Customer Reviews

1001 Commonly Misspelled Words: What Your Spell Checker Won't Tell You

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When I was in high school, I and a few good friends made a pretty good hobby out of tormenting (in a good way, of course) one particular English teacher in our school.

One of my favorite tactics in this teacher's classroom was to blurt out, in mock consternation, "How do you spell ______?" whenever I couldn't spell a word. Why? Because a) I was young and immature and a legend in my own mind, and b) the teacher always fell right into my trap...

"Look it up in the dictionary!" he'd scream, without fail, pitching me a nice softball right over the plate ...

"But HOW," I whined, "am I supposed to look up a word when I can't spell it in the first place?!"

(GLARING SCOWL)

Problem was, I was only half-kidding with most of my questions (though I'd never admit as much to the teacher). Often it really WAS difficult (not to mention time-consuming) to look up the words I didn't know, especially if their spellings weren't very intuitive.

I guess that's why I'm enjoying my copy of "1,001 Commonly Misspelled Words." With this handy book, you don't need to know how to spell a word already before looking it up. You need only know how to pronounce it -- because you can then look it up phonetically. Why didn't someone think of this before?! Once you get to the word's phonetic spelling, you can then see the correct (though often counterintuitive!) spelling. Plus, you might get a little story about the word or, better yet, some sort of nemonic -- er, I mean mnemonic -- device so that you can remember how to spell it in the future.

I only wish the book included more words. But in any case, it's a nice tool -- especially for a writer type like me. I would think it might also make a good gift for new college students and others who will be tearing their spelling hair out from time to time in the years to come.

Highly recommended!

The thing I really like about this book is the system it uses to help you find the correct spelling of lots and lots of words. Arranged alphabetically are all the possible phonetic ways different words could be spelled with the correct spelling next to it. The incorrect spellings are in one font and the correct spellings are in another. There are also numerous explanations of the words, including sources, usages, and so on. These are very entertaining to read. I highly recommend this book.

With two dyslexic teenagers, you can imagine how often I hear, "Mom! How do you spell..." Finally, there's a reference that they can and will use to look up spelling themselves.

Not only does the book include "inventive" spelling and correct spelling, but definitions are added so they can be certain they have the right word. This book truly gives them information the spell-checker won't! Great reference for kids & adults using Davis Methods.

1001 Commonly Misspelled Words: What Your Spell Checker Won't Tell You The Gift of Dyslexia The Gift of Learning

I have this book is on my desk and all times! I can't live without this book. I am not the greatest speller so this book is a great reference. My husband keeps one in his work truck to help him with writing out contracts and documents. It is a book of words, yet will show you how the word is mispelled and the correct spelling. Sometimes you look at a word and not sure it is correct. This book will show you many ways it has been seen, yet not the correct spelling so you can find it miscorrectly spelled and then will see the correct spelling. Sometimes only one letter off can make a difference. Glad to have found this word book.