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2-minute read
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8th June 2015
8 Common Spelling Errors to Check For!
Spelling in English can be tricky. There are tons of words that aren’t pronounced the way they are written, as well as pairs of words that sound the same but mean different things! Here are seven common spelling mistakes, along with rules to help you remember them.
1. I Before E Except After C
In words like “sieve” and “believe,” the “i” comes before the “e.” However, in words like “receive” and “ceiling,” the “e” goes first since it comes directly after a “c.”
Watch out, though! There are exceptions to this rule, such as “seize,” “weird” and “caffeine.”
2. Necessary
Necessary has one “c” and a double “s.” You can use this mnemonic to remember how to spell this one:
On a shirt, it is necessary to have one collar and two sleeves!
3. Alot
This is not a word! It should always be “a lot” (with a space between the two words).
4. Separate
Many people spell this “seperate,” so just remember:
There’s a rat in “separate”!
5. Familiar
Some people spell this one “familier,” so keep the following in mind:
That liar looks familiar!
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6. Exaggerate
It’s easy to get confused about whether there should be one “g” or two in “exaggerate.” Try using the following as a reminder:
George and Graham always exaggerate!
7. Rhythm
“Rhythm” is a tricky word because it doesn’t have any vowels. Luckily, there’s an acronym that helps (where the first letter of each word spells out the word we need to remember):
Rhythm Helps Your Two Hips Move.
8. Affect and Effect
Try to remember that “affect” describes the action and is a verb, whereas “effect” describes the result and is a noun:
My early experiences affected my later choices in life.
The fire had a devastating effect on London.
Making up little memory aids like these can really help your spelling, especially if you always get some words wrong. However, if you want to make sure that your work is completely perfect, why not send it to the experts for checking? We’ll even proofread a 500-word sample for free to make sure that you are pleased with our standards of work.
