Catherine and Finn discuss words with double letters, spelling rules, and the rule of doubling consonants after short vowel sounds. They share a tip for learning vocabulary and engage in a quiz.
Final consonant is doubled before adding ING or ED when the final three letters of a verb are consonant, vowel, consonant.
Short vowel sounds often lead to doubling the consonant after it, resulting in words like 'happy', 'opportunity', and 'brilliant'.
Deep dives
Spelling rules for verbs
One of the spelling rules discussed in the podcast is that if the final three letters of a verb are consonant, vowel, consonant, the final consonant is doubled before adding ING or ED. For example, 'get' becomes 'getting' with double T, and 'begin' becomes 'beginning' with double N.
Short vowel sounds and doubling consonants
Another spelling rule mentioned is about short vowel sounds. When there is a short vowel sound before a consonant, like in the words 'happy' and 'opportunity', the consonant is often doubled after it. For instance, the short 'A' in 'happy' results in double P, the short 'O' in 'opportunity' leads to double P, and the short 'E' in 'brilliant' brings about double L. This rule can occur more than once in the same word, as seen in 'successful' with double C and double S, and 'accommodation' with double C and double M.