50 Most Commonly Misspelled Words
Spelling mistakes can act like a heavy anchor on a child’s writing, limiting the words they feel confident using and sometimes even holding back their creativity and self-esteem in class.
Young learners who struggle with spelling often limit their vocabulary and simplify their sentence structures to avoid words they find difficult to spell, which can make it harder for others to see the full range of their abilities. Over time, this lack of confidence in their written expression can spill over into other areas of learning and personal development, making it essential for parents and teachers to address spelling challenges early and supportively.
In this guide, we have organised the 50 most commonly misspelled words into simple, easy-to-follow categories, included helpful memory tricks and expert-recommended tools, and provided a quick-reference table, all aimed at making spelling less intimidating.
1. Double Letters
Words with repeated consonants are often trimmed down by mistake.
- Accommodate (often “Acomodate”): remember two Cs and two Ms—think “A Ccot Mattress.”
- Embarrass (“Embaras”): double the rr and ss—“Em-ba-rr-ss.”
- Occurrence (“Ocurrence”): two c’s and two r’s.
- Millennium (“Milenium”): two l’s and two n’s.
- Recommend (“Reccommend”): only two c’s.
- Occasion (“Ocassion”): two c’s, one s.
- Vacuum (“Vacum”): two u’s.
2. Silent Letters
These letters are written but not pronounced.
- Wednesday (silent d—“Wed-nes-day”).
- February (silent first r—“Feb-ru-ary”).
- Restaurant (silent au—“Rest-au-rant”).
- Liaison (silent middle i—“Li-ai-son”).
3. Vowel Order
Swapping “ie” vs. “ei,” or misplacing other vowels.
- Weird (“Wierd”): breaks “i before e.”
- Receive (“Recieve”): rule is “e i after c.”
- Separate (“Seperate”): remember “a rat in the middle.”
- Definitely (“Definately”): ends in -ite, not -ate.
- Calendar (“Calender”): ends -ar.
- Gauge (“Guage”): au order, not ua.
4. Suffix Confusion
Choosing the right ending (-ance vs. -ence, etc.).
- Necessary (“Necassary”): one c, two s’s.
- Judgment (US: no e, UK: “Judgement” both acceptable).
- Maintenance (“Maintainance”): ends -ance.
- Privilege (“Priviledge”): no d after “g.”
5. Foreign Origins
Imported words that retain odd spellings.
- Rhythm (“Rythm”): Greek rhythmos.
- Questionnaire (“Questionaire”): double n.
- Colonel (“Kernel”): pronounced “kernel.”
- Maneuver (US) / Manoeuvre (UK).
Which type of spelling mistake do your students make most often?
6. Tricky Consonants
Clusters that catch learners out.
- Dilemma (“Dilemna”): two m’s.
- Conscience (“Conscious”): sci in the middle.
- Consensus (“Consenus”): ends -sus.
- Jewellery (UK) / Jewelry (US): “zzel-ry.”
- Threshold (“Threhold”): silent h after t.
- Twelfth (“Twelth”): remember “twelf-th.”
7. Homophones
Same sound, different spellings & meanings.
|
Word A
|
Word B
|
Tip
|
|---|---|---|
|
Principal
|
Principle
|
School head vs. rule
|
|
Their
|
There
|
Ownership vs. place
|
|
Stationery
|
Stationary
|
Paper vs. still
|
|
Compliment
|
Complement
|
Praise vs. complete
|
8. Pronunciation Traps
Spellings that don’t match how they sound.
- Surprise (“Suprise”).
- Debt (silent b).
- Yacht (silent ch).
- Height (ends -ght).
9. Apostrophe Errors
Contractions that get mispunctuated.
- It’s (“Its” is possessive).
- You’re vs. Your.
- Who’s vs. Whose.
- Don’t (do not).
10. Confusing Pairs
Frequently swapped words.
- Affect (verb) vs. Effect (noun).
- Loose (not tight) vs. Lose (misplace).
- Weather vs. Whether.
- Advice (noun) vs. Advise (verb).
Bonus: 3 Extra Pitfalls
- Exaggerate (“Egzagerate”): double g.
- Argument (“Arguement”): no e after u.
- Immediately (“Immediatly”): ends -ely.
Quick-Reference Table
|
Category
|
Example
|
Correct Spelling
|
Common Error
|
|---|---|---|---|
|
Double Letters
|
Accommodate
|
Accommodate
|
Acomodate
|
|
Silent Letters
|
Wednesday
|
Wednesday
|
Wednesay
|
|
Vowel Order
|
Definitely
|
Definitely
|
Definately
|
|
Suffix Confusion
|
Maintenance
|
Maintenance
|
Maintainance
|
|
Foreign Origins
|
Questionnaire
|
Questionnaire
|
Questionaire
|
|
Tricky Consonants
|
Threshold
|
Threshold
|
Threhold
|
|
Homophones
|
Their vs There
|
Their / There
|
Their / There
|
|
Pronunciation Traps
|
Yacht
|
Yacht
|
Yatch
|
|
Apostrophe Errors
|
It’s vs Its
|
It’s vs Its
|
Its / It’s
|
|
Confusing Pairs
|
Loose vs Lose
|
Loose vs Lose
|
Loose / Lose
|
Pro Tips to Avoid Errors
- Break It Down: Syllabify tricky words—“Feb-ru-ary,” “Wed-nes-day.”
- Write & Repeat: Use new words in sentences or flashcards.
- Tech Tools: Employ Grammarly or Hemingway Editor for instant feedback.
- Self-Tests: Quiz with “definitely” vs. “definately” to cement correct forms.
Final Note: Bookmark this guide and revisit regularly. Spelling mastery is a lifelong skill, but with structured practice, your students (and you!) will see rapid progress.
Frequently Asked Questions:
1. What’s the single best thing a parent can do at home to improve their child’s spelling?
Incorporate more interactive learning into lessons. Encourage your child to express their individuality when practicing. Some ideas are: colored pens, sand, or drawing next to words. For young kids, the mirror game serves the dual purpose of practicing words and stimulating the imagination. Game-building letter sets help kids envision the word, and letter or words building games help kids envision letters in a fun way. The emphasis is to facilitate a more complex and enriched cognitive memory.
2. What are the best memory tricks (mnemonics) for remembering the most common spelling demons?
Mnemonics are amazing! Try these:
Separate: There’s “a rat” in separate.
Necessary: It has one C and two S’s (one collar and two sleeves).
Because: Big Elephants Can Always Understand Small Elephants.
A Lot (two words, never ‘alot’): Think of “a lot of space.”
3. When should I worry that my child's poor spelling might be a sign of a learning difficulty like Dyslexia?
Everyone makes mistakes. But when it comes to pronunciation of challenging words like “accommodate” or “separate” it is okay. Still, if a child mixes letters when trying to sound a word out, is having trouble with a word even when it is a frequently used sight word, or struggles with transposition, it will help to bring it to a teacher’s or a pediatrician’s attention. The earlier something is diagnosed, the easier it is to get support of the right kind. Information like this can help shape a positive forecast!
4. What are the Best Apps for Checking and Improving Commonly Misspelled Words in English?
For error checking in real time, we recommend Grammarly. It is handy, even when a user is in the middle of composing a document, and it is able to pick contextual mistakes that other spell checking tools will miss like homophones (e.g. their vs. there). For more controlled practice, something like Vocabulary Spelling City or other quiz apps that have practice focused to more dedicated topics work better. One is for faulty presumption checking while the other is for focused, systematic practice. Use both: one for checking and one for dedicated, systematic learning!
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