than one syllable ends in a "t", preceded by a single vowel, and has the accent on the last syllable, then double the final consonant. e.g. permit-permitted, admit-admitted, regret-regretted. But, if the accent is on the first syllable, don’t double the "t". e.g. visit-visited, benefit-benefited.
23. "ous" at the end of a word often means "full of". e.g. famous: full of fame. glorious; full of glory. gracious, ridiculous, furious, dangerous.
24. "al" at the end of a word often means "to do with". e.g. musical: to do with music. criminal: to do with crime. historical: to do with history.
25. "er" or "or" endings. The most common everyday words end in "er". e.g. baker, painter, teacher. If in doubt, use "or", when the meaning of the word is "one who" or "that which". e.g. author, director, instructor, indicator, conveyor, escalator.
26. "ery" or "ary" endings. Words ending in "ery" are often obvious. e.g. very, brewery, flattery, bakery, nursery. If in doubt, use "ary". e.g. dictionary, secretary, commentary, stationary. Seven words ending in "ery" that might cause trouble. e.g. distillery, confectionery, millinery, cemetery, dysentery, monastery, stationery
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(paper). 27. "ise", "ize" or "yse" endings.
Most of these words end in "ise". e.g. sunrise, surprise, supervise, exercise, disguise, unwise, surmise, advertise. Only two common words end in "yse". i.e. analyse and paralyse. Only two common words end in "ize". i.e. prize and capsize.
28. "ceed", "sede" and "cede". Three "ceed" words; succeed, exceed, proceed. One "sede" word; supersede. All others "cede" e.g. intercede, ante cede, precede.
29. "able" or "ible" endings. Use "able": After root words. e.g. available, dependable. After root words ending in "e". e.g. desirable, believable, usable (drop the "e"). After "i" e.g. reliable, sociable. When other forms of the root word have a dominant "a" vowel. e.g. irritable, durable, abominable.
After a hard "c" or "g". e.g. educable, practicable, navigable. Exceptions: formidable, inevitable, memorable, probable, portable, indomitable, insuperable.
30. Use "ible" After non-root words. e.g. audible, horrible, possible. When the root has an immediate "ion" form. e.g. digestible, suggestible, convertible.
After a root ending in "ns" or "miss". e.g. responsible, comprehensible, permissible. After a soft "c" or "g". e.g. legible, negligible, forcible, invincible. Exceptions: contemptible, resistible, collapsible, flexible.
