i Before e Rule
English Language: KS3, topic 1.1.8
‘i' Before 'e' Except After 'c’
The ‘i' before 'e' except after 'c’ rule helps us to decide whether to spell a word using ‘ie’ or ‘ei’.
Use ‘ie’ in most cases
- For example:
- Believe.
- Fierce.
- Friend.
- Thief.
- Field.
Except after 'c'
- If there is a ‘c’ before these two letters, we use ‘ei’ in most cases.
Use 'ei' after 'c' in most cases
- For example:
- Ceiling.
- Receive.
- Conceive.
- Deceive.
- Perceive.
Exceptions to the rule
- The word ‘science’ uses the letter ‘c’, followed by ‘ie’.
- Some words are spelled using ‘ei’, despite not following the letter ‘c’. For example:
- Caffeine.
- Seize.
- Either.
- Neither.
- Protein.
- Eight.