Tagged Questions

0
votes
2answers
591 views

Does the word “Vaccum” exist?

If yes, does it have the same meaning of vacuum? Ref: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vacuum http://www.vaccum.org/ Both the sites define the same meaning, but the spelling differs. Some ...
0
votes
2answers
136 views

Why is “writing” spelled with only one T? [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: Is there any rhyme or reason to when one should double the last consonant when adding -ed or -ing? It has always been a word that intuitively I wish to spell with two ...
1
vote
1answer
113 views

For the verb 'focus' why is the gerund form 'focusing' with a single S, instead of 'focussing' with a double S? [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: “Focussed” or “focused”? The double consonant The rule that I learned was that when you have a short vowel in the last syllable, you double the last consonant before ...
0
votes
2answers
2k views

“Dilemma” vs. “dilemna” [closed]

I understand the correct spelling is 'dilemma' but many people I've spoken with, including myself, were convinced the spelling was 'dilemna'. A quick search on google shows this is not isolated to ...
7
votes
1answer
443 views

Why is “fulfil” spelt as “fulfill” in American English?

In this answer, simplification is stated as one reason for spelling variations in American English. But unlike in color and favorite, the number of letters to spell the word in fulfil increases in ...
3
votes
1answer
990 views

Plural of 'quiz'

The plural of "quiz" is spelled with double "z" while the plural of "box" (and sometimes "bus") is spelled with single last consonant. Why is it so? Is this the general rule to double the last ...
2
votes
2answers
285 views

L versus LL in British versus US English [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: When is “L” doubled? Is there any guidance on the usage of doubled consonants, particularly L, in British versus US English? For example 'Travelled' v. ...
0
votes
2answers
2k views

Which is correct, “summiting” or “summitting”?

This form of the word is not very common but does see some use as the present participle/gerund of "to summit" as in "Upon summit(t)ing the mountain we took photos but had to begin our descent ...
1
vote
1answer
3k views

“Canceling” or “cancelling” [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: When is “L” doubled? I'm confused about the two spellings. In which contexts do I have to use canceling or cancelling? Google returns 15.6 million results ...
1
vote
1answer
320 views

Why is shippable spelled with 2 p's [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: What is the correct spelling: wrapable, or wrappable? My mother "corrected" me and said "shouldn't shippable be spelled as shipable"? My gut feeling said two p's, but I ...
5
votes
2answers
795 views

What is the correct spelling: “wrapable” or “wrappable”?

As it sounds: is "wrapable" correct, or is "wrappable" correct? Or are neither correct? Microsoft Word complains about both, but Google doesn't correct either one.
5
votes
4answers
13k views

Which is the correct spelling: “Granddad” or “Grand-dad” or “Grandad”?

Granddad or Grand-dad or Grandad? Which is the correct spelling?
2
votes
2answers
389 views

Is it spelled “propeling” or “propelling” in American English?

Since travel becomes traveler and traveling in AmE (no double l), I thought that the same rule applied to propel. However, reading and writing propeling feels awkward. (And propeler feels even more ...
4
votes
1answer
4k views

“Inner” but not “outter”?

in -> inner out -> outer / (outter?) What is the history or set of rules behind why 'inner' doubles the 'n' but 'outer' doesn't double the 't'?
35
votes
8answers
4k views

Is it “alright” or “allright”?

In practice I find both spellings being used. From a logical point of view, "allright" (as in: "all's right — everything is fine") seems correct. However, I recall hearing that "alright" is the ...
3
votes
3answers
381 views

Why are the present and the past participles of “submit” spelled with double t?

Why are the present and the past participles of submit spelled with two t's?
18
votes
4answers
3k views

“Cancelled” or “Canceled”?

Cancelled or Canceled ? Which one is right? You have successfully canceled the registration or You have successfully cancelled the registration
4
votes
2answers
473 views

Is there any rhyme or reason to when one should double the last consonant when adding -ed or -ing? [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: focussed or focused? The double consonant Sometimes, final consonants are doubled when adding -ed or -ing to the end of a verb whose penultimate letter is a vowel. ...
14
votes
3answers
2k views

“Focussed” or “focused”? The double consonant

Initially, my question was: is "focussed" or "focused" the correct past tense of "focus", but since this applies to a lot of words, I would like to generalize and ask: is there supposed to be a rule ...
7
votes
1answer
454 views

How did the “double consonant to shorten vowel” thing come about? (“furry” vs. “fury”)

In English, a doubled consonant most commonly means "shorten the previous vowel", where "shorten" means map phonemes like this: [aɪ] -> [i] [oʊ] -> [ɔ] etc For example, fury is pronounced [fjʊri] ...
1
vote
1answer
3k views

Signalling or signaling? [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: When is “L” doubled? Most of the spell checkers are correcting it to be single l, from the other side many official technical documents/standards are using ...
19
votes
2answers
2k views

When is “L” doubled?

Some verbs can have double Ls in the gerund form; for example: modeling; modelling traveling; travelling Which form should we use, or which form is used more in the literature?