Learning the spelling rules for ‘ie’ and ‘ei’ correctly will help you overcome one of the most common spelling mistakes in English. There is even a rhyme created to help remember the spelling rules.
I before E, except after C, or when sounding like AY as in neighbor and weigh.
I before E… When the sound is e [/ē/], write ‘ie’
Examples: belief, believe, brief, chief, field, hygiene, niece, priest, relieved, thief, tier
… except after C. When the e sound comes after an S sound, use ‘cei’
Examples: ceiling, conceive, deceive, receipt, receive, conceited
Or when sounding like AY. When the main vowel sounds like AY, use ‘ei’
Examples: freight, neighbor, sleigh, weigh, weight, vein
Of course, as with most English spelling and grammar rules, there are exceptions! Here are some weird uses of ei and ie.
Examples: ancient, caffeine, friend, height, leisure, seize, species
So remember, “I before E, except after C, or when sounding like A as in neighbor or weigh.”
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