# Why is English so confusing?

- Institution: TED
- Department: TED-Ed
- Speaker: Arika Okrent
- Year: 2024
- Level: For everyone
- Language: English
- Subjects: History, Languages and linguistics, Teaching and learning
- Source: [TED](https://www.ted.com/talks/arika_okrent_why_is_english_so_confusing)
- Licence: [CC BY-NC-ND 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/) (Non-commercial use only, and no changed versions.)
- Who can watch: Teens profiles and older (sources give no ratings; placed by Invisible Network from the source's own words)

Spelling reformers have been advocating for changes to make English spelling more intuitive and less irregular. One example of its messiness: take the “g-h” sound from “enough,” the “o” sound from “women” and the “t-i” sound from “action,” and you could argue that “g-h-o-t-i” spells “fish.” So, how did English get like this? Arika Okrent explores the complexity of English spelling conventions. \[Directed by Emily Howells, Aaron Brady, narrated by Jack Cutmore-Scott, music by Aaron Brady\].

## Lectures

1. [Why is English so confusing?](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/learn/ted/arika_okrent_why_is_english_so_confusing/e1bc94b1bc5e), 6 min (TED's player)