Tips and Tricks to Improve English Spellings - Lesson 2

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Friends, in our last post we have discussed some Rules / Tips for correct spellings. Read that post here before reading this post. Today we shall discuss some more tips and tricks for correct spellings. 

6. You will be at your best at learning words when you make an effort to understand them. A good way to understand a word is to break it into syllables. Look for prefixes, suffixes, and roots. Practice each short part, and then the whole word.

disappearing ---> dis-ap-pear-ing

traditional ------> tra-di-tion-al

After you break apart a word, ask yourself: How is this world like other words I know ? 

Spelling the word "traditional" may make you think of the spellings, 'functional' and 'national'. Finding patterns among words is one of the best ways to learn spelling.

7. It's also helpful when you try making up funny memory aids. For instance, do you have trouble remembering which has two s's - desert (dry land) or dessert (a sweet course) ? Remember that with 'desert' you'd like a second one ;)

Similarly, do you have trouble remembering how to spell separate ? Remember that there is a 'rat' in the middle.

8. Compile a list of words that you find difficult to spell. Go over a few previous papers and spelling exams to track down the trouble makers. Once you've got your list in hand, see if some of the above mentioned tips can help you.

9. Another kind of memory aid is to make up a sentence in which the first letter of each word can be used to make the spelling word. The sillier, the better - goofy sentences may be easier to remember!

Chili - Cats  have  interesting  little  ideas

Physical - please have your strawberry ice cream and lollypops

Weird - We entered India running directly 

Seize - She entered into zoo everyday

10. Make  sure that you are pronouncing the words correctly. This can help you avoid some common spelling errors. Remember, that there are many words (and phrases) in English that are not spelled the way they are pronounced, and vice-versa. For example: imborglio, colonet, plumber, encore, melee, double entendre, Coup d'état, corps, coxcomb, ricochet, rapprochement, communiqué, laissez, faire, lagniappe, gaol etc.

How to master correct spellings ?

One way of mastering correct spellings is to be aware of various kinds of words that are frequently used in written form, such as in news papers, magazines, journals, novels, biographies, autobiographies, websites / internet, etc.  Practice correct spelling through reading, by paying attention to the way words are written, and jot down those you didn't know. Whenever you have any doubt about the spelling of any word, look up a dictionary immediately, and try to remember the spellings of such words.

Every day, at least for about half an hour, you should play vocabulary games such as anagrams, word games, cross word puzzles, scrabble, boggle etc.

That's all for now friends.  Hope this article helped you improving your English spelling skills. Now lets have a look at some useful books for improving spellings. 

 

Here are some reference books for improving Spellings 

1. Webster's Reference Library - Concise Edition Spelling, Grammar & Usage.
2. Basic English Usage - Michael Swan (Oxford University Press).
3. High School English Grammar and Composition - Wren & Martin. 

• Check the list of Spellings Often Misspelled from here
• Download the list of Frequently Misused / Confused words of English from here

Shraboni Chakraborthi

Asstt. Professor

English and Foreign Languages University,
 Hyderabad

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