• 2-minute read
• 25th January 2015

Helpful Rhymes for Spelling Rules

In this post, we’re going to share some easy-to-remember rhymes that can help you with spelling. By following these easy rules, you can avoid some common mistakes (although it still pays to proofread, since there are always exceptions to spelling rules in English).

‘I’ Before ‘E’, Except After ‘C’

This spelling rule tells us that, in words like ‘sieve’ and ‘believe’, the ‘i’ comes before the ‘e’.

However, in words like ‘receive’ and ‘perceive’, the ‘e’ comes after the ‘i’.

Beware of rogue words like ‘seize’, ‘weird’ or ‘reign’, where the ‘e’ comes before the ‘i’ without a ‘c’!

‘Q’ and ‘U’ Stick Like Glue

This rhyme helps you to remember that, after a ‘q’, there is almost always a ‘u’ in English. The only exceptions to this are terms borrowed from other languages, such as ‘qi’ or ‘qat’.

When ‘-ing’ Comes to Play, the ‘E’ Runs Away

This rule is used for spelling the ‘-ing’ forms of verbs that end in an ‘-e’. For example, words like ‘come’, which ends in an ‘-e’, drop the ‘e’ when the ‘-ing’ is added:

We come in peace.

We are coming to dinner on Tuesday.

One Cup Two Sugars

This little phrase can help you to spell the word ‘necessary’ correctly. We use this because ‘necessary’ has one ‘c’ (one ‘cup’) and a double ‘s’ (two ‘sugars’).

If you are at all worried about your spelling, why not send your work to the professionals at Proofed? We will check your document for any errors, correct them, and even explain what we have done and why.