Does “i before e except after c” actually work?

The rule and its small print

Here is the short rhyme: “i before e, except after c”. It says that when i and e sit side by side, the i comes first, as in chief, field and thief. But straight after a c, the e goes first, as in receive and ceiling.

The rhyme is old. It was in a spelling book printed in 1866, and it may be older still.

But the short rhyme leaves out one key thing. The rule is only about words where ie or ei makes an “ee” sound, as in see. Henry Fowler said so in his guide to English usage in 1926. England's national curriculum says the same today.

Where the rule works

Once you listen for the “ee” sound, the rule does well. These words all follow it.

• ie that says “ee”: chief, field, thief, piece
• ei that says “ee” after c: receive, deceive, conceive, perceive, ceiling

Words that only look like odd ones out

Lots of words have ei with no c in front: their, veil, vein, eight and height. They seem to break the rule. But say them out loud. None of them has an “ee” sound, so the rule was never about them.

Science and ancient look wrong too, with ie straight after a c. But in science, you say the i and the e apart: sci, then ence. In ancient, the c makes a “sh” sound. Neither word has an “ee”, so the rule leaves them alone.

The real odd ones out

A few words do have an “ee” sound and still break the rule. Seize, protein and caffeine all have ei with no c in front. You just have to learn them.

Either and neither depend on how you say them. In Britain, lots of people start them with an “eye” sound, so the rule does not reach them. If you say “ee-ther”, they break it.

Names often ignore the rule too, like Keith and Sheila.

Why is there an “after c” part?

Most words covered by the “after c” part are one family. Receive, deceive, conceive and perceive came into English from French, hundreds of years ago. Receipt, deceit and conceit belong to the same family. They all go back to one Latin word, capere, which meant “to take”.

Many of the words that seem to break the rule are not part of that family at all. Eight, weigh and neighbour have roots in Old English.

What do schools say?

In 2009, a spelling guide for teachers in England said the rule was “not worth teaching”. It did not say the rule was wrong. It said the rule only works for a clear “ee” sound. It also said that so few words spell the “ee” sound ei after c that it is easier to learn them one by one.

Newspapers made a fuss, and some reports made it sound as if the rule was being dropped. Today, England's national curriculum includes it for Years 5 and 6, small print and all.

A better way to remember it

• Listen first. If the ie or ei does not say “ee”, the rule can't help.
• If it says “ee”, write ie, as in chief and field.
• After c, write ei. The main words are receive, deceive, conceive, perceive and ceiling, and also receipt, deceit and conceit.
• Learn some odd ones out by heart: seize, protein and caffeine.

The sounds in the table below are the British ones. Some accents say a few of these words in a different way.

Questions people ask

Is weird an odd one out?

Not in British English. The ei in weird sounds like the ear in near, not a clear “ee”, so the rule does not cover it. Merriam-Webster, an American dictionary, does call it an exception.

What about “or when sounded as a”?

Some versions of the rhyme add a line: “or when sounded as a, as in neighbour and weigh”. That explains a few more words. But it still misses lots of others, like height and their.

Is the rule worth learning?

People disagree. Fowler called it very useful. The 2009 guide said it was easier to learn the few ei words after c one by one. Both agree on the key point: the rule is only about the “ee” sound.