Why isn’t ‘laugh’ spelled L-A-F? Author explores the many failed attempts of simplifying English spelling [Video]

Have you ever wondered why “choir” and “liar” rhyme, but “laughter” and “daughter” don’t? Or why “sew” and “new” look like they should match, but sound nothing alike, while “kernel” and “colonel” are pronounced exactly the same?

English spelling is famously inconsistent, and for New York-based writer and editor Gabe Henry, that maddening inconsistency set off a deeper curiosity.

“I’ve always struggled with spelling in a moderate way, and I’m what you would probably call a good speller,” Henry told The Current’s host Matt Galloway. 

“So I think there’s something inherently wrong in that — that you could be a good speller in the language and still struggle with it.” 

In his new book, Enough is Enuf: Our Failed Attempts to Make English Easier to Spell, Henry explores the long history of spelling reform. The book delves into the efforts of linguists, writers and thinkers who attempted to make English more phonetic and logical — often at great …