Freddy

I love it that a way to remember the difference between stationary and stationery is that the e stands for envelopes.

Separate has apart in it.

That 'end of an era' sounds so much like 'end of an error'.

The difference between effluent and affluent is just a vowel.

anagrams:

dormitory ... dirty room

Presbyterian... best in prayer

Astronomer ... moon starer

desperation ... a rope ends it

the eyes ... they see

george bush ... he bugs gore

the morse code... here come dots

slot machines ... cash lost in me

animosity ... is no amity

election results ... lies' let's recount

snooze alarms ... alas! no more zs

a decimal point ... i'm a dot in place

The earthquakes ... that queer shake

eleven plus two ... twelve plus one

mother in law ... woman hitler

Freddy

Moor Larkin

Bollards

GRAEME

The man's cigarette!

Nick Dando

I always remember the late Dave Alan's anagram from the words Rev Ian Paisley.


















Vile IRA Pansey.

Nick

CaptainWaggett

I learned this but then someone messed with my mind by telling me there's an a in card

Marky B

Very clever,Freddy - well done!
Ta Ta
Marky B

I once shot an elephant in my pyjamas - how he got in my pyjamas,I'll never know

Moor Larkin

Crepe

Freddy

Cheeers Marky B, sadly though I cannot take the plaudits for the anagrams, they were sent to me

Freddy

GRAEME

A handy spelling mnemonic for diarrhoea:

Doesn't It Always Run Runny Horribly Over Each Ankle

I find it come in handy!

Necessary: to make a shirt it is neCeSSary to have one Collar and two Sleeves.

Accommodation: booking TWO DOUBLE rooms - double C/double M

Moor Larkin

I've always been fond of: i before e except after c except when it's not that way at all

Gazza

Weird, that

duffy moon

I remember a fellow student who was on the mature side, and a little obnoxious , giving a micro lesson to a group of student teachers of English as a foreign language, he was understandably a little nervous, first time and all, and hit them with the caveat of received wisdom, that using that particular idea, I before E etc, would knock the class dead with its' simplicity and applicabilty as a golden rule of veritability. To which I, quipped, 'What about weird then, or either, neither, protein,codein, neighbour, sleigh, caffeine, leisure,weight, height, [i]farenheit[/I], feign and seize then?'
He was in the spot we had all been in before when having been on the receiving end of some of his awkward questioning previously. Turning a deep russett red, lakes of sweat appearing under the armpits of his jacket and roasting on a spit which was now slowly being turned by the whole class in enjoyment. Fabulous I can tell you. He did see the funny side afterwards though.

Brigger

Speaking of mnemonics; does anybody have a different version to my childhood favourite for the colours of the rainbow:

Richard Of York Gave Battle In Vain

vaggmk1938

No but I always liked Mary's Violet Eyes Made John Stay Up Nights Proposing

Although now he can't Propose, he must just Stay Up Nights!

GRAEME

Hmm, nobody likes a smart arse - but I think what happened here was he was a bit out of his depth and didn't tell you the whole story.

The actual rule is this:

If the "ie/ei" dipthong is pronounced as "ay" "eh" or "i" the game is off!

Thus of your list: either, neither, neighbour, sleigh, leisure, weight, height, farenheit, and feign are not exceptions! (yes I know you can pronounce either/neither with "ee" or "i" sounds - but "let's call the whole thing off" isn't very helpful! )

So we're left with codein - actually codeine - and caffeine. Both names of substances and there are few rules for spelling names - I also suspect you'll find folks who pronounce them -ine.

Weird and seize are exceptions! I remember wEIrd because it is a wEIrd spelling.

English is about 92% rule based - it's the 8% that causes the difficulty.