Word spelling and variant spelling

Spelling isn’t easy. It’s bad enough we have words that sound the same but are spelled differently and have different meanings. On top of that, we have words that are spelled differently but mean the same thing! These are known as variant spellings.

What Are Variant Spellings?

Variant spellings occur when a word has more than one accepted spelling. This shouldn’t be confused with regional spellings (such as when the British spell “color” as “colour”). Nor is it quite the same as when a word has an old-fashioned, archaic spelling (such as when “jail” was spelled “gaol”).

A better example is “donut,” which is a modern variation of “doughnut.” The older spelling is still more common in American English, but “donut” has been catching up in recent years (primarily thanks to the success of Dunkin’ Donuts). Importantly, though, both are “correct” spellings of this word.

8 Words with Variant Spellings

Other examples of common words with variant spellings include:

1. Among/Amongst

This word has two accepted endings (similar terms include amid/amidst and while/whilst). The “-st” ending is much less common in American English.

2. Archaeology/Archeology

The older spelling here is the “ae” one, which is also more common (especially outside America).

There are other words in American English that allow the “ae” variation (e.g., esthetics/aesthetics). But with most similar terms, American English prefers the “e” version (e.g., encyclopedia, not encyclopaedia).

3. Axe/Ax

“Axe” is the most common spelling of this word, especially outside North America. But, in American English, “ax” is a common variant.

4. Collectible/Collectable

These spellings are both accepted in American English, but “collectible” is by far the most common.

5. Dialog/Dialogue

These are variations of the same word, but “dialog” is more common in relation to computing (e.g., dialog box) and “dialogue” is used when referring to two people talking.

Similar spelling variations include analog/analogue (with “analog” more common in all contexts) and prolog/prologue (with “prologue” most common).

6. Disk/Disc

“Disk” is generally more common than “disc,” but there are some cases where this is reversed. For example, in computing, magnetic storage devices are spelled with a “k” (e.g., floppy disk), but optical storage devices (e.g., a CD or DVD) are “discs.”

7. Flyer/Flier

“Flyer” is the most common spelling here, but “flier” is also used (especially when referring to something that flies rather than a leaflet advertising something).

8. Usable/Useable

“Usable” is by far the most common spelling of this word, but “useable” is also accepted in all regional dialects of English. Nobody is quite sure why.

How to Handle Variant Spellings

The list above isn’t comprehensive, but it should give you an idea of what to look out for with variant spellings. Consistency is key with words like these, so pick one spelling and use it throughout your document.

It’s also vital to proofread your work to make sure everything is consistent (you can use the ‘Find’ function in Microsoft Word to look for variant spellings).

Beyond that, there are two things you can do when confronted with two spellings of the same word:

1. Check your style guide (if you have one) to see if it specifies a preferred spelling
2. Use Google’s n-gram viewer to check which spelling is more common

You can then use this to guide your choice about which spelling to use.

Have you ever written about the Colors’ of the rainbow or how friendly your Neighbour’ is and got poor marks because of so many spelling mistakes?

Did your spell checker ever show a word spelled wrong which you can swear is spelled exactly how you learnt in school? Well, you are not the only one.

Spelling variants, also known as alternate spellings of words, is an issue for both teachers and students while learning spelling. Students, especially ESL students who are unaware of the variations of the new language they are learning, often face difficulty in learning the language because of it. Even native speakers go through many problems for not knowing how the other country spells some words.

Occurrences like this can not only confuse the learner but hamper their confidence as well. That is why you must teach your students or children about the spelling variations for certain words. In this article, we will discuss spelling variants and their effects. If you are a student, this article would be of great help to you as we would be providing examples as well.

Let’s get started!

Why Spelling Variants Exist?

Before starting, we should answer one basic question- why do these spelling variants exist? Well, to answer this question, we need to take a look at history.

The spread of the former British Empire and British colonization holds immense importance in World history. They conquered a vast area of the world and spread their culture and language in those regions. English was introduced in numerous parts of the world by the British.

Over the centuries, the English language used in those parts has significantly changed from the original form, the British English’. For example, what the Americans call Gas Station’ is called Petrol Station’ by the British and Servo’ by the Australians. The same goes for Candy (the USA), Sweets (The UK) and Lollies (Australia).

Like the usage, the spelling of the words varies too. Many of us already dealt with the problem of Color’ and Colour’, Jewelry’ and Jewellery’ etc. And not just spelling, grammar, date formats and many other things differ from region to region.

Why Do We Need to Learn About Spelling Variants?

Well, even if these spelling variants exist, why do we need to know about them? Schools often use a globally accepted variant, so why is it important to know other variations?

Avoid Confusion

The main reason why it is required to learn about other variants is to avoid confusion. In this modern age, you would frequently see contents that use other variants. It is natural to be confused and judge the creator if you don’t know about the spelling differences. Reading books and articles from other countries might be troublesome. So, having a clear idea about the spelling variations is necessary.

For Appropriate Writing

If you are writing your statement of purpose for a British university, it is convenient that you will use British English. Similarly, if the majority of your readers are American, you should use American English to make your blogs reach more people. Knowing and using the variant appropriate for a particular region is kind of a norm. It also makes you be treated better by the natives.

