The world wide web could kill off traditional spelling of some words within a few decades a language boffin has warned.

David Crystal, of the University of Wales in Bangor said that for the first time printed words are getting widely distributed without being edited or proofread. Writers can spell words differently and their versions could enter common usage and become accepted by children, he said.

It will only take a few decades for spellings favoured by many internet users to replace the current, more complex versions, Professor Crystal said. Spellings of words were decided in the 18th century with the advent of dictionaries. It is only a matter of time before words like ''2moro'' instead of ''tomorrow'' or ''thx'' for ''thanks'' - could enter mainstream publications.

Professor Crystal said many spellings bore no relation to meaning or pronunciation and the vast majority of spelling rules in English are irrelevant. For example we spell rhubarb with an 'h' because some guy in the 16th century said it was good to put an 'h' in to remind us of the history of the word.

Before the web nobody could write something without an editor or a proofreader checking it. But now phonetically spelt words were likely to enter the vocabulary.