Please, sign up or log in to not lose your learning progress!

Why "seperate" gets it wrong: a spelling insight

Reviewed and edited by

Anwar Kareem 14/10/2024, 08:30

English.me team member

What kind of error is it?

Seperate or separate. What's correct?

Spelling Error

Why do people make this mistake?

The error occurs because the pronunciation of "separate" often makes the second "a" sound less distinct, leading people to mistakenly write "seperate" with an "e" instead of the first "a". Additionally, words with similar endings, like "desperate", may influence this error.

What is correct?

The correct spelling is "separate".

Examples of correct usage

Please separate the documents into two piles.
We need to separate the living area from the dining area.
The art teacher asked us to use separate brushes for each color.

Recommended posts in Grammar

A startling omission: why "suprise" needs its 'r'

A startling omission: why "suprise" needs its 'r'

People often make this error because the first "r" in ... Learn more →

Why it's not a match: untangling the "lower then" error

Why it's not a match: untangling the "lower then" error

People often confuse "then" and "than" because they are homophones, ... Learn more →

Why is it use to incorrect?

Why is it use to incorrect?

People often make this error due to phonetic confusion, as ... Learn more →

Why "some one" is written as one: breaking down a common mistake

Why "some one" is written as one: breaking down a common mistake

People often mistakenly think that "someone" needs to be separated ... Learn more →