Mixing Up Spelling Variants

If you are not familiar with the variations, you might mix the variants in your writing which is not tolerated anywhere. You need to have profound knowledge about the rules and patterns in each variant before using them. If you are writing about your Enrollment’ in a course, you have declared that you are using American English; therefore, the course can never be your Favourite’.

Why Spell Checkers Aren’t Reliable

Spelling variants are one of the main reasons why spell checkers are not always effective. Some spell checkers have options to choose which variant you want to choose but most of them follow only one.

Proofreading

If you want to build a career in proofreading, it is mandatory for you not just know about the spelling variants but to master them. You also need to know about grammar variations, vocabulary differences etc.

Do you want to learn vocabulary acquisition strategies? Check out this blog now!

How Many Spelling Variants Are in English?

So, do we need to know about all the spelling variants across the world? And can I make my own spelling variation? Sounds tempting, but no, we can’t. The variations that are accepted globally originated from English-Speaking countries other than the UK. And while other non-English-speaking countries can accept all the spelling variants, one English-speaking country might not be so tolerant towards the variations of another country.

There are mainly two spelling variants accepted globally- American and British English. British English is obviously the most widespread and accepted variant, but the popularity of American English cannot be ignored. One of the main reasons American English Spelling being so popular is that it often omits unnecessary letters from words such as Neighbor’ (British: Neighbour), Catalog (British: Catalogue) etc.

There are also Australian and Canadian variants, but they are only a few and not widespread either. Below are some examples of spelling differences in British, American, Canadian and Australian English:

British	American	Canadian	Australian
Centre	Center	Centre	Centre
Analyse	Analyze	— Analyze	Analyze
Defence	Defense	Defence	Defence
Travelling	Traveling	Travelling	Travelling
Programme	Program	Program	Program
Ageing	Aging	Ageing	Ageing
Grey	Gray	Grey	Grey

As you can see from the words above, Canadian and Australian English use both American and British English for spelling. So, in this article, we will mainly focus on British and American spellings.

Spelling Variations Examples

Spelling differences between American and British English can be categorized in different sectors. In this article, we would talk about:

• Adding letters
• Removing letters
• Changing letters
• Changing places of letters in a word etc.
• Multiple spelling of a word in one variant

Removing Letters

The main difference between the two spelling variants is that American English often omits silent letters. This way, it is easy to remember the spelling.

Do you want to know an interesting fact? British Spelling is mostly close to French Spelling. So, if you are a French ESL student, it would be easier for you to learn the British variant.

Here are some examples for you to understand better:

Change	British	American
-our to -or	Behaviour, Colour, Favour, Neighbour	Behavior, Color, Favor, Neighbor
-ll to -l	Travelling	Traveling
-gue to -g	Analogue, Catalogue, Dialogue	Analog, Catalog, Dialog
-ae to -e	Aesthetic, Archaeology	Esthetic, Archeology
-lle to -l	Jewellery	Jewelry
-mme to -m	Programme	Program

Adding Letters

In some spelling, American English adds a word. For example:

Change	American	British
-l to -ll	Enrollment, Fulfill	Enrolment, Fulfil
-p to -pp	Worshipped	Worshiped
Adding an e	Acknowledgement	Acknowledgement

Changing Letters

Instead of reducing or adding letters, some letters are replaced with another one. For example:

Change	British	American
-ce to -se	Defence, Offence	Defense, Offense
-se to -ze	Categorise, Realise	Categorize, Realize
-sa to -za	Personalisation, Realisation	Personalization, Realization
-ey to -ay	Grey	Gray
-lt to -led	Learnt, Spelt	Learned, Spelled

Changing The Place of Letters

In the American spelling rule, -re is often replaced with -er. For example,

British	American
Centre	Center
Sombre	Somber
Litre	Liter
Fibre	Fiber
Theatre	Theater

Multiple Spelling of a Word

In British English, there are multiple spellings of a word depending on the usage of the word (Noun, Verb) while American English has only one. This is important to remember the variation while using them in a sentence. Below are some examples of such words:

British	Distinction	American
Licence	Noun	License
License	Verb
Practice	Noun	Practice
Practise	Verb
Check	Verb	Check
Cheque	Noun

However, some words have different spellings in both spelling variants such as Advice (Noun) and Advise (Verb).

There are also other words that are spelled differently in each variant such as:

• Barbeque- Barbecue
• Disc- Disk
• Whiskey- Whisky etc.

Learning about spelling variants can be a good addition to your spelling club activities. Learn more about other activities now!

How To Teach Spelling Variants in The Classroom?

Rather than in kindergarten, spelling variants should be taught to advanced level students, possibly in high school. Beginners might find them confusing and that will hamper the learning process. As these variations would matter greatly in higher studies or in professional life, high school students should have great knowledge about this.

Introducing the variants is a sensitive issue; therefore, teachers should be careful while teaching it. Here are some tips:

• Encourage the students to read articles or chapters in novels that include the alternate spellings. Seeing them for the first time might make the students uncomfortable and curious and that would be your cue to introduce the spelling variants.
• Teach them about the necessities of knowing the spelling variations so that they become serious.
• Give them a list of words that has multiple spellings. This way, they will have a clear idea about which words to look out for.

