Words that you tend to misspel mispell misspell

[BobG]

When touch-typing, my fingers have a propensity to type "yield" as "yeild". I know how to spell the word, but somehow it keeps showing up in spell-checks. "Niece" is another word in which my fingers want to flip the e and the i. I have to watch myself when using the word "quandary", because somehow I leave out the second "a".

Are you left handed? Most people inadvertantly transpose the right hand letter before the left hand letter.

 

[turbo]

Are you left handed? Most people inadvertantly transpose the right hand letter before the left hand letter.

I'm not left-handed, but playing guitar for decades, often professionally, means that I have more dexterity in the fingers of my left hand than in the right.

 

[edward]

I still struggle with Albequerque er Albuquerey Albequeque...never mind.

 

[Borek]

When touch-typing, my fingers have a propensity to type "yield" as "yeild". I know how to spell the word, but somehow it keeps showing up in spell-checks. "Niece" is another word in which my fingers want to flip the e and the i.

There are letter I swap quite often, I guess that's because they are typed with different hands, so it is not that difficult to miss the correct order. That's exactly "th eproblem" I explained in my earlier post.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

GoDaffy
Ahmadinnerjacket

Got it.

 

[fillipeano]

decietful...deceitful

 

[qspeechc]

Q: How do you pronounce ghoti?
A: Fish.

Laugh
Women
Ambition

Fallacy started by Shaw, I think. gh only has an f sound at the end of a word, never at the beginning. The same with ti, which only has the sh sound in -ition, which you can't willy-nilly break up. So a word like ghoti could never exist in English.

 

[DaveC426913]

Fallacy started by Shaw, I think. gh only has an f sound at the end of a word, never at the beginning. The same with ti, which only has the sh sound in -ition, which you can't willy-nilly break up. So a word like ghoti could never exist in English.

While I'll grant that most examples of gh pronounced as 'f' are at the end of a word, is that a rule, or merely a precendent? Once the precedent is established, who is to say how it can or cannot be used?

 

[nismaratwork]

While I'll grant that all examples of gh pronounced as 'f' are at the end of a word, is that a rule, or merely a precendent? Once the precedent is established, who is to say how it can or cannot be used?

If you start a trend of neo-proto-english that I need to learn to "keep up", I'm going to be pissed.

 

[DaveC426913]

If you start a trend of neo-proto-english that I need to learn to "keep up", I'm going to be pissed.

That's kind of what I thought qspeechc was trying to do. Do you suppose there's really a rule that says 'gh is only pronounced 'f' if at the end of a word?

 

[DaveC426913]

gh only has an f sound at the end of a word,

Laughter.

 

[nismaratwork]

That's kind of what I thought qspeechc was trying to do. Do you suppose there's really a rule that says 'gh is only pronounced 'f' if at the end of a word?

I've studied English from its roots in old Saxon, to present... I'm yet to find any rule that hasn't been broken to the point where the very "rule" concept doesn't become laughable.

Besides, I like the idea of, "fadaffi"

 

[qspeechc]

What on Earth is "neo-proto-English"?, please explain for the slow people like me.

I would like you to give an English words that starts with a gh that is pronounced as f. There isn't. I thought your point was that English spelling is odd; why make it even worse by creating new things with no precedent? In laughter, the -ter is an obvious suffix to the root word laugh.

The same applies to ti. I was slightly wrong before, though, it also has the sh sound in -itious. You will never find a ti that is not in the construction -ition or -itious that is pronounced sh.

No English-speaking person would read ghoti and think fish, precisely for the reasons I gave above.

English spelling is not nearly as bad as people pretend it is. English spelling is still phonetic or follows simple spelling rules, largely. The final proof of this is that millions of people have learned to spell English well, including those for whom it is not their mother tongue.

 

[DaveC426913]

What on Earth is "neo-proto-English"?, please explain for the slow people like me.

He's simply saying you are inventing rules where there are none.

The fact that no English words start with xqh does not mean there is a rule that says no english word can start with xqh.

I would like you to give an English words that starts with a gh that is pronounced as f. There isn't.

