Spelling and Grammar Errors: Why Do We Make Them and How Can We Improve?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the phenomenon of spelling and grammar errors, exploring why individuals make these mistakes even when they know the correct forms. Participants share personal experiences, observations about common misspellings, and the impact of typing versus handwriting on spelling accuracy.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants express frustration with their own spelling errors, noting that they often type words phonetically or as they hear them.
  • Others mention specific words that are frequently misspelled, such as "definitely" and "ridiculous," with some attributing these errors to phonetic spelling influenced by regional dialects.
  • A few participants highlight the role of spell check tools in catching errors, while others prefer to rely on their own knowledge or dictionaries.
  • There are observations about age potentially affecting spelling abilities, with mixed experiences shared regarding whether spelling improves or worsens over time.
  • Some participants humorously acknowledge the irony of making errors in a discussion about spelling and grammar, suggesting that everyone is likely to make mistakes in such contexts.
  • One participant mentions a specific case of a regular poster who consistently misspells "ridiculous," leading to playful teasing about the error.
  • Several participants reflect on the cognitive dissonance experienced when words appear misspelled, even when they know the correct spelling.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally agree that spelling errors are common and can occur even among those who are aware of the correct forms. However, there are multiple competing views regarding the reasons behind these errors and whether they improve or worsen with age.

Contextual Notes

Some discussions touch on the influence of language background on spelling habits, particularly for those whose native languages have different grammatical structures compared to English.

Who May Find This Useful

This discussion may be of interest to individuals curious about language, spelling, and grammar, as well as those who experience similar challenges in written communication.

Ivan Seeking
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Do you misspell words or make other errors when you know better? For example, I constantly find myself going back and changing too, to to, or two, etc. Twice now I caught myself wanting to spell delusional with a dill.. :rolleyes: I have no idea where that one comes from.

I have also noticed words that are constantly misspelled by other members. There is one that I've seen a lot but can't think of it now. I know it is often spelled with an e instead of an i.

It seems that in my case, while typing, I tend to spell as I hear the word, and then have to go back and check in "spelling mode". Also, I seem to be leaving out words more often these days - the, an, is, a, etc.
 
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Ivan Seeking said:
Do you misspell words or make other errors when you know better? For example, I constantly find myself going back and changing too, to to, or two, etc. Twice now I caught myself wanting to spell delusional with a dill.. :rolleyes: I have no idea where that one comes from.

I have also noticed words that are constantly misspelled by other members. There is one that I've seen a lot but can't think of it now. I know it is often spelled with an e instead of an i.

It seems that in my case, while typing, I tend to spell as I hear the word, and then have to go back and check in "spelling mode". Also, I seem to be leaving out words more often these days - the, an, is, a, etc.

I have all ways thought that as long as one can communicte spelling does not matter, but that is only because i have no idea of how to spell.
 
The word definitely (and hence finite and infinite) is often misspelled as definitely.

I suppose the spelling error in the title is on purpose?
 
We're getting old Ivan, I've noticed lately that I have started spelling phonectically or typing their when I know I want there.
 
cristo said:
The word definitely (and hence finite and infinite) is often misspelled as definitely.
definitely. I think they are amatures. :-p

Of late, though, I have noticed that I tend to interchange a pair letters within words, but thankfully Firefox indicates to me that I have done so.
 
I think everyone is guaranteed to make at least one spelling or grammar error if they post in a thread on spelling and grammar errors. :biggrin:

Sometimes my fingers type words my brain isn't thinking (my spelling is nearly perfect if I'm handwriting, though you'd be hard-pressed to verify it if you saw my chicken scratch, but as soon as I start typing, my fingers seem to add and subtract letters at will).

I have noticed that people who are chronically bad spellers do spell with an "accent." They're clearly trying to spell phonetically, and whatever regional dialect, or just plain bad pronunciation, they have shows up in their choice of spelling.
 
Moonbear said:
I think everyone is guaranteed to make at least one spelling or grammar error if they post in a thread on spelling and grammar errors. :biggrin:

I had to go back and correct the word "mispell". :blushing:
 
Ivan Seeking said:
I had to go back and correct the word "mispell". :blushing:
May be as you get older your spelling gets worse, but i have noticed that my spelling gets better, may be some have negative learning, or use spell checker.
 
Ivan Seeking said:
I had to go back and correct the word "mispell". :blushing:

Might want to correct "grammar" in the thread title too...but I'm not sure if you meant to do that on purpose as a joke. :biggrin:
 
  • #10
Moonbear said:
Might want to correct "grammar" in the thread title too...but I'm not sure if you meant to do that on purpose as a joke. :biggrin:
I think that was a joke. :biggrin:
 
  • #11
Ivan Seeking said:
I have also noticed words that are constantly misspelled by other members. There is one that I've seen a lot but can't think of it now. I know it is often spelled with an e instead of an i.
<puts forefinger and thumb against Ivan's upper neoronal dome to access the deepest recesses of his sub-psi-star-psi consciousness>

[deep, booming voice] The word you are thinking of is 'ridiculous'.
 
