Silent Gh Words

Ask your child to say each word slowly, then say it the way it is spelled, to spot the silent letter. Where a related word exists (sign, signal), say both. Check with the answer key and retest the misses a few days later.

Sort gh words by silent gh or the f sound, like taught and enough, then pick spellings. Silent letters are written but not said. In many words gh is silent, as in taught. In a few words gh says /f/, as in trough. The directions on the page read: Sort the words by the sound of gh and write each word in its column. Then, circle the correct spelling in each row. The page opens with a worked example, and the answer key shows every answer.

Yes, both. We made it for 5th Grade spelling, and the page works the same whether it lands on a kitchen table or a center rotation. At home, most families go through it together and talk the answers out loud, and that talking is where most of the learning happens with silent letters. In class it runs well as independent work while you pull a small group. Print one copy or thirty, whichever the day needs.

Many keep spellings from Latin, Greek or Old English even though the sound dropped out, like the b in debt or the g in foreign. Knowing that a silent letter is there is part of spelling the word.

In a few words, gh says f, as in enough, laugh and tough. In most others, like taught, daughter and drought, the gh is silent.

A related word often brings the sound back: autumnal lets you hear the n in autumn, and the t is silent after s or f in words like listen, castle and soften.

Yes. All four sheets have an answer key that shows every spelling, so a parent or teacher can check the work in a minute.

5th graders are expected to spell grade-level words correctly and consult references when needed (CCSS L.5.2.E). In practice that means spelling words with prefixes and suffixes, choosing tricky endings like able or ible, handling double consonants and silent letters, and breaking long words into syllables.

A useful rule of thumb: if the root is a complete word, the ending is usually able (comfortable, readable). If the root is not a word on its own, it is usually ible (visible, possible). The word endings pages practice this and the ant and ent, ance and ence pairs.

Say the word slowly and split it into syllables, then spell one syllable at a time. Pay extra attention to the unstressed syllable, where vowels often sound like uh (the schwa sound), as in the a of about. The multisyllabic words pages walk through this step by step.