Can I Have It In A Sentence, Please? 80+ Words That Are Notoriously Hard To Spell

Let’s face it: we all have those words that trip us up when it comes to spelling. Often, it’s just a momentary lapse in concentration. You know the difference between “their,” “they’re,” and “there,” but under pressure, you might type the first one that comes to mind. In addition to the typical mistakes from rushing, challenging words tend to fall into two main categories: common words that defy spelling conventions and obscure ones that are rarely used. For example, the National Spelling Bee once featured “esquamulose” as the winning word—something most of us would struggle to spell even if we had seen it before. Just like there are hard-to-pronounce baby names, some lengthy words can be equally difficult to spell.

Many challenging words originate from other languages, expressing concepts that lack direct English equivalents. Once you learn these unique terms, you’ll be eager to incorporate them into your vocabulary. We’ve compiled a list of frequently misspelled words, some are ones that frequently confuse us or have been showcased in spelling bees despite being unfamiliar to most. Thank goodness for spell-check!

Hard Spelling Bee Words

Did you know that I lost my fourth-grade spelling bee because I misspelled “automobile”? It’s a memory that still haunts me, even though the audience’s presence was probably the real cause of my fluster. Spelling bee words are notoriously challenging. Since its inception in 1925, the National Spelling Bee has tested kids on words like “eczema,” a term we often miswrite despite using products for it. Additionally, “vivisepulture,” meaning the act of burying someone alive, was spelled correctly by a 12-year-old winner—talk about pressure!

Here are a few examples of hard-to-spell words:

Knack
Esquamulose
Eczema
Chihuahua
Vivisepulture
Shalloon
Logorrhea

Fun fact: Logorrhea refers to excessive and often incoherent talkativeness. Sound familiar to anyone with a chatty toddler?

Commonly Misspelled Everyday Words

While some words are used frequently, they can be tricky to spell. Certain words defy standard grammar and spelling rules, leading even experienced writers astray. A case in point is “weird,” which breaks the “I before e” rule, prompting many to spell it incorrectly. The phrase “a lot” often gets jumbled into “alot,” misleading many, including, surprisingly, spell-check tools. Similarly, “playwright” can confuse those who think it should be “playwrite,” given its function.

Here’s a list of some everyday words that people often misspell:

Accommodate
Acquire
A lot
Calendar
Cemetery
Changeable
Conscience
Conscientious
Conscious
Consensus
Daiquiri
Definitely
Discipline
Fiery
Gauge
Grateful
Guarantee
Height
Inoculate
Its/it’s
Judgment
Kernel
Liaison
License
Maintenance
Maneuver
Medieval
Memento
Millennium
Mischievous
Misspell
Noticeable
Occasionally
Occurrence
Pastime
Playwright
Possession
Privilege
Publicly
Recommend
Relevant
Rhyme/Rhythm
Separate
Sergeant
Their/they’re/there
Threshold
Twelfth
Vacuum
Weird

Words with Silent Letters

Words that contain silent letters are another category that can confuse even the best spellers. For instance, who decided that “pneumonia” needed a “p” in the first place? Here are a few examples of words that include silent letters:

Abscess
Asthma
Champagne
Cologne
Conscience
Faux
Handkerchief
Honest
Knack
Knead
Mnemonic
Muscle
Phlegm
Psychology
Pterodactyl
Receipt
Reign
Rendezvous
Resuscitate
Salmon
Silhouette
Solemn
Subtle
Wrangle
Wrath

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In summary, mastering the spelling of tricky words is a challenge many face, whether due to silent letters, unconventional rules, or simply the pressure of the moment. This article highlights some of the most commonly misspelled words and emphasizes the value of tools like spell-check, which can save us from embarrassing mistakes.