For 41 years in journalism I've been reaching for the dictionary, with the possible exception of a year or so when I was with ABC Radio. And not just because spelling doesn't matter on radio - a big part of my job for the ABC in Papua New Guinea was to write in simple English, with words of no more than two syllables.
But even words of two syllables send me to the Oxford often enough. Take fulfil. For the life of me I can't accept that neither the first l nor the second l is double ll, and so again I go to page 533 of my Concise. The two-syllable prostate gets me every time. I know the word for the gland and for lying prone are different, but which one is postrate and which one is prostate? Neither, as I’ve just been reminded by the Oxford, is postrate – it’s prostrate you nong Corbett!
Rhythm never looks as right to me as rythm, and it's pot luck as to whether I'll choose Marylin or Marilyn.
What has happened in my life that I am so inclined to write seperate? One of my workmates has a ditty she learnt at school, "the r separates the as", and hopefully that will overcome the problem for me too.
Some words I have an urge to spell incorrectly, and the misspellings (yes, it's misspelt in the headline) include incidently, concensus, beatle, hypocrasy and dispensable. But, usually, I recognise that they're wrong and correct them. Words for which I need the Oxford's guidance include satellite, aggression, haemorrhage, sacrilegious, supersede, pavilion and stationary. Something more than a poor memory is at work here.
Do you have problems with certain words? And what is the media's most misspelt word? Minuscule?
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