Chapter 25
Spelling Rules
Theory
3.1 "i before e except after c" (the ie / ei rule)
The traditional rhyme runs: "i before e, except after c, when the sound is /ee/." Thus when the long ee sound is spelt with these two letters, write ie normally, but ei after the letter c.
- After most letters: believe, achieve, field, priest, niece.
- After c (ei): receive, deceive, conceit, perceive, ceiling.
Worked examples (correct spellings in bold): believe, receive, achieve, ceiling, niece, deceive.
Important exceptions where ei appears though not after c: seize, weird, either, neither, foreign, height, leisure, protein, counterfeit, their, forfeit. These do not take the long ee sound in the same way, or are simply irregular, so the rhyme fails.
Note also that the rule applies only to the ee sound. When the letters sound like ay, the order is ei: eight, weight, vein, neighbour, freight, reign.
The word "science": here c is followed by ie (sci-ence), but this does not break the rule, because the i and e belong to different syllables and are pronounced separately (not as one ee sound). The same is true of society, conscience and efficient — the ci spells a "sh" sound, not the long ee.
Note: A handy memory line for the exceptions — "The weird foreigner decided to seize neither leisure nor protein at such a height."
3.2 Doubling the final consonant (-ing, -ed, -er)
Double the final consonant before a vowel suffix when ALL of the following are true: the word ends in a single consonant–vowel–consonant (CVC), and the final syllable is stressed.
- One-syllable CVC words (always stressed): stop → stopping, stopped; run → running; sit → sitting; plan → planned; big → bigger.
- Multi-syllable words with stress on the LAST syllable: prefer → preferred, preferring; begin → beginning; commit → committed; refer → referred; occur → occurred.
- Do NOT double when the last syllable is UNstressed: offer → offered, offering; visit → visited; benefit → benefited; open → opened; listen → listened.
- Do NOT double after two vowels or after two consonants: meet → meeting; rain → rained; help → helped; jump → jumped.
Worked examples: stopping, preferred, offered, beginning, committed, benefited.
Note (British convention): In British English a final -l is doubled after a single vowel even when the syllable is unstressed: travel → travelling, travelled; cancel → cancelled; signal → signalled; model → modelled. American English keeps a single l (traveling, canceled). Follow the British forms for this examination.
3.3 Dropping the silent -e (silent-e rule)
When a word ends in a silent -e, drop the e before a suffix beginning with a vowel, but keep it before a suffix beginning with a consonant.
- Before a vowel suffix (drop e): hope → hoping; make → making; write → writing; love → lovable; use → usable.
- Before a consonant suffix (keep e): hope → hopeful; care → careful; nine → ninety; love → lovely; manage → management.
Soft c / g exception: keep the -e before -able or -ous to preserve the soft (s / j) sound: notice → noticeable; manage → manageable; change → changeable; courage → courageous; outrage → outrageous.
Worked examples: hoping, hopeful, noticeable, courageous, manageable, making.
Note: A few words keep the e before a vowel suffix to avoid confusion or to keep pronunciation clear: dyeing (colouring) vs dying (ceasing to live); mileage; acreage.
3.4 The -y rules (y → ies / ied, and keep y after a vowel)
When a word ends in a consonant + y, change the y to i before most suffixes. When it ends in a vowel + y, keep the y.
- Consonant + y (change to i): carry → carried, carries; baby → babies; happy → happier, happiness; study → studied; beauty → beautiful.
- Vowel + y (keep y): play → played, playing; enjoy → enjoyed; key → keys; obey → obeyed; buy → buying.
- Keep the y before -ing even after a consonant (two i's would clash): carry → carrying; study → studying; try → trying.
Worked examples: carried, babies, played, happiness, studying, beautiful.
Note: Common irregular exceptions: day → daily; lay → laid; pay → paid; say → said; gay → gaily.
3.5 British -ce (noun) / -se (verb) pairs
In British English, several related noun/verb pairs are distinguished by spelling: the noun takes -ce, the verb takes -se. (American English often spells both alike, e.g. practice for both.)
| Noun (-ce) | Verb (-se) | Example |
|---|---|---|
| advice | advise | She gave me good advice; I advise caution. |
| practice | practise | Daily practice helps; we practise every day. |
| licence | license | A driving licence; the board will license the shop. |
| device | devise | A clever device; they devise a plan. |
| prophecy | prophesy | An old prophecy; seers prophesy doom. |
Worked examples: noun advice / verb advise; noun practice / verb practise; noun licence / verb license; noun device / verb devise; noun prophecy / verb prophesy.
