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Saturday, December 31, 2016: "copeus" for "copious"
There are two problems with today's word, both in the last four letters. First, the I represents neither of I's own sounds, long as in the personal pronoun "I" and short as in "it". The sound is long-E, so we should write E.The second problem is that there is an OU, but no OU-sound. The sound is actually schwa, which is much better written U, as in "abacus" and "impetus". That spelling has the added advantage of saving us a letter, and if we can save a letter without causing readers a problem, so much the better: "copeus".
Friday, December 30, 2016: "cor" for "core"
Why is there an E at the end of this word? We don't need it, and can save ourselves a letter by deleting it: So let's just drop it, OK?: "cor".
Thursday, December 29, 2016: "cordij" for "cordage"
AGE should be pronounced with a long-A, as in the word "age" to itself, and "cage", "rage", etc. The sound here is a schwa so close to a short-I that we might better write I: "cordij".
____________________My thanks to "Caste..." for this suggestion.
Wensday, December 28, 2016: "conchairto", "conchairtoes", and "conchairtee" for "concerto", "concertos", and "concerti"
There are a number of problems with today's word's singular and plural forms. First, the second-C is pronounced not with either of C's own sounds in English, like S and like K, but the sound here is that most commonly written CH.Second, the sound of the first-E is not like either of the sounds of E in English, long as in "be" and short as in "bet". Rather, the actual sound is as is commonly written AI, as in "airmail". So let's write AI here too.
Third, the regular plural adds only an S, not ES. ES would be clearer, and what a reader might expect. So let's write ES.
Fourth, the irregular plural, the Italian form "concerti", has an English long-E sound at the end, so let's replace the I with EE.
Putting this all together, we get: "conchairto", "conchairtoes", and "conchairtee".
Tuesday, December 27, 2016: "controler" for "comptroller" and "controller"
The spelling "comptroller" is indefensibly absurd. There is no M-sound and no P-sound. And the double-L after an O, in both basic spellings, should mark the O as short ("pollack", "Apollo"), but here it's long. Fortunately, there are quick fixes to these problems: replace the MP with N; and drop the second-L: "controler".
Munday, December 26, 2016: "comparrativ" for "comparative"
A single-R might lead many readers to see an AI-sound (as in "compare" and "hare"), but in today's word, the sound is short-A, which before an R-sound is often written with two R's ("arrow", "barrel", "narrative"). Let's use that convention.One problem remains, a silent-E at the very end of the word. If it's silent, why would we write it? Even more tellingly, IVE should be pronounced with a long-I, as in "hive", "jive", and "alive", so that spelling misleads readers, esp. outside the traditionally English-speaking countries. It's hard enuf for people in non-English-speaking countrie to master the many different spellings that do not confuse the issue, without our forcing them to deal with absurdities. So let's drop the final-E: "comparrativ".
Sunday, December 25, 2016: "camoddity" for "commodity"
The wrong consonant is doubled in the traditional spelling of today's word. A double-M should be read as (1) marking the preceding-O short (as is the O in the second syllable), whereas the first-O is actually a schwa; and (2) indicating that the word's primary stress falls on the first syllable, whereas it actually falls on the second. If we take out one of the M's and double the D, we get a much clearer spelling. But it is not completely clear, in that it leaves CO at the beginning, which can, and probably should, be pronounced as tho the CO represents the common prefix indicating joint action, which has a long-O. That is not the sound here. Nor is it short-O, which a double-M following should indicate. In actuality, the sound of the O is schwa, which is much better written with A: "camoddity".
Saturday, December 24, 2016: "collonade" for "colonnade"
The wrong consonant is doubled in the traditional spelling. The L needs to be doubled to show that the O is short (as in "follow" and "Apollo"). That also helps the reader determine which syllable bears the word's primary stress: the first. The NN is not just unnecessary but actually misleading, in that it suggests that the second syllable, before the NN, takes primary stress, so let's lose the second-N: "collonade".
Friday, December 23, 2016: "coalby" for "colby"
This Food Friday, let's fix a minor problem with the name of a cheese like a mild cheddar. The O is long, tho you could not know that by the spelling, in that the O is followed by two consonants. We need the two consonants, so must adjust the sound of the O with another vowel. OA works, as in the word "coal", so let's use that: "coalby".
Thursday, December 22, 2016: "cammeo" for "cameo"
CAME is a word to itself, pronounced kaem. That is not the sound here, where the A is short, the E is in a separate syllable, and there is another syllable after that, a three-syllable word that children in English-speaking countries and people of any age outside the traditionally English-speaking countries might see as two syllables, káen,oe. To show that the A is short, all we need do it double the following-M, whereupon everthing else will fall into place: "cammeo".
Wensday, December 21, 2016: "shassay" for "chassé" and "chasse"*
CH does not represent the SH-sound. SH does. And É is "un-English", in that English does not use diacritics (accents, umlauts, etc.). Tu show a long-A at the end of a word, we have a very common pattern, AY, so let's use that: "shassay".
____________________* Dictionary.com: "a gliding step in which one foot is kept in advance of the other." There is an alternate pronunciation, esp. in square dancing, <i>saa.sháe</i>. People who prefer that alternate pronunciation can spell their pronunciation "saa.sháe".
