Why Spelling in English Is so Difficult
2022-06-12
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1Recently, 14-year-old Harini Logan won the Scripps National Spelling Bee in the United States.
2She correctly spelled 22 words during a 90-second spell-off.
3The words included phreatophyte, excimer, saccharose, and finally the winning word "moorhen," which means a female, red grouse bird.
4Most Americans, however, would find it difficult to spell any of these words!
5From an early age, native English speakers know there are clear differences between how words are pronounced and how they are spelled.
6But they do not know that the difference is unique to English among major languages.
7Languages like Italian or Finnish can be spelled more easily because each letter of the alphabet matches to one sound.
8Students studying these languages can have 90 percent reading accuracy after the first year.
9That information comes from Philip Seymore in the British Journal of Psychology.
10In English, many letters of the alphabet have two or more sounds.
11This is why even after years of learning, students of English are still far below Italian or Finnish students in reading accuracy.
12English started as a Germanic language.
13It is most closely connected to German and Dutch, especially in grammar and basic vocabulary.
14During the Norman invasion in the 12th century, Old English was spoken but French was used in government and legal documents.
15And Latin was used in religious and educational activities.
16As a result, more French and Latin words entered the English language.
17The printing press was invented in the late 1400s.
18This helped to establish English spelling and strengthen the connection between how English is spoken and how it is written.
19The English of today is how the language was written at the time.
20However, the spoken language started to change in the 1500s with the pronunciation of all long vowels, especially in southern England.
21For example, the word "bite" was pronounced closer to "beet" in 1400, before changing through the years to its current sound.
22The effect was that the English language had old spellings, but new sounds.
23English has 26 letters in the alphabet, but over 44 individual sounds depending on the variation of spoken English.
24There are several sounds represented by only one letter.
25For example, the letter "C" can sound like an "S" as in "city."
26And it also sounds like a "K" as in "cat."
27If that is not hard enough, let's try to pronounce the letter "X" as /ks/ in "box", as /gz/ in "exam" and just /z/ in "xylophone."
28There are only 5 or 6 vowel letters in the English alphabet.
29They include A, E, I, O, U, and sometimes Y.
30But there are 20 different ways to sound them!
31 For example, a double "o" sound in English can be pronounced as /u/, as in the word "boot" or /ʊ/ as in the word "book".
32These sounds are formed by air moving through the mouth and throat freely.
33In the study of language, called linguistics, teachers use a drawing to represent the mouth and show where vowels are formed.
34At the center is the most common vowel sound of "uhhh."
35It is the most relaxed and natural sound. It takes almost no effort of the tongue or throat to create the sound.
36Brian M. Sietsema is an Associate Pronouncer for the Scripps National Spelling Bee.
37He observes that since it takes little effort, the sound "uhhh" often makes its way into pronunciations.
38For example, the word "please" often turns into "PUH-lease" when someone is trying to call attention.
39This is another reason why spelling in English is so difficult!
40I'm Faith Pirlo.
41And I'm Jonathan Evans.
1Recently, 14-year-old Harini Logan won the Scripps National Spelling Bee in the United States. She correctly spelled 22 words during a 90-second spell-off. 2The words included phreatophyte, excimer, saccharose, and finally the winning word "moorhen," which means a female, red grouse bird. 3Most Americans, however, would find it difficult to spell any of these words! 4From an early age, native English speakers know there are clear differences between how words are pronounced and how they are spelled. But they do not know that the difference is unique to English among major languages. 5Languages like Italian or Finnish can be spelled more easily because each letter of the alphabet matches to one sound. Students studying these languages can have 90 percent reading accuracy after the first year. That information comes from Philip Seymore in the British Journal of Psychology. 6In English, many letters of the alphabet have two or more sounds. This is why even after years of learning, students of English are still far below Italian or Finnish students in reading accuracy. 7History of the English language 8English started as a Germanic language. It is most closely connected to German and Dutch, especially in grammar and basic vocabulary. 9During the Norman invasion in the 12th century, Old English was spoken but French was used in government and legal documents. And Latin was used in religious and educational activities. As a result, more French and Latin words entered the English language. 10The printing press was invented in the late 1400s. This helped to establish English spelling and strengthen the connection between how English is spoken and how it is written. The English of today is how the language was written at the time. 11However, the spoken language started to change in the 1500s with the pronunciation of all long vowels, especially in southern England. 12For example, the word "bite" was pronounced closer to "beet" in 1400, before changing through the years to its current sound. The effect was that the English language had old spellings, but new sounds. 13One letter, many sounds 14English has 26 letters in the alphabet, but over 44 individual sounds depending on the variation of spoken English. 15There are several sounds represented by only one letter. 16For example, the letter "C" can sound like an "S" as in "city." And it also sounds like a "K" as in "cat." 17If that is not hard enough, let's try to pronounce the letter "X" as /ks/ in "box", as /gz/ in "exam" and just /z/ in "xylophone." 18So many ways to sound a vowel 19There are only 5 or 6 vowel letters in the English alphabet. They include A, E, I, O, U, and sometimes Y. But there are 20 different ways to sound them! For example, a double "o" sound in English can be pronounced as /u/, as in the word "boot" or /ʊ/ as in the word "book". 20These sounds are formed by air moving through the mouth and throat freely. In the study of language, called linguistics, teachers use a drawing to represent the mouth and show where vowels are formed. 21At the center is the most common vowel sound of "uhhh." It is the most relaxed and natural sound. It takes almost no effort of the tongue or throat to create the sound. 22Brian M. Sietsema is an Associate Pronouncer for the Scripps National Spelling Bee. He observes that since it takes little effort, the sound "uhhh" often makes its way into pronunciations. 23For example, the word "please" often turns into "PUH-lease" when someone is trying to call attention. 24This is another reason why spelling in English is so difficult! 25I'm Faith Pirlo. 26And I'm Jonathan Evans. 27Travis Hartman reported this story for Reuters. Faith Pirlo adapted it for VOA Learning English. 28____________________________________________________________________ 29Words in This Story 30unique - adj. used to say that something or someone is unlike anything or anyone else 31accuracy - n. the ability to work without making mistakes 32printing press - n. a machine that prints books, newspapers, magazines, and similar materials in large numbers 33vowels - n. speech sounds made with your mouth open and your tongue in the middle of your mouth not touching your teeth, lips, etc. 34consonants - n. a speech sound (such as /p/, /d/, or /s/) that is made by partly or completely stopping the flow of air breathed out from the mouth