Pickles by Brian Crane for July 30, 2010

Earl must be doing a crossword puzzle.

It does make more sense.

No, that’s how you sell “Relief”!

“It’s a simple mind that can think of only one way to spell a word” Samuel Clements

Uh, I think that’s Clemens.

I quite agree with Earl. There are many words that would be so much better if spelled how they sounded. I read a lot but I don’t really speak a lot, so when I try out a new word I’ve never heard anyone say before I usually sound like an idiot because I pronounced it wrong.

My mom always use to say sound it out. It just doesns’t work for those kind of words.

“crystal” and “rhythm” get me every time.

Who the heck made up this language anyway?

I know what you mean Miba. I’m old enough to have learned to read phonetically. Try pronouncing epitome using the rules of phonetics. Doesn’t come out even close. And in case some one may not know:

phonetically: eh-puh-tome

correct: ee-pit-uh-mee

well, I got rhythm; I got rhythm. I got rhythm….. who can ask for anything more?

did you know that rolaids consumes forty seven times it’s weight in excess stomach acid?

Gotcha!

Why isn’t phonics spelled with an “F”? Why is abbreviation such a long word?

To Josh 1360: It’s also how you spell relief

TexTech Dividing the syllables correctly helps. e-pit-o-me

English is tricky because many words came from various other languages with different phonic rules. French, Germanic, Angles, etc.

Miba - Not that I’m usually quiet, but because I have been a voracious reader from a young age, I’ve had the same problem. I understand what the word means from context and roots, but I don’t always get the pronunciation correct.

Who’s right for that spelling word RHYTHM or RITHUM? But it is still ridiculous.

I think Crane just wanted to pick your brains. Each of you proved him correct. LO(L

“Rhythm Helps Your Two Hips Move!” Is what I’ve been taught - but english spelling is still in need of an upgrade.

Years ago, my boss gave me a memo to send about how so many memos from others contained spelling errors and senders should be more conscientious about proofreading. Unfortunately, even though I’m usually a decent speller, I typed “rediculous” instead of ridiculous. Not my best timing for an error–(sheepish grin.)

I’m “Hooked on Laconics”….

I don’t think there is another language with less phonetic spelling than English. It should be one of the easiest languages to learn, but the spelling makes it a horror, especially for foreigners of more phonetic languages like Italian, German, or Russian.

Dear, fear, spear, BEAR? Cave, gave, save, HAVE? Go, no, so, DO? Cow, how, now, LOW? And hundreds of others.

And then there’s the evil GH. Through, though, bought, daughter, laugh, cough, etc. (At least Noah Webster changed a few of them, so we no longer spell draft and plow as draught and plough as the Brits still do.)

If my magic wand wasn’t in the shop, I would regularize English spelling: spell rhyming words similarly, eliminate the most awful silent letters (pneumonia, aisle, castle, dumb, sign, etc.), and respell borrowed foreign words (for example so we don’t have to use French diacritical marks to distinguish that word for your job history from “resume”.)

We can all do our part to slowly change English, starting by using informal spellings in our informal writings (as long as the recipient understands and doesn’t think you’re just stupid): thru, tho, nite, brite, etc. It will take a long time for the dictionaries to follow, but English has been changing since it first emerged from Anglo-Saxon, and we should make it change for the better.

Catch 22, Rmom – you have to know the pronounciation before you can divide up the syllables!

Rithum and Hyooze Studios-I just don’t see it.