Master the trickiest spellings in the English language. Check your spelling instantly, learn the rules, and discover memory tricks to write flawlessly.
English borrows from dozens of languages, creating spelling chaos. Here are the main culprits.
Words aren't spelled like they sound. "Knife" and "Psychology" ignore their first letters entirely.
Knowing when to double up is hard. Address vs. Adept, Embarrass vs. Excite.
Latin, Greek, and French roots bring strange rules. "Rhythm" comes straight from Greek.
Ghost letters haunt our words. Why is there a 'B' in "Debt" or a 'C' in "Scissors"?
These are the words that trip up writers the most. Don't let them trip you.
Learn the difference between words that sound alike but are spelled differently.
Affect
Effect
Tip: "Affect" is usually a verb (Action), "Effect" is usually a noun (End result).
Loose
Lose
Tip: "Lose" is to misplace something. "Loose" means it's not tight.
Principal
Principle
Tip: A "Principal" is your pal. A "Principle" is a rule or belief.
Are you writing for a US or UK audience? Know the crucial differences.
It's not just about letters; it's about punctuation. These are the worst offenders.
Wrong: The dog lost it's bone.
Right: The dog lost its bone. (Possessive has no apostrophe!)
Wrong: Your going to be late.
Right: You're going to be late. (Contraction of "You are").
Wrong: Their going over there.
Right: They're going over there.
Wrong: I want to go to.
Right: I want to go too. (Means "also" or an excess).
Easy ways to remember the hardest spelling rules in English.
Use "ie" as in Believe and Achieve. Use "ei" after C as in Receive and Conceive.
A shirt has one collar and two sleeves. So, one 'C' and two 'S's.
To accommodate someone, you need two beds (C's) and two mattresses (M's).
When making a word plural, don't just slap an 'S' on the end.
Y to IES
Baby → Babies
If it ends in Y, drop Y, add IES.
F to VES
Leaf → Leaves
Ends in F or FE, change to VES.
US to I
Cactus → Cacti
Latin words ending in US become I.
IS to ES
Analysis → Analyses
Greek words ending in IS become ES.
Misspelling these words at work can damage your credibility.
Find misspelled words grouped by where people struggle the most.
Explore our extensive dictionary using different filters and categories.
Take this 50-question quiz to test your vocabulary knowledge.
1. In the sentence 'I was fascinated by the movie', what part of speech is 'fascinated'?
2. Which of the following is the correct spelling of the plural form of 'facility'?
3. How many syllables are in the word 'formidable'?
4. What is wrong with the sentence: 'The collosal dinosaur fossil was huge.'
5. Why is 'completely' frequently misspelled as 'completly'?
6. Which of the following is the correct spelling of the word meaning 'tools or gear needed for a purpose'?
7. How many syllables are in the word 'essential'?
8. Which of the following is the correct spelling of the word meaning 'the sweet course at the end of a meal'?
9. The word 'ensure' derives from which language?
10. What is the correct noun form of 'desperate'?
11. What is the correct adverb form of 'awkward'?
12. Which of these words shares the same Latin root ('facilis') as 'facilities'?
13. Which of the following is a synonym for 'applied' in the context of submitting a request?
14. Is 'believe' spelled differently in British English?
15. Which of the following is a synonym for 'camouflage'?
16. Which of the following is the correct spelling of the word meaning 'causing great damage or suffering'?
17. Why is 'behavior' frequently misspelled as 'behavour'?
18. Which of the following is an antonym for 'doesn't' (in 'he doesn't try')?
19. Which of these words shares the same Latin root ('sperare') as 'desperate'?
20. A helpful trick to remember the double 'B' is to think of:
21. How many syllables are in the word 'beautiful'?
22. How many syllables are in the word 'caught'?
23. Which of the following is a synonym for 'allegiance'?
24. Which sentence uses 'comparative' correctly?
25. Why is 'fabulous' frequently misspelled as 'fabulus'?
26. Which sentence uses 'exaggerate' correctly?
27. Why is 'disapprove' frequently misspelled as 'dissapprove'?
28. Which of these words shares the same Greek prefix ('kata-') as 'category'?
29. Which memory trick helps you remember the spelling of 'attributes'?
30. In the sentence 'She showed extraordinary patience', what part of speech is 'extraordinary'?
31. What is wrong with the sentence: 'The emigrent needed an exit visa.'
32. Is 'across' spelled differently in British English?
33. Which of the following is a synonym for 'competition'?
34. Which of these words shares the same suffix ('-able') as 'editable'?
35. Which of the following is the correct spelling of the word meaning 'without doubt'?
36. Which of these words shares the same Latin root ('scire') as 'conscious'?
37. Which of the following is the correct spelling of the word meaning 'a class or division of things'?
38. What is the correct adverb form of 'explicit'?
39. A helpful trick to remember the double 'F' is that it stands for:
40. What is wrong with the sentence: 'We belive the data is accurate.'
41. Which of these digital terms uses 'favorite' correctly as a verb?
42. In the sentence 'The comparative study was a success', what part of speech is 'comparative'?
43. Which of the following is an antonym for 'caught'?
44. Which sentence uses 'caught' correctly?
45. What does 'ceiling' mean in the sentence: 'The government raised the debt ceiling'?
46. Which of the following is a synonym for 'council'?
47. Which of the following is the correct spelling of the word meaning 'particularly' or 'exceptionally'?
48. What is the correct adjective form of 'especially' (though it is rarely used in modern English)?
49. What does 'fascination' mean in the sentence: 'Ancient Rome holds an endless fascination for historians'?
50. Which sentence uses 'cream' correctly?
Commonly misspelled words are words that people frequently write incorrectly. These often include words with double letters (like 'accommodate'), silent letters (like 'rhythm'), or words that don't sound the way they are spelled (like 'Wednesday').
English spelling is difficult because the language has borrowed words from many other languages like Latin, French, and German. As a result, English has many irregular spelling rules, exceptions, and words that sound the same but are spelled differently (homophones) like 'their', 'there', and 'they're'.
To stop misspelling words, you should learn common spelling rules, break long words into smaller syllables, and memorize exceptions. Reading regularly and keeping a personal list of words you frequently struggle with can also help you improve your spelling skills over time.
Words like 'definitely', 'separate', 'accommodate', and 'occurrence' are consistently ranked among the most misspelled words in the English language. People often misspell them by adding extra letters or substituting vowels incorrectly.
'Misspelled' and 'misspelt' are both correct past tense forms of the verb 'misspell'. 'Misspelled' is the preferred spelling in American English, while 'misspelt' is more commonly used in British English.
