There weren’t any spell checkers when I was in middle school. Spell checkers are useful tools, but you still need to use your brain. You can’t always trust that you have the right word (or that you’ve spelled the word you meant to spell) just because it doesn’t have a red underline. Here are some of the common spell checker snags I’ve seen:
- It’s distrustful (someone who is distrustful doesn’t trust people), not untrustworthy (someone who is untrustworthy can’t be trusted by others).
- It’s installation (something that has been installed), not installment (one part).
- It’s loose if it doesn’t fit tight enough, but it’s lose if you can’t find it.
(If the word is too loose, you will lose an O.) - It’s saw (past tense of see), not sawed (past tense of using a saw to cut).
- It’s smelled (past tense of smell), not smelt (to process ore, or a kind of fish).