Field Notes

Spelling

Spelling

The -our Family: Colour, Favour, Honour (UK)

Write color in a UK essay and it comes back circled red — the -our family, sorted

Roger Fielding 8 min read
Spelling

The -or Family: Color, Favor, Honor (US)

Your character does her best friend a favor — or is it favour? — the US -or family

Samantha Callahan 9 min read
Spelling

Colour or Color? UK vs US

One email to London, another to Chicago, and suddenly colour and color both look wrong

Roger Fielding 4 min read
Spelling

The -re Family: Centre, Theatre, Metre (UK)

That half-second snag when 'center' slips into a UK email — meet centre, theatre and metre

Roger Fielding 12 min read
Spelling

The -er Family: Center, Theater, Meter (US)

You type center, doubt yourself, try centre — then your friend's fantasy novel uses both

Samantha Callahan 11 min read
Spelling

Centre or Center? UK vs US

Your cursor stops dead on centre, or is it center — one ending, one big decision

Roger Fielding 3 min read
Spelling

The -ise Family: Organise, Realise (UK, + the Oxford -ize nuance)

Organise looks right until a friend fresh from the US swears it should be organize

Roger Fielding 13 min read
Spelling

The -ize Family: Organize, Realize (US)

Spellcheck flags organise with a red squiggle in your history essay — the US -ize fix

Samantha Callahan 11 min read
Spelling

Organise or Organize? UK vs US

Spellcheck flags organise, suggests organize, and suddenly you doubt every word you write — here's the actual split

Roger Fielding 3 min read
Spelling

Travelling or Traveling? Double-L & Consonant Doubling

One L or two before -ing — the rule that decides travelling versus traveling, sorted for good

Roger Fielding 8 min read
Spelling

Paediatric or Pediatric? -ae- and -oe- Words

Oesophagus or esophagus, paediatric or pediatric — the ae/oe split that flags as wrong on both sides

Roger Fielding 9 min read
Spelling

The -ogue Family: Catalogue, Dialogue (UK)

Dialouge gets the red squiggle every time — the -ogue endings British spelling insists on keeping

Roger Fielding 11 min read