Why isn't 'laugh' spelled L-A-F? Author explores the many failed attempts of simplifying English spelling | CBC Radio

CBC - 18/04
Have you ever wondered why English spelling often seems to defy logic — like why choir and liar rhyme, but laughter and daughter don’t? In his new book, Gabe Henry explores this conundrum, showing that you’re far from alone. He delves into the long history of spelling reform and the many bold — but ultimately unsuccessful — attempts to make English simpler.
The Current24:24Why isn’t ‘enough’ spelled ‘enuf’? The absurdity of English spelling

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 personal and professional cost.

"The more I dug into the simplified spelling movement, researched the articles, the archives, the letters, the journals, I r...
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