Dr. Language has provided a one-stop cure for all your spelling ills. Here are the 100 words most often misspelled (misspell is one of them). Each word has a mnemonic pill with it and, if you swallow it, it will help you to remember how to spell the word. Master the orthography of the words on this page and reduce the time you spend searching dictionaries by 50%.
A
acceptable Several words made the list because of the suffix pronounced -赈l but sometimes spelled -ible, sometimes -able. Just remember to accept any table offered to you and you will spell this word OK.
accidentally It is no accident that the test for adverbs on -ly is whether they come from an adjective on -al (accidental in this case). If so, the -al has to be in the spelling. No publical, then publicly.
accommodate Remember, this word is large enough to accommodate both a double c AND a double m.
acquire Try to acquire the knowledge that this word and the next began with the prefix ad- but the [d] converts to [c] before [q].
acquit See the previous discussion.
a lot Two words! Hopefully, you wont have to allot a lot of time to this problem.
amateur Amateurs need not be mature: this word ends on the French suffix -eur (the equivalent of English -er).
apparent A parent need not be apparent but apparent must pay the rent, so remember this word always has the rent.
argument Lets not argue about the loss of this verbs silent [e] before the suffix -ment.
atheist Lord help you remember that this word comprises the prefix a- not + the god (also in the-ology) + -ist one who believes.
B
believe You must believe that [i] usually comes before [e] except after [c] or when it is pronounced like a as neighbor and weigh or e as in their and heir. Also take a look at foreign below. (The i-before-e rule has more exceptions than words it applies to.)
bellwether Often misspelled bellweather. A wether is a gelded ram, chosen to lead the herd (thus his bell) due to the greater likelihood that he will remain at all times ahead of the ewes.
C
calendar This word has an [e] between two [a]s. The last vowel is [a].
category This word is not in a category with catastrophe even if it sounds like it: the middle letter is [e].
cemetery Dont let this one bury you: it ends on -ery?ary an -ary in it. You already know it starts on [c], of course.
changeable The verb change keeps its [e] here to indicate that the [g] is soft, not hard. (That is also why judgement is the correct spelling of this word, no matter what anyone says.)
collectible Another -ible word. You just have to remember.
column Silent final [e] is commonplace in English but a silent final [n] is not uncommon, especially after [m].
committed If you are committed to correct spelling, you will remember that this word doubles its final [t] from commit to committed.
conscience Dont let misspelling this word weigh on your conscience: [ch] spelled sc is unusual but legitimate.
conscientious Work on your spelling conscientiously and remember this word with [ch] spelled two different ways: sc and ti.
conscious Try to be conscious of the sc [ch] sound and all the vowels in this words ending and i-o-u a note of congratulations.
consensus The census does not require a consensus, since they are not related.
D
daiquiri Dont make yourself another daiquiri until you learn how to spell this funny word―the name of a Cuban village.
definite(ly) This word definitely sounds as though it ends only on -it, but it carries a silent e everywhere it goes.
discipline A little discipline, spelled with the [s] and the [c] will get you to the correct spelling of this one.
drunkenness You would be surprised how many sober people omit one of the [n]s in this one.
dumbbell Even smart people forget one of the [b]s in this one. (So be careful who you call one when you write.)
E
embarrass(ment) This one wont embarrass you if you remember it is large enough for a double [r] AND a double [s].
equipment This word is misspelled equiptment 22,932 times on the web right now.
exhilarate Remembering that [h] when you spell this word will lift your spirits and if you remember both [a]s, it will be exhilarating!
exceed Remember that this one is -ceed, not -cede. (To exceed all expectations, master the spellings of this word, precede and supersede below.)
existence No word like this one spelled with an [a] is in existence. This word is a menage a quatre of one [i] with three [e]s.
experience Dont experience the same problem many have with existence above in this word: -ence!
F
fiery The silent e on fire is also cowardly: it retreats inside the word rather than face the suffix -y.
foreign Here is one of several words that violate the i-before-e rule.
G
gauge You must learn to gauge the positioning of the [a] and [u] in this word. Remember, they are in alphabetical order (though not the [e]).
grateful You should be grateful to know that keeping great out of grateful is great.
guarantee I guarantee you that this word is not spelled like warranty even though they are synonyms. [FS:PAGE]
H
harass This word is too small for two double letters but dont let it harass you, just keep the [r]s down to one.
height English reaches the height (not heighth!) of absurdity when it spells height and width so differently.
hierarchy The i-before-e rule works here, so what is the problem?
humorous Humor us and spell this word humorous: the [r] is so weak, it needs an [o] on both sides to hold it up.
