Are You Smarter Than a Spell Checker? Part II
May 05, 2009 (11:43AM) by Julie O'Malley, CPRW
"No spelling errors" is one of the first rules of resume writing. Yet the English language, with its non-standard spellings and exceptions to every rule, seems cruelly designed to thwart our efforts.
Take for instance the words Loose, Lose, Choose, and Chose.
 Despite their similar spellings, loose does not rhyme with choose. No, no, no. Loose rhymes with goose, noose, moose, and caboose. So therefore, it follows that lose must rhyme with nose, rose, and close. Wait, what!? How silly of me. That would make too much sense. Lose rhymes with, well, choose. (Ain't no spell checker gonna help you with that one, either.)
Thanks to this particular phonetic glitch, I have a spam folder full of e-mails declaring things like "Loose the fat with acai berries!" They fail to mention where the fat goes once you turn it loose. (I can't help but picture it orbiting around me like the moons of Jupiter.)
But the loose/lose thing is just one example. Take this quiz to see how well you can recognize the right choices among these 12 other commonly misused and/or misspelled resume words.
QUIZ
Choose either "a" or "b" to complete each sentence. The answers appear below (don't peek).
1.
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a) advise
b) advice
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That was lousy _____ you gave me about the stock market, Martha.
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2.
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a) moral
b) morale
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Sincere praise from management is good for employee _____.
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3.
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a) definitely
b) definately
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We can _____ find a suitable position for you in the Payroll Department.
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4.
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a) ocassionally
b) occasionally
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His supervisor _____ requested that he work late when a critical deadline was approaching.
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5.
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a) Ceasar
b) Caesar
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The four customers at Table 12 all ordered a _____ Salad with their lunch.
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6.
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a) category
b) catagory
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Jobs that fall into the part-time _____ can range from a few hours a week to 30 or more.
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7.
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a) rationale
b) rational
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He reacted instinctively, without taking time to go through a _____ thought process.
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8.
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a) consensus
b) concensus
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The union is hoping to reach a _____ with management before the contract expires.
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9.
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a) ect.
b) etc.
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Our ideal candidate must have solid computer skills (e.g., Word, Excel, Dreamweaver, _____).
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10.
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a) fluxuates
b) fluctuates
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The workload _____ seasonally, with more customers in the summer than the winter.
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11.
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a) liaison
b) liason
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Bob's advertising experience made him the perfect _____ between clients and copywriters.
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12.
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a) restaurants
b) restaraunts
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Food service can be a lucrative career option, but _____ typically require odd work hours.
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*#5 isn't really a typical resume word, but it's my pet peeve so I snuck it in :)
ANSWERS
The correct answers are:
- b) advice
- b) morale
- a) definitely
- b) occasionally
- b) Caesar
- a) category
- b) rational
- a) consensus
- b) etc.
- b) fluctuates
- a) liaison
- a) restaurants
How'd you do? Share your results and your thoughts by posting a comment below!
RELATED LINKS
Check Your Resume Before You Send It
How Do YOU Spell Resume?
The No-Excuses Way to Submit an Error-Free Resume
Coming Tomorrow...
Watch for Brianna Raymond's post on what to do if you discover a typo in a resume you've already sent. In the meantime, if you want some more practice, try your hand at the first Are You Smarter Than a Spell Checker quiz!
100%. I surprised myself. Army schools RULE!
100% Anything less would've surprised me. I've often thought about entering a profession that uses language. (Communication, editing, what else?) I love language.
1 wrong. Not too shabby. And had I taken a moment to slow down I may have scored 100%.
I got them all correct. I guess I'm okay at spelling. There was one time I was writing about greeting customers and i called it The Correct gretting
I'm disappointed that I got 2 of the 12 wrong b/c I was a Journalism major and really should know better. But I tell you, my Webster's & Roget's are in easy reach and well used. I didn't check taking this test but most likely, especially at work, I would have looked up the meaning/spelling before sending.
I mist #4 & 8. I guest on both, I past the hard wons than baktracced. Orange ya hapie I gott know mo.
Well, I missed your pet peeve. Sorry!
100% Not bad for a Hispanic for whom English is his second language. Looks my high school English was pretty good. Very likely I make a mistake in this comment :) Good quiz.
@ All the Commenters Above
You're a smart bunch! Funny, too :) Thanks for all the great comments.
-- Julie
I got 100%. Always have been a pretty good speller but there are still some words I have problems. with. Not bad for someone who has been out of school for a number of years. :-)
These were too easy. I got them all right. I am normally not that savy in this area. So, I guess I can say, "great job".
Hoorah, all right. I would have actually been disappointed if I didn't get such a score, as I'm known as the grammar freak among my friends. Number 3 made me laugh, as that is the one word I spell wrong consistently- luckily I know that I'm doing it and change it.
Got 10 out of 12. What can I say - I'm not a type A personality, but I'm fun and have a great sense of humor!
Only 1 wrong as well, If I would eat more salad instead of listening to Robert Plant I would have Aced it!
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