Past tense Spelling

[Tom Zurinskas]

Like "desert" and "dessert" there is a tendency for words in English to precede a stressed syllable with a double consonant.  For instance "accommodate" is usually misspelled with an "m" dropped instead of a "c" dropped tending to reinforce this tendency.

I wonder if there is a tendency in other languages for a stressed syllable to be preceded by a double consonant.

Tom Zurinskas, USA - CT20, TN3, NJ33, FL5+
Learn truespel in 15 minutes at click



> Date: Tue, 28 Oct 2008 10:24:31 -0400
> From: hfwstahlke at GMAIL.COM
> Subject: Re: Fwd: Past tense Spelling
> To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
>
> ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
> Sender: American Dialect Society
> Poster: Herb Stahlke
> Subject: Re: Fwd: Past tense Spelling
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Wilson,
>
> I've also seen that in print in usage guides, but I was also taught in
> school that the consonant was doubled only if the syllable was
> stressed, although I think they said "accented."
>
> Herb
>
> On Mon, Oct 27, 2008 at 5:07 PM, Wilson Gray  wrote:
>> ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
>> Sender: American Dialect Society
>> Poster: Wilson Gray
>> Subject: Re: Fwd: Past tense Spelling
>> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>> Impressionly speaking, I've long had the impression - whence it
>> originates, I know not - that doubling the consonant is a Briticism,
>> whereas the use of the single consonant is The American Way. When I
>> came across the "CANCELLED," my impression was that it was some kind
>> of trivial, pswaydo-Brit, Harvard-assed, Ivy-League-fake-ism.
>>
>> -Wilson
>>
>> On Mon, Oct 27, 2008 at 10:19 AM, Joel S. Berson  wrote:
>>> ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
>>> Sender: American Dialect Society
>>> Poster: "Joel S. Berson"
>>> Subject: Re: Fwd: Past tense Spelling
>>> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>>
>>> At 10/27/2008 12:06 AM, Wilson Gray wrote:
>>>>I think that's one of those things about which one can never tell. I
>>>>grew up using "kidnaped" and "canceled." When I began to work in the
>>>>Harvard library system, I noticed that I found myself dealing with a
>>>>lot of material that had been _CANCELLED_ or _cancelled_. After a few
>>>>years on the job, the -lled version became not only the spelling to
>>>>which I was accustomed, but also the one that I now prefer.
>>>
>>> I either learned or developed the "rule" that if the vowel was short
>>> but could also be pronounced long, then the consonant was doubled; if
>>> the vowel was long but could also be pronounced short then the vowel
>>> was not doubled. This probably means "in the context of the word,
>>> even though there might be no actual word with that vowel pronunciation."
>>>
>>> Thus "kidnap" to "kidnapped", like a short sleep but unlike the neck.
>>>
>>> "Travel" becomes "traveler", (about twice as many Google hits as
>>> "traveller", but when there are 34 million of the latter, I suppose
>>> it's acceptable). But I would be confused about "canceled" vs.
>>> "cancelled" (more than twice as many millions as
>>> "canceled"). Perhaps a doubled L because one might imagine "can sealed"?
>>>
>>> As for "when" (David Metevia's original question), in the 18th
>>> century there were fewer problems with the past tense -- many were
>>> spelled with 'd. :-) But from my reading in the 18th century I have
>>> a sense that the practice with respect to doubling changed some time
>>> towards the end of the 18th century. Not hard evidence, but perhaps
>>> a time to begin looking.
>>>
>>> Joel
>>>
>>> ------------------------------------------------------------
>>> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>>>
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> All say, "How hard it is that we have to die"---a strange complaint to
>> come from the mouths of people who have had to live.
>> -----
>> -Mark Twain
>>
>> ------------------------------------------------------------
>> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>>
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org

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