Silent Letters in Words
Spell words containing silent consonants, recognise common silent-letter patterns, and use checked word families or word histories as spelling clues
What a learner can do afterwards
- Identify and spell words with silent initial consonants, including knight, know, write, wrap, gnaw and psalm, using their common spelling patterns
- Spell words with silent letters inside the word or at its end: doubt (b), island (s), muscle (c) and solemn (n), using word origins as memory clues where helpful
- Use word families and etymology to remember silent letters, e.g. sign is related to signal where the g is pronounced
1 · Read
You have used word origins as spelling clues. A silent letter is written but has no sound of its own in a word. The starting k is silent in know, knife and knight. The starting w is silent in write and wrap. Gnaw starts with a silent g, and psalm starts with a silent p. Say the word, then check its spelling.
Silent letters have different histories. Some mark older sounds. Others were added to show word origins. Doubt is linked to the Latin word dubitare. The b written in dubitare is a memory clue for the silent b in doubt. You do not need to pronounce the Latin word to use this clue.
A silent letter can be inside a word or at its end. Island has a silent s. Muscle has a silent c after s; a muscle helps your body move. Solemn has a silent n at the end. To check a spelling, compare it letter by letter with your word list or dictionary. Keep the silent letters when you correct it.
A related word can help you remember a silent letter. Sign and signal belong to the same word family. The g is silent in sign, but you can hear it in signal. Say both words and compare their spellings. The spoken g in signal reminds you to keep g when you write sign.
Silent letters do not make a sound, but they still belong in the spelling, so always write them.
Five original silent-letter practice readings written for this dataset.
More to read
Compare sounds with written letters
Write know on a card. Read it aloud, then point to its starting k. You can see that letter, although the word begins with an n sound.
Make another card for write. Its first sound is r, but its first written letter is w. Keep the w when you spell it.
Checking sounds and checking letters are different tasks. A word can sound right even when a silent letter is missing from your writing. Compare your spelling with a word list or dictionary before deciding it is complete.
Sort words by their starting letters
Draw four boxes headed kn, wr, gn and ps. Put knife in the kn box and wrap in the wr box. Add gnaw under gn and psalm under ps.
In these four examples, the first written letter is silent. Say each word while looking at its starting pair.
Cover a box and try writing its word. Uncover it and compare every letter. Checking the starting pair helps you notice a missing silent letter. Check the rest of the word too.
Check beyond the first letter
Silent letters can occur after the start of a word. Write island, muscle and solemn on separate lines. Underline s in island, c in muscle and the final n in solemn.
Read the words aloud. The underlined letters remain in their spellings even though you do not hear their sounds.
Cover the words and write them again. Compare your copies with the checked spellings. Look inside each word and at its ending, rather than stopping after the first letter.
Make a word-family reminder
Put sign on one side of a card and signal on the other. Read both words. The g is silent in sign and spoken in signal.
Next time you spell sign, recall signal before writing. That related word gives you a reason to remember g.
A shared beginning does not prove that two words belong to the same family. Use a connection you have checked. If no related word helps, keep the spelling on your practice list and check it against a written reference.
Keep a note of the missing letter
After checking your writing, choose a word whose silent letter you left out. Copy the complete spelling into a notebook. Beside it, name the letter you need to remember.
For doubt, your note could say 'keep b'. You can also record its link with Latin dubitare, whose written b supplies a memory clue. You do not need to say the Latin word.
Cover your note and try the spelling again. Then compare it with the checked word, including the silent letter.
2 · Watch
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