Lesson 10: Spelling and Homophones

Chapter 30 in The St. Martin's Handbook covers spelling and homophones Read and study it.

Homophones:

Homophones are words that sound alike but are spelled differently and have different meanings.
On pages 567-569 is a list of homophones and their meanings. Check it for homophones that you have trouble with. Use these pages when revising your papers.

These errors are common but also stick out like a sore thumb. You do not want to make these errors.

How does one find homophone errors?

A spell checker will not find these errors because the word that you have written is probably spelled correctly. I would make a list of the homophones that you have trouble with and go through your draft looking for those words and checking them.

Commonly Misspelled Words:

On page 565 is a list of commonly misspelled words. Learn any that you have trouble with.

Pages 571-576 include the four major spelling rules. Read these and learn the ones that you have trouble with. These rules may solve some of your spelling problems and may help with the list of commonly misspelled words.

How does one eliminate spelling errors?

Obviously, if you are doing a paper using computer, you can use the spell checker. However, remember that homophones will not be discovered with a spell checker. Have your own list of homophones that you have trouble with, look for those words, and double check them with the list on pages 567-569.

Have a list of words that you have misspelled on previous writings. Look for these words and check their spelling. Most importantly, use a dictionary if in doubt. There is a product called a spell checker that is about the size of a calculator. If you have spelling problems, you might want to check out this product.