I am not sure what to tell her as I have no clue as to why they are spelt with different starts (c's and K's). Do you know why?
2006-11-19 05:38:05 · 10 answers · asked by erinjl123456 6 in Pregnancy & Parenting ➔ Grade-Schooler
Not exactly sure, but probably because cat is the main word and then the endings meaning little or small would have made it kitten or kitty. but just adding those endings would have been spelled citten or citty which would have been pronounced sitten or sitty. Since a C is pronounced as an S if followed by a vowel such as I or E. So they wanted to keep the k sound. They didn't change cat to kat probably just because it came first and they were just lazy. lol.
2006-11-19 05:49:55 · answer #1 · answered by joannaserah 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
There is no exact reason. The problem was that in the 1500's spelling was still a irrelevant thing - most people couldn't write let alone spell. Once more people learnt to read (1600's) it became more important and for some time people just spelt things as they were said in their area. With their different accents, things were said differently. Certain words from one area become popular and certain words from another area became popular so they weren't always spelt a similar way. It was the invention of the printing press that made people spell words the same way, which was usually the most popular way. There was never any government regulation on spelling, which is good because it's made the English language one of the most diverse and useful languages, though it has the disadvantage of not having a regular way of spelling things.
It's good for spelling competitions though!
2006-11-19 05:43:18 · answer #2 · answered by Velouria 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The only guess I can hazard is that the English language was shaped over many centuries by many cultures, including (but not limited to) French, German (Anglo-Saxon), Celtic, and Nordic dialects. The letter changes could all have the same sound, but come from different lanuage-backgrounds, leading to the different spellings.
2016-05-22 03:40:16 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Be honest with your child at all times. Tell her that you do not know but you can find out for her. It's the same with dogs and puppies, it gives the words a distinct difference.
In easier terms, it helps make the names more unique.
2006-11-19 06:12:52 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The English language is filled with so many unexplained spellings. For example the ch sound as in these words is all different. archive,anchovies ,chrysanthemums and parachute. Why ...........because.
2006-11-19 11:10:21 · answer #5 · answered by gussie 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
just tell her that cats are adults & kittens are kids so therefore are different ages & spelled different...sounds good enough for me
2006-11-19 05:46:49 · answer #6 · answered by Twinkle in My Eyes 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
A stupid question(kind of odd really)calls for a stupid answer!
Just tell her Because it can be?Thats what I would say if anyone asked me.
2006-11-19 15:22:04 · answer #7 · answered by Ian A 2 · 0⤊ 2⤋
If you don't know then you must have been sleeping during your middle school english classes...and that's all I'm going to tell you...you have to do the research yourself.
2006-11-19 06:23:46 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 3⤋
me neither but it looks like we have found our future "World Leader". Very smart kid.
2006-11-19 05:41:38 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
SAY IS LIKE WE DO WE HAVE A BABY OR INFANT (AKA KITTEN) AND WE HAVE TODDLERS (AKA KITTY) AND WE HAVE TEENAGERS OR ADULTS (AKA CATS)
2006-11-19 06:44:01 · answer #10 · answered by hellokitty_19_2002 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