Silent Letters in English Words

Silent letters in English refer to letters in a word that are not pronounced or sounded out when the word is spoken. These letters can be found in words of all origins and are often used to differentiate similar words with different meanings. Examples of silent letters include “b” in “doubt,” “g” in “gnaw,” “k” in “knee,” and “w” in “wrap”.

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Silent Letters | Sounds of Silence

One of the noted difficulties of English spelling is a high number of silent letters…

Learning to speak another language is hard enough, but students of English have to deal with further issues when they come to the written form of the language, and they soon find that English words do not always look exactly how they sound. In an alphabetic writing system, a silent letter is a letter that, in a particular word, does not correspond to any sound in the word’s pronunciation.

Silent letters cause difficulties for both native speakers and English learners, because they make the spelling of words different from their pronunciation.

Here’s a list of common words with silent letters in English

Silent A – Artistically, logically, musically, stoically
Silent E – When added to the end of a word, it changes the pronunciation of the word, but is in itself, silent.
Silent F – halfpenny
Silent I– business
Silent P– corps, coup, pneumonia, pseudo, psychology, ptomaine, receipt
Silent R – butter, finger, garden, here
Silent S – aisle, apropos, bourgeois, debris, fracas, island, isle, viscount

List of Silent Letters

Here is a list of common English words that have a silent letter:

Biscuit (silent “s”)
Island (silent “s”)
Knight (silent “k”)
Knot (silent “k”)
Linger (silent “g”)
Whistle (silent “w”)
Wraith (silent “w”)
Write (silent “w”)
Tomb (silent “b”)
Comb (silent “b”)
Condemn (silent “d”)
Debt (silent “b”)
Doubt (silent “b”)
Clasp (silent “a”)
Castle (silent “a”)
Gourmet (silent “u”)
Gnarled (silent “n”)
Halfpenny (silent “a”)
Hiccough (silent “c”)
Psalm (silent “s”)
Receive (silent “c”)
Thorough (silent “o”)
Thumb (silent “b”)
Worry (silent “r”)
Wrap (silent “r”)
Listen (silent “s”)
Sword (silent “d”)
Calm (silent “l”)
Talk (silent “l”)
Walk (silent “l”)

List of Silent Letters in English Words

Slient B

Bomb /bɒm/
Climb /klaɪm/
Comb /kəʊm/
Crumb /krʌm/
Debt /det/
Doubt /daʊt/
Dumb /dʌm/
Lamb /læm/
Limb /lɪm/
Plumber /ˈplʌmər/
Subtle /ˈsʌtl/
Thumb /θʌm/
Tomb /tuːm/
Womb /wuːm/

Silent C

Ascend /əˈsend/
Ascent /əˈsent/
Crescent /ˈkresnt/
Descend /dɪˈsend/
Descent /dɪˈsent
Disciple /dɪˈsaɪpl/
Fluorescent /ˌflɔːˈresnt/
Muscle /ˈmʌsl/
Obscene /əbˈsiːn/
Resuscitate /rɪˈsʌsɪteɪt/
Scenario /səˈnærioʊ/
Scene /siːn/
Scent /sent/
Science /ˈsaɪəns /
Scissors /ˈsɪzərz/

Silent D

Wednesday /ˈwenzdeɪ/
Sandwich /ˈsænwɪtʃ/
Handkerchief /ˈhæŋkərtʃɪf/
Handsome /ˈhænsəm/

Silent G

Align /əˈlaɪn/
Assign /əˈsaɪn/
Benign /bɪˈnaɪn/
Campaign /kæmˈpeɪn/
Champagne /ʃæmˈpeɪn/
Cologne /kəˈloʊn/
Consign /kənˈsaɪn/
Design /dɪˈzaɪn/
Feign /feɪn/
Foreign /ˈfɔːrən/
Gnarly /ˈnɑːrli/
Gnome /noʊm/
Reign /reɪn/
Resign /rɪˈzaɪn/
Sign /saɪn/