Memory tip: "ice" is a thing (noun); "ise" is to do (verb). Use C for the noun, S for the verb. (Mnemonic: advice — the noun, like a noun, has the "soft" sound; advise — the verb has the buzzing /z/.)
3.6 Suffix spelling rules (-ful, -ous, -tion, -sion)
- -ful as a suffix always has ONE l: help → helpful; care → careful; beauty → beautiful; success → successful; faith → faithful. (The adjective is one word; only the standalone word "full" has two l's.)
- -ous (full of / having): courage → courageous; danger → dangerous; fame → famous; nerve → nervous; mystery → mysterious.
- -tion typically follows verbs ending in -te / -t or after consonants: educate → education; relate → relation; act → action; describe → description; pronounce → pronunciation.
- -sion often follows -d / -de / -se / -ss roots: decide → decision; divide → division; confuse → confusion; permit → permission; discuss → discussion.
Worked examples: helpful, dangerous, education, decision, permission, successful.
Note: Watch pronunciation (no second "o"; it is NOT spelt like the verb "pronounce"). Likewise maintenance (not "maintainance").
3.7 Plurals (brief cross-reference)
Plural spelling is treated fully in Chapter 4. In brief: add -s to most nouns (book → books); add -es after s, ss, sh, ch, x, z (bus → buses, box → boxes, church → churches); change -y to -ies after a consonant (city → cities); some -f / -fe become -ves (leaf → leaves, knife → knives); and there are irregular plurals (child → children, man → men, datum → data).
3.8 British versus American spelling
| British English | American English | Pattern |
|---|---|---|
| colour, favour, honour | color, favor, honor | -our → -or |
| centre, theatre, metre | center, theater, meter | -re → -er |
| organise, realise, recognise | organize, realize, recognize | -ise → -ize |
| travelling, cancelled, labelled | traveling, canceled, labeled | double l vs single l |
| defence, offence, pretence | defense, offense, pretense | -ce → -se |
| programme (event) | program | -mme → -m |
| catalogue, dialogue | catalog, dialog | -ogue → -og |
| practise (verb) | practice (verb & noun) | BrE keeps c/s split |
| analyse, paralyse | analyze, paralyze | -yse → -yze |
| grey, cheque, tyre | gray, check, tire | miscellaneous |
Note: Use British spellings throughout the UPESSC TGT paper. The single exception worth remembering: programme (BrE, an event/schedule) but program is used even in Britain for a computer program.
3.9 Commonly Misspelt Words
| Correct spelling | Common wrong form | Memory cue |
|---|---|---|
| accommodation | accomodation | two c's and two m's |
| occurrence | occurence | two c's, two r's, ends -ence |
| necessary | neccessary | one c, two s's (one Collar, two Sleeves) |
| definitely | definately | contains "finite" |
| separate | seperate | there's "a rat" in sep-A-RAT-e |
| embarrass | embarass | two r's, two s's |
| harassment | harrassment | one r, two s's |
| privilege | priviledge | no "d"; ends -lege |
| recommend | reccommend | one c, two m's |
| possession | posession | two s's twice (4 s's total) |
| millennium | millenium | two l's, two n's |
| conscientious | consciencious | science + -tious |
| maintenance | maintainance | "-ten-", not "-tain-" |
| perseverance | perserverance | no extra "r"; ends -ance |
| liaison | liason | three vowels: li-ai-son |
| rhythm | rythm | "Rhythm Helps Your Two Hips Move" |
| bureaucracy | beaurocracy | "bureau" + -cracy |
| entrepreneur | entrepeneur | entre-pre-neur |
| hierarchy | heirarchy | "hier-", not "heir-" |
| supersede | supercede | only word ending -sede |
| conscience | concience | science inside |
| questionnaire | questionaire | two n's |
| committee | comittee | two m's, two t's, two e's |
| tendency | tendancy | ends -ency |
Common Exam Errors
| # | Wrong spelling | Correct spelling | Explanation / Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | recieve | receive | ei after c (i-before-e rule). |
| 2 | seperate | separate | Middle is "par"; remember "a rat". |