If you are looking for some spelling words lists with American Spelling for practice, check out SpellQuiz Printable Word lists that are divided into grades and there are multiple lists for each grade. SpellQuiz uses American English Spelling for all the tests, exercises, and other contents. You can print them to use in your class or hang them on your wall to always keep them near hand. There are separate lists for Spelling Bee Competition for intense practice.

You can also practice your spelling in SpellQuiz Spelling Practice to see your progress before taking any test. This will help you improve quicker and boost your confidence.

Happy Spelling!

Variant spellings take a toll on editors everywhere. The minutes tick away whenever we leave our documents (as we often do) in search of the answer to that age-old question: What’s the preferred spelling of this word?

The problem is compounded by the fact that many spelling variations don’t count as wrong.

For example, let’s say you’re editing a story about a tsar and his imposter that ends with a promise of more in a future instalment and that thanks everyone in the acknowledgements. Because you’ve paid close attention to Word’s spelling and grammar checker—and because none of those words got flagged as wrong—you’re not too worried about them.

The good news is that those four words—though none would be considered Chicago style—are all in the dictionary. The bad news is that the story includes not only a tsar but a czarina. Worse, it gets published like that. And even if everyone manages to do a better job with the second installment (in which the author uses the acknowledgments to thank the editor who replaced you and to explain that an impostor must have written that first story), it’s too late for you.

And there are a lot of these words.

Supplementing Word’s Spell-Check with PerfectIt

Microsoft Word’s spelling and grammar checker is an essential tool, but it won’t find everything. That’s why editors keep track of what they do with style sheets—lists of words that should be treated a certain way. But that kind of style sheet is best for recording exceptions: words that don’t follow your preferred style. They’re not meant simply to remind you that there are only two e’s in “acknowledgments.”

Enter PerfectIt, the proofreading add-in for Word that we introduced to our readers last year. PerfectIt starts by keeping track of consistency.

For example, PerfectIt would have found three of the mismatched pairs in the opening section of this post: imposter/​‌impostor, instalment/​‌installment, and acknowledgements/​‌acknowledgments. But it would have skipped over “tsar” and “czarina,” because those words aren’t similar enough to trigger the check.

Those two words would also be skipped by each of PerfectIt’s built-in spelling checks, which are designed to enforce US, UK, Canadian, or Australian spelling rules. A preference for “czar” over “tsar” (or vice versa) isn’t necessarily regional. But PerfectIt can help with other words.

For example, of the 900 or so spellings that PerfectIt will flag as potential errors when you run its US spelling check, more than 200 would be ignored by Word. This means that for every five words like “behaviour” and “fibre” and “gaol” and “pyjamas” and “storey”—all of which would be caught by the US spelling checks in both Word and PerfectIt—at least one will slip through Word without that program’s telltale red or blue underline to remind you it might be wrong.

These include words like “distil” and “fulfil” and “grey” and “homoeopath”—and “acknowledgements” and “instalment”— that are common in US English but not as common as the first-listed versions of these terms in a US dictionary like Merriam-Webster (Chicago’s preferred source for spellings).

Even if you use one of these variants consistently, PerfectIt’s US spelling check will step in where Word does not and suggest what is generally considered to be the preferred variant in US English:

But PerfectIt’s spelling checks aren’t meant to enforce a particular style. That’s where The Chicago Manual of Style for PerfectIt comes in.

Chicago Style for PerfectIt: A Bigger, More Targeted List

When you choose the “Chicago Manual of Style” option in PerfectIt, you get some of the advantages of PerfectIt’s spelling lists but tailored to Chicago style and expanded to include more words.

CMOS recommends using a single dictionary for spelling; this helps ensure a consistent style. Its primary recommendation is the dictionary at Merriam-Webster.com (see CMOS 7.1). Accordingly, each term in Chicago Style for PerfectIt has been checked against Merriam-Webster. For example, if “tsarina” occurs in your document, PerfectIt will suggest “czarina”:

If you need more information, you can click “See more from CMOS 7.1” to get an excerpt directly from CMOS:

You can follow any of the red links to find out more. Click through to Merriam-Webster.com and you can look up “czarina” for yourself:

But again, normally you won’t have to check the dictionary for yourself; the terms in PerfectIt’s lists have been checked against the latest entries in Merriam-Webster. This includes the more than 2,000 terms that Chicago Style for PerfectIt currently checks for spelling. That should save time and help you keep your focus on your document rather than on the dictionary.

Checking for Chicago Style but UK Spelling

Sometimes you may be working for an author or publisher who follows The Chicago Manual of Style in most things but not spelling, as a number of UK publications do. But even with UK spelling preferences, you’ll still get help from PerfectIt. That’s because many terms that count as spelling variations in Chicago Style for PerfectIt would need attention whether you’re writing in US or UK or another variety of English.

