Do you get confused about when to use a and an? If the first sound of the following word is a vowel sound (whether or not the letter is a vowel), use an. an elephant, an hour, an honour, an urn If the first sound of the following word is a consonant sound (whether […]
Data or datum? Microsoft Word accepts data as correct spelling when used in the singular and the Macquarie Dictionary says: ‘The connection between data the plural and datum the singular has been almost completely broken, so that while datum survives in such compounds as datum point, it does not have the frequency of use that data […]
-able and -ible spelling rule Given that there are 26 letters in the alphabet and more than 40 sounds in the English language, it’s amazing that any of us learn to spell. I consider myself a reasonable speller, but there are a few words, such as ‘accommodation’ and ‘apartment’, that trip me up. Thank goodness […]
-ise and -ize American and Australian spelling differences Australian English uses ‘ise’ or ‘yse’ and American English ‘ize’ or ‘yze’: organise, recognise, analyse (Au) organize, recognize, analyze (US) Australian English uses ‘our’ and American English ‘or’: colour, honour, flavour (Au) (An exception is the Australian Labor Party’s name.) color, honor, flavor (US) Australian English uses […]
Further and farther In Australian English, farther is not very common. We use further to mean both ‘at a greater distance’ and ‘in addition, more, moreover’. How much further to go? We need to investigate further. Farther is used more in the US where many writers split the meanings, saying farther relates to distance and […]