Writing Instruction Tutorial

Grammar

Mnemonics: Helps to Spell

Mnemonics is defined as a special aid to memory from the Greek word to remember. It is a memory "trick" based on association of ideas.

All ready and already
If you can drop the "all," use two words.
All right
There is no such word as alright. All right is written as two words, like "all wrong."
Argument
I lost an "e" in that argument.
Attendance
Remember attendance at the dance.
Business
Contrary to some views, there is no sin in business.
Cemetery
There are three e's buried in cemetery.
Chocolate
Oh-oh, chocolate.
Competence
You must be competent to compete.
Complement and compliment
The full complement (the complete number) is twenty. I like compliments.
Conscience
There is science in conscience.
Courageous
Keep courage and your e in courageous.
Desert
The desert has sand and only one s.
Dessert
Most people like lots of dessert, so dessert has two s's.
Expense
Expense means lots of money. Or expen$e.
Height
The wall is eight feet in height.
It's
It is necessary to use an apostrophe for it's.
Its
Its apostrophe is dropped for possession.
Judgment
A judge drops the e when he makes a judgment.
Laboratory
You labor at something in a laboratory.
Necessary and professor
In necessary and professor the count is one, two — one c and two s's, one f and two s's.
Neither
Neither has either in it.
Ninety
Ninety has nine in it.
Piece
Remember a piece of pie.
Potatoes
They have eyes and toes.
Principal
Principal is always an adjective except the principal of a school, who is your pal. The rule you follow is always a principle (which is always a noun).
Privilege
Remember two i's and two e's.
Separate
Separate has a rat in it.
Stationery
Like a letter on stationery, there are always e's.
Their
The heir owns the money in their.
There
The place here is in there.
Together
Remember to + get + her.
Vaccine
Vaccine is meassured in cubic centimeters (cc's).
Who's and whose
Who is leaving out the apostrophe in who's? Whose hose is in the garden?

Spelling Hints for Word Endings

Use -ance, -ant endings for nouns meaning persons:
tenant, occupant, attendant
Exceptions: superintendent, president, resident
Use -ence, -ent endings after a stem ending in "i":
audience, experience, sufficient
Use after -qu:
consequence, eloquent, frequent, frequency
Use after Latin stems -fer:
conference, reference, preference
And others: -min, -spond, -here, -fur, -sist, -cur
vermin, respond or correspond, where, sulfur, consist or insist or persist, concur or occur or recur.
Use -ense when it is part of the original word:
sense, tense, expense, license
nonsense, pretense, suspense
Use -ary for an adjective ending:
ordinary, necessary
Use -ary when it refers to people:
secretary, missionary
Use -ery for words pertaining to an occupation or place of occupation:
nursery, stationery (shop), pottery, creamery
Use -ory when it is easy to hear:
compulsory, satisfactory, accessory

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