CHAPTER 10 Techniques to Improve Spelling^233
Another peculiarity: We use some letters illogically. The most famous example
is gh.Gh stands in for many different sounds. Look at the following list of words in
which ough is sounded in seven different ways:
bough cough sought thorough
though tough through
That leads us to the old riddle: What does ghoti spell? The answer is fi s h, as in
rough, women, nation: gh-o-ti fi sh.
To complicate the problem further, many English words are spelled the same but
have different meanings depending on their use. Chapter 11 explores this thor-
oughly, but here are just a few examples:
The wind was too strong for us to wind the kite’s string. (noun, verb)The special parking permit was invalid for the invalid. (adjective, noun)Our neighbors use the community farm to produce produce. (verb, noun)Written Practice 10-1
Say each of the following words. Put an accent mark over the syllable you hear is
stressed. The fi rst one is done for you.
- Span-ish Spa-nish
- tel-e-phone
- to-day
- yes-ter-day
- pre-sent (a gift)
- con-ta-gious
Helpful Spelling Rules—or Not
Not everyone learns to spell by memorizing spelling rules. Some people prefer to
use spelling resources such as print dictionaries or electronic dictionaries. If, how-
ever, your spelling problem is severe, you may spell what you hear, and normally