Informal Spelling Without Ɛ and Ɔ

Level 2

You will often read Wo ho te sen? for Wo ho te sɛn? People type e for ɛ and o for ɔ when their keyboard makes it hard.

How It Works

1. What you will see

  • Wo ho te sen? = Wo ho te sɛn? (How are you?)
  • Eye = Ɛyɛ (It is fine.)
  • Oye = Ɔyɛ (She is good.)
  • Meko fie = Mekɔ fie (I am going home.)

2. Other habits
Some people type 3 for ɛ and ) for ɔ, because they look similar. Casual writing may also split words that standard spelling joins, like Me ko for Mekɔ. See subject prefixes.

3. Reading by context
Because the letters can change meaning, one informal spelling can stand for two words. ko can mean kɔ (go) or ko (fight). The rest of the sentence tells you which: Meko fie must be Mekɔ fie, because you go home.

4. Your own writing
Write ɛ and ɔ. It is correct, and it helps people read you quickly. Most phones can add an Akan or Twi keyboard that types ɛ and ɔ.

5. Older books
Some older texts use other spellings for the same sounds. See older spellings.

Examples (5)

  1. Wo ho te sen? (Wo ho te sɛn?)

    How are you?

    Sen in informal writing is sɛn (how).

  2. Eye. (Ɛyɛ.)

    It is fine.

    Both letters are ɛ in standard spelling.

  3. Meko fie. (Mekɔ fie.)

    I am going home.

    Ko here stands for kɔ (go), since you go home.

  4. Oye onipa pa. (Ɔyɛ onipa pa.)

    She is a good person.

    The first o is ɔ, the he or she prefix; onipa keeps its plain o.

  5. Me pe wo. (Mepɛ wo.)

    I like you.

    Pe stands for pɛ (want, like), and me is joined to the verb in standard spelling.

Common Mistakes

  • Copying informal spelling into your own writing.

    Meko fie.
    Mekɔ fie.

    Ko means fight. For go, write kɔ with ɔ.

  • Dropping ɛ where it changes the word.

    Wo ho te sen?
    Wo ho te sɛn?

    Standard spelling writes sɛn (how) with ɛ. Readers can guess, but the correct letter removes any doubt.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

Informal Spelling Without Ɛ and ƆLevel 2

Learn This First

Informal spelling replaces ɛ and ɔ.