Why English Spelling Makes No Sense

Between 1400 and 1700, English speakers radically changed how they pronounced long vowels, but the spelling stayed stuck in the past. This is why we have silent letters and inconsistent vowel rules today.

During the Great Vowel Shift, the tongue position for every long vowel moved upward in the mouth. Because the printing press had recently been invented, English spelling became standardized just before this massive sound change occurred. People kept writing words the old way even though they were suddenly saying them differently. This creates a permanent disconnect between our written and spoken language that persists to this day.