How's your spelling?

[silkwood]

There's no apostrophe in "its" and you put it in the wrong place anyway

Are you a member then?

http://www.apostrophe.fsnet.co.uk/

[MajorPanic]

Have a look at WordWeb (http://wordweb.info/). I find it a fantastic program for quickly checking the spelling, and usage, of words. There is a free version that seems to just about cover all the words I've used, and for the occasional time it doesn't have the word in its dictionary, there is links to Wikipedia and Wiktionary.

It dose not pick up those annoying transpositions, though

Ah, the pro version will.

For FireFox 2 users you can still use SpellBound check HERE for version 2.2. They reckon it only works with the US dictionary but I use the AU & it's fine.

[Christopha]

	I can't instead of I cannot
	I don't instead of I do not
	it's instead of it is

Now this is how I remember it...

	the dog's bone
	the company's logo
	Jones's bakery (but Joneses' bakery if owned by more than one Jones)

Now this is NOT how I remember it....

	the dogs' bones
	the companies' logos
	Joneses' bakeries

But this IS how I remember it...

Hmmm.... methinks I am about apostrophastuffed!!!

[Honorary Bloke]

In this case, I think we are dealing with posession, so shouldn't it be it's as in "[the subject] rears it's pedantic head" (the subject's pedantic head)?

No.

[Jedo_03]

...
the subect's head was pedantically reared = possession = the head belonging to the subject

...
all of the subjects' heads were pedantically reared = possession = more than one subject

...
It's a rare subject that occasionally rears its pedantic head = It is a rare subject.... its = nominative pronoun (rare subject)...
(imagine trying to say 'It's a rare subject that occasionally rears a rare subject's pedantic head.")

"apostrophes" are NOT signalled when we talk - the assignation of possession, nominative pronoun, more than one subject, etc is signalled by the speaker and derived by the listener from the context of the message...
Its a rare subect and it occassionally rears its pedantic head but its not all that important. When its head is reared its generally by a proponent of the its versus its apostrophe purists and its only important to its supporters...

Anyway - spoken and written language are two entirely different codes - and decoding from one to the other is (on the one hand) the realm of linguistics (and yet) we all need to do it...
As Noam Chomsky argued:
"Curious green ideas sleep furiously."
AND - both spoken and written language are DYNAMIC...
Jedo
Masters, Linguistics
Not a purist

[Frank&Earnest]

However, you learn something new every day. My daughter's homework had a section titled "Algorism". I was getting ready to blast the teacher for his appalling spelling, when I discovered that it actually is a word .

Well, actually it was a word. I would politely suggest to that teacher that to resurrect an obsolete word last meaningfully used in Chaucer's times, when English already has a vast redundancy built into it by centuries of absorption from umpteen languages, has more to do with the teaching profession's tendency to self aggrandisement than the need to use the word in preference to the now inclusive "algorithm".

For some reason, the word that gives me the most grief is separate. I always want to type seperate.

Cheer up, at least you know which is which. Unlike the genius who "supervised" my master's thesis and "corrected" my spelling of that word.

[Frank&Earnest]

"Dictate every letter as if if were going to be an annexure to an affidavit".

or put simply, like it was going to be read by a judge and others.

Mate, after reading a gazillion of legal documents, I don't think that makes any difference. We are all human.

[ss_11000]

you all sound like english teachers and i dont like english teachers

[joe greiner]

I thought my spelling was almost perfect, until I did the quiz: 244 out of 250, although my dictionary lists an acceptable alternate spelling my way.

Random thoughts:

"It's" vs "its" seems to be to distinguish between the contraction and the possessive (had to look that one up), although isn't needed for others, so must be one of those oddball exceptions.

"Aluminium" vs "aluminum": I have a vague recollection of reading about the choice. "ium" conforms to all other metallic elements (sodium, calcium, etc.), but has five syllables, unlike maximum of four for all except later arrivals. Four syllables won in 'Murrica, conformance won in England.

Some word processors (IIRC) had/have a one-button command to swap adjacent letters for correction. Also to correct accidentally capitalized second letter, caused by late release of the shift key.

"Z", "c", and "s" near the end of the word, e.g. "exercise" vs "exercize", and "defence" vs "defense": This one makes no sense at all, although there might be a rule regarding adjacent vowels - two rules, actually, depending on your location.

"Metre" vs "meter" and such: No idea at all. Although we have a few usages of "centre", as in "Whatever Centre Apartments". An affectation here, totally highfalutin.

"Colour" vs "color" etc.: Ditto no idea, except maybe 'Murrica has a shortage of vowel supply and wishes to conserve.

George Bernard Shaw: "England and America are two countries separated by a common language."

Joe

[Skew ChiDAMN!!]

As Noam Chomsky argued:
"Curious green ideas sleep furiously."

...but only when mysterious pink lizards harmonize silently.

[Iain]

My pet hates are 'eggs' intead of 'ex' in pronounciation eg: The body was eggs zumed from the grave.
Bloody media are good at this.
And when I received some application for stenographers they were shockers, one told me she had worked for a 'slister' for a couple of years, maybe it was Boban
And Joe G, do you go to the theatre or theater, maybe 'just take in a show' and play it safe

[Honorary Bloke]

I think it was Chomsky, too, who said that "everyone speaks his own language perfectly." He meant, of course, that everyone always knows exactly what they are trying to say, but the "listener" may not be able to translate properly. That's why the use of words is so important--we are attempting to make certain that the other party shares the same idea that we had when we said it. (Pay attention, Stirlo. That's why English is an important subject. )

[jmk89]

The other thing, Stirlo, is that few of the blokes on this forum are English teachers, and yet spelling and clear expression matter to us. HB has given the main reason - if we can all follow the same conventions in our language, it makes it so much easier to know what we each mean! The alternative is misunderstandings - and humans have a nasty habit of going to war and generally getting bent out of shape over misunderstandings!!!

[wheelinround]

Well Stirlo learning English is not the means of freedom to expression or conveying ones thoughts in word. Artisits, Artisans, photographers do this world wide without a single word through pictures, sculptures, crafts we do it with our woodwork.

"A Picture Speaks A Thousand Words"

The English Languish sorry Language is made up of thousands of Dane, French, German and other countries words derived from and converted to our modern day English. Which is still evolving for Australian's, we - sorry you now have your own dictionary.

We have in this world other langauges many which are not English, prior the English langauge we had Celtic, Latin,Dane, Norse, Pict, Sign well before that all one one small Isle. In Australia we have many dialects of natural Australian's we are only just seeing these being taught in some schools.

It is nice to see that should you become a teacher and then a politcian you can have the taxpayer fork out $33k for Chinese lessons only to then have them fork out a further $30k for Italian lessons for tuition.

FE's quote says it all

Well, actually it was a word. I would politely suggest to that teacher that to resurrect an obsolete word last meaningfully used in Chaucer's times, when English already has a vast redundancy built into it by centuries of absorption from umpteen languages, has more to do with the teaching profession's tendency to self aggrandisement than the need to use the word in preference to the now inclusive "algorithm".

Cheer up, at least you know which is which. Unlike the genius who "supervised" my master's thesis and "corrected" my spelling of that word.

aggrandisement = The act of increasing the wealth or prestige or power or scope of something.

I challenge anyone to read the Geordie English language (eeryone except a Geordie of course) I am sorry I have lost the ability to speak it although stick me in a room with one and I can still translate after 40+ yrs.

Roll on unisversal understanding

[woodbe]

No.

Ok, so my spelling is ok, but my punctuation is 'could try harder'

At least I don't space comma ,that drives me nuts

woodbe