orthography

[ awr-thog-ruh-fee ]

noun

, plural or·thog·ra·phies

1. the art of writing words with the proper letters, according to accepted usage; correct spelling.
2. the part of language study concerned with letters and spelling.
3. a method of spelling, as by the use of an alphabet or other system of symbols; spelling.
4. a system of such symbols:

   Missionaries provided the first orthography for the language.

5. an orthographic projection, or an elevation drawn by means of it.

orthography

/ ɔːˈθɒɡrəfɪ /

noun

1. a writing system
2. 1. spelling considered to be correct
   2. the principles underlying spelling
3. the study of spelling
4. orthographic projection

Derived Forms

• orˈthographer, noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of orthography¹

1425–75; late Middle English ortografye < Latin orthographia correct writing, orthogonal projection < Greek orthographía. See ortho-, -graphy

Example Sentences

He asked for all the word’s information — its definition, part of speech, orthography, use in a sentence — but he didn’t need it, evidenced by a slight smile as he spoke.

From New York Times

Structured literacy has four main components: phonological awareness, the ability to notice and distinguish different sounds in a word; phonics, the ability to match sounds to letters; orthography, the ability to write sounds down and spell words; and morphology, the knowledge of word roots, prefixes and suffixes.

From Seattle Times

The Post’s attention to orthography has reached a new low: two mistakes in two words.

From Washington Post

As literacy rates and orthography differ between Mapuche communities, Vergara and his department have distributed audio recordings in Mapudungun with safety and hygiene instructions.

From The Guardian

“Many of the writers didn’t know standard Yiddish orthography, so they just wrote the words the way they heard them,” she explained.

From The New Yorker