noun

spelling

SPEH-lihng

noun

The act or skill of putting letters in the correct order to form words.

"English spelling can be tricky because of all its irregular words."

"She won the school spelling competition three years running."

A particular way of writing a word.

"Both spellings, "colour" and "color," are correct in their own regions."

How to Use Spelling

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishHow a word is written out, letter by letter.

UK vs US

Many words have different accepted spellings in British and American English, such as "colour"/"color" or "realise"/"realize."

Common pairings

spelling mistake spelling bee correct spelling

spellings plural

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Can you complete this real example?

English _____ can be tricky because of all its irregular words.

From the verb "spell" plus "-ing," first recorded around the 1400s.

telling welling selling yelling felling dwelling swelling smelling shelling gruelling modelling expelling