Do you think that spelling things correctly matters?

Our obsession with having to spell things correctly is only a few hundred years old. Before that you spelled things the way they sounded and where best understood by the reader. They are (in english and french) already noticing that the way words are spelled does not correspond on how those words are pronounced today but how they where pronounced when the word was first recorded into the dictionary.



Shoold wii start to spell tha wey we Spiike?Do you think that spelling things correctly matters?
if the misspelling changes the meaning, then yes.

if people can understand it regardless of the misspellings then, no.

most of the 'hang up' on spelling is concern about others correctly understanding what is being written. that is a valid concern. it is very easy to misinterpret written word, and spoken word.

spelling a word correctly means what is written is less likely to be misunderstood, or misinterpreted.
No! I like the standard spellings that are in the dictionary.Do you think that spelling things correctly matters?
Good God No.
I think that it is important to have standardised spelling for the very good reason that we don't all speak the same way. Can you imagine the variation and confusion with us Westcountrymen trying to write to Geordies?Do you think that spelling things correctly matters?
no as long as you get your point accross. im sick of people answering my questions just to tell me how bad my spelling was. iddeeoots
Never botherd me in all my long years.If they can under

stad the wriiten word in my book thats OK.
It rather looks like you have already started to do so. The question should read "spelt" things, NOT spelled (TWICE); "were" best understood, "were" pronounced, NOT where; "French" and "English", NOT french and english; and first recorded "in" the dictionary, NOT into.



Of COURSE it matters - it is an indication of intellect - the difference between being literate and illiterate.



Indeed, it is even easier in this day and age - if only you had used the spell checker you would have found out that "spelled" is NOT a real word. So it is also a sign of laziness.
hell naw ...lol
No we should not start spelling phonetically. For many reasons, but I think the most important one being that even within the same country people pronounce things differently. How would we know what you're really trying to say?
No, because it makes it damn harder to read.
President Andrew Jackson famously observed that "it's a poor man who can't figure out at least two ways to spell a word." President Theodore Roosevelt (sp?) tried to introduce phonetic spelling to the (American) English language, and failed miserably.



Good spelling shows that a person reads. Reading is the basis for all education. So---good spelling is very useful, an important skill to have in the job scene, in academia, in the world. Poor spelling has become sorta fashionable lately, but I believe that poor spelling should be a privelege reserved for those of us who have already demonstrated a capability for good spelling.



Have a star---good question
Not being able to spell makes the writers life much harder and that of the reader, we don't live 2 hundred years ago , we live now, with the introduction of spell check there is no excuse. I hate it when people spell easy words wrong either due to genuine mistake or because they can't be bothered to check what they have written. It's pure laziness, a culture the modern world is guilty of in all areas of life.

It definitely matters.

PS I hope I didn't spell anything wrong!!
Yeah. Spelling things correctly is only as important as doing sums correctly in my book.
not raelly bceause a sutdy of enlgish shwoes taht we acutaully olny raed the frist and last letetrs or ecah word wehn we raed. and can sitll cmprhoend amlost each and ervy word.
No, I don't think we should. Our heritage and traditions are important.
As long as you can read what is being said then who cares about spelling.
YEA, WE SHUD, COZ MA SPELIN IS ORFUL AS IT IS! I WUD NOT MYND AT AWLL!!!
well lets try an experiment.

Just now I am spelling correctly

and now I ma nut spooling cossectlt



Would that answer you question why it is important?
i got a 0 @ school in a spelling test.
No we shuldnt cinse everywon hears wurds in diffrent wayz.

No won wuld understand cinse everywon wuld spell the way they think iz rite and there wuld be caos.
No - with regional accents etc we would all get sooooooooo confused! What may be a door to me may be a doooer to someone else.



Actually, it could be fun...!
I think you should do the best you can, we all have different talents
Of course it matters. Since spelling was formalised, as you say, a few hundred years, it matters a great deal as so many words sound similar but with a different spelling have a totally different meaning. In order to communicate efficiently it helps to use the correct word. If you spell things as you pronounce them you have to take into account regional accents. You would then find that people from different regions would find it very hard to communicate in writing. I work with a girl who tends to spell words phonetically and we had a very funny episode when she had typed the word 'dimestick' in place of 'domestic'. I rest my case.
if we had to spell the same way as we speak...this will make a massive mess and cause total misunderstandings...

take into account accents, and dialects...people pronounce words with slightly different accent and if everyone writes whatever they feel like then good god, no one will understand each other...imagine if you have someone who stutters...

should they spell their stttttttttttttttutttttering?....
Yes spelling correctly is important. I hate it when people don't spell properly.
personally yes i so think it matters, not so much if ur on msn or something like tht but with school n work yes it certainly does matter
Not really, Many people make mistakes when miss spelling things. Everyone not perfect, People spell things wrong for all sorts of reasons, They are not concentrating, typing/writing too fast, they have dyslexia. All these things can go wrong when spelling. There are things out there when spelling that can help you, there's the spell checker, but its not that easy when you are writing it, you have to use the dictionary!.. Even my old English teacher used to spell things wrong and look in the dictionary. so that goes to show that everyone makes mistakes even if its spelling.
hee hee ... spelling incorrectly on purpose is sometimes cute, while spelling incorrectly when chatting online is the leading fashion.
Well, I would say so. I mean on your resume' or something and to make yourself seem educated. But there you go.
no because i have trouble spelling myself but i may be a bit dyslexic
Yeh if'n yu ar hukt awn fawnix. Stoopititee nos no limitz duz it?