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spelling: words with ei and ie

The well-known “rule” is stated in the following jingle: "i before e except after c, or when sounded as a as in neighbour and weigh."

However, there are many exceptions to this guideline. Some common ones are listed below.

Exceptions

Words with the letters ie coming after c

  • deficient/efficient/sufficient, etc.
  • science
  • species

Words with the letters ei not coming after c and not sounded as a

  • either/neither
  • feisty
  • foreign
  • forfeit
  • heifer
  • height
  • heist
  • leisure
  • seize
  • sovereign
  • their
  • weird