Spelling — REET English Notes
Spotting the correct English spelling is a recurring REET topic, because many words don't sound the way they're written. REET 2024 asked for the correct spelling of words like 'Mischievous' and 'Machinist' — this page gives you the general rules and a list of commonly misspelt words.
- 2 questions in REET 2024
- Class 6–8 / teaching-practice level
- 8 min read
How REET asks this topic
REET 2024 asked candidates to pick the correctly spelt option — 'Mischievous' (correct) versus 'Mischievus/Mischeivous/Mischieous' (wrong forms), and 'Machinist' (correct, from machine + ist) versus incorrect spellings. In other words, the exam focuses on words whose spelling changes when a suffix is added, or whose letter order is easily confused.
Why spelling matters in REET
In English, the pronunciation and spelling of many words don't match, so without a solid grasp of spelling, both students and future teachers make mistakes. REET tests this skill also because a candidate who becomes a teacher will need to model correct spelling themselves.
Commonly misspelt words (correct spelling)
| Correct spelling | Common mistake |
|---|---|
| Mischievous | Mischievious / Mischievus |
| Machinist | Machinest / Machineist |
| Necessary | Neccessary / Necessery |
| Occurrence | Occurence / Occurrance |
| Embarrass | Embarass / Embaras |
| Accommodate | Accomodate / Acommodate |
| Separate | Seperate |
| Definitely | Definately |
| Believe | Beleive |
| Receive | Recieve |
| Foreign | Foriegn |
| Beautiful | Beutiful / Beautifull |
These words are commonly misspelt because of their suffix, their double letters, or the 'ie/ei' letter order.
3 useful spelling rules
1) If a word ends in a silent 'e' and a suffix starting with a vowel is added, the 'e' is dropped — as in 'machine' + 'ist' = 'Machinist' (the 'e' disappears here).
2) If a word ends in a single vowel followed by a single consonant (a CVC pattern) and the stress falls on that syllable, the final consonant is doubled when a suffix is added — as in 'stop' + 'ing' = 'stopping'.
3) The general rule 'i before e except after c' works for many words (believe, receive), but a few exceptions — like 'weird', 'seize', 'foreign' — also need to be remembered.
More useful spelling rules
When a word ends in a consonant followed by 'y', the 'y' changes to 'i' before adding '-es' to form the plural or a suffix — as in 'city' becoming 'cities' (not 'cityes'). But if a vowel comes before the 'y', only 's' is added — as in 'boy' becoming 'boys', where the 'y' doesn't change.
This rule applies to verbs too — 'study' becomes 'studies' (consonant + y), but 'play' becomes 'plays' (vowel + y). Recognising this distinction stops one of the most common spelling mistakes.
Confusing word pairs that sound alike
| Word 1 | Word 2 | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| Their (belonging to them) | There (a place) / They're (they are) | possessive vs place vs contraction |
| Its (belonging to it) | It's (it is) | possessive vs contraction of 'it is' |
| Affect (to influence, verb) | Effect (a result, noun) | verb vs noun |
| Stationary (not moving) | Stationery (writing materials) | adjective vs noun |
| Principal (head of school/main) | Principle (a rule or belief) | person/adjective vs abstract rule |
| Complement (to complete) | Compliment (praise) | completing something vs praising someone |
| Desert (a dry region / to abandon) | Dessert (a sweet course) | one 's' vs two 's' |
| Lose (to misplace, verb) | Loose (not tight, adjective) | one 'o' vs two 'o' |
These word pairs are repeatedly tested in REET and other exams, for both spelling and meaning.
Words with silent letters
Many English words are written with one or more letters that are never spoken (silent letters) — like 'k' in 'know', 'w' in 'write', 'h' in 'honest', 't' in 'listen', and 'b' in 'climb'. Such words see the most spelling mistakes, because pronunciation gives no hint about the letter.
Highlighting the silent letter in a different colour or in bold and practising the word repeatedly is an effective way to remember these words, so the eye remembers the word's full visual pattern rather than just its sound.
More spelling rule examples (Set 2)
| Correct spelling | Common mistake |
|---|---|
| Committee | Comittee / Commitee |
| Immediately | Immediatly |
| Government | Goverment |
| Environment | Enviroment |
| Privilege | Priviledge |
| Rhythm | Rythm |
| Successful | Succesful / Successfull |
| Tomorrow | Tommorow / Tomorow |
| Vacuum | Vaccum |
| Argument | Arguement |
In these words, double letters or the presence/absence of an 'e' account for most of the mistakes.
The spelling of compound words
A compound word is formed by joining two words, and it can be spelt in three ways — as one closed word (like 'classroom'), hyphenated (like 'well-known'), or as two separate open words (like 'ice cream'). There's no single fixed rule for this, so such words should always be checked against a dictionary and memorised individually.
REET's main trap with such words is giving a wrong hyphen or a wrong join in the options (like 'class room' versus the correct 'classroom') — so it's worth separately noting the standard spelling of common compound words.
How to teach children
Activity
Run a weekly 'Spelling Bee' contest, where children write or say the correct spelling of a word after hearing it.
Teaching material
Put up a chart of commonly misspelt words in class, highlighting the tricky part in colour (like the double M in 'accoMModate').
Common misconception
Children assume 'you write words exactly the way they sound' — homophones like 'their/there/they're', or words with silent letters, break this assumption; clarify with examples.
