Gaol is a stupid spelling

ul   Wednesday, January 14, 2004, 00:48 GMT
Get it right it's spelled ''jail'' not ''gaol'', ''jail''. If you can pronounce it right it's simple it's jail, I repeat, it's jail. There's no such place as ''gaol''.
Terry   Wednesday, January 14, 2004, 01:14 GMT
Ummm....does this post have a point?
Alice   Wednesday, January 14, 2004, 02:20 GMT
This is already being discussed on another thread, why start a new one? Further more, why object to spelling a word differently? This seems espeacially odd when the spelling you're questioning is the original spelling. If anything, those who spel it "gaol" could complain about those who have changed it to "jail", but that would be rather petty. I write "jail" myself, but others certainly have the right to spell it as they were taught.
ul   Wednesday, January 14, 2004, 02:26 GMT
''g'' before the vowels ''a'', ''o'' and ''u'', makes the hard ''g'' sound. If you can pronounce the word right it's simple ''jail''.
Jim   Wednesday, January 14, 2004, 03:13 GMT
Ul,

You spell it how you will, I shan't complain nor, however, shall I be convinced by your arguements. There are no hard and fast rules in English spelling. Sure, ''g'' before the vowels ''a'', ''o'' and ''u'', makes your so-called hard ''g'' sound* ... usually: the word "gaol" is an exception. I spell it "gaol", always have and always will. Ul, you are simply wrong: there is such a place as gaol; it's spelt either "jail" or "gaol".

English is littered with odd spelling. What about "ghost" do you spell it "goast"? What about "debt" do you spell it "det"? What about "enough" do you spell it "enuf"? What about "are" do you spell it "ar"? What about "colour" do you spell it "culler"? What about "often" do you spell it "offen"? What about "right" do you spell it "rite"? What about "wrestle" do you spell it "ressle"? What about "bury" do you spell it "berry"? What about "climb" do you spell it "clime"?

Unless you propose to spell everything as it sounds I think that you'd better come up with a better arguement than "If you can pronounce it right it's simple ..." I can pronounce "people" right, it must be spelt "peeple" ... simple! "Gaol" is the more original spelling, anyone who so wishes has every right to stick with it.

* Don't you love these terms "the hard 'g' sound" verses "the soft 'g' sound". Personally I avoid them lest you come up against trouble. For example, if the "g" in "get" is the hard "g" sound and the "g" in "gaol" is the soft "g" sound, then what about the "g" in "beige"? And another example: if the "ch" in "ache" is the hard "ch" sound and the "ch" in "church" is the soft "ch" sound what about the "ch" in "loch" or the "ch" in "machine"?
Ul   Wednesday, January 14, 2004, 03:58 GMT
''Gaol'' is an old English spelling.
Jim   Wednesday, January 14, 2004, 04:26 GMT
Yeah, so is "right" but you're right with that obviously.
Antonio   Wednesday, January 14, 2004, 10:54 GMT
Despite how it sounds, ´gaol´ is a foreign term for ´jail´. It is probably come from latin, through O.F.
Look at ´gaiola´ in portuguese.
Juan   Wednesday, January 14, 2004, 12:04 GMT
Lol! The first time I saw this word I thought it was pronounced like GAY-OL.
---   Wednesday, January 14, 2004, 18:29 GMT
The French word is "geole" (soft g).
Adam   Wednesday, January 14, 2004, 18:38 GMT
"Gaol" is also Modern English. "Jail" is the American way of spelling it. I don't know why Ul says that you don't spell it like that.
Paul V   Wednesday, January 14, 2004, 19:40 GMT
All these crazy rules of the thumb, for pronouncing crazy English Spelling.
Forget them.
Use American Spelling. thru, jail, color, airplane, etc.
Let your spell checker sort out the mess.

Enuf sed, Paul V

P.S. I prefer saying primary pronunciation, rather than Hard and Alternate Pronunciation for the soft.
Ul   Wednesday, January 14, 2004, 20:16 GMT
Jim, the ''g'' sound in beige is rarely spelled with a ''g'' this sound has no spelling to it in English, It's the ''zh'' sound. ''G'' rarely has the ''zh'' sound.
Also, I've never heard anyone say ''soft ch'' and ''hard ch''. However all of those sounds that aren't ''ch'', the ''k'' sound, the ''sh'' sound in ''machine'' and the very rare ''kh'' sound in ''loch'' are rarely spelled with ''ch''. The ''kh'' sound might always be spelled as ''ch'', but, it's a very rare sound. Some people call it a non-English sound.
Ryan   Monday, January 19, 2004, 18:52 GMT
I was not aware that "thru" was a correct American spelling, although judging by the number of Americans on here I see claiming it is, I have a feeling that it will be soon.
mjd   Monday, January 19, 2004, 20:37 GMT
"Thru" is not acceptable...only in "drive-thrus".