Silent H

Ache /eɪk/
Anchor /ˈæŋkər/
Archaeology /ˌɑːrkiˈɑːlədʒi/
Architect /ˈɑːrkɪtekt/
Chaos /ˈkeɪɑːs/
Character /ˈkærəktər/
Charisma /kəˈrɪzmə/
Chemical /ˈkemɪkl/
Chlorine /ˈklɔːriːn/
Choir /ˈkwaɪər/
Chord /kɔːrd/
Choreograph /ˈkɔːriəɡræf
Chrome /kroʊm/
Echo /ˈekoʊ/
Ghost /ɡoʊst/
Hour /ˈaʊər/
Honest /ˈɑːnɪst/
Mechanic /məˈkænɪk/
Monarchy /ˈmɑːnərki/
Orchestra /ˈɔːrkɪstrə/
Psychic /ˈsaɪkɪk/
Scheme /skiːm/
School /skuːl/
Stomach ˈstʌmək/
Tech /tek/

Silent K

Knack /næk/
Knead /niːd/
Knee /niː/
Kneel /niːl/
Knew /nuː/
Knickers /ˈnɪkərz/
Knife /naɪf/
Knight /naɪt/
Knit /nɪt/
Knob /nɑːb/
Knock /nɑːk/
Knot /nɑːt/
Know /noʊ/
Knowledge /ˈnɑːlɪdʒ/
Knuckle /ˈnʌkl/

Silent P

Psychic /ˈsaɪkɪk/
Psychology /saɪˈkɑːlədʒi/
Pneumonia /nuːˈmoʊniə/
Pseudo /ˈsuːdoʊ/
Psychiatrist /saɪˈkaɪətrɪst
Psychotherapy /ˌsaɪkoʊˈθerəpi/
Psychotic /saɪˈkɑːtɪk/
Receipt /rɪˈsiːt/

Silent L

Almond /ˈɑːmənd/
Balm /bɑːm/
Calf /kæf/
Calm /kɑːm/
Chalk /tʃɔːk/
Could /kəd/
Folk /foʊk/
Half /hæf/
Salmon /ˈsæmən/
Should /ʃəd/
Talk /tɔːk/
Walk /wɔːk/
Would /wʊd/

Silent T

Apostle /əˈpɑːsl/
Bristle /ˈbrɪsl/
Bustle /ˈbʌsl/
Castle /ˈkæsl/
Fasten /ˈfæsn/
Glisten /ˈɡlɪsn/
Hustle /ˈhʌsl/
Listen /ˈlɪsn/
Moisten /ˈmɔɪsn/
Mortgage /ˈmɔːrɡɪdʒ/
Often /ˈɔːfn/
Nestle /ˈnesl/
Rustle /ˈrʌsl/
Soften /ˈsɔːfn/
Thistle /ˈθɪsl/
Whistle /ˈwɪsl/
Wrestle /ˈresl/

Silent U

Baguette /bæˈɡet/
Biscuit /ˈbɪskɪt/
Build /bɪld/
Built /bɪlt/
Circuit /ˈsɜːrkɪt/
Disguise /dɪsˈɡaɪz/
Guard /ɡɑːrd/
Guess /ɡes/
Guest /ɡest/
Guild /ɡɪld/
Guile /ɡaɪl/
Guilt /ɡɪlt/
Guitar /ɡɪˈtɑːr/
Silhouette /ˌsɪluˈet/

Silent W

Answer /ˈænsər/
Awry /əˈraɪ/
Playwright /ˈpleɪraɪt/
Sword /sɔːrd/
Whole /hoʊl/
Wrack /ræk/
Wrap /ræp
Wrapper /ˈræpər/
Wrath /ræθ/
Wreath /riːθ/
Wreck /rek/
Wreckage /ˈrekɪdʒ/
Wrench /rentʃ/
Wrestle /ˈresl/
Wretched /ˈretʃɪd/
Wriggle /ˈrɪɡl/
Wring /rɪŋ/
Wrinkle /ˈrɪŋkl/
Wrist /rɪst/
Write /raɪt/
Wrong /rɔːŋ/

Silent Letters in English Words | Pictures

To summarize, English Language Learners may find some aspects of the spelling of English words to be challenging, maybe even confusing, particularly silent letters. The fact that silent letters are so prevalent should be reason enough for teachers to learn more about them. A combination of factors has influenced the English language and will most likely continue to do so. The silent letters often have a purpose, even though it might not be evident at first. At a minimum, this information can be beneficial in clearing up some confusion on why English words are spelled as they are. Identifying these problematic areas of the English language helps to better teach it to students in a way that makes sense to them.