# Consistently misspelled, non-complex words. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 18, 2012, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consistently-misspelled-non-complex-words/638083 "2012-10-18T00:20:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![gallows\_fodder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8c91f0/32.png) [@gallows\_fodder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gallows_fodder)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2012, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consistently-misspelled-non-complex-words/638083/81 "2012-10-18T15:54:56Z")
Mistakes I make a lot: Absence (heh, I just typed “Absense”) License (sometimes I get confused – liscence, lisence, licence?) One tiny inconsequential word that makes me get all het up when I see it misspelled: whoa. IT IS W-H-O-A, not W-O-A-H. The only time W-O-A-H is acceptable is when it is printed in an English translation of the Tintin comics and it’s used to represent Snowy barking. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2012, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consistently-misspelled-non-complex-words/638083/82 "2012-10-18T15:56:29Z")
> [@pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](#): > > I also love people who proclaim publicly their pride in misunderstanding apostrophes, namely “The Robinson’s.” I don’t know whether these count as spelling errors or pluralization errors, but so many people don’t seem to understand how possessive plurals work. They’ll write something like “The Robinson’s dog dug up my flower garden.” “The Robinson”? Who’s “the Robinson”? Or, “I’m living at my parent’s house.” Why don’t you just tell me which parent, if it’s the house of only one of them? And just today on the Dope I saw somebody write something like “a criteria.” I hate it when a people says something like that. That’s a phenomena that really bothers me. It’s a mistakes. ---
**Author:** ![Seanette](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/seanette/32/9139_2.png) [@Seanette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seanette)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2012, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consistently-misspelled-non-complex-words/638083/83 "2012-10-18T16:01:50Z")
> [@DianaG](#): > > So does “seperate.” “Separate” has a PAR in it. 😛 > > “Rediculous.” Why, people? WHY? > > Also, “congradulations.” For some reason, that one makes me especially twitchy. I agree with you on these. About #3, you might want to avoid Cake Wrecks around June-ish. You’d wind up looking like you have Parkinson’s. ---
**Author:** ![Seanette](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/seanette/32/9139_2.png) [@Seanette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seanette)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2012, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consistently-misspelled-non-complex-words/638083/84 "2012-10-18T16:03:31Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > “Should of” isn’t a typo for “should have”; it’s a typo for “should’ve”. Which is, after all, pronounced the same way. It’s still wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2012, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consistently-misspelled-non-complex-words/638083/85 "2012-10-18T16:04:22Z")
> [@Seanette](#): > > I agree with you on these. About #3, you might want to avoid Cake Wrecks around June-ish. You’d wind up looking like you have Parkinson’s. Congradulations on your gratuation ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2012, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consistently-misspelled-non-complex-words/638083/86 "2012-10-18T17:08:03Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > I really don’t see why people care about these things so much. So much?? Care about these things so much that they (I) post meaningless threads on a messageboard about them? Yeah, right. I don’t see why people who claim to not care about these things decide to pop in and tell me about it. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2012, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consistently-misspelled-non-complex-words/638083/87 "2012-10-18T17:11:35Z")
> [@SCAdian](#): > > “Seperate” doesn’t have A RAT in it - it has E RAT. “Seperate” isn’t a word. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2012, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consistently-misspelled-non-complex-words/638083/88 "2012-10-18T17:13:50Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > I feel obliged to point out that “discreet” and “discrete” are both correct spellings, but for two different words. And if this OP was triggered by the current thread in GQ asking if spacetime is discrete, that’s actually the correct spelling for that context. I already pointed that out, but thanks. 😉 (thanks for reading the OP in it’s entirety though) And this thread was _not_ triggered by the thread you are referring to; I actually never even saw that thread. ---
