English spelling

Aquatar   Wed Aug 02, 2006 7:47 pm GMT
Just been reminded of the horrors of English spelling. I am from the UK and speak German, yet I couldn't for the life of me remember how to spell 'succumb'. I was trying all kinds of things, then eventually had to look it up in the online dictionary (not that my version was right, but luckily it gave me alternatives).

Even now, looking at it, the spelling looks strange lol
amy   Wed Aug 02, 2006 7:58 pm GMT
I know that. I once couldn't remember whether you spell the German word for sheep (Schaf) 'Schaf' or 'Schaaf'. It drove me mad, and German is my mother tongue...
Aquatar   Wed Aug 02, 2006 8:22 pm GMT
>>I know that. I once couldn't remember whether you spell the German word for sheep (Schaf) 'Schaf' or 'Schaaf'. It drove me mad, and German is my mother tongue... <<

Really? And I thought German was a reasonably phonetic language hehe. Still, thinking about it, you have 'scharf', which I don't believe is pronounced that differently to 'schaf' is it?

Schaaf sounds quite Dutch to me though somehow, all those double vowels lol
amy   Wed Aug 02, 2006 8:57 pm GMT
Yes, scharf and schaf are quite similar, but you still hear a difference.
Aquatar   Wed Aug 02, 2006 9:15 pm GMT
Amy

Do you sometimes find the same thing happening with regard to the German genders? Do you ever suddenly get a mental block about whether it should be der, die or das?

Anyway, I started a thread on the 'Language' side of the board entitled 'Wer spricht hier Deutsch?' We were looking for native German speakers to contribute, as none had.

If you'd like to, that would be great, the thread has got a bit long now, so you might not want to read it all, but any input would be great, as well as would any corrections :-)
Tiffany   Wed Aug 02, 2006 9:15 pm GMT
Seriously, I forget how to spell in English all the time, though I consider myself a good speller. Strangely, it is not usually the longer words I forget, but the shorter ones, as these seem more likely to be unphonetic. But then if they are both long and unphonetic, I guess they are still in the running.

And yes, I know you will laugh at me, because I still laugh about it, but I once forgot how to spell "cat" - which is neither long nor unphonetic. Don't ask me how that happened, but it was a long time ago, in middle school - and still cracks me up.
Aquatar   Wed Aug 02, 2006 9:24 pm GMT
Tiffany

Hehe, how did you think it might be spellt then, may I ask...'kat' maybe? I can't think of many other possibilities, but you might surprise me :-)
amy   Wed Aug 02, 2006 9:34 pm GMT
Aquatar

No, I never had any trouble with der, die and das, not even with words I've never heard before, like with vocabulary that computer experts or physicians use and which normal people don't know...I'll go and have a look at the German thread, thanks for the invitation!
Tiffany   Wed Aug 02, 2006 10:33 pm GMT
Aquatar, I could not even fathom how it was spelled, though I bet I could have spelled car. Yes, senile from a young age, isn't it sad? *

*That was a joke by the way.
Aquatar   Wed Aug 02, 2006 10:59 pm GMT
Tiffany

Have I been a bit gullible here? And we Brits always accuse you Americans of taking things too literally lol. Silly me hehe
Tiffany   Thu Aug 03, 2006 5:20 am GMT
No, not at all. I meant every word of it. I really did forget how to spell "cat". Granted it was for only a few hours, but I had a hell of a time finding it in the dictionary because I couldn't spell it. Finally asked my cousin who looked at me like I was an idiot (which is what I felt like anyway).

The joke part referred to calling myself senile. You haven't seen what trolls can dig up and use against you. In a few months, these comments might come back to haunt me.
eito(jpn)   Mon Aug 07, 2006 2:24 pm GMT
Rene   Mon Aug 07, 2006 2:57 pm GMT
I once forgot how to spell "of" and it took me like a half an hour to figure it out. Biggest "duh moment" ever
Damian in London E16   Mon Aug 07, 2006 3:50 pm GMT
ENGLISH .....as it is spoke and writ....

I love and adore my native Language. I love its inconsistencies, its irregularities, its idiosyncracies, its eccentricities, its wackiness, its flexibility, its adaptability, its originality, its extensive vocabulary, its variability, its resilience, its softness, its harshness, its beauty, its ugliness, its mellifluence, its depravity, its dignity, its expressiveness....it's great!

English - I couldn't get through my day without. It's all around me, its dominance here reigning supreme above all the other tongues swirling about me in this great Metropolis of London. This is its birthplace...it's original home. This is where it all began........I love the English Language!
It's my bread and butter.
Dude Who Knows   Mon Aug 07, 2006 4:57 pm GMT
<<I once forgot how to spell "of" and it took me like a half an hour to figure it out. Biggest "duh moment" ever>>

I've had the same thing happen to me! The only spelling I could possibly picture for the longest time was "uhv", but I knew that was wrong, of course.