Silent Letters – The Secret Sounds That Aren’t There!

Why is there a ‘k’ in “knight”? Or a ‘b’ in “thumb”? Silent letters can make spelling tricky — but once you spot the pattern, you’ll never forget them. Let’s crack the code together!

What Are Silent Letters?

Silent letters are letters you write but don’t say. They sneak into words and confuse spellers, especially in English exams. Think of them like invisible ninjas in your spelling tests!

Why They Exist – A Quick History

English has borrowed words from all over the world — French, Latin, German, and more. Many silent letters are leftovers from old ways of saying words. For example, people used to pronounce the ‘k’ in “knight”! Spelling stayed the same, but how we speak changed.

Sometimes, silent letters were added to show a word’s origin (like the ‘b’ in “debt” from Latin “debitum”) or to match up with related words (like “sign” and “signal”).

In short — they’re like fossils in our spelling. Old, but still useful!

Why They’re Tested in 7+, 8+ and 11+

These letters test your memory, attention to detail, and spelling rules. They pop up in cloze tests, dictation, and tricky multiple-choice questions.

Real-Life Use

Silent letters are everywhere – in menus (salmon), signs (knock), and stories (ghost). Mastering them boosts confidence in both writing and reading.

Examples to Try

Level 1 (Beginner):
Write “knee”. ✅ The ‘k’ is silent.

Level 2 (Intermediate):
Spell “climb”. ✅ The ‘b’ is silent.

Level 3 (Advanced):
Fill in: g_ _st (Hint: It’s spooky!) ✅ Answer: ghost

Common Mistakes

Gotcha: Writing the word exactly as it sounds. While phonetic spelling (like “nite” instead of “night”) isn’t perfect, it’s sometimes better than a wild guess — and in some exams, if it shows understanding, you might still get part of the mark.

Fix: Learn common silent-letter combos (like ‘kn’, ‘wr’, ‘mb’, ‘gh’) and spot the patterns in tricky spellings.

Also Known As

Ghost letters, Hidden letters, Tricky spellings

Advanced Interpretation

In 11+ exams, silent letters can appear in comprehension where a misread word leads to a wrong answer. They’re also used in sentence correction tasks to test knowledge of proper spelling.

Fun Fact!

Did you know? The word “island” has a silent ‘s’ — added later to make it look like the Latin word “insula”. But “island” actually comes from an old English word “īegland” — no ‘s’ at all!

Top Tip

Turn silent letters into a game — spot them in books, on signs, or when reading menus. The more you notice them, the less they’ll trick you!