The double ‘l’ controversy

The other day my wife Diane got on my case about my spelling of “canceled”:

Diane:  You spelled canceled wrong.  It only has one l.  There should be two.

Jack:    You can spell it either way.

Diane:  I’ve been a tutor here in Campbell River since 1986.  It needs two “l”s.

The first dictionary I checked was a Brit one; of course, it backed her up.  Then I got a Webster’s, and it says both “canceled” and “cancelled” are okay.

The general rule I was taught is that if the last syllable is unaccented, you don’t have to double the final consonant.  So travelling can be traveling as well:  both are fine, according to Webster’s (which is Yank, of course).

Diane still wasn’t satisfied; she likes the doubling of the consonant.  For her, only travelling and cancelling will do.

You be the judge.

Jack of Oracle Tutoring by Jack and Diane, Campbell River, BC.