| 3 | accomodation | accommodation | Double c and double m. |
| 4 | occurence | occurrence | Double r; final syllable doubled; -ence. |
| 5 | definately | definitely | Contains the word "finite". |
| 6 | neccessary | necessary | One c, two s's. |
| 7 | embarass | embarrass | Double r and double s. |
| 8 | priviledge | privilege | No "d"; ends -lege. |
| 9 | maintainance | maintenance | "-ten-", not "-tain-". |
| 10 | occassion | occasion | Double c, single s. |
| 11 | begining | beginning | Stressed CVC; double the n. |
| 12 | refered | referred | Stress on last syllable; double r. |
| 13 | offerred | offered | Stress on first syllable; do NOT double. |
| 14 | hopeing | hoping | Drop silent -e before vowel suffix. |
| 15 | noticable | noticeable | Keep -e to soften the c. |
| 16 | arguement | argument | Drop the -e of "argue" before -ment. |
| 17 | truely | truly | Drop the -e of "true" before -ly. |
| 18 | untill | until | One l at the end of "until". |
| 19 | greatful | grateful | From "grate" + -ful, not "great". |
| 20 | writting | writing | Long vowel; single t before -ing. |
| 21 | posession | possession | Four s's in total (two pairs). |
| 22 | rythm | rhythm | Two h's: rh-y-th-m. |
| 23 | supercede | supersede | Unique -sede ending. |
| 24 | liason | liaison | Includes "ai": li-ai-son. |
| 25 | pronounciation | pronunciation | "-nun-", not "-noun-". |
Exam Tricks
- How questions are framed: Two main forms — "Choose the correctly spelt word" (three wrong, one right) and "Choose the misspelt / incorrectly spelt word" (three right, one wrong). Read the instruction carefully; candidates lose marks by inverting the task.
- Distractors are realistic: Wrong options differ by ONE plausible error — a doubled letter (begining), a swapped vowel (definately), or a dropped letter (occurence). Compare the suspect letter-by-letter with the rule.
- Listen for the rule: If a long ee sound is involved, test the i-before-e rule and scan for the exceptions (seize, weird, leisure, protein).
- Stress test for doubling: Say the word aloud; if the LAST syllable is stressed and ends CVC, double (prefer → preferred); if not, do not (offer → offered). Remember the British -l always doubles (travelling).
- Suffix check: -ful is always one l; -ly on a true-e word drops the e (truly); soft c/g keeps the e (courageous).
- British not American: Reject American forms in a British paper — color, center, traveling, defense are wrong here; choose colour, centre, travelling, defence.
- Trap pairs: Items often hide a noun/verb confusion (advice/advise) or a homophone (stationary/stationery); decide by meaning, then by the c/s or a/e clue.
Frequently Confused Pairs
| Pair | Word 1 — meaning | Word 2 — meaning |
|---|---|---|
| stationary / stationery | stationary (adj.) — not moving | stationery (n.) — writing materials (e for envelope) |
| principal / principle | principal — head of a school; chief (your "pal") | principle — a rule or law |
| complement / compliment | complement — to complete | compliment — praise |
| advice / advise | advice (n.) — guidance | advise (v.) — to give guidance |
| practice / practise | practice (n.) — exercise/habit | practise (v.) — to do repeatedly (BrE) |
| licence / license | licence (n.) — a permit | license (v.) — to permit (BrE) |
| dependant / dependent | dependant (n.) — a person who relies on another | dependent (adj.) — relying on (BrE distinction) |
| council / counsel | council (n.) — an assembly/body | counsel (n./v.) — advice; to advise; a lawyer |
| stationary / stationery (cue) | cAr is stationary — stAtionAry | pEn is stationery — stationEry |
Exceptions — Important, Rare & Advanced
i before e — the exceptions to memorise: seize, weird, either, neither, foreign, height, leisure, protein, counterfeit, forfeit, their, caffeine. After the soft "sh" of ci the e still follows i (e.g. ancient, efficient, sufficient), which looks like an exception but is governed by sound, not the c.
