spelling

noun

spell·​ing ˈspe-liŋ 

1

: the forming of words from letters according to accepted usage : orthography

2

a

: a sequence of letters composing a word

b

: the way in which a word is spelled

Examples of spelling in a Sentence

The American spelling is “color” while the British spelling is “colour.”

The words “made” and “maid” sound alike but have different spellings.

Recent Examples on the Web

Listen to this article An Aurora seventh grader achieved a scholastic twofer last week, winning Denver’s regional science fair and the Colorado state spelling bee in a six-day span. —Elizabeth Hernandez, The Denver Post, 13 Mar. 2025

With the correct spelling of obsecration, Orange County has a top speller for 2025. —Heather McRea, Orange County Register, 2 Mar. 2025

The video posted on TikTok shows that the glitch did not occur every single time and lasted for a few seconds before reverting to the correct spelling. —Ece Yildirim, Quartz, 26 Feb. 2025

Three of the names, marked with asterisks, did not appear to be in the locator system, which requires exact spellings. —Carol Rosenberg, New York Times, 13 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing spelling

• finger spelling
• reformed spelling
• spelling bee
• spelling pronunciation

Rhymes for spelling

• belling
• celling
• dwelling
• fehling
• felling
• gelling
• pelling
• quelling
• selling
• shelling
• smelling
• swelling

Kids Definition

spelling

noun

spell·​ing

ˈspel-iŋ

: the forming of words from letters

also : the letters composing a word