Spellings
Definition of spelling
1 The forming of words from letters according to accepted usage : orthography
2 a : a sequence of letters composing a word
b : the way in which a word is spelled
Examples of spelling in a Sentence
The American spelling is “color” while the British spelling is “colour.”
The words “made” and “maid” sound alike but have different spellings.
RULES TO SOLVE SPELLINGS QUESTIONS
Rule 1
C always softens to /s/ when followed by E, I, or Y.
Otherwise, C says /k/.
Rule 2
G may soften to /j/ only when followed by E, I, or Y.
Otherwise, G says /g/.
Rule 3
English words do not end in I, U, V, or J.
Rule 4
A E O U usually say their names at the end of a syllable.
Rule 5
I and Y may say /?/ or /?/ at the end of a syllable.
Rule 6
When a one-syllable word ends in a single vowel Y, it says /?/.
Rule 7
Y says /?/ only at the end of a multisyllable base word.
I says /?/ at the end of a syllable that is followed by a vowel and at the end of foreign words.
Rule 8
I and O may say /?/ and /?/ when followed by two consonants.
Rule 9
AY usually spells the sound /?/ at the end of a base word.
Rule 10
When a word ends with the phonogram A, it says /ä/.
A may also say /ä/ after a W or before an L.
Rule 11
Q always needs a U; therefore, U is not a vowel here.
Rule 12
Silent Final E Rules
12.1 The vowel says its name because of the E.
12.2 English words do not end in V or U.
12.3 The C says /s/ and the G says /j/ because of the E.
12.4 Every syllable must have a written vowel.
12.5 Add an E to keep singular words that end in the letter S from looking plural.
12.6 Add an E to make the word look bigger.
12.7 TH says its voiced sound /TH/ because of the E.
12.8 Add an E to clarify meaning.
12.9 Unseen reason.
Rule 13
Drop the silent final E when adding a vowel suffix only if it is allowed by other spelling rules.
Rule 14
Double the last consonant when adding a vowel suffix to words ending in one vowel followed by one consonant only if the syllable before the suffix is accented.*
*This is always true for one-syllable words.
Rule 15
Single vowel Y changes to I when adding any ending, unless the ending begins with I.
Rule 16
Two I’s cannot be next to one another in English words.
Rule 17
TI, CI, and SI are used only at the beginning of any syllable after the first one.
Rule 18
SH spells /sh/ at the beginning of a base word and at the end of the syllable. SH never spells /sh/ at the beginning of any syllable after the first one, except for the ending -ship.
Rule 19
To make a verb past tense, add the ending -ED unless it is an irregular verb.
Rule 20
-ED, past tense ending, forms another syllable when the base word ends in /d/ or /t/.
Otherwise, -ED says /d/ or /t/.
Rule 21
To make a noun plural, add the ending -S, unless the word hisses or changes; then add -ES.
Occasional nouns have no change or an irregular spelling.
Rule 22
To make a verb 3rd person singular, add the ending -S, unless the word hisses or changes; then add -ES. Only four verbs are irregular.
Rule 23
Al- is a prefix written with one L when preceding another syllable.
Rule 24
-Ful is a suffix written with one L when added to another syllable.
Rule 25
DGE is used only after a single vowel which says its short (first) sound.
Rule 26
CK is used only after a single vowel which says its short (first) sound.
Rule 27
TCH is used only after a single vowel which does not say its name.
Rule 28
AUGH, EIGH, IGH, OUGH. Phonograms ending in GH are used only at the end of a base word or before the letter T.
The GH is either silent or pronounced /f/.
Rule 29
Z, never S, spells /z/ at the beginning of a base word.Rule 30We often double F, L, and S after a single vowel at the end of a base word. Occasionally other letters also are doubled.
Rule 31
Schwa Rules
31.1 Any vowel may say one of the schwa sounds, /?/ or /?/, in an unstressed syllable or unstressed word.
31.2 O may also say /?/ in a stressed syllable next to W, TH, M, N, or V.
31.3 AR and OR may say their schwa sound, /er/, in an unstressed syllable.
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