Tuesday, December 20, 2016: "chaemberlin" for "chamberlain"
AMB should mark the preceding vowel as short O. To show a long-A here, we need to write more than just-A. We could write AI, AY, or AE. AE seems the best choice. The other issue is the AIN in the last syllable, which I have already pointed out should be pronounced with a long-A. Here, the sound is short-I. To show that, we need merely drop the I: "chaemberlin".
Munday, December 19, 2016: "celeac" for "coeliac" and "celiac"
OE is a ridiculous way to spell the long-E sound, so let's drop the O. That would leave one problem, an IA which is supposed to represent a long-E followed by a short-A. IA should be pronounced with a long-I, as in "iambic [pentameter]", "denial", and "affiant". If the sound sequence is long-E, then schwa, we should write EA instead: "celeac". .
Sunday, December 18, 2016: "cattastroffic" for "catastrophic"
In today's word, we have two short vowels, neither one shown by a double consonant after it. We need to show both short vowels by double consonants after them. We also need to replace the moronic spelling PH for the ordinary F-sound: "cattastroffic".
____________________* "Catastrophe", as "catastrofy", was used here on April 21, 2005.__
Saturday, December 17, 2016: "cappuaira" for "capoeira"*
I In Portuguese, the language from which today's word derives, OE is pronounced as long-U, without an initial Y-glide, exactly like the OE in the longstanding English word "shoe". To indicate that we need to change the OE to U. EI in Portuguese is pronounced like English AI, so let's make that substitution too.One other issue remains, whether to write the A as an English short-A, or a Portuguese broad-A (as in English "father"). Online dictionaries say we should say a short-A, which is best shown by A followed by a double consonant: "cappuaira".
____________________* Dictionary.com: "a dance form incorporating martial arts elements, originating in Brazil as a system of physical discipline and movement".
Friday, December 16, 2016: "calorimmeter" for "calorimeter"
This Food Friday, let's reform a word involved in weight and portion control, mainly in manufacturing of food products, which measures calories. The I before a single-M could be read as long, whereas it is actually short. We can show that much more clearly if we double the M: "calorimmeter".
Thursday, December 15, 2016: "Basq" for "Basque"
QUE is an absurd way to spell an ordinary K-sound. Ordinarily we could simply replace the QUE with K. But in this case, that would produce "Bask", and "bask" is already a word. But if we leave the Q but end the word without the UE, we get a distinct spelling: "Basq".
Wensday, December 14, 2016: "bambeeno" for "bambino"
INO should be pronounced in English with a long-I, as in "albino", "rhino", and "binomial" but here is said with a long-E. Words in English should be written with English conventions, with the clearest and simplest rendering of the long-E sound: "bambeeno".
Tuesday, December 13, 2016: "barcarole" for "barcarole" and "barcarolle"
There are two spellings for this term for a song performed by a gondolier. The second-L in the second spelling makes no sense, and suggests to the reader that the final-E is pronounced, in its own syllable. Let's just drop it, OK?: "barcarole".
Munday, December 12, 2016: "bannish" for "banish"
A single-L invites the reader to see the A as long, as in "Danish". Here, the A is short, which would be absolutely clear if we double the N: "bannish".
Sunday, December 11, 2016: "baldrick" for "baldric" and "baldrick"*
This word has two spellings, one with and the other without a K. The spelling with only a C at the end isn't wrong, but CK in final position is clearer, esp. for a noun. So let's settle on a single spelling, that ends in CK: "baldrick".
____________________*Dictionary.com: "a belt, sometimes richly ornamented, worn diagonally from shoulder to hip, supporting a sword, horn, etc."
Saturday, December 10, 2016: "aflatus" for "afflatus"
This formal word for "inspiration" shoujld not have a double-F, because that signals the reader to read a short-A ahead of the F's, which is wrong. The actual sound is long-A, which would be much clearer if we delete one of the F's: "aflatus".
Friday, December 9, 2016: "Ashulean" for "Acheulean" and "Acheulian"*
We have today another word with two accepted spellings, neither of which is reasonable. The CH does not take its usual sound, as in "church". Rather, the sound is that which is conventionally written SH. So let's replace the C with S.The second issue is the EU, which is unnecessary to show a long-U in this location. We can drop the E, which will save us a letter, which is all to the good.
There is a third issue, whether to write EA or IA. The sound is long-E, so we should definitely write EA: "Achulean".
____________________* Dictionary.com (for a term from paleontology): "typical of a Lower Paleolithic culture of the middle Pleistocene Epoch, characterized by large hand axes and cleavers made by the soft hammer technique".
Thursday, December 8, 2016: "aglommerate" for "agglomerate"
A double-G should be seen as rendering the preceding vowel short, but here the A is said as a schwa. That will be clear if we simply drop one of the G's. A bit later in the word, we can make up for that by adding an M, to show that the O is short: "aglommerate".