Here’s a small sample of the words it would flag:

coup d’états (should be coups d’état)
curriculums (should be curricula)
expresso (should be espresso)
gingko (should be ginkgo)
restauranteur (should be restaurateur)
seraphs (should be seraphim)
shwa (should be schwa)
thesauruses (should be thesauri)

Some of those words are plurals that can be formed in more than one way. In most such cases, the preference will be the same in US and UK English. When you’re finished running the checks for Chicago style, run PerfectIt a second time but checking only for UK spelling.

If you disagree with any of PerfectIt’s suggestions, click “Next” to skip it and move to the next item. Or maybe your publisher (or an author whose work you’re editing) prefers “tsar” over “czar.” Then you can use PerfectIt to create a new style based on Chicago but edited to reflect those preferences. Many of PerfectIt’s power users keep not just a house style sheet but a style sheet for each project.

You could create a custom dictionary in Word, but it’s generally easier to work with PerfectIt’s lists.

When “Ax” Gained an e: Moving at the Speed of Dictionaries

The world doesn’t stand still and neither do dictionaries. One reason CMOS recommends Merriam-Webster is that it’s frequently updated to reflect the latest usage. But PerfectIt isn’t directly synced to Merriam-Webster, so there’s a chance that one or more of its recommendations will fall out of date.

In the six months following the release of The Chicago Manual of Style for PerfectIt, we’ve been made aware of one such occurrence. Since well before the publication of Webster’s Third New International Dictionary in 1961, Merriam-Webster’s dictionaries have listed “ax” before “axe.” They’ve always been equal variants—and therefore about equally common—but editors who follow Chicago know to pick the first-listed term.

Chicago Style for PerfectIt was therefore configured to look for “axe” and suggest “ax.”

In the latter half of 2021, things changed. Merriam-Webster.com now lists “axe or ax,” the newly ordered entry having appeared sometime after September 14. (We looked at the Wayback Machine to figure this out. Compare this entry from September 14 with this one from November 1.)

Thanks to a PerfectIt user on social media who reported the “ax/axe” problem, PerfectIt has now updated its software to prefer “axe”—a change that will be reflected in a forthcoming PerfectIt update.

Learn More

Most editors have come to depend on spell-check as a kind of safety net, like the ones used by acrobats. But spell-checks are designed for the average user and can’t be edited to enforce a specific style without a lot of work. The Chicago Manual of Style for PerfectIt won’t catch everything, but it is designed for a professional audience that applies Chicago style and needs more than spell-check.

To learn more about Chicago Style for PerfectIt or to apply it on your next document, click for details.

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Британский английский и американский английский: Различия в написании слов

British and American variants of spelling are widely used in various fields. However, language learners should stick to the spelling variant that corresponds to the variant of English that they are studying. Be consistent in your choice: if you write «centre» in one sentence and «center» in another, it might be regarded as a mistake, especially in examination papers. There are certain spelling patterns behind the differences, for example, «our» in British English (colour, humour) and «or» in American English (color, humor). Study the patterns together with the examples; it will help you to avoid mixing British and American spelling forms in your writing.

But the patterns of spelling differences do not apply to all cases. In some cases, they apply only to a few words. For example: BrE defence, licence (noun), pretence; AmE defense, license, pretense. But a lot of such words have the same spelling in BrE and AmE: absence, essence, presence, sentence, fence, hence, pence, since, wince, etc. Also the same spelling in BrE and AmE: suspense, nonsense, immense, intense, dispense, dense, sense, tense, cleanse, rinse, etc.

The chart below provides examples of spelling differences between BrE and AmE. Some derivative words are also given in the chart; some of them are the same in British and American English, others are not. But British spelling variants often exist as secondary spelling variants in American English. You can check and compare British and American spelling and pronunciation in online dictionaries, for example, in Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary and Merriam-Webster Online.

Британский и американский варианты написания широко используются в различных областях. Однако изучающим английский язык следует придерживаться того варианта написания, который соответствует варианту английского языка, который они изучают. Будьте последовательны в своем выборе: если вы напишете «centre» в одном предложении и «center» в другом, это может рассматриваться как ошибка, особенно в экзаменационных работах. За различиями стоят определенные модели написания, например, «our» в BrE (colour, humour) и «or» в AmE (color, humor). Изучите модели вместе с примерами; это поможет вам избежать смешения британских и американских форм написания в вашей письменной речи.

Но модели различий в написании применимы не ко всем случаям. В некоторых случаях, они применимы только к нескольким словам. Например: BrE defence, licence (сущ.), pretence; AmE defense, license, pretense. Но очень много таких слов имеют одинаковое написание в BrE и AmE: absence, essence, presence, sentence, fence, hence, pence, since, wince и др. Также одинаковое написание в BrE и AmE: suspense, nonsense, immense, intense, dispense, dense, sense, tense, cleanse, rinse и др.

Таблица ниже дает примеры различий между BrE и AmE в написании слов. Некоторые производные слова также даны в таблице; некоторые из них одинаковы в британском и американском английском, другие нет. Но британские варианты написания часто существуют как вторые (не основные) варианты написания в американском английском. Вы можете проверить и сравнить британское и американское написание и произношение в онлайн-словарях, например, Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary и Merriam-Webster Online.

