• words that sound the same but are spelled differently

• So if you wrote "there" but meant "their"

  • as far as Spell-Checkers are concerned, you have spelled correctly

  • they cannot tell that you wanted a possessive pronoun instead of an adverb.

• here's a link to our Homophones page

missing words

• One of my own errors, whether I'm typing or handwriting, is that I omit words: 

  • my hands cannot type or write as fast as my mind can think,

  • so words are often missing from sentences.

• In this regard, Spell-Checkers cannot help me.

• Again, they cannot read my mind and supply the missing words.

proper nouns & technical jargon

• and other words not included in their databases

• If a word is not in the dictionary --

  • because it is a proper noun

    • (a specific name, personal name)

      • Ozzfest, New Rigotonia, Bromance: The Movie

  • or a technical term or an acronym

    • (specialized vocabulary of a field, industry-speak, jargon)

      • ANSII, cyber bulling, infotainment, login, Wi-Fi

• then Spell-Checkers often will flag it as spelled incorrectly

  • AND not be able to offer any suggestions.

• You are on your own.

spelled wrong, used right

• If your misspelling is actually another word

• if you misspell a word and the misspelling creates another "real" word

  • one that is in the dictionary

• if you correctly spell the wrong word

• then Spell-Checkers cannot recognize an error:

  • Spell-Checkers have no sense of context.

  • The Landmark College source below references a 1998 study that found that Spell Checkers "cannot identify 30%-40%" of these spelling errors

• As for as they are concerned, you spelled the other word correctly.

  • A prime example of this is "defiantly" for "definitely"

  • these are often referred to as Troublesome Pairs

incorrect apostrophes:

• If you misspelled a plural by adding an apostrophe-s,

  • Spell-Checkers cannot differentiate between plurals and possessives.

• Again, they have no sense of context.

  • students, student's are both correctly spelled

Spell Checkers offer suggestions

• (1) don't opt for the first offer

  • again, they have no idea of your context

    • so there is no ordering to their suggestions

    • based on anything other than what you wrote

• (2) note, the more severe a misspelling, the less useful the SC suggestions

  • if you completely butcher a word,

    • Spell Checkers can only make guesses at the word you actually meant

      • and those suggestions can be entirely irrelevant

    • Spell Checkers make guesses visually & auditorily

      • based on what you wrote

      • this can create a visual confusion regarding their suggestions

        • many words that sound similar

        • so see #3 below

• (3) double-check the suggestion

  • look up the suggestion in a dictionary and thesaurus

    • dictionary.com

  • make sure the word you select is the accurate word

• (4) above all, remember

  • that no machine can replace a human, so...

    • PROOFREAD!