Category Archives: Spelling

The English language is confusing, packed with inconsistencies and exceptions that anyone who’s learning the language for the first time will be quick to point out. There are so many ways to write out a single sound that theoretically, you could pronounce the word “ghoti” as “fish” (if you pronounce the gh as in tough, the o as in women and the ti as in nation). If you’re struggling to get a grasp on those silent vowels, confusing consonants, and crazy pronunciations, here’s how you can improve.

Memorize the basic rules of spelling. There are some classic rhymes and rules to help children get the hang of spelling, but they do have exceptions, so use them in conjunction with the rest of the steps in this article. If you have no idea how to spell a word, they can certainly help you.

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A frighteningly large percentage of individuals fail to understand how to use the words “you’re” and “your.” Here is a quick crash course on this common usage problem.

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Many highly intelligent people who have a lot of good things to say get overlooked because he or she spells badly. A few mistakes, no matter how small, can make readers think the writer isn’t competent. Here are a few tips about the most common mistakes in English spelling…and how to get them right.

“There”, “their” and “they’re” all sound alike, but each one means something different from the others. These three words are a good place to start.

• “There” indicates a place. You can tell because it contains the word “here”: another place. Here and there are a pair of words that both indicate places.
• “Their” means “something that belongs to them”. It contains “heir”. An heir is someone who has inherited something, so an heir is someone who owns something. T plus heir equals their.
• “They’re” means the same as “they are”. In fact, it is just a one-word version of the two-word phrase. The apostrophe (‘) shows that a letter (the letter “a”) has been removed.

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Spelling is important in your life, so to know how to spell is also important

Write a paragraph or something. Do it without stopping. Just write.
Go over it and circle your mistakes. You will need this later.
Get a dictionary. A dictionary can give you the definition and the correct spelling of the word.
Chunk the words. Like “apple”, chunk it, like this “ah-pull. That can slow it down so you can hear the letters.

Are you not the best speller? Are you always getting low marks because of spelling errors? Than this is for you!

Read lots of books. Reading gives you a better knowledge of words. When reading, you should have a dictionary handy so if you find a word you don’t understand, look it up!

Highlight or circle incorrect words in spelling tests. This way you can practice them over and over until you get them right. If you don’t know the meanings, look them up in the dictionary!

Use the words in sentences. This technique really drills the words into your brain.

Ask your parents to test you on the words that you have studied. If you are still getting them wrong, keep trying! Once you get the hang of the words, you’ll be a spelling whiz in no time!