Basic Spelling Rules

One of the most common spelling rules taught to elementary students is "I before
E, except after C, unless it says A as in neighbor and weigh." However, there are a
number of other rules that you can use to help decode the spelling of an unfamiliar
word. For example:

The letter Q is always followed by U. In this case, the U is not considered to

be a vowel.

The letter S never follows X.

The letter Y, not I, is used at the end of English words. Examples of this rule
include my, by, shy, and why.

To spell a short vowel sound, only one letter is needed. Examples of this rule
include at, red, it, hot, and up.

Drop the E. When a word ends with a silent final E, it should be written
without the E when adding an ending that begins with a vowel. In this way,
come becomes coming and hope becomes hoping.

When adding an ending to a word that ends with Y, change the Y to I if it is

preceded by a consonant. In this way, supply becomes supplies and worry
becomes worried.

All, written alone, has two L's. When used as a prefix, however, only one L is
written. Examples of this rule include also and almost.

Generally, adding a prefix to a word does not change the correct spelling.

Words ending in a vowel and Y can add the suffix -ed or -ing without making
any other change.

If you are interested in a rules-based approach to improving your spelling skills,

check out the Spelling Rules website. The creator of this site has developed a
Spell500 instructional method that uses spelling rules to teach students how to
master up to 500 new words per day. By focusing on understanding before
memorization, this study method proposes to drastically increase your spelling
abilities.

Additional Information
To learn more about how you can use spelling rules to become a better speller,
check out the following helpful links:

Help with Spelling Problems for ESL Classes offers a list of simple rules to
help people who are learning English as a second language.

Dyslexia.org has a list of spelling rules designed to assist learning disabled

students in mastering new vocabulary words.

Spelling: A Lost Art discusses the decline of spelling instruction in public

schools while providing a list of rules that can be used to help master new
spelling words.

Some Rules and Suggestions about Spelling contains spelling rules as well
as general tips for mastering new words.

Absolutely Ridiculous English Spelling provides a slightly humorous look at

the seemingly inconsistent methods of spelling everyday vocabulary words.

Garden of Praise has clever songs that you can use to help memorize a
variety of common spelling rules.

YourDictionary Web site has lists of 100 Most Often Misspelled Words in
English and150 More Often Misspelled Words in English that include rules you can
use to help yourself remember how to correctly spell these tricky words.