Wensday, December 7, 2016: "opparochik" for "apparatchik"*
A is not the right vowel sound for the beginning of today's word. Rather, it is a short-O, so we should write O. The next problem is the TCH, which does nothing more than represent the English CH-sound (as in "chase"). We don't need a T. The rest of this long word is fine, including the K for what would more likely have been CK if the word originated in English. It did not, but in Russian. Thank you, Russia, for a simpler spelling: "opparochik".
____________________* Microsoft Encarta dictionary: a member of "the administrative organization or staff of the Communist Party in the former Soviet Union and other Communist states." It implies innocence in the crimes of the state, as tho the members of those oppressive organizations were just doing their jobs, without regard to whether what they were doing was right or wrong.
Tuesday, December 6, 2016: "anthropojennic" for "anthropogenic"
This scientific term came into popular consciousness thru the idiotic notion that tiny, puny human beings are more powerful than the gigantic Sun in determining climate. In any case, the issue in this website is the spelling, which , in this word, presents two problems.The first is there is a G that stands in for the J-sound. Why? We have a letter J for that sound. Let's use it.
The second issue is that a single-N leaves the reader unclear as to whether the E before it takes its long ("gene") or its short ("gender") sound. It represents a short-E. To show that plainly, all we need do is double the N: "anthropojennic".
Munday, December 5, 2016: "aligater" for "alligator"
As with yesterday's word, some readers, esp. outside the traditionally English-speaking countries — and we must never forget that English is the entire planet Earth's auxiliary language of choice — might misread the first syllable of today's word, except the opposite: whereas in yesterday's word, the ALL is pronounced with the AU-sound, here it is pronounced with an ordinary short-A. ALL is ordinarily pronounced as tho written AUL, as in "ball", "call", and "reinstall". Here, however, the ALL would better be written AL, as in "Al" and "Sal".The second issue in today's word is the pronunciation of the OR. Some readers are inclined to read all occurrences of the letter sequence O+R as being pronounced AUR, as in "or" itself, "orientation", and "orphan". They thus pronounce "mentor" as tho it were written "mentaur". It is not, and the OR there should be pronounced as tho written ER. To prevent the same mispronunciation here, we need merely replace the O with E: "aligater".
Sunday, December 4, 2016: "aulbeeit" for "albeit"
Today's word collapses three words into one: "all + be1 + it1, "all though it may be" (Microsoft Encarta dictionary). That seems very efficient, except that the pronunciation is unclear to some readers.At the front of the word appears "al", which could be read as having a short-A, as in the nickname "Al" and the words "pal" and "gal". That is not the right sound. Rather, the AL here is pronounced with the AU-sound, as in "alright" and "already", which are said as tho written "aulright" and "awlready". I have actually heard people on television say that A in today's word as tho it was the nickname for "Alan/Allen" or "Albert", so it's a real problem. Fortunately, it's a problem with a very quick fix. Just put a U between the A and the L.
The second problem is the EI, which many readers, if not even most, will see as being pronounced as in either of the two pronunciations of "either", long-E or long-I, but in any case, as a single sound, not two vowel sounds in two adjoining syllables. Readers familiar with German might see BEIT as in the word "arbeit", pronounced with a long-I. That's wrong. The pronunciation is actually as tho the two words "be" and "it" were pushed up against each other, which they are! To indicate that, we need to show that the first pair of letters, BE, is pronounced as the ordinary word "[to] be", and the second pair is pronounced like the ordinary word "it". To show that, however, we need to double the E, as in the word "bee".
Putting this all together, we get "aulbeeit".
Saturday, December 3, 2016: "aykromatopsea" for "achromatopsia"
Today we have a scientific word for extreme colorblindness, in which the world appears only in shades of gray. Initial-A is likely to be read as short, as in "at", but here, it's actually long, as in "nation". To show that we need to write either AI or AY. AI is sometimes pronounced as short-A ("plaid"), so AY is the better choice.The CH does not represent the CH-sound, as in "church" and "chaffinch", but a K-sound. If the sound is K, we should write K.
At the end of the word, we have IA, in which the I does not represent a long-I ("pariah", "reliance", "denial") but long-E. If the sound is long-E, why would we write an I? Let's write E: "aykromatopsea".
Friday, December 2, 2016: "akeen" for "achene" and "akene"
This word from biology means a seed that does not open when it matures. It is pronounced with a schwa in the first syllable, but you cannot know that from the spelling. It also has CH representing the K-sound, not the CH-sound ("chitchat"). So let's replace the CH with K. We could stop there, but ENE is not the best way to show a long-E sound followed by an N-sound. Some readers might see it as representing two syllables, the first having a short-E sound and the second having a long-E sound (as in "anemone". Here, the sound is one syllable, long-E followed by N. So let's write that more plainly: "akeen".
Thursday, December 1, 2016: "assetone" for "acetone"
ACE is a word to itself, pronounced as long-A plus an S-sound. That is not its pronunciation here. Rather, it is said in two syllables, short-A in the first, before the C, and a schwa in the second. The issue is confused for the reader by the fact that the end of the word, TONE, is indeed pronounced like the one-syllable word for a musical note or color. We can leave that, but need to replace the ACE with ASSE, as in "passel": "assetone".