Didn't say there was.

What you did say is:

gh only has an f sound at the end of a word

Which, as you have been shown, is not true. So be careful with those rules of yours.

 

[nismaratwork]

He's simply saying you are inventing rules where there are none.

The fact that no English words start with xqh does not mean there is a rule that says no english word can start with xqh.



Didn't say there was.

What you did say is:

Which, as you have been shown, is not true. So be careful with those rules of yours.

You said it better than I did, or could, thank you as always kind sir!

@qspeechc: "neo" = new "proto" = original... it's meant to be a playful oxymoron. If you added the various rules for English in its many forms over just the last 200 years, there would be an absurd number of contradictions. English is a rapidly evolving language, and the best that can be said is that there general conventions observed by some.

 

[qspeechc]

He's simply saying you are inventing rules where there are none.

It would have been much better to say that than use "neo-proto-English", isn't it?

And I am not inventing rules. I never said anything was a rule. I merely stated the fact that gh only ever has the sound f at the end of a word, and never at the start.

The fact that no English words start with xqh does not mean there is a rule that says no english word can start with xqh.

O-kay. I suppose someone will invent such a word then. I await it eagerly. How exactly would it be pronounced? That's too many consonants in a row, by the way. If you want to multiply the difficulties of English spelling then you are welcome to cut such a path. Besides onomatopoeiaic words, all English words come from some other language, Old English, French, Greek, Latin, etc.-- where would we get xqh from?

What you did say is:

Which, as you have been shown, is not true. So be careful with those rules of yours.

To which I have already said:

In laughter, the -ter is an obvious suffix to the root word laugh.

Even if you are correct it changes nothing, because the point that gh at the beginning of a word never has the f sound still stands.

Nevertheless, if anyone wants to complicate English spelling for no good reason he is welcome to do so. Don't expect me to be a follower.

 

[nismaratwork]

You don't have much in the way of a sense of humor do you?

Beyond that, you're just re-stating precedent, nothing more.

 

[qspeechc]

You don't have much in the way of a sense of humor do you?

Oh, I don't know. What do think I was trying to do here:

I suppose someone will invent such a word then. I await it eagerly. How exactly would it be pronounced? That's too many consonants in a row, by the way.

:D

 

[nismaratwork]

Oh, I don't know. What do think I was trying to do here:



:D

"What part of "ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn" didn't you understand?" (sig from another place and time)

 

[DaveC426913]

...I am not inventing rules. I never said anything was a rule. I merely stated the fact that...

No, you said:

Fallacy started by Shaw ... So a word like ghoti could never exist in English.

First you said it is a fallacy, then you said it could not exist.

O-kay. I suppose someone will invent such a word then.

Still completely missing the point...

Lack of precedent is not tantamount to a rule.

Even if you are correct it changes nothing, because the point that gh at the beginning of a word never has the f sound still stands.

And the point that lack of precedent =/= rule still stands.

Nevertheless, if anyone wants to complicate English spelling for no good reason he is welcome to do so. Don't expect me to be a follower.

Perhaps this is not the thread for you then...

 

[qspeechc]

I don't know why you are so very eager to get me to say it is a rule. Ok then, here it is: it's a rule. If it isn't a rule, it's as near as makes no difference. I suppose you want me to say it's a rule so you can say all rules are broken in English. Apparently not this one.

Why is the idea that ghoti can be pronounced as fish so striking? Precisely because no English-speaking person would ever pronounce it like that, and for precisely the reasons I gave.
No one has ever looked at ghetto and thought "Ah, fetto!" No one has ever looked at tight and though "Ah, sht!"

I suppose you think it isn't a rule because no one has stated it as rule in any grammar book or whatever as arule. No, indeed, it has not been set down in any book as a rule that a gh at the beginning of a word can never have the f sound, probably because it's too bleeding obvious (the same with ti). If we have to set down every last rule about language on paper we end up with an impossibly large book.

I am saying this: that for a very long time, and without a single exception, those two "rules", if you like, have stood and never been broken, not once. Nobody even thinks of them any other way. It makes perfect sense to continue using these rules.