The -cede / -ceed / -sede family: Only ONE English word ends in -sede — supersede. Only THREE end in -ceed — exceed, proceed, succeed. ALL the rest end in -cede — precede, recede, concede, intercede, secede, accede. (Memory line: "Only supersede has -sede; exceed, proceed, succeed have -ceed; everything else has -cede.")
Doubling oddities: British worship → worshipped, kidnap → kidnapped, and the always-double -l words (travelled, quarrelled) sit against American single-letter forms. Focus → focused/focussed are both accepted, but focused is now preferred.
-our keeps / drops: British humour keeps the u, but its derivative humorous drops it; similarly vigour → vigorous, glamour → glamorous.
Note: Minuscule (not "miniscule") and consensus (not "concensus") are advanced traps frequently set in higher-level papers.
50 MCQs
Easy (1–15)
1. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) recieve (b) receive (c) receeve (d) receve
Answer: (b) receive
Explanation: ei follows c in the i-before-e rule.
2. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) beleive (b) belive (c) believe (d) beleeve
Answer: (c) believe
Explanation: i before e (not after c).
3. Choose the misspelt word.
(a) happy (b) carried (c) babys (d) studied
Answer: (c) babys
Explanation: consonant + y becomes -ies: babies.
4. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) stoping (b) stopping (c) stoppin (d) stopeing
Answer: (b) stopping
Explanation: single-syllable CVC doubles the final consonant.
5. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) hopful (b) hopefull (c) hopeful (d) hoppeful
Answer: (c) hopeful
Explanation: keep silent -e before consonant suffix; -ful has one l.
6. Choose the misspelt word.
(a) making (b) writing (c) hopeing (d) loving
Answer: (c) hopeing
Explanation: drop the -e before -ing: hoping.
7. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) necessary (b) neccessary (c) necesary (d) neccesary
Answer: (a) necessary
Explanation: one c, two s's.
8. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) seperate (b) separate (c) seperete (d) saperate
Answer: (b) separate
Explanation: there is "a rat" in sep-a-rat-e.
9. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) definately (b) definitly (c) definitely (d) definetely
Answer: (c) definitely
Explanation: the word "finite" is inside it.
10. Choose the misspelt word.
(a) played (b) enjoyed (c) carryed (d) obeyed
Answer: (c) carryed
Explanation: consonant + y becomes -ied: carried.
11. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) helpful (b) helpfull (c) helful (d) hellpful
Answer: (a) helpful
Explanation: the suffix -ful has a single l.
12. Choose the correctly spelt word (British English).
(a) color (b) colur (c) colour (d) coler
Answer: (c) colour
Explanation: British -our spelling.
13. Choose the misspelt word.
(a) babies (b) cities (c) ladys (d) parties
Answer: (c) ladys
Explanation: consonant + y becomes -ies: ladies.
14. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) begining (b) beggining (c) beginning (d) begginning
Answer: (c) beginning
Explanation: stressed final CVC doubles the n.
15. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) acheive (b) achieve (c) achive (d) acheeve
Answer: (b) achieve
Explanation: i before e (not after c).
Moderate (16–35)
16. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) accomodation (b) accommodation (c) acommodation (d) accommadation
Answer: (b) accommodation
Explanation: double c and double m.
17. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) occurence (b) occurrence (c) occurrance (d) ocurrence
Answer: (b) occurrence
Explanation: double c, double r, ending -ence.
18. Choose the misspelt word.
(a) preferred (b) referred (c) offerred (d) committed
Answer: (c) offerred
Explanation: "offer" is stressed on the first syllable, so no doubling: offered.
19. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) noticable (b) noticeable (c) noticeble (d) notisable
Answer: (b) noticeable
Explanation: keep -e to soften the c before -able.
20. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) courageous (b) couragous (c) curageous (d) couragious
Answer: (a) courageous
Explanation: keep -e to soften the g before -ous.
21. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) embarass (b) embarras (c) embarrass (d) emmbarrass
Answer: (c) embarrass
Explanation: double r and double s.
22. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) privilege (b) priviledge (c) privelege (d) privilage
Answer: (a) privilege
Explanation: no "d"; ends -lege.
23. Choose the misspelt word.
(a) maintenance (b) perseverance (c) recommend (d) harrassment
Answer: (d) harrassment
Explanation: one r, two s's: harassment.
24. Choose the correctly spelt word (British English, the verb).
(a) advice (b) advize (c) advise (d) advyse
Answer: (c) advise
Explanation: the verb takes -se; the noun is "advice".