Wensday, November 30, 2016: "afrite" for "affright"
A double-F should signal that the vowel before it is short. It might also suggest that the syllable before the double consonant takes the word's primary stress. But here, the A represents a schwa, and the word's stress falls on the second syllable. If we drop the second-F, the reader will know how to read the word. One problem remains, the absurd spelling IGHT for a long-I followed by a T-sound. A much more sensible way to write that sound sequence is ITE: "afrite"..
Tuesday, November 29, 2016: "abraizhun" for "abrasion"
A long-A midword needs to be shown by the spelling itself, not by what might follow or precede it. Typical ways to write a long-A midword are AY (as in "bayonet" and "haystack") and AI (as in "paid" and "laid). Midword, AI is more common, so let's use that.SION is a very bad spelling for the sound ZHUN. Let's write what it sounds like: "abraizhun".
Munday, November 28, 2016: "wizzard" for "wizard"
The I in today's word is short, which a single-Z after it does not make plain. But double-Z would: "wizzard".
Sunday, November 27, 2016: "veeril" for "virile"
Altho some Britons say a long-I in the second syllable, that is dialectal, and should be driven out of the English language by the correct pronunciation in standard English, which has a schwa or short-I in the second syllable. We can show a short-I in the second syllable by simply dropping the final-E, which has the added advantage of saving us a letter, which is all to the good.The first syllable's vowel sound is long-E, not either long- or short-I. So let's replace the first-I with EE: "veeril".
Saturday, November 26, 2016: "vaggabond" for "vagabond"
A single-G leaves unclear whether the preceding-A is long (as in "creation" or short, as in "bat". It's short. To show that, we should doulbe the G: "vaggabond".
Friday, November 25, 2016: "ug" for "ugh"
Why is there a G in this word? It's silent, so shouldn't be written: "ug".
____________________* There is, according to some dictionaries, a second pronunciation, ookh, and even a third pronunciation, uq (where the Q is silent, written only to indicate that the preceding-U takes its short sound. But we plaiinly do not need "ugh" to shos that sound, which would be better written "uh".
Thursday, November 24, 2016: "teluric" for "telluric"*
E We have here another word in which a double consonant suggests to many readers that the syllable before that double consonant takes the word's primary stress. It does not. The stress actually falls on the second syllable. To show that, we need merely drop the second-L, and shortening words by dropping unnecessary letters is always a good thing to do: "teluric".
____________________* Dictionary.com: "of or relating to the earth; terrestrial", "of or proceeding from the earth or soil".
Wensday, November 23, 2016: "thalasemea" for "thalassemia"
A double-S before the third syllable suggests to many readers that the primary stress falls on the second syllable. It does not. Rather, the stress falls on the third syllable. To indicate that, we need only drop one of the S's, which is all to the good. A second problem is the IA at the end. IA should be pronounced with a long-I, as in "giant", "dialect", and "trial". But here, the sound is long-E. Why would we write I when the sound is long-E? Let's just write E: "thalasemea".
Tuesday, November 22, 2016: "terpsicorean" for "terpsichorean"
This polysyllable has a couple of problems. First, there is a CH digraph but no CH-sound as in "church". Rather, the sound is K, which would be shown perfectly well if we just drop the H. The second problem is whether to try to show syllabic stress on the fourth syllable, which we could do by doubling the E before the A. But should we? Altho the preferred pronunciation is tèrp.si.ka.rée.an, some people say tèrp.si.káu.ree.an. So let's leave that part of the word as-is, to permit both pronunciations: "terpsicorean".
Munday, November 21, 2016: "tenuous" for "tenuus"
We have here an OU but no OU-sound. To show the correct sound, we need merely drop the O, which will save us a letter without losing clarity, which is always to the good: "tenuus".
Sunday, November 20, 2016: "tellegraf" and "teleggrafy" for "telegraph" and "telegraphy"
One of the things about traditional spelling is that different syllabic stresses are not shown differently. In "telegraph', the primary stress is on the first syllable. In "telegraphy", the primary stress is on the third syllable, but there is no way the reader can know that. We can easily, however, show that difference by writig: "tellegraf" and "teleggrafy".
Saturday, November 19, 2016: "tiepan" for "taipan"*
AI is an odd and unclear way to show a long-I sound, given that AI represents long-A in "paid", short-A in "plaid", flat-A as in "airmail". Far better would it be to write: "tiepan".
____________________* Dictionary.com: "(in China) the head or owner of a foreign business establishment".
Friday, November 18, 2016: "tassit" and "tassiturn" for "tacit" and "taciturn"
The single-C in both of these words leaves unclear whether the A before it is long (as in "taken") or short, as in "at" It's short. The simplest way to show that clearly is by doubling the following consonant. However, the following consonant cannot be C, because "taccit" would be pronounced as tho written KS, and that's not the right sound here. What we do need to do is change the C to S, and double the S: "tassit" and "tassiturn".
