Should UK English spellchecker in Word accept "-ize"?
Thread poster: Daina Jauntirans
Daina Jauntirans
Daina Jauntirans  Identity Verified
Local time: 04:01
German to English
+ ...
Nov 12, 2003

Hello,
Could someone tell me whether the default UK Eng. spellchecker in Word is set to accept the "ize"/"izing" variant? In other words, "utilize" and "realizing" are not flagged as being incorrectly spelled when I use it.

I'm not sure if this is the way the spellchecker works or if mine is messed up somehow. Otherwise it catches the usual AmE - BE differences, such as "labour," "colour," "manoeuvre," etc.


 
DGK T-I
DGK T-I  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 09:01
Georgian to English
+ ...
It may be because Nov 13, 2003

utilize and realizing are well established in the UK, along with utilise and realising.
(For illustration only, Collins Dict.)
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utilize and realizing are well established in the UK, along with utilise and realising.
(For illustration only, Collins Dict.)
http://wordreference.com/english/definition.asp?en=realizing
http://wordreference.com/english/definition.asp?en=utilize
and it's a matter of the variant that you would prefer.

As compared with Collins
http://wordreference.com/english/definition.asp?en=aluminium
Aluminum, honor, labor and harbor do stand out in the UK as "North Americanisms", of course:-)

It doesn't sound as if your spell-checker is "messed up".

[Edited at 2003-11-13 07:11]
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Nikki Graham
Nikki Graham  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 09:01
Spanish to English
RealiCe ?? Nov 13, 2003

I've just checked. My spellchecker doesn't like utiliZe and changes it to utiliSe and when I try to type realiZe, it changes it automatically to realiCe (for some very unkown reason) and then the spellchecker suggests realise when I run it.
As far as I remember, given that I always use the GB option, it doesn't usually like Z.


 
DGK T-I
DGK T-I  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 09:01
Georgian to English
+ ...
I've just checked Nov 13, 2003

and my GB spell checker doesn't like the 'z' and the US one doesn't like the 's'. I still say what I said above (rather than this)reflects accepted UK usage - but I can't say whether this other spell-checker is accepting both by accident or design. Curiously I checked the big Oxford from my computer, and it didn't recognize 'utilise' or 'realise' at all (although Collins does). It's enough to drive any human or computer to realice (or perhaps falselice:-)).

[Edited at 2003-11-13 18:02]


 
Justice Olsson
Justice Olsson  Identity Verified
France
Local time: 10:01
French to English
+ ...
-ize vs -ise Nov 13, 2003

I've always found the refusal in my MS Word (French version) to accept "-ize" verb endings as irritating and slightly ridiculous (when the spellcheck is ticked "UK English") ... but then maybe I've got a tiny chip on my shoulder, having learnt my (native) English while growing up in South Africa!

Nowadays I live in Europe - and along with many fellow Europeans I don't feel well-disposed to any sort of fanatical drive to impose uniformity where it's not needed... it springs from the
... See more
I've always found the refusal in my MS Word (French version) to accept "-ize" verb endings as irritating and slightly ridiculous (when the spellcheck is ticked "UK English") ... but then maybe I've got a tiny chip on my shoulder, having learnt my (native) English while growing up in South Africa!

Nowadays I live in Europe - and along with many fellow Europeans I don't feel well-disposed to any sort of fanatical drive to impose uniformity where it's not needed... it springs from the kind of mentality that lay behind the attempts in France to "protect" and "keep pure" the French language... which ended up in the dustbin/trashcan. Remember Jaques Toubon, Minister of something or other? He was the the driving force behind that initiative... for his troubles he ended up with the delicious nickname of "Jack Alright"!
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Daina Jauntirans
Daina Jauntirans  Identity Verified
Local time: 04:01
German to English
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
No ideological preference here... Nov 13, 2003

...I am a US English speaker and am sometimes asked by customers to use British spelling conventions, by which they mean "-ise", etc. I just wanted to make sure my spellchecker was in order. I think something is wrong with it.

Thanks.


 


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Should UK English spellchecker in Word accept "-ize"?






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