The Dirty Thirty: Part 1
Many people struggle with spelling these thirty words, and because they are so often spelt wrong, it is likely that examiners will be watching out for them while marking papers. Over the next two blog posts, we’re going to take a look at these words and share tips and tricks to help you remember how to spell them.
Read on for the first fifteen words!
- accommodation
Imagine two people with the initials CC and MM sharing accommodation to help you remember that this word is spelt with two Cs and two Ms. Here at Spellzone we imagine Cheerful Charlie and Mad Mick, but it’s useful to come up with your own characters to make them easier for you to remember.
- beautiful
The first part of this word is the tricky part to spell. Try saying the following to yourself: “Big Ears Aren’t Ugly - they’re beautiful”.
- because
Big Elephants Can Always Understand Small Elephants.
- beginning
Think of the beginning of Jesus’s life: Mary and Joseph had to beg to stay at the inn, but, because there was no room, Jesus was born in a stable.
- believe
“I before E except after C.” Try not to believe a lie.
- business
Sometimes it’s useful to look for smaller words within a word. Think of someone who has business on a BUS IN ESSex.
- ceiling
“I before E except after C.”
Ceiling Entrance In Loft.
- decide
Imagine buying Christmas presents to help you remember that this word is spelt with a C and not an S: “In December you need to decide which presents to buy”.
- definitely
Think of the word fin at the end of a film – it shows that the film is definitely over.
‘Definitely’ has the word ‘finite’ in the middle of it.
- disappear
Try splitting the word into ‘dis-’ and ‘appear’.
Don’t Idly Stroke A Prickly PEAR
Words in ‘disappear’:
disappear – sap
disappear – pear
disappear – app
- disappoint
Try splitting the word into ‘dis-’ and ‘appoint’.
To remember that the word has two Ps, try saying to yourself: “Don’t disappoint your proud papa.”
- embarrass
Think of this embarrassed person to remember that you need to spell the word with two Rs and two Ss: “I turn really red when my sister sings”.
- extremely
‘Extremely’ is spelt with three Es. Three rhymes with E, which should help you to remember the number you need.
- friend
“I before E except after C”
‘Friend’ ends with the word ‘end’. Think to yourself: “I don’t want to end a relationship with a good friend”.
- immediately
‘Immediately’ has the word ‘media’ in the middle of it: I Manage MEDIA To Earn a Living Yearly.
If you struggle to remember that the word is spelt with two Ms, try saying the following to yourself: “My mother ate immediately.”
Why not test yourself on these words? Click here for The Dirty Thirty Spelling List (Part One).
Next week we’ll share part two of this list of hard-to-spell words – stay tuned!
17 Jun 2014
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