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(Intro. music) I before E except after C?
We have all heard the grammar school rhyme "I before E except after C." How many
times have you tried to apply this "rule" and found yourself in a sticky situation...
perhaps spelling the word efficient wrong in front of a classroom full of 14 year olds-
talk about a tough crowd. Because of the many violations to this "rule," is it one
we should ever use? In this lesson, we will talk about additions and exceptions to this
rhyme, as well as if there is any variation of it that is useable when stuck in a spelling
bind.
There are several words that you would spell correctly if you applied the rhyme, such as:
believe, receive, grieve, deceit, friend and conceit. However, it seems that there are
just as many words that do not follow the rhyme: science, efficient, protein, glacier,
weigh, and Einstein. Is there any logical rhyme that would address these exceptions?
Perhaps you have heard the rhyme said as, "I before E except after C, or when sounded
as 'ay' as in neighbor and weigh." This addition accounts for several exceptions, such as eight,
sleigh, vein, and beige. However, you still wouldn't be covered for words like ancient
or weird.
The rhyme only applies to digraphs, so words like science and deity don't count. As a
reminder, a digraph is a pair of letters used together to make a single sound- like the
'i-e' in believe. The digraph must also have the 'ee' pronunciation, such as piece. They
can not be foreign words like dreidel and they can't be a plural ending in 'cy' like
fallacies. Sigh... and there are still more exceptions to these exceptions. Try making
a rhyme out of that!
The bottom line is, the rhyme just is not as helpful as your 3rd grade teacher claimed,
so don't waste your time. There are just too many exceptions to the rhyme to make it
worth your energy and effort. If you are going to be giving a lecture, plan
ahead and make sure you know how to spell the words you will be using and/or potentially
writing. Use spell check or a dictionary to check ahead of time. If you get stuck on the
spot, ask a student if they know how to spell it and pretend like you are giving a quick
grammar lesson for extra credit. If they catch you in the act, pretend like you did it on
purpose just to make sure they were paying attention. When all else fails, some good
old-fashioned memorization never hurt anyone.
For more information on the nuances of this spelling "rule," Arika Okrent wrote an
interesting article titled "How is 'I Before E Except After C' a Rule?" The
link that just appeared will take you to her article. You can also check Wikipedia as a
place to start a more in depth search.
Thank you and good luck with your spelling.
(Exit music)