HSPT Spelling Rules & Commonly Misspelled Words

Spelling Rule 1: U Always Follows Q

The letter "q" is almost always followed by "u" — think "queen," "question," "equation," and "plaque." There are a few exceptions to this rule, but they involve obscure words that are unlikely to show up on the HSPT, so this rule is essentially safe to apply across the board.

Spelling Rule 2: I Before E Rule: 

You've probably heard the rhyme: "I before E, except after C, unless it sounds like A, as in neighbor and weigh." It holds up more often than not, but it's worth knowing the exceptions too.

Words that follow the rule:

• I before E: "niece," "believe," "piece"
• Except after C: "perceive," "ceiling," "receive"
• Sounds like A: "beige," "weight," "sleigh"

Words that don't follow the rule:

• "science," "atheist," "being," "weird," "forfeit," "seize," "glacier"

The exceptions are worth memorizing since they show up fairly often in everyday writing.

Spelling Rule 3: Drop the Silent “E” Before Most Suffixes

When adding a suffix that begins with a vowel to a word ending in a silent "e," the silent "e" is usually dropped.

• "strike" + -ing = "striking"
• "ride" + -er = "rider"

But when the suffix begins with a consonant, the silent "e" stays:

• "pave" + -ment = "pavement"
• "like" + -ness = "likeness"

A few exceptions and special cases to keep in mind:

• The silent "e" is typically kept when adding -able (example: "manageable")
• The silent "e" is typically kept when the word ends in two e's (example: "fleeing")
• The silent "e" is typically kept when adding -ous to a word ending in "g" (example: "courageous")
• The suffix -y is a special case: sometimes the "e" is dropped ("slime" → "slimy") and sometimes it isn't ("price" → "pricey")

Spelling Rule 4: The Prefix "al-" means “All” (but only has one “l”)

The word "all" has two l's, but when it's used as a prefix, it only has one. This trips up a lot of students because it's tempting to spell these words as if they're compound words made up of "all" plus another word. They're not — the prefix is "al-," not "all-."

Examples: "altogether," "always," "alright," "already," "almost"

Spelling Rule 5: Prefixes Don’t Usually Change the Spelling of a Word

When you add a prefix to a word, the spelling of the original word typically stays the same — even if it creates a double letter.

• "de-" + "escalate" = "deescalate"
• "over-" + "react" = "overreact"

This one is simple but easy to second-guess in the moment, so it's worth keeping in mind.

List of Commonly Misspelled Words

The best way to improve at spelling is to practice consistently. Below is a list of words that are commonly misspelled and are worth knowing before test day. Have a parent, friend, or tutor quiz you on them — and remember, this list is a starting point, not an exhaustive one, so keep practicing beyond these words whenever you can.