**Author:** ![Rysto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ecccb3/32.png) [@Rysto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rysto)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2012, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consistently-misspelled-non-complex-words/638083/89 "2012-10-18T17:23:18Z")
One I’d started to see recently is “payed” for “paid”. Drives me crazy. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2012, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consistently-misspelled-non-complex-words/638083/90 "2012-10-18T17:27:01Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > I don’t see why people who claim to not care about these things decide to pop in and tell me about it. Because it’s as fun to be as annoying to your type as it is for you to annoy us with nitpicking over spelling in informal communication. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2012, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consistently-misspelled-non-complex-words/638083/91 "2012-10-18T17:31:35Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > Because it’s as fun to be as annoying to your type as it is for you to annoy us with nitpicking over spelling in informal communication. Huh. So you enjoy being an nuisance. You are a big, expansive man. See, “my type” relegates our annoyances to threads in which only those who have an interest in the subject matter need to bother to read it. “Your type” spreads your annoyances all over the place, inserting yourselves into areas where no one wants to hear you. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2012, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consistently-misspelled-non-complex-words/638083/92 "2012-10-18T17:34:27Z")
\*Alchohol \*- I find myself mistyping and correcting that one every single time! Along with\* lead/led\*, I often see \*mislead \*used when the correct word shoulda been _misled_. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2012, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consistently-misspelled-non-complex-words/638083/93 "2012-10-18T17:45:14Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > \*Alchohol \*- I find myself mistyping and correcting that one every single time! Me too! (And it’s “alcohol”) 😉 ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2012, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consistently-misspelled-non-complex-words/638083/94 "2012-10-18T17:48:09Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > Huh. So you enjoy being an nuisance. You are a big, expansive man. See, “my type” relegates our annoyances to threads in which only those who have an interest in the subject matter need to bother to read it. “Your type” spreads your annoyances all over the place, inserting yourselves into areas where no one wants to hear you. If your type stuck to threads like this then it wouldn’t be a problem. But the nitpicking is everywhere. Get over it. You’re not perfect either. Good spelling is no virtue. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2012, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consistently-misspelled-non-complex-words/638083/95 "2012-10-18T17:49:27Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > If your type stuck to threads like this then it wouldn’t be a problem. But the nitpicking is everywhere. Get over it. You’re not perfect either. Good spelling is no virtue. Go away man. ---
**Author:** ![RobDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f07891/32.png) [@RobDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RobDog)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2012, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consistently-misspelled-non-complex-words/638083/96 "2012-10-18T18:42:59Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > If your type stuck to threads like this then it wouldn’t be a problem. But the nitpicking is everywhere. Get over it. You’re not perfect either. Good spelling is no virtue. To be fair, I don’t really see anyone being especially nitpicky here, just people making observations and compiling a list. Nor do I see anyone claiming to be perfect or virtuous. In fact I’m sure several posters have admitted to mistakes themselves. ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2012, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consistently-misspelled-non-complex-words/638083/97 "2012-10-18T18:51:52Z")
Yeah, most of this thread is a bit of self-deprecation. In fact, I just misspelled that word as deprication… ugh. And then I just misspelled misspelled as mispelled the first time I typed it. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2012, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consistently-misspelled-non-complex-words/638083/98 "2012-10-18T18:54:38Z")
> [@drewtwo99](#): > > Yeah, most of this thread is a bit of self-deprecation. In fact, I just misspelled that word as deprication… ugh. And then I just misspelled misspelled as mispelled the first time I typed it. Dumbbass. ---
**Author:** ![RobDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f07891/32.png) [@RobDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RobDog)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2012, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consistently-misspelled-non-complex-words/638083/99 "2012-10-18T19:03:48Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > Dumbbass. Dumbass, surely? Unless you are referring to the freshwater fish.😃 ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2012, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consistently-misspelled-non-complex-words/638083/100 "2012-10-18T19:11:24Z")
> [@Szlater](#): > > I though gauntlet was an acceptable alternative spelling of gantlet. That’s certainly accepted by descriptivist dictionaries, the ones we were lightheartedly calling “fictionaries.” But there’s no especially good reason to use it, as the conflation of the two words is entirely error, they do not have the same origins. > [@TriPolar](#): > > Good spelling is no virtue. Ahsx nraguthiser zzxt malfractus sharmkithner! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consistently-misspelled-non-complex-words/638083.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consistently-misspelled-non-complex-words/638083.md?page=6)