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. A helpful trick to remember the double 'T' is that it stands for:
2. Why is 'competition' sometimes preferred over 'contest' in business writing?
3. A helpful trick to remember the single 'S' in 'disapprove' is that it stands for:
4. In American English, on which syllable is the stress placed when pronouncing 'amateur'?
5. In American English, on which syllable is the stress placed when pronouncing 'exceed'?
6. Which of the following is an antonym for 'imminent'?
7. Is 'colossal' spelled differently in British English?
8. What does 'appearance' mean in the sentence: 'The defendant made a court appearance'?
9. Which sentence is grammatically correct?
10. Which of these words is often confused with 'imminent' because it sounds similar?
11. In American English, on which syllable is the stress placed when pronouncing 'consensus'?
12. Which memory trick helps you remember the spelling of 'attain'?
13. What is wrong with the sentence: 'The apparant discrepancy was noted by the auditors.'
14. Which of the following is a synonym for 'certainly'?
15. What is the correct spelling of the plural form of 'cemetery'?
16. The double 'l' in 'finally' comes from adding which suffix to a word ending in 'l'?
17. How many syllables are in the word 'bureaucracy'?
18. Why is 'allegiance' frequently misspelled as 'allegience'?
19. Which of the following is a synonym for the verb 'bear' (to endure)?
20. In the sentence 'I need an editable file', what part of speech is 'editable'?
21. Which memory trick helps you remember the spelling of 'break'?
22. How many syllables are in the word 'coming'?
23. Which memory trick helps you remember the spelling of 'committee'?
24. What is the correct spelling of the past tense of 'ensure'?
25. What does 'disappear' mean in the sentence: 'The fog will disappear once the sun comes up'?
26. What is the correct adjective form of 'ecstasy'?
27. What is wrong with the sentence: 'Trust is an essencial part of teamwork.'
28. Why is 'disappoint' preferred over 'let down' in business emails?
29. What is wrong with the sentence: 'We are definately going.'
30. Which of the following is a synonym for 'almost'?
31. Which of the following is the correct spelling of the word meaning 'stated clearly and in detail'?
32. What does 'corroborate' mean in the sentence: 'The detective needed a second witness to corroborate the suspect's alibi'?
33. Which of these words shares the same spelling pattern (double consonant + ied) as 'applied'?
34. What is wrong with the sentence: 'We watched the balloon's assent into the clouds.'
35. What is the correct adjective form meaning 'inept or unskillful'?
36. Which memory trick helps you remember the spelling of 'disappoint'?
37. Which of the following is an antonym for 'elementary'?
38. How many syllables are in the word 'aisle'?
39. What is wrong with the sentence: 'She does'nt drive.'
40. Which of these words shares the same Latin root ('commodus') as 'accommodate'?
41. A helpful trick to remember the spelling of the death-related word is that 'death' has no 'e', so:
42. How many syllables are in the word 'across'?
43. Which of the following is an antonym for 'concede'?
44. What is wrong with the sentence: 'We cannot forsee the future.'
45. Which memory trick helps you remember the spelling of 'attorney'?
46. Is 'column' spelled differently in British English?
47. What is the correct noun form of the verb 'exist'?
48. What is wrong with the sentence: 'We acheived our quarterly targets.'
49. Which of the following is the correct spelling of the word meaning 'a coworker'?
50. What does 'arctic' mean in the sentence: 'She gave me an arctic stare'?
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.