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  • #12
Gokul43201 said:
<puts forefinger and thumb against Ivan's upper neoronal dome to access the deepest recesses of Ivan's sub-psi-star-psi consciousness>

[deep, booming voice] The word you are thinking of is 'ridiculous'.
Oooh, good guess!
 
  • #13
I cannot spell miniute, minuite , minitu,...doohh 60 seconds.
 
  • #14
neutrino said:
Of late, though, I have noticed that I tend to interchange a pair letters within words, but thankfully Firefox indicates to me that I have done so.

My spelling has always been poor and I've resorted to keeping spell check on constantly everywhere I post or write.
 
  • #15
Ivan Seeking said:
Do you misspell words or make other errors when you know better? For example, I constantly find myself going back and changing too, to to, or two, etc. Twice now I caught myself wanting to spell delusional with a dill.. :rolleyes: I have no idea where that one comes from.

I have also noticed words that are constantly misspelled by other members. There is one that I've seen a lot but can't think of it now. I know it is often spelled with an e instead of an i.

It seems that in my case, while typing, I tend to spell as I hear the word, and then have to go back and check in "spelling mode". Also, I seem to be leaving out words more often these days - the, an, is, a, etc.
There's at least one member (a regular poster) who shall remain nameless to avoid embarrassment who always spells ridiculous as rediculous leaving himself open to redicule perhaps :wink: maybe that's what you are thinking of?

Ooops just read Gokul's post and he already had it.
 
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  • #16
Ivan Seeking said:
Do you misspell words or make other errors when you know better?

Yes I do! I make little grammar mistakes--chocolate chip cookie's instead of cookies.

I think somewhere along the line, someone drilled it into my head not to write the wrong "its"/"it's" and "they're"/"their"/"there" and "your"/"youre". Most mistakes don't bother me but misuse one of those words...
 
  • #17
I don't use spell check. There are times when I am reading here that I need to know the meaning of a word so I keep the dictionary open. Usually, if I believe I have misspelled a word I will look it up in the dictionary, since its there. Somehow more errors creep in than I notice. I end up hitting post reply and then rereading what I wrote and the spelling errors come out from their hiding places and start rediculing me. I've discovered that if I can edit my post very quickly, before someone looks at it perhaps, I can save it and there won't be an edit tag attached to the post.

My pet peeves are the words lose and loose. I have a hard time understanding how people can get their spellings confused. Then there are other times where I have a kind of spelling vertigo where every word looks strangely spelled to me, almost as if it is in another language.

edit :smile:
edit2 :mad:
 
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  • #18
Evo said:
I think that was a joke. :biggrin:

I was referring to errors made by grandmothers.
 
  • #19
Ivan Seeking said:
It seems that in my case, while typing, I tend to spell as I hear the word, and then have to go back and check in "spelling mode". Also, I seem to be leaving out words more often these days - the, an, is, a, etc.

You may have been bitten by a Slavic person recently, for you seem to be turning into one. To know for sure, supply a sample of your writting during the next full moon to your local granit (GRAmmar NITpick).

(My native language is Serbian: 15% less words/text than English, no articles, short helper verbs frequently fused, thoroughly phonemic spelling; about the same for Russian...)

--
Chusslove Illich (Часлав Илић)
 
  • #20
Gokul43201 said:
<puts forefinger and thumb against Ivan's upper neoronal dome to access the deepest recesses of his sub-psi-star-psi consciousness>

[deep, booming voice] The word you are thinking of is 'ridiculous'.

James Randi owes you one-million dollars!

Tell him that I ok'd it.
 
  • #21
caslav.ilic said:
You may have been bitten by a Slavic person recently,

By chance I was; just the other day! :biggrin:
 
  • #22
Ivan Seeking said:
By chance I was; just the other day! :biggrin:
Absolutely true: my sister was bitten by a feral dog in Transylvania.

She and her husband were traveling through as he was tracing his Romanian ancestry, and they stopped over night at a small Transylvanian town that was overrun by packs of feral dogs. Next morning she went out for a walk and one of them bolted out of an alley, bit her on the calf, breaking skin and drawing blood, then ran away. She had to have the whole rabies treatment, just in case.

Her spelling is still fine. She just laughs when I ask her about the recent full moon "chupacabra" sightings in Santa Barbara where they live, but I have my suspicions.
 

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