ABSTRACT
In this chapter the claim is made that the presence of an alphabetic spelling system can help a person learn to pronounce a set of words even though the person does not know, in any sense of the word, which letters correspond to which segments of associated sound. This is possible because, on the average, in an alphabetic spelling system words that look alike sound alike. Further, it is possible to increase the effect of this visual similarity by enhancing the patterns formed by words.
