KNOWLEDGE
Common misspellings
words that students often spell wrongly
Below is a list of common words which are often misspelled by students, as well as some other common mistakes students make with spelling. If you struggle with spelling, take a look at this list and make sure that you get these ones right.
Common misspellings
Lose – (vs loose) → Lose has one “o” because you only want to lose one thing, not two!
Definitely – (often definately) → Think: “finite” is inside it.
Separate – (often seperate) → There’s “a rat” in separate.
Occurrence – (extra/missing r) → Two C’s, two R’s.
Accommodation – (missing a C or M) → Two C’s, two M’s.
Embarrass – (extra/missing R or S) → Two R’s, two S’s.
Necessary – (often neccessary) → One collar (C), two socks (S).
Privilege – (often priviledge) → No “d” — think “pri-vi-lege.”
Recommend – (often reccommend) → One C, two M’s.
Beautiful – (often beautifull) → One L at the end.
Other common issues with spelling
A lot / A bit / In fact — perhaps the most common mistake of all
Alot is not a word; neither is abit; neither is infact Neither, in fact, are alittle, afew, abunch, or anelephant. A lot and a bit are made up of two separate words, as, in fact, are as well and in fact. (Somewhat bafflingly, albeit and inasmuch are both one word, and not three words - but students never use these words.)
Their / there / they’re
Their is possessive, meaning something belongs to someone. For example: I hate our new neighbours. Their elephant keeps leaving footprints in our front lawn. In this case, the elephant belongs to the new neighbours.
They’re is a contraction of ‘they are’. For example: They’re going to get a piece of my mind unless they get that elephant under control. This translates as “they are going to get...”
There refers to a place or an idea. For example: “Look over there!” said my new neighbour. “My elephant just sat on your fence.” In this case, ‘there’ refers to the place where the elephant is sitting.
Your / You’re
Your is possessive, meaning something belongs to you. For example: “Your elephant is going to get its come-uppance one of these days,” I told my next- door neighbour angrily. This is referring to the elephant belonging to the next-door neighbour.
You’re is a contraction of ‘you are’. For example: “No, you’re not allowed to shoot the neighbours’ elephant,” said my wife wearily via satellite phone. This translates as “you are not allowed to shoot the elephant…” etc.
Its / It’s
Its (no apostrophe) indicates possession. Use this when one thing owns another. For example: An elephant can use its tusks to dig for ground water in the barren landscapes of Africa, which is how my basement got flooded. In this case, the tusks belong to the elephant.
It’s (with an apostrophe) is always a contraction of ‘it is’ or ‘it has’ (usually the former). It is never, under any circumstances, used for possession. For example: “It’s not fair that Freddie gets to ride an elephant to school,” my son complained. “Why can’t we get an elephant?” In other words: “It is not fair that Johnny gets to ride the elephant to school...” etc.
Could’ve / Would’ve / Should’ve
The modal verbs could, would and should (along with may, might, will, and others) can be paired with ‘have’ to create the phrases ‘could have’, ‘would have’ and ‘should have’, which are, in turn, sometimes contracted to ‘could’ve’, ‘would’ve’ and ‘should’ve’. Under no circumstances should the phrases could of, would of or should of be used. They are always wrong, both grammatically and morally.