Thursday, November 17, 2016: "tittivate" for "titivate" and "tittivate"
We have today one of the multitudinous words in English that have more than one spelling accepted by major dictionaries. I have compiled a list, of now 1,791 such words, NOT counting British vs. American variations. If we were to include the British (dialectal, nonstandard) spellings vs. the American (standard) spellings, we would have to add HUNDREDS of words. (Always remember that the United States comprises some 70% of all native speakers of English.) Why should there be such variation? And how is anyone to know which spelling to use? That's easy: just check here.In the case of today's word,* the choice is easy: the short-I in the first syllable is better shown by a following double-T than by a single-T: "tittivate".
____________________* Dictionary.com: "to make smart or spruce[.]"
Wensday, November 16, 2016: "stinjy" for "stingy"
There are two problems in the two adjoining letters NG in today's word. First, do those two letters combine to form the NG-sound of "ring" and "fang"? No, they do not, but how is the reader, esp, in a country in which English is not the first language, to know that? This website is devoted to making English easier for everybody, all over planet Earth, to use. That's why, when we need to distinguish between NG without a (hard-)G sound and NG with a G-sound, we add a second-G where appropriate. But it would be ungainly to have to write this sound sequence clearly, as by inserting a hyphen between the N and the G. Here, however, the suggested respelling replaces the G with J, so we don't need to deal with the N-G issue here: "stinjy".
Tuesday, November 15, 2016: "stif" for "stiff"
If we don't need two F's at the end of "if" — and we don't — we don't need two F's at the end of "stiff": "stif".
____________________My thanks to "Red..." for this suggestion.
Munday, November 14, 2016: "stevador" for "stevedore"
A reader has the right to expect that a conventional spelling takes its conventional pronunciation. EVE is ordinarily pronounced as tho written EEV, in one syllable. That is not, however, the pronunciation here, which is two syllables. To show the actual pronunciation, we need to replace the second-E with A.One tiny matter remains in today's word, an E at the very end. Why is it there? The word would sound the same without that E, so let's just drop it, OK?: "stevador".
Sunday, November 13, 2016: "stelth" for "stealth"
EA is enormously ambiguous (for instance, "sea", "rhea", "area", "heart", "break", "idealist", and "Sean" are pronounced see, rée.ya, ái.ree.ya, hort, braek, ideealist, and shaun). Probably the most common pronunciation of EA is long-E ("seal", "deal"; "feast", "beast" "reveal"). Because that is true, it is important that we show that in this word, that is not the pronunciation. Rather, the pronunciation is what the reader would assume if there were no A. This is esp. important here, because the EA in a similar word, "steal", is pronounced with a long-E, while "stealth" is said with a short-E. So let us delete that misleading A: "stelth".
____________________My thanks to "yaora..." for this suggestion.
Saturday, November 12, 2016: "stachuwesk" for "statuesque"
There are a couple of things wrong with the conventional spelling of today's word. First, T does not spell the CH-sound. CH does. So we need to replace the T with CH.Second, -QUE is a ridiculous way to write a simple K-sound. If the sound is K, let's just write K, OK?
Third, UE would not ordinarily be seen as representing two vowels in sequence, but only as one vowel sound, long-U: "glue", "barbecue",
"continue". To show a second syllable here, we need to insert a W midway. Putting this all together, we get: "stachuwesk".
Friday, November 11, 2016: "serotcha" for "sriracha"
This Food Friday, let's fix the insane spelling of a word for a sauce used mainly in Vietnamese and Thai cookery, but has only very recently entered into American fast food. There are lots of spellings in English that are a little off — dopy — but this one is astonishingly bizarre, and MUST be changed.We know that there are hosts of dropped-R's in British "nonrhotic" accents, that is, dialects in which R before a consonant sound or at the end of a word is not said, which is supremely stupid. But today's word did not come into English via a nonrhotic British usage. Rather, it came in at pretty much the same time, very recently, in all English dialects. And in all of them, the R after the initial-S is silent! It is astonishing that something so insane could find a welcome in today's English. It would seem that speakers of English do not respect themselves or their language if they permit so disgraceful a spelling to enter the language.
In any case, the R after the initial-S is SILENT. Huh? Why on Earth would anyone write SR if the R is silent? Whoever is responsible for that insane spelling should be punished severely.
This Internet project does not have the power to punish horrendous violators of the rules of English, but we can rhetorically condemn idiotic spellings and recommend better ones. In the case of today's word, the hugely better spelling is "serotcha". We might be tempted, for the sake of a shorter spelling, to write "serocha", but many readers will see that as having a long-O in the second syllable. To show more clearly that the O is short, we can insert a T before the CH, which will then be seen as parallel in pronunciation to "blotch", "notch", and "butterscotch": "serotcha".
Thursday, November 10, 2016: "squot/ter" for "squat/ter"
The letter A has two sounds of its own, long as in "aviation" and short as in "at". The sound in today's words is neither of those but the sound of so-called "broad"-A, which is another term for short-O. So let us write O instead: "squot" and "squotter".
Wensday, November 9, 2016: "sleepwauk" for "sleepwalk"
The first syllable of today's word requires no alteration. It is the second where the problem arises, a silent-L. The A before the L does not take any of A's more common sounds: long as in "recreation", short as in "cat", and "broad", as in "garbage". Instead, the A takes the AU-sound, as in "laurel". "sleepwauk".