British English	American English	Translation
aero, air	air, aero
aeroplane; aircraft; aerodrome; airport	airplane; aircraft; airdrome; airport	самолет; летательный аппарат; аэродром; аэропорт
aeronaut; aerospace; aerosol; aerial	aeronaut; aerospace; aerosol; aerial	аэронавт; воздушно-космическое пространство; аэрозоль; антенна
ae, e	e, ae
anaemia	anemia	анемия
anaesthetic	anesthetic, anaesthetic	анестетик
aesthete; aesthetics	aesthete; aesthetics; esthete; esthetics	эстет; эстетика
archaeology; archaeologist	archaeology; archaeologist; archeology; archeologist	археология; археолог
encyclopaedia, encyclopedia	encyclopedia	энциклопедия
gynaecology; gynaecologist	gynecology; gynecologist	гинекология; гинеколог
haemoglobin, hemoglobin	hemoglobin	гемоглобин
haemophilia, hemophilia	hemophilia	гемофилия
haemorrhage, hemorrhage	hemorrhage	кровотечение
leukaemia	leukemia	лейкемия
medieval, mediaeval	medieval	средневековый
orthopaedic, orthopedic	orthopedic	ортопедический
paediatrician, pediatrician	pediatrician	педиатр
Aesop; Caesar	Aesop; Caesar	Эзоп; Цезарь
oe, e	e
diarrhoea, diarrhea	diarrhea	диарея, понос
foetus, fetus; foetal, fetal	fetus; fetal	зародыш; эмбриональный
homeopathy, homoeopathy	homeopathy	гомеопатия
oesophagus, esophagus	esophagus	пищевод
oestrogen, estrogen	estrogen	эстроген
Oedipus; phoenix	Oedipus; phoenix	Эдип; феникс
ction, xion	ction
connection, connexion	connection	связь
inflection, inflexion	inflection	изгибание, флексия
reflection, reflexion	reflection	отражение
complexion	complexion	цвет лица
crucifixion	crucifixion	распятие, муки
gue	gue, g
analogue	analogue, analog	аналог
catalogue	catalogue, catalog	каталог
demagogue	demagogue, demagog	демагог
dialogue	dialogue, dialog	диалог
monologue	monologue, monolog	монолог
pedagogue	pedagogue, pedagog	педагог
prologue	prologue, prolog	пролог
ize, ise	ize
apologize, apologise	apologize	извиниться
characterize, characterise	characterize	характеризовать
memorize, memorise	memorize	запоминать
normalize, normalise; normalization, normalisation	normalize; normalization	нормализовать; нормализация
organize, organise; organization, organisation	organize; organization	организовать; организация
realize, realise; realization, realisation	realize; realization	осуществить, понять; реализация
recognize, recognise	recognize	признать, узнать
specialize, specialise	specialize	специализироваться
symbolize, symbolise	symbolize	символизировать
terrorize, terrorise	terrorize	терроризировать
vaporize, vaporise	vaporize	испарять(ся)
yse	yze
analyse, analysed, analysing; analysis; analyst	analyze, analyzed, analyzing; analysis; analyst	анализировать; анализ; аналитик
paralyse, paralysed, paralysing; paralysis	paralyze, paralyzed, paralyzing; paralysis	парализовать, парализовал, парализующий; паралич
l, ll	l
cancel, cancelled, cancelling; canceller; cancellation	cancel, canceled, canceling; canceler; cancellation	отменить, отменил (и др.)
counsel, counselled, counselling; counsellor	counsel, counseled, counseling; counselor	советовать, советовал (и др.); советник
dial, dialled, dialling; dialler	dial, dialed, dialing; dialer	набирать номер, набрал номер (и др.)
equal, equalled, equalling; equality	equal, equaled, equaling; equality	равный, быть равным (и др.); равенство
fuel, fuelled, fuelling	fuel, fueled, fueling	топливо, заправлять топливом
initial, initialled, inialling	initial, initialed, inialing	инициал, подписывать инициалами
jewel; jeweller; jewellery; jewelled	jewel; jeweler; jewelry; jeweled	драгоценный камень; ювелир (и др.)
label, labelled, labelling; labeller	label, labeled, labeling; labeler	ярлык, прикреплять ярлык (и др.)
level, levelled, levelling	level, leveled, leveling	уровень, выравнивать (и др.)
libel, libelled, libelling; libellant, libellee, libeller, libellous	libel, libeled, libeling; libelant, libelee, libeler, libelous	клевета, клеветать, дискредитировать (и др. производные юрид. термины)
marvel, marvelled, marvelling; marvellous	marvel, marveled, marveling; marvelous	изумляться (и др.); изумительный, чудесный
parallel, paralleled, paralleling; unparalleled; parallelogram	parallel, paralleled, paralleling; unparalleled; parallelogram	параллель, быть параллельным (и др.); параллелограмм
quarrel, quarrelled, quarrelling; quarreller	quarrel, quarreled, quarreling; quarreler	ссора, ссориться (и др.)
scandal; scandalous	scandal; scandalous	скандал; скандальный
signal, signalled, signalling; signaller	signal, signaled, signaling; signaler	сигнал, сигналить (и др.)
travel, travelled, travelling; traveller	travel, traveled, traveling; traveler	путешествие, путешествовать, ездить (и др.)
wool; woollen; woolly	wool; woolen; woolly, wooly	шерсть; шерстяной; шерстистый
l, ll	ll
appal; appalling	appall; appalling	ужасать; ужасающий
distil, distilled, distilling; distillation; distillery	distill, distilled, distilling; distillation, distillery	дистиллировать (и др.)
enrol, enroll, enrolled, enrolling; enroller, enrolment	enroll, enrolled, enrolling; enroller, enrollment	зачислить в список членов (и др.)
fulfil, fulfilled, fulfilling; fulfilment	fulfill, fulfilled, fulfilling; fulfillment	выполнить, выполнил (и др.)
