100 Commonly Misspelled Words in English [With Tricks]

How to Use This List

The words are organized into 6 groups based on WHY they're hard, not alphabetically. This matters because once you understand the pattern, you stop making the same type of mistake across dozens of words — not just one.

• Group 1: Words where the vowel sound is unclear (you can't hear which letter belongs there)
• Group 2: Words with confusing double letters
• Group 3: Words with silent letters
• Group 4: Words borrowed from French, Greek, or Latin with foreign spelling patterns
• Group 5: Words that are pronounced differently than they're spelled
• Group 6: Word pairs that sound the same but are spelled differently



Group 1: Unclear Vowels

In these words, one or more vowels make a vague "uh" sound when spoken. You can't hear whether it should be an A, E, I, or O — you just have to know.

Group 2: Double Letter Traps

These words trip you up because pronunciation gives zero clue about whether a letter should be doubled. You hear the same thing whether you write one M or two.

Group 3: Silent Letters

These words contain letters you cannot hear. They exist in the spelling because they were once pronounced — centuries ago — but the pronunciation changed while the spelling stayed frozen.

Group 4: Words Borrowed from Other Languages

English absorbed words from French, Greek, Latin, Italian, and dozens of other languages — often keeping the original foreign spelling. These words don't follow English patterns because they were never English to begin with.

Group 5: Words Spelled Differently Than They Sound

These words are hard because the way people say them doesn't match how they're written. You hear one thing, you write another.

Group 6: Word Pairs That Sound the Same

These aren't traditional spelling errors — they're usage errors. But in writing, using the wrong form is one of the most common mistakes in English.

Quick-Reference: 5 Spelling Rules That Work Most of the Time

1. "I before E, except after C" ✓ believe, achieve, receive, ceiling ✗ Breaks for: weird, seize, science, height, foreign Works about 73% of the time.

2. Drop the silent E before a vowel suffix ✓ make → making, hope → hoping, create → creating ✗ Breaks for: noticeable, courageous (keep E after soft C/G) Works about 90% of the time.

3. Change Y to I before a suffix ✓ happy → happiness, carry → carried, beauty → beautiful ✗ Breaks for: carrying, playing (keep Y before -ing) Works about 92% of the time.

4. Double the final consonant when the last syllable is stressed ✓ stop → stopped, begin → beginning, refer → referred ✗ Doesn't apply when stress is on first syllable: open → opening Works about 88% of the time.

5. Add -ES after S, X, Z, CH, SH ✓ boxes, watches, dishes, buses, fizzes Works about 99% of the time.

Test Yourself

Cover the list above and fill in the missing letters:

1. acc _ _ _ odate
2. emb _ _ _ ass
3. nec _ _ _ ary
4. sep _ _ ate
5. def _ _ _ tely
6. occ _ _ _ ence
7. Wed _ _ sday
8. Feb _ _ ary
9. sur _ _ ise
10. rhy _ _ m
11. rest _ _ rant
12. pro _ _ _ ciation
13. ent _ _ _ reneur
14. priv _ _ ege
15. mai _ _ _ nance
16. con _ _ ience
17. bure _ _ _ racy
18. quest _ _ _ aire
19. mil _ _ _ nium
20. vac _ _ m

Answers: 1. accommodate 2. embarrass 3. necessary 4. separate 5. definitely 6. occurrence 7. Wednesday 8. February 9. surprise 10. rhythm 11. restaurant 12. pronunciation 13. entrepreneur 14. privilege 15. maintenance 16. conscience 17. bureaucracy 18. questionnaire 19. millennium 20. vacuum



Further Resources

• Merriam-Webster: Commonly Misspelled Words
• Dictionary.com: Most Misspelled Words
• Cambridge Dictionary — pronunciation guides with audio

This reference was created by Lingua Language Center — teaching English in South Florida since 1998.