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Poets think it's sublime when the words they write rhyme,

But to Teachers and Students, they're trouble.

Is it right to write white or is it rite to right wight,

And when do those consonants double?

Is it  'i'  before 'e' except after 'c',

Or is it 'e' before 'i'  as in weird and seize,

But then what do you say 

When they sound like 'A'

As in neighbor and weight and sleigh?

We're told 'oo' sounds like 'u' as in shoot and cartoon,

But then blood, door and floor sing a different tune.

It's driving me mad, all those sayings and rules

To help us make sense (cents?) of it all.

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Here are a few sentences which show how difficult it can be to figure out how to spell a word from its sound.  Sentence 1 uses six different ways to spell the Long U sound.  Sentence 2 uses three ways to spell the Long A sound.  Sentence 3 uses two different ways each to spell Long O, Long I  and Long E.  Sentence 4 uses three ways to spell the Short E sound.

1. I knew it was you who put his shoe through the flue.

2. We had to wait at the gate for the slow-moving freight.

3. With a mote in my eye and a fly in my throat, I could see the ship sail out to sea.

4. Fred  from his bed said, "I wish I were dead."

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Following are some word exercises known as tongue-twisters.  Persons training to become radio or television announcers or actors, as well as people with speech problems, use these exercises to improve their pronunciation.

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The following chart will give you examples of some of the most confusing aspects of English - words that are spelled exactly the same but are pronounced differently and have different meanings.  These lessons have already touched on some of those pairs.  This chart will review those words and add some more.  If I miss some pairs, send me an e-mail and I will add them to the chart.  Stressed syllables or letters pronounced differently will be in red letters.

Serious Discussion: At first the situation may seem to be hopeless.  There are entirely too many rules, which we have not really said much about so far, and for every rule there are multiple exceptions. And then there are the words that are so illogical that no rules cover them. Every spelling book we have ever seen sooner or later resorts to this rule to learn to spell in English: Study! Study! Practice! Practice! Memorize! Memorize!  On the next page, we will discuss some Spelling Rules that can be relied on some of the time.  Click HERE to go to the next page.

Assignment: Practice making up rhymes or short poems with the words from these lessons. The rhymes can be silly or serious, funny or nasty, but the more interesting they are, the easier they will be to remember, which will help you remember the words themselves.  Try to use the words you have the most trouble with, because they are the ones that you most need to practice and become familiar with.  Who knows ....this may be the beginning of a new career for you as a poet.

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