install, installed; installation; installer; instalment	install, installed; installation; installer; installment	установить, установил (и др.)
instil, instill, instilled; instillation	instill, instilled; instillation	прививать, вводить по каплям (и др.)
skill; skilful; skilfully; skilled	skill; skillful; skillfully; skilled	мастерство; умелый; умело; умелый
will; wilful; wilfully	will; willful; willfully	воля; своевольный; умышленно
mme, m	m, mme
gramme, gram; kilogramme, kilogram	gram; kilogram	грамм; килограмм
to programme, programmed, programming; programmer; a programme	to program, programmed, programed, programming, programing; programmer; a program	программировать (и др.); программист; программа
our	or
armour; armoury; armoured	armor; armory; armored	доспехи, броня; арсенал; бронированный
behaviour	behavior	поведение
clamour; clamorous	clamor; clamorous	шум, крики; шумный
colour; coloured; colourful	color; colored; colorful	цвет; цветной; красочный
favour; favourite; favourable	favor; favorite; favorable	любезность; любимый; благоприятный
flavour; flavouring	flavor; flavoring	привкус, аромат; приправа
glamour; glamorous, glamourous	glamour, glamor; glamorous, glamourous	очарование, чары; чарующий
honour; honoured; honourable; honorary	honor; honored; honorable; honorary	честь; заслуженный; почтенный; почетный
humour; good-humoured; humourless; humorous; humorist	humor; good-humored; humorless; humorous; humorist	юмор; добродушный; не имеющий юмора; юмористический; юморист
labour, laboured, labouring; labourer; laborious	labor, labored, laboring; laborer; laborious	труд, трудился (и др.)
neighbour; neighbourhood	neighbor; neighborhood	сосед; соседство
odour; odourless; deodorant	odor; odorless; deodorant	запах; без запаха; дезодорант
parlour	parlor	гостиная, салон
rumour	rumor	слух, молва
saviour	savior	спаситель
savour; savoury	savor; savory	приятный вкус; вкусный
splendour	splendor	блеск, великолепие
tumour	tumor	опухоль
valour; valorous	valor; valorous	отвага; отважный
vapour; vaporous	vapor; vaporous	пар; парообразный
vigour; vigorous	vigor; vigorous	сила, энергия; энергичный
re	er
cadastre	cadastre, cadaster	кадастр
calibre	caliber	калибр
centre, centres; central	center, centers; central	центр, центры; центральный
to centre, centred, centring	to center, centered, centering	центрировать (и др.)
centrepiece	centerpiece	предмет-орнамент в центре (стола)
fibre; fibrous	fiber; fibrous	волокно; волокнистый
litre	liter	литр
lustre; lustrous; illustrious	luster; lustrous; illustrious	блеск; блестящий; знаменитый
macabre	macabre, macaber	жуткий, подобный смерти
manoeuvre, manoeuvres; manoeuvrable; manoeuvrability	maneuver, maneuvers; maneuverable; maneuverability	маневр, маневры; маневренный; маневренность
to manoeuvre, manoeuvres, manoeuvred, manoeuvring	to maneuver, maneuvers, maneuvered, maneuvering	маневрировать, маневрирует, маневрировал, маневрирующий
meagre; meagrely; meagreness	meager; meagerly; meagerness	скудный, недостаточный; скудно; скудость
metre, metric; centimetre, kilometre	meter, metric; centimeter, kilometer	метр, метрический; сантиметр, километр
meter	meter	счетчик, измерительный прибор
sceptre	scepter	скипетр
sombre	somber	мрачный, темный
theatre, theatrical	theater, theatrical	театр, театральный
ce, se	se, ce
defence; defensive	defense; defensive	защита, оборона; защитный
a licence; to license	a license; to license	лицензия; давать лицензию
offence; offensive	offense; offensive	правонарушение, оскорбление; оскорбительный
pretence	pretense	притворство
to practise, practised, practising; practice (noun)	to practice, practiced, practicing; practice (noun)	практиковать, практиковал (и др.); практика (сущ.)
wards, ward	ward, wards
towards, toward (preposition)	toward, towards (preposition)	к, по направлению к (предлог)
upwards, upward; downwards, downward; backwards, backward (adverbs)	upward, upwards; downward, downwards; backward, backwards (adverbs)	вверх, вниз, назад (наречия)
upward, downward, backward (adjectives)	upward, downward, backward (adjectives)	направленный вверх, вниз, назад (прилагательные)
British English	American English	Translation
aluminium	aluminum	алюминий
axe, axes	ax, axe, axes	топор, топоры
cheque	check	чек
cigarette	cigarette, cigaret	сигарета
cookery book	cookbook	поваренная книга
cosy	cozy	уютный
disc, disk	disk, disc	диск
draught	draft	сквозняк
grey	gray	серый
kerb, kerbstone	curb, curbstone	край тротуара, бордюрный камень
maths	math	математика (разг. сокращ.)
matt, mat	mat, matte	матовый
mould; mouldy	mold; moldy	лекало, форма; плесень; покрытый плесенью
per cent; percentage	percent; percentage	процент, проценты; процентное содержание
plough	plow	пахать; плуг
pyjamas	pajamas	пижама
sceptic, sceptical, scepticism	skeptic, skeptical, skepticism	скептик, скептический, скептицизм
smoulder	smolder	тлеющий огонь; тлеть
speciality	specialty	специальность
storey, storeys; two-storey, two-storeyed	story, stories; two-story, two-storied	этаж, этажи; двухэтажный
sulphur; sulphuric acid; sulphate	sulfur; sulfuric acid; sulfate	сера; серная кислота; сульфат
tyre	tire	шина, покрышка
waggon	wagon	повозка, фургон
yoghurt, yogurt, yoghourt	yogurt, yoghurt, yoghourt	йогурт

