NCO Primary Leadership Subjects
Remembering Spelling Rules
While the English language is very irregular, there are some rules that apply to
Introduction
spelling.
Use the following table to determine whether to use -ie or -ei.
-Ie or -ei
If the sound is...
Then write...
Examples
long e
-ie.
believe
thief
fierce
long e after c
-ei.
ceiling
receive
deceive
long a
-ei
freight
neighbor
Note: While forfeit and
weight
height do not have the a
sound, they are also
vein.
spelled with -ei.
Continued on next page
1-16
Writing Mechanics and Composition
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