How confident are you of your spelling skills? We asked top academics and writing experts to give us their top 100 hardest words to spell they’ve seen in students’ writing assignments. Spellings is extremely importnant, not less than grammar. This is what they came up with tips and a list of 100 most difficult words.
Tips on How to Spell Hard Words
So by now, you’ve realized that you have made your share of spelling mistakes and are wondering what you need to do to be a better speller. These tips are the same ones we see young students participating in spelling competitions use when they tackle any of several hard English words to spell. Give them all a try to see which tips work best for you:
- Watch what others do.
The first thing you may want to consider doing is looking at how others utilize different techniques to spell out difficult words. Start with the kids who compete in national spelling bees to get a sense of all the different things they do spell long or rare words correctly.
- Use your palms to spell.
If you have scratch paper at hand you can always spell out the word as close as you can and then make corrections when you see what you feel can be wrong. Other than this, you can
- Consider the origins.
The origin of words is a study known as etymology which traces a word’s lineage and existence to the first known use in written form. It is especially helpful to people wanting to learn how to spell words because you can trace root words and syllables.
Hard Words to Spell for 6th Graders
If you want to challenge yourself with very hard words to spell at the sixth-grade level, then this collection might be just what you’re looking for:
- Noticeable (Correct) / Noticable (Incorrect)
- Vacuum (Correct) / Vacume (Incorrect)
- Recommend (Correct) / Recomend (Incorrect)
- Occasion (Correct) / Ocassion (Incorrect)
- Beginning (Correct) / Begginning (Incorrect)
- Government (Correct) / Goverment (Incorrect)
- Committee (Correct) / Comitee (Incorrect)
- Mississippi (Correct) / Missisipi (Incorrect)
- Ancient (Correct) / Ainshent (Incorrect)
- Culture (Correct) / Culcher (Incorrect)
Hard Words to Spell for 7th Graders
In a time when spellcheck comes with every computer writing program, we may lose sight of terms in this list of hard words to spell:
- Chaos (Correct) / Kaos (Incorrect)
- Accommodation (Correct) / Accomodation (Incorrect)
- Strengthen (Correct) / Strengten (Incorrect)
- Misspelled (Correct) / Mispelled (Incorrect)
- Deceive (Correct) / Deseave (Incorrect)
- Receipt (Correct) / Receit (Incorrect)
- Arithmetic (Correct) / Arithmatic (Incorrect)
- Embarrass (Correct) / Embaras (Incorrect)
- Constitution (Correct) / Constatution (Incorrect)
- Encyclopedia (Correct) / Encyclopaedia (Incorrect)
Hard Words to Spell for 8th Graders
Here are hard to spell words spell for middle-school teenagers, particularly those in the 8th grade. Can you spell them without using spell-check?
- Pneumonia (Correct) / Neumonia (Incorrect)
- Acknowledgment (Correct) / Acknoledgement (Incorrect)
- Accidentally (Correct) / Accidentilly (Incorrect)
- Descendant (Correct) / Desendent (Incorrect)
- Exaggerate (Correct) / Exagerate (Incorrect)
- Courageous (Correct) / Corageous (Incorrect)
- Competent (Correct) / Compitent (Incorrect)
- Patriarch (Correct) / Patrearch (Incorrect)
- Pediatrician (Correct) / Pidiatrision (Incorrect)
- Picturesque (Correct) / Picturesche (Incorrect)
Hard Words to Spell for 9th Graders
In your first year of high school, you will likely encounter some of the hardest words to spell ever. Check out this list for 9th grade:
- Cavalcade (Correct) / Cavacade (Incorrect)
- Conscientious (Correct) / Consciescience (Incorrect)
- Fluorescent (Correct) / Florescent (Incorrect)
- Martyr (Correct) / Marter (Incorrect)
- Olfactory (Correct) / Ofactory (Incorrect)
- Facsimile (Correct) / Faximile (Incorrect)
- Gruesome (Correct) / Grewsome (Incorrect)
- Incessant (Correct) / Incessent (Incorrect)
- Reservoir (Correct) / Resavoire (Incorrect)
- Spasmodic (Correct) / Spasmodick (Incorrect)
Hard Words to Spell for 12th Graders
As you advance through educational levels, you will be introduced to more reading assignments and will grow your vocabulary. These are the hardest English words to spell at the 12th-grade level:
- Acquiesce (Correct) / Aquese (Incorrect)
