Veldrin's guide to good English, reproduced

[Odenetheus]

This was written by Veldrin, a former high standing member of BoC., years ago. Please read it.
 And yes, it's also in the baronship announcement, but no one seems to have read it anyway, so I might as well put it here also!

"English is the most extensive language in the world. Some of us have more trouble with it than others. Being a guild among guilds based for the most part in Europe, quite a few roleplayers in Europa are not native English speakers. Very few of us are English majors in college, so even we from the UK, the US and Canada have a difficult time with it occasionally. This is perfectly understandable and very often condoned. However these mistakes can often make a speaker seem unintelligent or unprofessional.

For this reason I've compiled this helpful guide to words which are commonly confused or misspelled.

Common Confusions

advise/advice
advise: verb, to give advice. I would advise you to keep your gold in the bank.
advice: noun, a helpful suggestion. If you ask old Eddie, he can give you some advice on how to farm corn.

affect/effect
affect: verb, to cause an effect. Will the rain affect the water level of the lake?
effect: noun, a result of a prior action. The orc invasion had a negative effect on the Covian population.

dependent/dependant
dependent: adjective, to be reliant upon. Cove trade is dependent on the economy.
dependant: noun, one who is dependent. A child is a dependant of her parents.

dye, dyeing/die, dying
dye: noun, a substance to change the color of something. Get the hair dye from the cabinet, would you? dyeing, adjective, to be using dye. Mela is off dyeing her hair again.
die, verb, to stop or cease to live. I'm glad Steve Irwin had to die doing what he loved. dying, adjective, to be in a declining state leading to eventual death. Hurry and get the bandage! He's dying!
Note: Yes, UO did misspell the title of the "dying tub."

lead/led
lead: noun, a type of metal. My pencil lead broke., also verb, to be in charge. Could you lead an expedition force into Dungeon Deceit?
led: verb, past tense of "lead." I led a hunt just yesterday.

of/have
of: preposition, being or originating from. This is a matter of the highest importance.
have: verb, to own or possess obligation to. She had to have forgotten the gold in her house. Do you have any extra?
CORRECT: "That's what we should have done."
INCORRECT: "That's what we should of done."
Tip: Just think of it in the present tense. That's what we have to do.

prove/proof
prove: verb, to confirm or validate. I can prove that dragon ate Ryan Greystone.
proof: noun, evidence. I have proof that the Baron murdered Hrothgar.

there/their/they're
there: adverb, specific location outside close proximity. The Barracks is over there.
their: adjective, possessive form of "they." That kid is their only hope.
they're: contraction, "they are." They're going on a hunt to Destard.

were/we're/where
were: verb, past tense of "are." They were already here when you arrived.
we're: contraction, "we are." We're going on a patrol to the orc fort, want to come?
where: adverb, specific location. Do you know where everyone went to?

Common Misspellings
Correct spellings in bold.

A lot, two words, not "alot."

Because, not "becuase."
Tip: Just think "Beca Use."

Cemetery, not "cematery" or "cemetary."
Tip: All e's.

Coming, not "comming."

Definite, Definitely, not "definate" or "definately."
Tip: The root word is "finite," which is pronounced like "fye-night."

Disappoint, not "dissapoint" or "disapoint."

Embarrass, Embarrassment, not "embaras," "embarras," or "embarass," etc.
Tip: Two r's, two s's.

I, always capitalized. Not just "i."

Independence, not "independance."
Tip: All e's.

Necessary, not "neccessary" or "necesary."

Occur, not "occurr."

Occurred, Occurrence, not "occured" or "occurrance."

Patrol, not "patroll."
Note: The word does have two l's in "patrolled" and "patrolling."

Sentence, not "sentance."
Tip: All e's again.

Their, not "thier."
Tip: Just like in the number "eight," the "ei" has a long "a" sound.

Tomorrow, not "tomarrow," "tomorow," or "tommorow."

Until, not "untill."

Weird, not "wierd."

Writing, not "writting."

Octiovus, not Octavius, or Octivous, or Octiboibous, or Octopus, Octipopsalot, Octagon, Octotoevious etc.


British/American Spellings
All of these spellings are correct.

Armour - British
Armor - American

Centre - British
Center - American

Cheque - British
Check - American

Colour - British
Color - American

Cosy - British
Cozy - American

Defence - British
Defense - American

Dialogue - British
Dialog - American   

Draught - British
Draft - American

Favourite - British
Favorite - American

Jewellry - British
Jewelry - American

Learnt - British
Learned - American

Liquorice - British
Licorice - American

Mould - British
Mold - American

Moustache - British
Mustache - American   

Mum - British
Mom - American

Programme - British
Program - American

Sceptic - British
Skeptic - American

Speciality - British
Specialty - American

Terrorise - British
Terrorize - American

Traveller, Travelled - British
Traveler, Traveled - American

Yoghurt - British
Yogurt - American"