Note: Differences between BrE and AmE in the use of double consonants before suffixes are described in Double Consonants in the section Writing.

Примечание: Различия между BrE и AmE в употреблении двойных согласных перед суффиксами описаны в статье Double Consonants в разделе Writing.

Note: The following verbs can be regular or irregular in BrE and AmE: burn, dream, kneel, lean, leap, learn, misspell, smell, spell, spill, spoil. Usually, they are regular in American English, i.e., they form the simple past and the past participle by adding the ending ED. (See Note 1 at the end of Irregular Verbs in the section Writing.)

Примечание: Следующие глаголы могут быть правильными или неправильными в британском и американском английском: burn, dream, kneel, lean, leap, learn, misspell, smell, spell, spill, spoil. Обычно, это правильные глаголы в американском английском, т.е. они образуют простое прошедшее время и причастие прошедшего времени, присоединяя окончание ED. (См. Note 1 в конце материала Irregular Verbs в разделе Writing.)

Spelling is a set of conventions that regulate the way of using graphemes (writing system) to represent a language in its written form.^[1] In other words, spelling is the rendering of speech sound (phoneme) into writing (grapheme). Spelling is one of the elements of orthography, and highly standardized spelling is a prescriptive element.

Spellings originated as transcriptions of the sounds of spoken language according to the alphabetic principle. They remain largely reflective of the sounds, although fully phonemic spelling is an ideal that most languages’ orthographies only approximate, some more closely than others. This is true for various reasons, including that pronunciation changes over time in all languages, yet spellings as visual norms may resist change. In addition, words from other languages may be adopted without being adapted to the spelling system, and different meanings of a word or homophones may be deliberately spelled in different ways to differentiate them visually.

Standards and conventionsEdit

Standardization of spelling is connected with the development of writing and the establishment of modern standard dialects.^[2][3] Languages with established orthography are those languages that enjoy an official status and a degree of institutional support in a country. Therefore, normative spelling is a relatively recent development linked to the compiling of dictionaries (in many languages, special spelling dictionaries, also called orthographic dictionaries, are compiled, showing prescribed spelling of words but not their meanings), the founding of national academies and other institutions of language maintenance, including widespread education and literacy, and often does not apply to minority and regional languages.

In countries or regions where there is an authoritative language academy, such as France, the Netherlands, and the German-speaking areas, reforms are regularly made so that spelling better matches the changing pronunciation.

Examples include:

• German orthography reform of 1996
• Portuguese spelling reform
• French rectifications orthographiques of 1990.

English-language spelling reform proposals have been regularly made since the 16th century, but have made little impact apart from a few spellings preferred by Noah Webster having contributed to American and British English spelling differences.

MethodologyEdit

LearningEdit

Learning proper spelling by rote is a traditional element of elementary education and divergence from standard spelling is often perceived as an indicator of low intelligence, illiteracy, or lower class standing.^[4]

Spelling tests are commonly used to assess a student’s mastery over the words in the spelling lessons the student has received so far. They can also be an effective practice method. Spelling bees are competitions to determine the best speller of a group. Prominent spelling bees are even televised, such as the National Spelling Bee in the United States.

AlterationEdit

Divergent spelling is a popular advertising technique, used to attract attention or to render a trademark «suggestive» rather than «merely descriptive». The pastry chains Dunkin’ Donuts and Krispy Kreme, for example, employ non-standard spellings.

MisspellingsEdit

A misspelling of purchased on a service station sign.