Assessment
A dictation test where children correct their own mistakes afterwards is the most effective form of assessment.
Differentiated teaching
For weaker children, show a short list of silent-letter words (know, write, honest) on a separate colourful chart and have them practise repeatedly.
Peer learning
In pairs, one child uses a confusing word pair (their/there) in a sentence, the other identifies the correct word used.
Memory trick / exam tip
For words like 'Machinist', remember: whenever you add a vowel-suffix (-ist, -ing, -able) to a word ending in a silent 'e', drop that final 'e' first — 'machine' + 'ist' = 'Machinist', the 'e' doesn't survive.
REET 2024 questions (solved)
Question 52
The correct spelling is
- AMischievus
- BMischievous
- CMischeivous
- DMischieous
Explanation
सही वर्तनी ‘Mischievous’ है (mis-chie-vous)। इसमें ‘ie’ और अंत में ‘-vous’ आता है; ‘Mischievus’ में o छूटा है, ‘Mischeivous’ में ei उलटा है और ‘Mischieous’ में v छूटा है।
Question 46
The correct spelling is
- AMachinist
- BMachinest
- CMachineist
- DMachiniest
Explanation
सही वर्तनी 'Machinist' है — machine + ist (जिसमें machine का अंतिम 'e' हट जाता है)। इसका अर्थ है मशीन चलाने वाला व्यक्ति। अन्य वर्तनियाँ गलत हैं।
Practice questions
Question 1
Choose the correctly spelt word.
- ANeccessary
- BNecessary
- CNecessery
- DNeccessery
Explanation
The correct spelling is 'Necessary' — it has one 'c' and two 's's.
Question 2
Choose the correctly spelt word.
- ARecieve
- BReceive
- CReceve
- DReceeve
Explanation
'ei' follows 'c', not 'ie', so the correct spelling is 'Receive'.
Question 3
Choose the correctly spelt word.
- AAccomodate
- BAcommodate
- CAccommodate
- DAccomadate
Explanation
The correct spelling is 'Accommodate' — it has two 'c's and two 'm's, which are often missed.
Question 4
Which is the correct spelling formed from 'like' + 'ing'?
- ALikeing
- BLiking
- CLikking
- DLikeng
Explanation
'like' ends in a silent 'e'; adding the vowel-suffix 'ing' drops that 'e', giving the correct spelling 'Liking'.
Question 5
Choose the correctly spelt word.
- ASeperate
- BSeparate
- CSaperate
- DSeprate
Explanation
The correct spelling is 'Separate' — note that it has 'para' in it, not 'pera'.
Question 6
Which is the correct spelling formed from 'stop' + 'ing'?
- AStoping
- BStopping
- CStopeing
- DStoppeing
Explanation
'stop' follows a vowel-consonant (CVC) pattern with the stress on the final syllable, so the final consonant 'p' is doubled when adding a suffix — 'Stopping' is correct.
Question 7
Choose the correctly spelt word.
- AForiegn
- BForeign
- CForegn
- DForeighn
Explanation
'Foreign' is an exception to the 'i before e' rule — the correct order here is 'ei', so 'Foreign' is the correct spelling.
Question 8
A teacher says 'spell words the way they sound' is always a safe strategy. Which word best proves this advice wrong?
- ACat
- BNecessary (sounds simple but has one 'c' and two 's')
- CDog
- DPen
Explanation
The pronunciation of 'Necessary' doesn't reliably signal its spelling (many students swap the 'ss' and 'c'), which shows that relying on sound alone isn't a safe spelling strategy.
Question 9
Choose the correctly spelt word.
- AEmbarass
- BEmbarrass
- CEmbaras
- DEmbarras
Explanation
The correct spelling is 'Embarrass' — it has two 'r's and two 's's.
Question 10
Which is the correct spelling formed from 'begin' + 'ing'?
- ABegining
- BBeginning
- CBeginnning
- DBeginnig
Explanation
'begin' has the stress on its final vowel-consonant 'in', so the final consonant 'n' is doubled when adding a suffix — 'Beginning' is the correct spelling.
Frequently asked questions
What does REET ask from the Spelling topic?+
REET 2024 asked candidates to pick the correctly spelt option, such as identifying the correct spelling of 'Mischievous' and 'Machinist' — focusing on words whose spelling changes when a suffix is added.
Why is 'Machinist' the correct spelling, and not 'Machinest'?+
When the suffix 'ist' is added to 'Machine', the final silent 'e' is dropped, so the correct spelling is 'Machinist'.
What's the best way to improve spelling?+
Building a list of commonly misspelt words and practising regularly, along with self-checking through dictation, is the most effective method.
Why is the plural of 'City' spelt 'Cities', not 'Citys'?+
When a word ends in a consonant followed by 'y', the 'y' changes to 'i' before adding '-es' to form the plural, so the correct form is 'Cities'.
What is a silent letter?+
A letter that is written in a word but never pronounced, like the 'k' in 'know' and the 'w' in 'write' — the spelling of such words needs to be memorised through special practice.
What's the rule for deciding the spelling of a compound word?+
There's no single fixed rule — a compound word can be written joined (classroom), hyphenated (well-known), or as two separate words (ice cream), so the standard spelling of each word should be checked and memorised from a dictionary.
Read next
Change Log
- 17 September 2026 — English page published — mirrors the fact-checked Hindi page, independently bilingual-accuracy checked