You are saying we should break both those rules, and in two instances, with both gh and ti, start using them in a way that has never been done before, even though we have a perfectly good way to do it: fish. You seem to be saying "Why not? So what if it hasn't been done before?" Do you have any reason for doing so, other than simply to be perverse? You will be consciously increasing the randomness and difficulty of English spelling for no good reason. Why?

I don't know why I have had to repeat myself so many times on this.

If you want to multiply the difficulties of English spelling then you are welcome to cut such a path.
...
Nevertheless, if anyone wants to complicate English spelling for no good reason he is welcome to do so. Don't expect me to be a follower.

I thought your point was that English spelling is odd; why make it even worse by creating new things with no precedent?

 

[Ken Natton]

Gspeechc, what you are saying doubtless has some merit, but it is a pity that what was always a tongue-in-cheek thread has taken this turn. DaveC’s post about ghoti being pronounced fish was just a joke and should have been taken as such.

I too disagree with the assertion that ‘learnt’ is particularly British. I would have said that ‘learnt’ is old-fashioned and ‘learned’ is the modern way. But then, goodness knows, there are plenty of other ‘Americanisms’ that are now the common mode in the UK – just another aspect of the general dominance of American culture. British kids used to play cowboys and indians and the only reason they don’t now is because the fashion for such films has passed.

Perhaps the point that is being missed when people complain about some of the strange spellings in English is that the words were not always pronounced as they are now. This whole thing about words like bough and rough is because, at one time, they were pronounced with a much stronger use of the throat, like clearing phlegm. The pronunciation has changed but the spelling hasn’t, that’s all.

And of course none of these things are ‘rules’ they are all just attempts to identify general patterns. As has been said before, you can’t spot a misshapen pear if you don’t know what a pear normally looks like.

 

[Jimmy Snyder]

In 2009, ABC News listed 112 different ways to spell Gaddafi

Looks like I can't hit the side of a barn.

 

[DaveC426913]

I don't know why I have had to repeat myself so many times on this.

You have to repeat yourself so many times because you insist on having the exclusive viewpoint on it.

If I say 'x might happen', and you say 'x cannot happen', then your argument attempts to exclude mine. And yours has the onus to defend itself, whereas mine does not.

No, indeed, it has not been set down in any book as a rule that a gh at the beginning of a word can never have the f sound, probably because it's too bleeding obvious

By what logic do you arrive at the conclusion that it is a "bleeding obvious" rule? Is there fine print hidden in the frills of the letter 'g' that I'm not seeing on my monitor?

I would point out (once again) that your first claim was that it can never have that sound unless it's at the end. Which has been shown to be false.

Yet you then turn around and lay claim to "obvious" rules.



q, you're backing a dead horse, but you're too stubborn to concede that you overstated your case.

 

[BobG]

I just found out that I've been misspelling email and cellphone since 3AM EDT, 19 Mar! (http://www.aces2011.org/sessions/18/the-ap-stylebook-editors-visit-aces-2011/ )

Dropping the hyphen in 'e-mail' is a disturbing trend. How long until we drop the 'e', making it impossible to tell if we're reading mail on our computer or mail that was delivered by the postman?

And what's with deleting the space between 'cell' and 'phone'?! Don't they know that space is cheap?! Just look at Detroit! There's all kinds of empty space in Detroit, seeing as how their population has dropped from 2 million to just 700 thousand. You could fit an entire city in the empty space left in Detroit. I think people from Detroit should use two spaces when they spell 'cell phone'!

Edit: PF obviously disagrees with my suggestion, as it won't display extra spaces. Maybe we could just call a cellphone a phone and the other kind of phone a landline.

 

[DaveC426913]

Dropping the hyphen in 'e-mail' is a disturbing trend.

I have an editor friend who has been watching the evolution over the years.
It has gone through distinct phases of correctness:
Electronic Mail
E-mail
e-mail
email


Speaking of which, is anybody else old enough to remember when the correct way to spell today was to-day? That's how they taught us in Grade 1.

 

[nismaratwork]

I just found out that I've been misspelling email and cellphone since 3AM EDT, 19 Mar! (http://www.aces2011.org/sessions/18/the-ap-stylebook-editors-visit-aces-2011/ )

Dropping the hyphen in 'e-mail' is a disturbing trend. How long until we drop the 'e', making it impossible to tell if we're reading mail on our computer or mail that was delivered by the postman?

And what's with deleting the space between 'cell' and 'phone'?! Don't they know that space is cheap?! Just look at Detroit! There's all kinds of empty space in Detroit, seeing as how their population has dropped from 2 million to just 700 thousand. You could fit an entire city in the empty space left in Detroit. I think people from Detroit should use two spaces when they spell 'cell phone'!

Edit: PF obviously disagrees with my suggestion, as it won't display extra spaces. Maybe we could just call a cellphone a phone and the other kind of phone a landline.

Bob... BOB... ejust erelax eman! Eets all goEing to bE alright... E.

 

[nismaratwork]

I have an editor friend who has been watching the evolution over the years.
It has gone through distinct phases of correctness:
Electronic Mail
E-mail
e-mail
email


Speaking of which, is anybody else old enough to remember when the correct way to spell today was to-day? That's how they taught us in Grade 1.

Nope, your butt is ancient.

Hell, I was taught "colour" and "armour", in the USA with no excuse such as age.

 

[Borek]

mail that was delivered by the postman

What's that?

 

[nismaratwork]

What's that?

I think it involved snails and licking pieces of paper. I don't know...

 

[BobG]

I think it involved snails and licking pieces of paper. I don't know...

Mmmmm, licking 2-cent stamps! And then sticking them to the table leg. I could knock off an entire roll of stamps in an afternoon as a pre-schooler!

 

[Borek]

I think it involved snails and licking pieces of paper. I don't know...

Licking paper?

What is it with these people, they will lick everything.

 

[malty]

For some reason every so often I spell "those" as "does" and it annoys the hell out of me when I find my mistake later.

 

[nismaratwork]

Licking paper?

What is it with these people, they will lick everything.

I just lick the keyboard for good luck, yeah it's teeming with bugs, but so what?! *slurp*

 

[DaveC426913]

I just lick the keyboard for good luck, yeah it's teeming with bugs, but so what?! *slurp*

I was going to post a link to the Breyer's Ice Cream ad, but
a] it is not G-rated and arguably NSFW, and
b] it is a hoax.

 

[nismaratwork]

I was going to post a link to the Breyer's Ice Cream ad, but
a] it is not G-rated and arguably NSFW, and
b] it is a hoax.

PM me, I don't mind, and I could use a good laugh.


I just remembered, I can never spell, "cessation" correctly... except this one time where I seem to have done so.

Oh, the rich and bitter irony.

 

[qspeechc]

I won the argument.

[PLAIN]http://www.deviantart.com/download/103449383/I_win_by_peterpandagirl.png

Btw, I'm the chap on top.

 

[lisab]

I won the argument.

Btw, I'm the chap on top.

 

[DaveC426913]

PM me, I don't mind, and I could use a good laugh.

Just Google for the image.

 

[DaveC426913]

I won the argument.

[PLAIN]http://www.deviantart.com/download/103449383/I_win_by_peterpandagirl.png

Btw, I'm the chap on top.

Oof!

 

[nismaratwork]

Awww.. that adorable underbite, those wrinkly foreheads... the cute little dark hairs that stand up when annoyed.

:!)

 

[turbo]

I won the argument.

[PLAIN]http://www.deviantart.com/download/103449383/I_win_by_peterpandagirl.png

Btw, I'm the chap on top.

Lay down! Stay!

 

[nismaratwork]

I love how the "bottom dog" looks pretty content with the state of affairs. I love bulldog/pit mixes.

My pal rescued a bull/pit/mutt mix that's similar to these (pit's there though) and she's a big thick-boned muscular softie. That scrunchy nose and underbite, soft little ears, and big brown eyes will melt your heart.

 

[mikelepore]

Separate (Seperate)

To remember "separate", you can remember the letters "par" in the word "part."