Spelling Rules and Commonly Confused Words

Core Suffix and Prefix Spelling Rules

Mastering English spelling begins with standard conventions for combining base words with prefixes and suffixes. When dealing with the classic vowel combination of i and e, the sound of the word often dictates the order of the letters. For many words that share the long e sound, write ie except after c, as seen in believe and receive. In contrast, words that produce the long a sound often use ei, which occurs in words such as neighbor and weigh. However, this guideline includes many exceptions; learners should take care to memorize common exceptions to the i-before-e rule, including weird, seize, leisure, caffeine, and neither.

Suffixes also trigger predictable changes to final letters. Generally, drop a final silent e before adding a suffix beginning with a vowel, which is why make becomes making. Some words retain the e, as seen when change becomes changeable. When adding a suffix beginning with a consonant, generally keep a final silent e, as shown when hope becomes hopeful. An exception to this rule occurs when true becomes truly. For words ending in a consonant and y, usually change y to i before adding a suffix unless the suffix starts with i; exceptions include shy becoming shyness. If the base word ends in a vowel and y, usually keep the y when adding a suffix, though there are exceptions such as day becoming daily.

Consonant doubling depends on syllable structure, vowel patterns, and stress. In a one-syllable word ending in a single consonant after a single vowel, double the final consonant before a vowel-initial suffix, except when that final consonant is w, x, or y. In a multisyllable word ending in a single consonant after a single vowel, generally double the final consonant before a vowel-initial suffix if the final syllable is stressed, except when the consonant is w, x, or y. Finally, adding prefixes does not alter the spelling of the base word itself. The prefix mis- is added to a base word without modifying the base spelling, making misspell retain two s's. Similarly, adding the prefix dis- to satisfied produces dissatisfied, which contains three s's.