____________________My thanks to "Fisherman..." for this suggestion.
Tuesday, November 8, 2016: "Su" and "Suan" for "Sioux" and "Siouan"
"Sioux" is a ridiculous spelling, at least in English, and probably also in French, from which it derives. The pronunciation is sue, but that is a personal name in English, and has a superfluous final-E. So let's drop the E. The derivative "Siouan" is an equally absurd spelling, with three vowel letters in a row. The sound is súe.an. Streamlined spellings for that noun and adjective are thus: "Su" and "Suan".
____________________
* Naturally, all derivatives and inflected forms ("sleepwalker", "sleepwalking") also take this change.
Munday, November 7, 2016: "skylite" for "skylight"
In today's word, unlike yesterday's, we can make the substitution of "lite" for "light" without causing confusion, because "lite" can stand in for "light" in informal use and the term "Lite Beer", tho in that use, the "lite" does not relate to illumination. Still, "lite" does stand in for both those senses, so can be used here too : "skylite".
____________________My thanks to "FireW..." for this suggestion.
Sunday, November 6, 2016: "shipryt" for "shipwright"
Why are there three silent letters in this word? — shipwright. Plainly, if they are not pronounced, they should not be there. So let's drop them.We cannot just drop these letters, however, because the result would be "shiprit", which would require the reader to say short-I in the second syllable as much as the first. Instead, we could use a common informal spelling for the correct sound sequence, "rite". But that would still leave sum uncertainty about the meaning of the resulting word, because "rite" ordinarily equates with "right", whereas we want to cue the reader to understand "wright", in the sense of "maker". We have one other option to retain both a long-I and a distinction from "right", which is to use RYT rather than RITE: "shiprite".
____________________My thanks to "Cal..." for suggesting "shiprite", tho I decided upon a slitely different solution.
Saturday, November 5, 2016: "sankchuary" for "sanctuary"
T does not spell the CH-sound. CH does. Before the CH-sound in today's word is a K-sound, which could also be represented by a (hard-)C. Between the N and K-sound is the NG-sound, as in "sing". We could make that perfectly clear by placing a G between the N and K-sound ("sangkchuary" or "sangcchuary"). But NK at the end of a word or syllable contains an implied NG-sound, so we don't really have to show that. As for how to write the K-sound, we need to consider the two possibilities: "sankchuary" and "sancchuary". CC does not convey the sound sequence as well, and is a little confusing to native speakers of English, so the better spelling is: "sankchuary".
Friday, November 4, 2016: "shlokmyster" for "schlockmeister"
This slang term* has multiple problems, two silent letters and an ambiguous digraph. The first silent letter is the C in the SCH that starts the word. The second is the C before the K. Neither of them adds anything but length to this already-long word, so let's drop both of them. The ambiguous digraph is EI, which could be pronounced as long-I ("heist"); long-E ("weird"); long-A ("weight"); two syllables, long-E plus short-I ("deity"); two syllables, long-A-plus short-I (as in one pronunciation of "spontaneity"); etc. In today's word, the sound is long-I, which is much better written with Y. Putting this all together, we get: "shlokmyster".
____________________* Dictionary.com: "a person who deals in or sells inferior or worthless goods; junk dealer".
Thursday, November 3, 2016: "skidaddle" for "skedaddle"
E is the wrong vowel for the first syllable of today's word. It's actually a short-I, so let's replace that E with I; "skidaddle".
____________________* In case you either never saw my explanation for why I underscore A and I when they stand alone in these discussions, or forgot, both "a" and "I" are words to themselves, but when I don't mean those words, I underscore the A and I.
Wensday, November 2, 2016: "scarvs" for "scarves"
The singular ("scarf") of today's plural is fine just as it is, but the plural has an E that might mislead some readers, esp. among the billion+ people outside the traditionally English-speaking countries who are trying to learn English for its incomparable utility among the languages of the world throughout time, into thinking there is a second syllable. The word has only one syllable. To indicate that, we should delete the E: "scarvs".
Tuesday, November 1, 2016: "rellevant" for "relevant"
RE is a common prefix, commonly pronounced with a long-E. That's not the sound here. To show that the sound is actually short-E, we need only double the following-L: "rellevant".
Munday, October 31, 2016: "rede" for "read"
There are, here, three words (actually, inflected forms of the same word) written the same: the present, past tense, and past participle of the verb that means to interpret written symbols as words (or at least sounds). The present tense is pronounced with a long-E, but the other two forms take a short-E. This is one of the most common irritants to children learning to read English, in large part for being among the words first learned in reading, for being the base WORD for reading, and there's no reason for it.We have problems with reforming this group of words, in that there is a very different word "reed" that prevents us from writing the present tense unambiguously in the simplest way, and a very different word "red" that also prevents us from writing the other form unambiguously in the simplest way. But there is an alternative spelling, presently used only by an obscure British dialectal term for "to counsel" that we can use instead. Let the dialectal form be unclear, not the generally understood term: "rede".
