spelling

American  

[spel-ing] / ˈspɛl ɪŋ /

noun

spellings plural

1. the manner in which words are spelled; orthography.

2. a group of letters representing a word.

3. the act of a speller.

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spelling British  

/ ˈspɛlɪŋ /

noun

1. the act or process of writing words by using the letters conventionally accepted for their formation; orthography

2. the art or study of orthography

3. the actual way in which a word is spelt

4. the ability of a person to spell

   John's spelling is good

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• spellings
  plural

Etymology

Origin of spelling

1400–50; late Middle English (gerund); see spell ¹, -ing ¹

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

spelling spellings

The ticket was purchased through United Airlines, but the flight was operated by Air Canada, and it proved very challenging to get a new ticket printed with the correct name spelling, he said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026

A Welsh news site says Andy Burnham provided an "error-filled" article for publication spelling out his pitch to Wales.

From BBC ● Jul. 6, 2026

The building features giant stone letters on the top spelling out part of a speech that Obama gave in 2015 in Selma, Alabama, the cradle of the civil rights movement.

From Barron's ● Jun. 4, 2026

One note: We have changed some capitalization, spelling and punctuation; no need to make this even harder than it is.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 29, 2026

I draw her all over my spelling notebook and get in trouble with my teacher.

From "Maybe He Just Likes You" by Barbara Dee

Noah Webster, the creator of the first American dictionary of English, championed the spellings “opake,” “soop” and “spunge”—all of which now look like howlers waiting for a red pen.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 14, 2025

The so-called invading force of my generation assimilated to the point where our kids are named Brandon and Ashley in all sorts of spellings.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 13, 2025

And because Jefferson's original moniker was spelled as Megalonyx, any other subsequent spellings of the name, like some that utilize the -onix suffix, are incorrect.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 26, 2024

The authorities from police forces in Grenada and St. Vincent and the Grenadines have given different ages and name spellings for the escapees.

From New York Times ● Mar. 7, 2024

That is why you might see “Muscogee” or “Muskogee,” as well as “Maskoke,” on highway or street signs where Muscogee people live; it’s the same word but with different spellings.

From "An Indigenous People’s History of the United States" by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz