English Spelling is Not Total Chaos

English Spelling is Not Total Chaos English Spelling is Not Total Chaos English Spelling is Not Total Chaos By Maeve Maddox Daniels recent fun spelling test got me thinking about English spelling. Google English spelling and youll get 23,300,000 hits. Visit a few of the sites and you will be told how ridiculous, crazy, outrageous, cruel, and in-need-of-reform is English orthography. English spelling is more complicated than that of some other languages, but its not total chaos. The strangest spellings are those of the commonest words, so practice soon familiarizes even young children with the most irregular forms. Overall, there are predictable patterns and rules to guide the spelling of most English words. It would be impossible to cover all the phonetic facts of English spelling in one article, so stand by for a sequence of articles (you can also check the spelling section on TeachingIdeas.co.uk, which sums up most of the rules). For starters, Id like to point out some aspects of the English alphabet that lead to misunderstandings about English orthography. The 26 letters of the English alphabet are insufficient to represent the 44 or so sounds used to speak the English language. Written English has compensated for this lack of letters by inventing extra letters to represent eight consonant sounds and seven vowel sounds that do not have letters of their own. For example, the combination sh does not represent the combined sounds of /s/ and /h/. The sound represented is /sh/, which is the sound heard at the beginning of the word ship. Written English has not just compensated, but overcompensated for its insufficient alphabet. Numerous alternate spellings exist to represent sounds already represented by letters or letter combinations. This overabundance of spellings is a result of Englishs unabashed habit of importing words from other languages. In many instances new words brought along the spelling conventions of the language of origin. Clearly English orthography requires more study than that of other modern languages. Keep in mind, however, that English grammar is simpler than most. You can use the time saved in studying the grammar to learn the spelling system! I hear a lot of people admit to being unable to spell as if it were a genetic defect. I suppose that in a tiny percentage of the population it may be. In general, however, poor spelling is the result of insufficient information. In sum: the English alphabet has 26 letters; spoken English uses 40+ speech sounds; written English makes use of 70 spelling symbols. English spelling is complex, but learning 70 phonograms (sound symbols) and a few rules is a small price to pay for the use of the enormous vocabulary of English. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Spelling category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:50 Synonyms for â€Å"Leader†"Replacement for" and "replacement of"50+ Words That Describe Animals (Including Humans)