- Ambiguous (Correct) / Ambiguus (Incorrect)
- Stringent (Correct) / Stringint (Incorrect)
- Evanescent (Correct) / Evansent (Incorrect)
- Querulous (Correct) / Quarelous (Incorrect)
- Spontaneity (Correct) / Spontenaity (Incorrect)
- Tenacious (Correct) / Tenashus (Incorrect)
- Divergent (Correct) / Divergeant (Incorrect)
- Resilient (Correct) / Resiliant (Incorrect)
- Renovation (Correct) / Renovashun (Incorrect)
Hard Words to Spell for College Students
Technology has made learning the hardest words to spell a rare activity. This list of 10 terms is considered to be college-level. See if you’re able to spell them without help:
- Pharaoh (Correct) / Farow (Incorrect)
- Intelligence (Correct) / Inteligense (Incorrect)
- Didactic (Correct) / Didachtik (Incorrect)
- Pronunciation (Correct) / Pronounsiation (Incorrect)
- Gobbledegook (Correct) / Gobblydigook (Incorrect)
- Euphemism (Correct) / Yufamism (Incorrect)
- Abrogate (Correct) / Abrohgate (Incorrect)
- Demagogue (Correct) / Demagog (Incorrect)
- Facetious (Correct) / Faseshus (Incorrect)
- Hyperbole (Correct) / Hyperboly (Incorrect)
Common Words that Are Hard to Spell
This list includes common hard words to spell for adults. It’s surprising how so many people struggle but all you have to do is check the web for examples of this happening:
- Thorough (Correct) / Thorogh (Incorrect)
- Rhythm (Correct) / Rythm (Incorrect)
- Peculiar (Correct) / Pechuliar (Incorrect)
- Buffet (Correct) / Bufay (Incorrect)
- Liaison (Correct) / Liason (Incorrect)
- Anecdote (Correct) / Anechdote (Incorrect)
- Anonymous (Correct) / Anonimous (Incorrect)
- Collaborate (Correct) / Colaborate (Incorrect)
- Substantiate (Correct) / Substanchiate (Incorrect)
- Reconciliation (Correct) / Reckonsiliation (Incorrect)
Long Hard Words to Spell
Sometimes multisyllabic words that are hard to spell are difficult because we don’t think about silent letters that may appear anywhere. Check these out below:
- Grammatically (Correct) / Gramatically (Incorrect)
- Magnanimous (Correct) / Magnanimus (Incorrect)
- Metamorphosis (Correct) / Metamofisus (Incorrect)
- Satisfactorily (Correct) / Satisfactory (Incorrect)
- Surveillance (Correct) / Surveylance (Incorrect)
- Unanimous (Correct) / Unianomous (Incorrect)
- Reconciliation (Correct) / Reconsiliation (Incorrect)
- Procrastinate (Correct) / Procrastanate (Incorrect)
- Ostentatious (Correct) / Ostantatious (Incorrect)
- Camaraderie (Correct) / Comraderie (Incorrect)
Super Hard Words to Spell
These are really hard words to spell, even for the best English spellers in the world. As you can see most are words familiar to medical professionals and scientists, so unless you’re familiar with the field you are likely to have trouble with them:
- Syllepsis (Correct) / Sylepsis (Incorrect)
- Antediluvian (Correct) / Antidiluvian (Incorrect)
- Crustaceology (Correct) / Crustaciology (Incorrect)
- Epidemiologist (Correct) / Epidimialogist (Incorrect)
- Ophthalmologist (Correct) / Optamologist (Incorrect)
- Nephrology (Correct) / Nefrology (Incorrect)
- Entomology (Correct) / Entimology (Incorrect)
- Chiaroscurist (Correct) / Chiaraschurist (Incorrect)
- Logorrhea (Correct) / Logoria (Incorrect)
- Sacrilegious (Correct) / Sacriligious (Incorrect)
Easy Words that Are Hard to Spell
Finally, this last set includes hard words to spell that is considered easy. Take your time spelling these out because you may find yourself feeling a bit embarrassed if you make a simple mistake:
- Acquire (Correct) / Akwire (Incorrect)
- Argument (Correct) / Arguement (Incorrect)
- Maintenance (Correct) / Maintanence (Incorrect)
- Gauge (Correct) / Ghage (Incorrect)
- Memento (Correct) / Mamento (Incorrect)
- Occurrence (Correct) / Ocurrance (Incorrect)
- Questionnaire (Correct) / Questionaire (Incorrect)
- Sergeant (Correct) / Sargeant (Incorrect)
- Weather (Correct) / Wheather (Incorrect)
- Awkward (Correct) / Awkwerd (Incorrect)
What did you think of our list? Did you manage to spell the majority of them? As you can see, a lot of the mistakes come from simple mispronunciations of the words or syllables. This, of course, can be fixed with time and patience. We’re always available to assist you, so just get a hold of our customer support team and we’ll provide you with more tips and tricks to improve your spelling skills and get better writing jobs.