Shivam Singh26 Jun, 2025
Tricky words in English: Learning new words and using them appropriately in English writing and conversations can be exciting for kids. But sometimes, obstacles come in the form of tricky words. These words don't spell how they are written, making them special and tricky.
We often encounter tricky English words in our daily communication, knowingly or unknowingly. When we pronounce 'right' and 'write' the same way or eliminate a group of letters in 'rough' by some other sound, we don't recognize how tricky words work.
Read More: Most Commonly Confused Words
Tricky words are words that do not follow standard phonetic spelling rules, so children get confused about how to sound them out or use them with standard phonics rules.
These words can't always be read or pronounced how they are written or spelt. That's why they are called tricky words. You have to remember their pronunciation by sight rather than the spelling.
For example, words with silent letters, such as 'honest' and 'know', or words with completely different spellings but pronounced the same, such as 'I' and 'Eye'.
Understanding tricky words in English is essential for children to read fluently and write accurately. Many of these words appear in conversations, books, or instructions, so children need to recognize them quickly. Here are the reasons why learning tricky words is important for improving your child's reading and writing skills.
It helps improve reading fluency because they are frequently used in everyday verbal and written communication.
Children become confident in reading and using these words without worrying about making mistakes.
They help build up vocabulary better, which helps enhance overall language skills.
It helps children better understand any content as they are not stuck trying to break or decode such words for proper pronunciation.
Read More: How to Write Fast
Kids may find it challenging to learn new words that appear tricky to spell. Here is a list of some tricky English words with explanations on pronouncing them properly so you can stop misspelling them.
Enough
It is spelt as 'e-nuff', which means 'ough' and has a typical pronunciation.
Though
Here, 'ough' remains silent and spelt as 'tho'.
Necessary
Both 'c' and double 's' are spelled as 's'.
Ceiling
It is pronounced as 'see-ling', which means 'cei,' which is equivalent to 'see. '
Knowledge
The 'k' at the beginning and 'd' within the word remain silent. The word is pronounced as 'naw-laj'
Hour
The letter 'H' is silent and sounds the same as 'our'.
Busy
It's a typical word spelt 'bee-zee' with 'u' and 's' not following the standard phonics rule.
Patience
Here, 'ti' is pronounced as 'sh', so don't ever try to spell it as 'pe-ti-ence.
Future
It is a very common tricky word because 't' sounds like 'ch'.
Queue
It's a typical word where all letters after 'Q' are silent. Just spell it as 'Q'.
Unique
Here, 'que' has some role to play and sounds like 'k'. The pronunciation of this word is 'yoo-nik'.
Separate
It is a confusing word because the 'a' after 'p' and 'a' after 'r' are pronounced differently. So, the word sounds like 'se-pa-ret'.
Would
It sounds like 'wood' with 'oul' replaced by 'oo' while pronounced.
Toothache
It's important to remember that 'ache' is pronounced as 'ek.'
Chemistry
Remember, here, 'ch' is pronounced as 'k', unlike 'chocolate'.
Read More: Figures of Speech
Some words can be considered tricky because they don't appear the same way as they are pronounced. But the best part is that they are easy to remember as they sound like an alphabet. Let's explore those tricky words in the list given below.
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Tricky Words in English For Kids |
|
|
Word |
Pronounced As |
|
Bee/Be |
B |
|
Sea/See |
C |
|
Are |
R |
|
Ace |
S |
|
You |
U |
|
Eye |
I |
Read More: Top 10 Longest Words in English
Some words are not commonly used in daily communication but find a place in academic content, scientific features, reports, and articles. Knowing these words will help young learners enhance their vocabulary, writing skills, and communication quality.
Let's look into the tricky words list with their pronunciation and meanings.
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List of Uncommon Tricky Words in English |
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|
Word |
Pronounced As |
Meaning |
|
Aile |
ile |
A passage between rows of seats |
|
Choir |
kwai-ur |
An organized group of singers |
|
Maestro |
my-stroh |
A distinguished musician |
|
Rendezvous |
raan-day-voo |
A meeting at an agreed time and place |
|
Cuisine |
kwi-zeen |
A region-specific style of cooking |
Teaching tricky words to kids requires the right methods, specific instructions, and a creative approach. Here are some helpful tricks to help children remember these words easily through a fun way of learning.
Use Visual Flashcards
Flashcards are an effective means to learn new words. It is created with the word on one side and a colourful image or sentence on the other to explain it.
For example:
Front side: "Knife" (K is silent)
Back side: Picture of a knife with a sentence: This knife is sharp.
Spell It Out Loud
Encourage kids to speak loudly about the spelling and pronunciation of the word. It helps in auditory learning.
Highlight the Tricky Part
Write the word and colour the unusual part. For example, in the word 'rough,' highlight the 'ough' part to show it sounds like 'ff'.
Use in Sentences
Encourage your child to practice writing sentences using tricky words. It helps in understanding the meaning and contextual usage.
For example,
The flight was delayed by an hour (our)
Learn through a Game
Make learning tricky words an interesting exercise by turning it into a game with matching cards, unscrambling words, finding similar-sounding words, etc.
Create a Word Wall
Make a board to display tricky words in your home or classroom so kids see them often and remember them easily.
Tricky words in English are quite frequent, and they have versatile applications. There are plenty of unique and interesting tricky words in English to learn and apply suitably in different contexts. Learning tricky words can be interesting and educational, from simple everyday terms to unusual words.
Also Read: Abstract Nouns
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