I
ignorance Dont show your ignorance by spelling this word -ence!
immediate The immediate thing to remember is that this word has a prefix, in- not which becomes [m] before [m] (or [b] or [p]). Not mediate means direct which is why immediately means directly.
independent Please be independent but not in your spelling of this word. It ends on -ent.
indispensable Knowing that this word ends on -able is indispensable to good writing.
inoculate This one sounds like a shot in the eye. One [n] the eye is enough.
intelligence Using two [l]s in this word and ending it on -ence rather than -ance are marks of . . . you guessed it.
its/its The apostrophe marks a contraction of it is. Something that belongs to it is its.
J
jewelry Sure, sure, it is made by a jeweler but the last [e] in this case flees the scene like a jewel thief. However, if you prefer British spelling, remember to double the [l]: jeweller, jewellery.
judgement Judgement is governed by one of the rare rules of English orthography, so why not enjoy it? After [c] and [g], [e] is retained to indicate the letter is soft, i.e. pronounced like [s] or [j], respectively. Omitting it indicates it is hard, i.e. pronounced [k] or [g], as in fragment, pigment. If we write management, arrangement, we should write judgement, acknowledgement, abridgement. The presence of the [d] is of no significance to English orthography.
K
kernel (colonel) There is more than a kernel of truth in the claim that all the vowels in this word are [e]s. So why is the military rank (colonel) pronounced identically? English spelling can be chaotic.
L
leisure Yet another violator of the i-before-e rule. You can be sure of the spelling of the last syllable but not of the pronunciation.
liaison Another French word throwing us an orthographical curve: a spare [i], just in case. Thats an [s], too, that sounds like a [z].
library It may be as enjoyable as a berry patch but that isnt the way it is spelled. That first [r] should be pronounced, too.
license Where does English get the license to use both its letters for the sound [s] in one word?
lightning Learning how to omit the [e] in this word should lighten the load of English orthography a little bit.
M
maintenance The main tenants of this word are main and tenance even though it comes from the verb maintain. English orthography at its most spiteful.
maneuver Man, the price you pay for borrowing from French is high. This one goes back to French main + oeuvre hand-work, a spelling better retained in the British spelling, manoeuvre.
medieval The medieval orthography of English even lays traps for you: everything about the MIDdle Ages is MEDieval or, as the British would write, mediaeval.
memento Why would something to remind of you of a moment be spelled memento? Well, it is.
millennium Here is another big word, large enough to hold two double consonants, double [l] and double [n].
miniature Since that [a] is seldom pronounced, it is seldom included in the spelling. This one is a mini ature; remember that.
minuscule Since something minuscule is smaller than a miniature, shouldnt they be spelled similarly? Less than cool, or minus cule.
mischievous This mischievous word holds two traps: [i] before [e] and [o] before [u]. Four of the five vowels in English reside here.
misspell What is more embarrassing than to misspell the name of the problem? Just remember that it is mis + spell and that will spell you the worry about spelling spell.
N
neighbor No wonder many speaking Black English say hood for neighborhood?t avoids the i-before-e rule and the silent gh. If you use British spelling, it will cost you another [u]: neighbour.
noticeable The [e] is noticeably retained in this word to indicate the [c] is soft, pronounced like [s]. Without the [e], it would be pronounced hard, like [k], as in applicable.
O
occasionally Writers occasionally tire of doubling so many consonants and omit one, usually one of the [l]s. Dont you ever do it.
occurrence Remember not only the occurrence of double double consonants in this word, but that the suffix is -ence, not -ance. No reason, just the English language keeping us on our toes.