While some words admit multiple spellings, some spellings are not considered standard. These are commonly called «misspellings». A misspelled word can be a series of letters that represents no correctly spelled word of the same language at all (such as «leik» for «like») or a correct spelling of another word (such as writing «here» when one means «hear», or «no» when one means «know»). Misspellings of the latter type are called «atomic typos» and it can easily make their way into printed material because they are not caught by simple computerized spell checkers. Deliberate misspellings that emphasize the pronunciation of a regional dialect are part of eye dialect (such as writing «‘Murica'» instead of «America», or «helluva» instead of «hell of a»).

Misspellings may be due to typing errors (e.g. the transposition error teh for the), lack of knowledge of the normative spelling, or lack of concern over spelling rules at all. Whether or not a word is misspelled may depend on context and the orthographic conventions adopted, as is the case with American / British English distinctions. Misspelling can also be a matter of opinion when variant spellings are accepted by some and not by others. For example, «miniscule» (for «minuscule») is a misspelling to many,^[5] and yet it is listed as an acceptable variant in some dictionaries.^[6][7]

A well-known Internet scam involves the registration of domain names that are deliberate misspellings of well-known corporate names to mislead or defraud. The practice is commonly known as «typosquatting».^[8]

Notable English misspellings in historyEdit

• Arab, Alabama – This town in north Alabama was named Arad, after its founder, Arad Thompson, but the name was misspelled on a US Post Office map as «Arab», and the misspelled name stuck.
• Cleveland, Ohio – the leader of the crew that surveyed the town’s territory was General Moses Cleaveland, and the region was named in his honor; reportedly the town’s first newspaper, the Cleveland Advertiser, could not fit the town’s name in its masthead without removing the first «a» from the name.^[9]
• Google – accidental misspelling of googol.^[10] According to Google’s vice president, as quoted on a BBC The Money Programme documentary, January 2006, the founders – noted for their poor spelling – registered Google as a trademark and web address before someone pointed out that it was not correct.
• Ovaltine, a popular bedtime drink in the UK and Australia, came about because someone misspelled the original name Ovomaltine on the trademark documentation.^{[citation needed]}
• Referer – common misspelling of the word referrer. It is so common that it made it into the official specification of HTTP – the communication protocol of the World Wide Web – and has, therefore, become the standard industry spelling when discussing HTTP referers.^[11]
• Sequim, Washington – «In 1879 the first post office was built and named ‘Seguin’ for the surrounding area. […] In 1907, due to a Postal Official’s error in reading an official report, the post office was titled ‘Seguim’ for approximately a month. With the next report, the Official read the letter ‘g’ as a ‘q’, and the post office here became known as ‘Sequim.’ The name change did not worry the residents enough to protest. It has been known as Sequim ever since.»^[12]
• According to some, the name of Quartzsite, a mining town in Arizona, was spelled wrongly. It should be Quartzite, after the mineral quartzite.^[13]
• Zenith – Arabic zamt was misread; in Latin letters, at the time, the letter i was never dotted, so «m» looked like «ni».^[14]

EnglishEdit

English orthography has a broad degree of standardization. However, there are several ways to spell almost every sound and most letters have several variants of pronunciation depending on their position in the word and context. Therefore, some spelling mistakes are common even among native speakers.^[15] This is mainly due to large number of words that were borrowed from other languages with no successful attempts of complete spelling reform.^[16] Most spelling rules usually do not reflect phonetic changes that have taken place since the end of the 15th century (for example, Great Vowel Shift).^[17]

Other languagesEdit

Portuguese spelling is not strictly phonematic. It is associated with an extension of the Portuguese language and the emergence of numerous regional and dialect variants. In 2009 the global reform of the Portuguese language was initiated to eliminate 98% of inconsistencies in spelling between various countries.^[18]

Orthography of the Icelandic language is based on etymological principle, thus the Icelanders themselves experience difficulties in writing.^[19][20] Modern Icelandic alphabet is based on the standard introduced by the Danish philologist Rasmus Rask.

The fundamental principles of the Spanish orthography are phonological and etymological, that is why there are several letters with identical phonemes.^[21] Beginning from the 17th century, various options for orthographic reforms were suggested that would create a one-to-one correspondence between grapheme and phoneme, but all of them were rejected. Most modern proposals to reform spelling are limited to the removal of homophone letters that are preserved for etymological reasons.^[22]

See alsoEdit

• Dyslexia
• Eye dialect
• Grapheme
• Official script

• Orthography
• Phonetic spelling
• Pronunciation spelling
• Register (sociolinguistics)
• Spell checker

• Spelling bee
• Spelling pronunciation
• Spelling reform

English spelling

• American and British English spelling differences
• English orthography
• English terms with diacritical marks

• English spelling reform
• Pronunciation respelling for English

• Commonly misspelled English words
• Frequently misused words

Other languages

• List of languages by writing system
• French orthography

• German orthography
• Greek orthography
• Hangul orthography
• Italian orthography

• Latin spelling and pronunciation
• Russian orthography
• Spanish orthography

ReferencesEdit

Further readingEdit

External linksEdit

Wikiquote has quotations related to Spelling.

Look up spelling in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• Ford, O.T. BASIC LINGUISTICS OF ENGLISH. The Stewardship Project. (Concept of spelling)
• «Pronunciation guide with multilingual talking dictionary». .howtopronounce.com.