25. Choose the correctly spelt word (the noun).
(a) practise (b) practice (c) practize (d) practiss
Answer: (b) practice
Explanation: the noun takes -ce; the verb is "practise".
26. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) recommend (b) reccommend (c) recomend (d) reccomend
Answer: (a) recommend
Explanation: one c, two m's.
27. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) posession (b) possesion (c) possession (d) posesion
Answer: (c) possession
Explanation: two pairs of s's (four s's in total).
28. Choose the misspelt word.
(a) leisure (b) seize (c) wierd (d) protein
Answer: (c) wierd
Explanation: it is an exception spelt ei: weird.
29. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) millenium (b) millennium (c) milennium (d) millenniam
Answer: (b) millennium
Explanation: two l's and two n's.
30. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) maintainance (b) maintenence (c) maintenance (d) maintainence
Answer: (c) maintenance
Explanation: "-ten-", not "-tain-".
31. Choose the correctly spelt word (British English).
(a) traveling (b) travelling (c) travling (d) traveling
Answer: (b) travelling
Explanation: British English doubles the final -l.
32. Choose the misspelt word.
(a) argument (b) truly (c) ninety (d) arguement
Answer: (d) arguement
Explanation: "argue" drops the -e before -ment: argument.
33. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) liason (b) liaison (c) liasion (d) liaision
Answer: (b) liaison
Explanation: spelt li-ai-son.
34. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) rhythm (b) rythm (c) rythem (d) rhythem
Answer: (a) rhythm
Explanation: two h's: rh-y-th-m.
35. Choose the correctly spelt word (British English).
(a) defense (b) defence (c) defance (d) defense
Answer: (b) defence
Explanation: British -ce spelling (American "defense").
Difficult (36–50)
36. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) conscientous (b) consientious (c) conscientious (d) conscentious
Answer: (c) conscientious
Explanation: "science" within, ending -tious.
37. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) supercede (b) superceed (c) supersede (d) supersead
Answer: (c) supersede
Explanation: the only English word ending in -sede.
38. Choose the misspelt word.
(a) precede (b) recede (c) concede (d) interceed
Answer: (d) interceed
Explanation: it ends in -cede: intercede.
39. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) beaurocracy (b) bureaucracy (c) bureacracy (d) burocracy
Answer: (b) bureaucracy
Explanation: "bureau" + -cracy.
40. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) entrepreneur (b) entrepeneur (c) enterpreneur (d) entreprenuer
Answer: (a) entrepreneur
Explanation: entre-pre-neur.
41. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) heirarchy (b) hierarchy (c) hierachy (d) heirachy
Answer: (b) hierarchy
Explanation: begins "hier-", not "heir-".
42. Choose the misspelt word.
(a) pronunciation (b) pronounciation (c) competition (d) description
Answer: (b) pronounciation
Explanation: the noun is "-nun-": pronunciation.
43. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) perseverance (b) perserverance (c) perseverence (d) perserverence
Answer: (a) perseverance
Explanation: no extra "r"; ends -ance.
44. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) minuscule (b) miniscule (c) minniscule (d) minascule
Answer: (a) minuscule
Explanation: from "minus", so -us- not -is-.
45. Choose the misspelt word.
(a) questionnaire (b) committee (c) consensus (d) concensus
Answer: (d) concensus
Explanation: spelt with s: consensus.
46. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) counterfiet (b) counterfeit (c) counterfeet (d) counterfit
Answer: (b) counterfeit
Explanation: an ei exception to i-before-e.
47. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) humourous (b) humorous (c) humerous (d) humorus
Answer: (b) humorous
Explanation: "humour" drops the u before -ous.
48. Choose the misspelt word.
(a) manageable (b) changeable (c) knowledgeable (d) noticable
Answer: (d) noticable
Explanation: keep -e to soften the c: noticeable.
49. Choose the correctly spelt word (British English, the noun).
(a) license (b) licence (c) lisence (d) licanse
Answer: (b) licence
Explanation: the noun takes -ce; the verb is "license".
50. Choose the correctly spelt word.
(a) tendancy (b) tendency (c) tendensy (d) tendancey
Answer: (b) tendency
Explanation: ends -ency, not -ancy.