Those English Just Spell Differently Than We Do

We all know the English spell certain words differently than we do here in the U.S. What is "color" to us is "colour" to them. We "realize" things and they "realise" things. And let's not even get into the different meanings they have for words.

So I wouldn't make a point of pointing out a different spelling except that I recently ran into one that was new for me. And at the age of 56, if it's new to me I'll bet there are a lot of other people who have either never run across it, either, or never figured it out. Actually, now that I say that, it occurs to me I have seen it before but never knew the meaning.

OK, quite beating around the bush. What's the word?

Gaol

Is that a misspelling for the thing the English kick a soccer ball (excuse me, football) through?

No, that's something we know as a "jail." As in "jailbird/gaolbird," or "jail/gaol house rock."

I was reading a collection of pieces by Oscar Wilde and one was entitled The Ballad of Reading Gaol. And I was clueless. Fortunately, my wife lived in England for six months so she clued me in.

Just another "pretty dang interesting" bit of information I've run into.