P
pastime Since a pastime is something you do to pass the time, you would expect a double [s] here. Well, there is only one. The second [s] was slipped through the cracks in English orthography long ago. [FS:PAGE]
perseverance All it takes is perseverance and you, too, can be a (near-)perfect speller. The suffix is -ance for no reason at all.
personnel Funny Story (passed along by Bill Rudersdorf): The assistant Vice-President of Personnel notices that his superior, the VP himself, upon arriving at his desk in the morning opens a small, locked box, smiles, and locks it back again. Some years later when he advanced to that position (inheriting the key), he came to work early one morning to be assured of privacy. Expectantly, he opened the box. In it was a single piece of paper which said: Two Ns, one L.
playwright Those who play right are right-players, not playwrights. Well, since they write plays, they should be play-writes, wright right? Rong Wrong. Remember that a play writer in Old English was called a play worker and wright is from an old form of work (wrought iron, etc.)
possession Possession possesses more [s]s than a snake.
precede What follows, succeeds, so what goes before should, what? No, no, no, you are using logic. Nothing confuses English spelling more than common sense. Succeed but precede.
principal/principle The spelling principle to remember here is that the school principal is a prince and a pal (despite appearances)--and the same applies to anything of foremost importance, such as a principal principle. A principle is a rule. (Thank you, Meghan Cope, for help on this one.)
privilege According to the pronunciation (not pronounciation!) of this word, that middle vowel could be anything. Remember: two [i]s + two [e]s in that order.
pronunciation Nouns often differ from the verbs they are derived from. This is one of those. In this case, the pronunciation is different, too, an important clue.
publicly Let me publicly declare the rule (again): if the adverb comes from an adjective ending on -al, you include that ending in the adverb; if not, as here, you dont.
Q
questionnaire The French doing it to us again. Double up on the [n]s in this word and dont forget the silent [e]. Maybe someday we will spell it the English way.
R
receive/receipt I hope you have received the message by now: [i] before [e] except after . . . .
recommend I would recommend you think of this word as the equivalent of commending all over again: re+commend. That would be recommendable.
referred Final consonants are often doubled before suffixes (remit: remitted, remitting). However, this rule applies only to accented syllables ending on [l] and [r], e.g. rebelled, referred but traveled, buffered and not containing a diphthong, e.g. prevailed, coiled.
reference Refer to the last mentioned word and also remember to add -ence to the end for the noun.
relevant The relevant factor here is that the word is not revelant, revelent, or even relevent. [l] before [v] and the suffix -ant.
restaurant Ey, you! Remember, these two words when you spell restaurant. They are in the middle of it.
rhyme Actually, rime was the correct spelling until 1650. After that, egg-heads began spelling it like rhythm. Why? No rhyme nor reason other than to make it look like rhythm.
rhythm This one was borrowed from Greek (and conveniently never returned) so it is spelled the way we spell words borrowed from Greek and conveniently never returned.
S
schedule If perfecting your spelling is on your schedule, remember the [sk] is spelled as in school. (If you use British or Canadian pronunciation, why do you pronounce this word [shedyul] but school, [skul]? That has always puzzled me.)
separate How do you separate the [e]s from the [a]s in this word? Simple: the [e]s surround the [a]s.
sergeant The [a] needed in both syllables of this word has been pushed to the back of the line. Remember that, and the fact that [e] is used in both syllables, and you can write your sergeant without fear of misspelling his rank.
supersede This word supersedes all others in perversity. As if we dont have enough to worry about, keeping words on -ceed and -cede (succeed, precede, etc.) straight in our minds, this one has to be different from all the rest. The good news is: this is the only English word based on this stem spelled -sede.
T
their/theyre/there Theyre all pronounced the same but spelled differently. Possessive is their and the contraction of they are is theyre. Everywhere else, it is there.
threshold This one can push you over the threshold. It looks like a compound thresh + hold but it isnt. Two [h]s are enough.
twelfth Even if you omit the [f] in your pronunciation of this word (which you shouldnt do), it is retained in the spelling.
tyranny If you are still resisting the tyranny of English orthography at this point, you must face the problem of [y] inside this word, where it shouldnt be. The guy is a tyrant and his problem is tyranny. (Dont forget to double up on the [n]s, too.) [FS:PAGE]
U
until I will never stop harping on this until this word is spelled with an extra [l] for the last time!
V
vacuum If your head is not a vacuum, remember that the silent [e] on this one married the [u] and joined him inside the word where they are living happily ever since. Well, the evidence is suggestive but not conclusive. Anyway, spell this word with two [u]s and not like volume.
WXYZ
weather Whether you like the weather or not, you have to write the [a] after the [e] when you spell it.
weird It is weird having to repeat this rule so many times: [i] before [e] except
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