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Spelling Counts — Part II
I was only halfway through the alphabet
To review, spelling and intelligence are not related, but they will seem to be if you misspell words in your writing. Watch for the tricky ones like these.
loose, lose — You don’t “loose” your keys or have “lose” change in your pocket. Remember that “loose” rhymes with “moose.” That should help.
passed, past — Many people think “past” only means before today, but it is also a preposition — a position word. Let me demonstrate:
He passed me. He walked past me. “Passed” is a verb — past tense of “to pass.” Past is time, but it is also a preposition, so if it’s not a verb, it’s “past.”
principle, principal — Oh, the students who lost points on this one on the quiz! Even though I taught it the best I could, I could not get it through their heads that “principal” is not ONLY that person in the front office in school. It also means “main,” as in “The principal reason I’m here…”
The other principle means standard — the principles we live by. Scientific principles. Rules. So you could have a “main rule,” which would be a “principal principle.” -pal=main. -ple=rule.
quit, quiet, quite — That sneaky little “e” makes all the difference. In “quit,” the “e” quit — just walked off the job. In…
