Commonly mis-spelled words

acceptable - double c, not -ible.
accommodation - double c and double m
achieve - i before e except after c
assess - two lots of double s
believe - i before e except after c
communicate - double m
convenient - i before e except after c
definite - -ite, not -ate
disappear - double p [dis+appear]
disappoint double p [dis+appoint]
necessary - one c, double s
receive - i before e, except after c
recommend - double c [re+commend]
stationary - means not moving - use a
stationery - paper we write on - use e
success - double c, double s
weird - an exception to the rule

Spelling list 8

alphabet/alphabetical
encyclopaedia
novel
anthology
extract
photocopy
article
fantasy
publisher
author
genre
relevant/relevance
catalogue
glossary
romance
classification
index
section
content
irrelevant/irrelevance
series
copyright
librarian
system
dictionary
magazine
thesaurus
editor
non-fiction

Spelling list 7

binary
hardware
network
byte
icon
output
cable
input
password
cartridge
interactive
preview
CD-ROM
interface
processor
computer
Internet
program
connect/connection
justify
scanner
cursor
keyboard
sensor
data/database
megabyte
server
delete
memory
software
disk
modem
spreadsheet
document
module
virus
electronic
monitor

graphic
multimedia

Spelling list 6

agriculture/agricultural
defence
politics/political
bias
disease
priest
castle
document
propaganda
cathedral
dynasty
Protestant
Catholic
economy/economic(al)
rebel/rebellion
chronology/chronological
emigration
reign
citizen
government
religious
civilisation
immigrant
republic
colony/colonisation
imperial/imperialism
revolt/revolution
conflict
independence
siege
constitution/constitutional
invasion
source
contradict/contradiction
motive
trade
current
parliament

spelling list 5

advertise/advertisement
figurative
preposition
alliteration
genre
resolution
apostrophe
grammar
rhyme
atmosphere
imagery
scene
chorus
metaphor
simile
clause
myth
soliloquy
cliché
narrative/narrator
subordinate
comma
onomatopoeia
suffix
comparison
pamphlet
synonym
conjunction
paragraph
tabloid
consonant
personification
vocabulary
dialogue
playwright
vowel
exclamation
plural

expression
prefix




Geography


abroad
function
poverty
amenity
globe
provision
atlas
habitat
region/regional
authority
infrastructure
rural
climate
international
settlement
contour
landscape
situation
country
latitude
tourist/tourism
county
location
transport/transportation
desert
longitude
urban
employment
nation/national
wealth
erosion
physical
weather
estuary
pollution

Spelling list 4

aesthetic
hygiene
presentation
brief
ingredient
production
carbohydrate
innovation
protein
component
knife/knives
recipe
design
linen
sew
diet
machine
specification
disassemble
manufacture
technology
evaluation
mineral
tension
fabric
natural
textile
fibre
nutrition
vitamin
flour
polyester

flowchart
portfolio

spelling lists 3

abstract
easel
kiln
acrylic
exhibition
landscape
charcoal
foreground
palette
collage
frieze
pastel
collection
gallery
perspective
colour
highlight
portrait
crosshatch
illusion
sketch
dimension
impasto
spectrum
display

Common homophones and confusions

advise/advice
choose/chose
quiet/quite
a lot of
cloth/clothe
sites/sights
affect/effect
conscience/conscious
source/sauce
allowed/aloud
course/coarse
thank you
bought/brought
our/are
threw/through
braking/breaking
practise/practice
to/too/two

spelling lists 2

material
potential
sincerely
meanwhile
preparation
skilful
miscellaneous
prioritise
soldier
mischief
process
stomach
modern
proportion
straight
moreover
proposition
strategy
murmur
questionnaire
strength
necessary
queue
success
nervous
reaction
surely
original
receive
surprise
outrageous
reference
survey
parallel
relief
technique
participation
remember
technology
pattern
research
texture
peaceful
resources
tomorrow
people
safety
unfortunately
performance
Saturday
Wednesday
permanent
secondary
weight
persuade/persuasion
separate
weird
physical
sequence
women
possession
shoulder

spelling lists

accommodation
conclusion
explanation
actually
conscience
February
alcohol
conscious
fierce
although
consequence
forty
analyse/analysis
continuous
fulfil
argument
creation
furthermore
assessment
daughter
guard
atmosphere
decide/decision
happened
audible
definite
health
audience
design
height
autumn
development
imaginary
beautiful
diamond
improvise
beginning
diary
industrial
believe
disappear
interesting
beneath
disappoint
interrupt
buried
embarrass
issue
business
energy
jealous
caught
engagement
knowledge
chocolate
enquire
listening
climb
environment
lonely
column
evaluation
lovely
concentration
evidence
marriage

PREFIX

PREFIX MEANING EXAMPLES
anti-
against or opposite to
anticlockwise, antibiotic
auto-
self
autobiography, automat
dis-
not, or away
dissimilar, disconnect
in-
not
insane, inhuman
il-
not
illogical, illegal
im-
not
immature, improbable
ir-
not
irrelevant, irregular
inter-
between
international, intermarry
mis-
wrong
misunderstand, misspell
post-
after
postnatal, postscript
pre-
before
prenatal, prehistoric
pro-
for, or forward
propose, pro-British
re-
again, or back
rewrite, reconsider
sub-
under
submarine, substandard
super-
above
supervisor, superhuman
trans-
across
transport, transplant
un-
not, or in reverse
unfinished, unarmed

Prefixes and Suffixes

For example:-
anti + septic
antiseptic
auto + biography
autobiography
de - sensitize
desensitize
dis - approve
disapprove
im - possible
impossible
inter - mediate
intermediate
mega - byte
megabyte
mis - take
mistake
micro - chip
microchip
re - used
reused
un - available
unavailable

Silent Letters

a - treadle, bread
b - lamb, bomb, comb
c - scissors, science, scent
d - edge, bridge, ledgee - see below
h - honour, honest, school
k - know, knight, knowledgel - talk, psalm, should
n - hymn, autumn, column
p - pneumatic, psalm, psychology
s - isle, island, aisle
t - listen, rustle, shistle
u - biscuit, guess, guitar
w - write, wrong, wrist

when A or I is the sound

with an 'a' sound - deign, eight, neighbour, feign, reign, vein, weight
with an 'i' sound either, feisty, height, neither, sleight
Exceptions:seize, weird, conscientious, conscience, efficient . . .

i before e except after c

One of the first English spelling rules learnt in most schools is
"i before e except after c".
This only works when the pronunciation of the word is like a long ee as in shield.
For example:-
piece,
relief, niece,
priest
, thief
but after cconceive, conceit, receive, receipt
One of the easiest rules to remember is I before E, except after C - but you need to be careful, because there are plenty of exceptions.
I before E
believe - chief - friend - thief
C followed by EI
ceiling - receive - deceit - conceive

EXCEPTIONS
either - neither - foreign - height - seize - leisure

Spelling

To speak English well, you need grammar. To write English well, you need grammar, punctuation and spelling.