Spelling

Image of fish in a bowl

g-h-o-t-i spells fish!

  • gh as in enough (f)
  • o as in women (i)
  • ti as in nation (sh)

This unusual spelling of fish was proposed by the playwright and critic George Bernard Shaw, who had a very low opinion of English spelling. Much of the illogicality of English spelling can be explained by the history of the language, but this is not much help to us nowadays.

Q. What is a gh-ough-pt-eigh-bt-eau?

hint: the sounds occur in the words:

This section does not aim to teach you English spelling, but to highlight areas of difficulty and suggest rules where these might be helpful.

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