____________________My thanks to "space..." for this suggestion.
Sunday, October 30, 2016: "radeum" for "radium"
IU should be pronounced with a long-I, as in "triumph" and "triumvirate". Here, however, the I is pronounced as a long-E. If the sound is E, why would we write an I?: "radeum".
Saturday, October 29, 2016: "faggacyte" for "phagocyte"
Let us fix another* of the many words in English that employ the ridiculous spelling PH for a simple F-sound, by replacing the preposterous PH with F. A second problem in today's word is that a single-G leaves unclear whether the preceding-A is long or short. It's short, as in "at". To show that plainly, all we need do is double the G. Further, the O in the traditional spelling might lead some readers to say a long-O, when the sound is actually a schwa, which is much better shown by A. Putting this all together, we get: "faggacyte".
____________________* Dictionary.com: "any cell, as a macrophage, that ingests and destroys foreign particles, bacteria, and cell debris".
Friday, October 28, 2016: "pinyon" for "piñon" and "pinyon"
This Food Friday, let's fix the originally Spanish name for "pine nut", There are presently two equally acceptable alternative spellings, but we don't need two spellings for one word, esp. when one of them employs a diacritic, the tilde (~), when English does not use diacritics but only bare letters. So let's abolish the spelling "piñon" and use only: "pinyon".
Thursday, October 27, 2016: "prefferable" for "preferable"
The prefix PRE is usually pronounced with a long-E, as in the verb from which today's adjective derives, "prefer". The E in the PRE in today's word, however, is short. To show that, we should double the F: "prefferable".
Wensday, October 26, 2016: "practiss" for "practice"
ICE should be pronounced with a long-I, as in the word "ice" itself, "nice", and "device". The sound here is short-I. To show that, we should change the ICE to ISS: "practiss".
____________________My thanks to "Cargo..." for this suggestion.
Tuesday, October 25, 2016: "portrit" for "portrait"
In today's word, the AI is wrong. It represents not the AI-sound as in "fair", nor the long-A in "strait", but short-I. Páur.traet is a spelling pronunciation we need to discourage by ending the bad spelling that leads to it. If we just drop the A, what remains will be clear. And we will have saved ourselves a letter, which is always good: "portrit".
Munday, October 24, 2016: "portcoshair" for "porte-cochère" and "porte-cochere"
This term for a large architectural awning over a driveway outside a door has multiple problems. First, it employs a written acute accent, but English does not use accents, so it's got to go. A second problem is that it is hyphenated but need not be. A third problem is that the CH represents not the English CH-sound, as in "church", but the French CH, which equates with the English SH-sound. So we need to replace that C with S. There's even a fourth problem, that the ERE, which should be pronounced with a long-E as in "here" and "clerestory", is actually pronounced with the AI-sound of "airmail". Let's spell it that way. Putting this all together, we get: "portcoshair".
Sunday, October 23, 2016: "poppulus" for "populous"
As in yesterday's word, we have here another case of an OU but no OU-sound, but this time, we should drop the O rather than the U. That's the problem in the second syllable. There is a different problem at the end of the first syllable, a single-P that does not mark the preceding-O as taking its short sound, which it does. To make that clear, we need only double the P: "poppulus".
Saturday, October 22, 2016: "pompador" for "pompadour"
The traditional spelling has an OU but no OU-sound. So let's just drop the U: "pompador".
Friday, October 21, 2016: "pommagrannit" for "pomegranate"
This Food Friday, let's fix the spelling of a fruit. The present ambiguous spelling has given rise to multiple pronunciations, but if we choose a clear spelling for the most common pronunciation, those alternate pronunciations should be abandoned: "pommagrannit".
Thursday, October 20, 2016: "paytonk" for "pétanque" and "petanque"
This word first came to my notice in an episode of the classic sitcom The Cosby Show, when Dr. Cliff Huxtable played it, a French form of lawn bowling, in his backyard in Brooklyn. Its French form has an E with an acute accent in the first syllable, but since English does not use accents, and most people in the traditionally English-speaking world have no idea how to place an accent over a vowel, even in computer-generated text (which is much easier than most people might think, if only they use the "United States-International" logical keyboard), we should reform the spelling to get rid of the accent but still make the sound plain. In French, é or É takes the sound of English long-A, which is most clearly spelled, in English, AY. So let's use that.The second issue with "pétanque" or "petanque" is the sound of the A. which takes the French pronunciation, conceived in English as "broad"-A rather than either of English-A's own sounds, long as in "creation" and short as in "astronomical". The French-A equates with English "broad"-A or short-O, the same sound, so we should spell it with an O.
The third issue in today's word is the -QUE, which is a preposterous and inefficient way to spell a K-sound. Let's just write K. Immediately after an N, K will signal to readers of English that there is an implied NG-sound, which there is, here.
Putting this all together, then, we get: "paetonk".
Wensday, October 19, 2016: "peereoddic" for "periodic"
ER is ambiguous, sometimes being said with a long-E ("period") but other times with a short-E ("peripatetic"). Here, the sound is long-E, which is better shown by EER.The second issue is that in the second syllable, an I stands in for a long-E sound. If the sound is E, why would we write I? Let's write an E.
