I before E except after C, and when sounding like A as in "neighbor" and "weigh", and on weekends and holidays and all throughout May, and you'll NEVER be right no matter WHAT you say!
Honestly, if you’ve got a sense for when it applies (of the words in the blurb, only Keith and counterfeit are actually exceptions), it can be pretty helpful. I learned this:
I before e except after c
Or when sounding like a as in neighbor and weigh
And weird’s weird!
And it applies only to words with an e sound that isn’t a diphthong, and not to words that are recent arrivals from other languages. If you’re using it to try to spell “hacienda,” it’s worthless. If you’re using it to figure out “conceited,” it’ll help.
This just in: the English language has posted a response. 'We are a tough language. We freely admit this. However, we refuse to take any responsibility for Keith. His unusual... predilections are not related to us.'
Of course, this takes all words as equiprobable; results would be different if including the odds of a word appearing in the text into the maths.
I feel like it works more like 90% of the time when it comes up, so maybe this. And could it be that the words where "ie" appears are more ambiguous somehow, like don't fit neatly into some existing pattern?
I don't remember the "after c" bit ever being of use, though, so that part totally makes sense.
Edit: For an example, I'd never forget the spelling of "either", because it's so common and initial letters are more memorable. But, "piece" is tricky - "peice" is my first instinct, and I literally say "i before e" in my head when I write it now.
I thought it was specifically about words with long e sounds? So "Keith" would be an exception (but it's a name and those are always weird - though "weird" itself is a better example), but most of the stuff on the mug it never meant to apply to. And overall for long e sounds it applies far more often than not. Ultimately english spelling will always be a clusterfuck though.
And I sure wish people would stop spelling wiener as weiner. The city is called Wien ffs.
I completely understand this comment, but it didn't need to be made. It certainly didn't need to be typed into a comment box, posted to the lemmy.world instance, and then federated across the fediverse, then shown here.
30 Comments
Davel23@fedia.io · 71 pts · 307d
I before E except after C, and when sounding like A as in "neighbor" and "weigh", and on weekends and holidays and all throughout May, and you'll NEVER be right no matter WHAT you say!
caseyweederman@lemmy.ca · 6 pts · 306d
CAT. K A T. I'm outta here.
(I know there's two Ts)
scallopedllama@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 305d
Oh... That's a hard rule
cosmicpancake@sh.itjust.works · 26 pts · 307d
87Six@lemmy.zip · 2 pts · 306d
So like every other bloody rule I've ever learned in school
sik0fewl@lemmy.ca · 14 pts · 307d
The "except after c" rule is for when the vowels make a long "e" sound.
idiomaddict@lemmy.world · 7 pts · 307d
Honestly, if you’ve got a sense for when it applies (of the words in the blurb, only Keith and counterfeit are actually exceptions), it can be pretty helpful. I learned this:
And it applies only to words with an e sound that isn’t a diphthong, and not to words that are recent arrivals from other languages. If you’re using it to try to spell “hacienda,” it’s worthless. If you’re using it to figure out “conceited,” it’ll help.
Sunsofold@lemmings.world · 9 pts · 306d
This just in: the English language has posted a response. 'We are a tough language. We freely admit this. However, we refuse to take any responsibility for Keith. His unusual... predilections are not related to us.'
TachyonTele@piefed.social · 7 pts · 307d
This was the biggest lie they taught us.
caseyweederman@lemmy.ca · 5 pts · 306d
I mean DARE was right up there.
Donjuanme@lemmy.world · 7 pts · 306d
Did you know if you only pay attention to half the rule the rule is useless?
chonglibloodsport@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 306d
Which part of the rule covers foreign or Keith? Counterfeit? Caffeinated? Feisty?
lol_idk@piefed.social · 4 pts · 307d
What species were they?
muhyb@programming.dev · 3 pts · 307d
Can anyone explain what's "i before e"?
Ryanmiller70@lemmy.zip · 16 pts · 307d
I before E except after C
And when sounding like A as in neighbor and weigh
And on weekends and holidays and all throughout May
And you'll always be wrong no matter WHAT YOU SAY
muhyb@programming.dev · 4 pts · 307d
Heh, onlu rule in English: Memorize them all!
a_pithy_name@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 307d
It isn't often I see Brian Regan bits in the wild. The same thing came to mind.
lvxferre@mander.xyz · 9 pts · 307d
CanadaPlus@lemmy.sdf.org · 3 pts · 306d
I wouldn't go that far. Sometimes I'm not sure which way around they go, and that will usually lead you the right way.
lvxferre@mander.xyz · 5 pts · 306d
CanadaPlus@lemmy.sdf.org · 2 pts · 305d
I feel like it works more like 90% of the time when it comes up, so maybe this. And could it be that the words where "ie" appears are more ambiguous somehow, like don't fit neatly into some existing pattern?
I don't remember the "after c" bit ever being of use, though, so that part totally makes sense.
Edit: For an example, I'd never forget the spelling of "either", because it's so common and initial letters are more memorable. But, "piece" is tricky - "peice" is my first instinct, and I literally say "i before e" in my head when I write it now.
LwL@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 306d
I thought it was specifically about words with long e sounds? So "Keith" would be an exception (but it's a name and those are always weird - though "weird" itself is a better example), but most of the stuff on the mug it never meant to apply to. And overall for long e sounds it applies far more often than not. Ultimately english spelling will always be a clusterfuck though.
And I sure wish people would stop spelling wiener as weiner. The city is called Wien ffs.
Madison420@lemmy.world · 8 pts · 307d
Rules for English that aren't absolute.
I before e except after c. Which obviously is not totally accurate.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_before_E_except_after_C
muhyb@programming.dev · 3 pts · 307d
Thanks for the link. Explains why I never heard of it, it's more or less useless. Though English spelling has many problems, not just this.
blockheadjt@sh.itjust.works · 3 pts · 307d
Once had a substitute teacher so stupid she marked "weird" as being spelled wrong
Alexstarfire@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 307d
Weirdo
AgentOrangesicle@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 307d
On protein supplements
Lemminary@lemmy.world · 0 pts · 307d
Glad I never learned it. I mean, I know the words but never internalized them so I don't use it. Happy accidents, I guess?
kamen@lemmy.world · 0 pts · 307d
If this was an exhaustive list (and I believe it isn't), "weird" should've been part of the previous sentence.
metallic_substance@lemmy.world · -19 pts · 307d
boydster@sh.itjust.works · 4 pts · 307d
It's too sexy for this comment
Too sexy for this comment
It doesn't need a rhyme.
BananaIsABerry@lemmy.zip · 2 pts · 306d
I completely understand this comment, but it didn't need to be made. It certainly didn't need to be typed into a comment box, posted to the lemmy.world instance, and then federated across the fediverse, then shown here.
TachyonTele@piefed.social · 2 pts · 307d
AND they're wearing a gold ring! Imagine the atrocious chain of events for that too!
deadbeef79000@lemmy.nz · 1 pts · 307d
Get off my lawn ;-)
These days, it's "didn't need an unfathomable quantity of compute resource to AI slop it into an image meme".