Spelling Tips by Aaron Chang

While participating in spelling bees, you might find yourself cornered or caught off guard by a trademark. As you may know, the 2016 winning word for Scripps was actually a trademark, Feldenkrais. Trademarks, and words with trademark origins can make for very difficult words, as they do not list language of origin. Also, unlike words of unknown origin, spelling them as if they were of Middle English origin is more of a risk, as trademarks typically take origin from an extremely wide variety of languages, including eponyms. For example, words like Kijafa might look tricky at first glance. However, Kijafa is used for a type of wine that is made from Danish cherries. Danish, as well as many other Scandinavian names and words normally utilize the letter “k” over “c”, like in Kjeldahl or kornerupine. The “j” may look very difficult, however, as seen in Hjelmslevian and jarlite, Danish words tend to use “j” as a “y” sound. Argyrol utilizes the Greek root argyr- meaning silver while also alluding to this in its definition. Using plain logic can also help. It might sound silly or tricky, but asking yourself whether the real spelling of Kijafa looks “better” over something like “Kiaffa” or “Kyafe” can really help in tough situations. Unfortunately, in the end, trademarks are really something to be memorized. Like mlechchha and Quaoar, trademarks are sometimes best memorized. It may be tedious, but memory does play a big role in spelling. Coupled with roots and language patterns, spelling trademarks can be a lot easier of a task. Here is a list of trademarks to get you started:

Welsbach

Adderall

Cointreau

Meccano

Accutane

Seccotine

Quonset

Mellotron

Pernod

Aricept

Bel Paese

Norit

Metycaine

Heroult

Hopcalite

Argyrol

Bakelite

Liederkranz

Creme Yvette

Belleek

Araldite