A third issue is that in the third syllable, the O is short, which the reader cannot know from a single-D following. We need to double the D. Putting this all together, we get: "peereoddic".
Tuesday, October 18, 2016: "sykee" for (two-syllable noun) "psyche"
Today's word is similar to both of yesterday's verbs, but is a noun, pronounced in two syllables: "sykee".
____________________My thanks to "yaora..." for suggesting reform of today's word, tho I chose a slitely different solution.
Munday, October 17, 2016: "syk" for (verb) "psych" and (alternative one-syllable spelling) "psyche"
Only 2 letters in each of the traditional spellings of these two words are correct. The P is silent, so should not be there. The CH represents not the CH-sound as in "church" but the sound of K, which we should put there instead. And the final-E in the alternative spelling is also silent, so also should be dropped: "syk".
Sunday, October 16, 2016: "pennitent" , "pennitence" , and "pennitenshary" , for "penitent", "penitence", and "penitentiary"
In this trio of closely related words, we have a short-E sound followed by an N-sound, but the reader cannot know if that E is long or short because there's only one N. We need to double the N to show that that E is short.In the third word, TI stands in for the SH sound. But TI does not spell the SH-sound. SH does, so we should substitute that: "pennitent", "pennitence", and "pennitenshary".
Saturday, October 14, 2016: "pathollojy" and "patholojjical" for "pathology" and "pathological"
Both OL and OLL are ambiguous, in that either can represent a short-O or long, but OLL is more likely to be read correctly as indicating a short-O, as in "hollow", "pollen", and "rollicking". So for today's first word, OLL is the better choice. In the second word, the O does not take its short sound but represents a schwa, so the L does not need to be doubled.In both words, we have, incomprehensibly, a G that represents not G's own, unique sound (as in "get", "give", and the first-G in "gynecologist"), represented by no other letter, but J's sound. We have the letter J for that sound, so should use it. In the first word, one J will do, but in the second, we need two J's to indicate that the O before the J sound is short: "pathollojy" and "patholojjical".
Friday, October 14, 2016: "peelof" for "pilaf" and "pilaff"
This Food Friday let's fix the name of a rice dish, which has two spellings, neither good. The vowel in the first syllable is long-E, not either of I's own sounds, long as in the word "I" to iself and short as in "it". The clearest and simplest way to represent long-E is EE, so let's use that in the first syllable.The vowel sound in the second syllable is short-O, which is also conceived of as "broad"-A. But A can be misread as having one of A's primary sounds, long as in "ate" and short as in "at". Let's just write an O.
Lastly, we don't need a double-F to express the F-sound. At the end of a word, one F will do nicely: "peelof".
Thursday, October 13, 2016: "opeat" for "opiate"
IA should be pronounced with a long-I, as in "trial" and "podiatrist", but here it is said with a long-E. ATE should be pronounced with a long-A, as in the word to itself "ate", and "rate" and "infiltrate", but here it is said as a schwa. Two absurd spellings in six letters is a lot, but this is what we deal with in the idiotic traditional spelling of English. Why do we put up with it? In any case, we can cure both these problems, but not unambiguously, because everything in English is ambiguous, including my proposed solution, which entails an EA that is to be read as two syllables. We need to make a wholesale and wholehearted changeover to phonetic spelling, such as my Fanetik system. Absent such a changeover, we can still reform today's word, to: "opeat".
Wensday, October 12, 2016: "oomf" for "oomph"
Why on Earth would a word created in the United States use a pseudo-Greek spelling? Why not a simple F rather than PH? Better late than never. There is, alas, no way to indicate whether the OO is pronounced long (as in "pool") or short (as in "good"). That kind of clarity must await a thorogoing spelling reform, such as mine, "Fanetik". We could add a silent-E after the F ("oomfe"), but that is two letters from the long-OO, so might not be seen as signaling a long-OO. For now, then, we need to settle for: "oomf".
Tuesday, October 11, 2016: "noisum" for "noisome"
I was never clear about the pronunciation of this word* until I checked it in three dictionaries just before adding it to this project. It is only two syllables, nói.sam, tho I thought it might be three (nóe.i.sam or nói.yi.sam). Now I know, and if we spell it better, everyone can know.There is one issue left in regard to today's word. The letter sequence -OME should be read as having a long-O sound, as in "home", "tome", and "dome", but here is to be said with a short-U. Idiocy. If the sound is U, let's write U: "noisum".
____________________* Dictionary.com: "1. offensive or disgusting, as an odor. 2. harmful or injurious to health; noxious."
Munday, October 10, 2016: "murtle" for "myrtle"
YR is highly ambiguous, and will be seen by many readers as having a long-E sound ("tyranny", "Assyrian", "lyric/al"), but by others (esp. outside the traditionally English-speaking countries; and always remember that English is used by billions of people all around the world) as having a long-I sound, as do many words with Y midword ("pyromaniac", "tyrant", "gyrate"), and there are, absurdly, many words where the Y stands in for a short-I, as here and in words like "rhythm", "tyrannical", and "martyr" (unless we regard that as a slitely different sound, the one most commonly written ER). Here, the sound is better written UR, as in the rhyming word "turtle": "murtle".
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