Silent Letters in English (A–Z) – Complete Guide for Students | BCECE LE Notes

Silent letters are one of the most confusing parts of English spelling. You see a letter in the word, but you don’t hear it when you pronounce it. Many competitive exams, including BCECE LE, often ask questions about silent letters, so understanding these rules saves time and improves accuracy.

This guide explains all silent letters from A to Z in a simple way, with rules and examples that you can remember easily.

What Are Silent Letters?

Silent letters are letters in a word that we write but do not pronounce.
Example:

• “K” in Knife

• “B” in Comb

• “P” in Pneumonia

Silent letters help in word origin, spelling patterns, and pronunciation. They also appear frequently in English vocabulary questions.

Silent Letters A to Z

Below is a full list of silent letters, easy rules, and examples.

Silent A

Silent A appears in some English words where the letter A is written but not pronounced. It mostly shows up in patterns like –LLY or after the letter C. Knowing this makes pronunciation easier and helps you answer exam questions confidently.

Rule: Silent A appears in two main places

1. Silent before –LLY

Words ending with –ally / –cally / –ically / –ally often hide the “a” sound.

2. Silent after C

In some words, the letter C is followed by an “A” that you do not hear.

20 Examples of Silent A

Below is a clean list of 20 words where A is silent. These include the most common words asked in exams like BCECE LE, SSC, banking, and school-level English.

Silent A before –LLY

1. Artistically

2. Critically

3. Logically

4. Physically

5. Musically

6. Romantically

7. Dramatically

8. Practically

9. Stoically

10. Ironically

11. Mathematically

12. Historically

13. Fanatically

14. Hypothetically

15. Theoretically

Quick Tip to Remember

Whenever you see words ending with –cally / –ically / –ally, there is a high chance that the A won’t be pronounced.

Silent B

Silent B appears in many everyday English words. It usually becomes silent when it comes after the letter M or before the letter T. You write the “b,” but you don’t hear it when you pronounce the word.

This pattern is common in competitive exams and vocabulary tests.

Rule: Silent B appears in two situations

1. Silent B after M

Whenever a word ends with –mb, the B is not pronounced.

2. Silent B before T

In some words with –bt, the B stays silent.

20 Examples of Silent B

Silent B after M (–MB pattern)

1. Bomb

2. Comb

3. Climb

4. Crumb

5. Thumb

6. Dumb

7. Numb

8. Lamb

9. Limb

10. Womb

11. Tomb

12. Plumber

Silent B before T (–BT pattern)

13. Debt

14. Doubt

15. Subtle

Extra Common Silent B Words

17. Bombard → Bombard

18. Climbing → Climbing

19. Thumbs → Thumbs

20. Jamb → Jamb

Quick Tip to Remember

If a word has MB at the end, just ignore the B in pronunciation.
If you see BT, there’s a big chance the B is silent.

Silent C

Silent C appears in many common English words. You write the “c,” but you don’t pronounce it. This happens mainly when C comes after S or before K or Q. These patterns are very common in exams and spelling questions.

Rule: Silent C appears in two main places

1. Silent C after S

Whenever you see SC followed by e, i, or y, the C is silent.

2. Silent C before K or Q

In CK or CQ combinations, the C is not heard.

20 Examples of Silent C

Silent C after S (SC → /s/ sound only)

1. Scene

2. Scent

3. Science

4. Ascend

5. Ascent

6. Crescent

7. Conscience

8. Conscious

9. Muscle

10. Scissors

11. Abscess

Silent C before K or Q (CK / CQ → silent C)

12. Back

13. Lock

14. Kick

15. Quick

16. Pick

17. Sick

18. Rock

19. Flick

20. Licuor (cq → c silent)

Quick Tip to Remember

If a word has SC + e/i/y, drop the “c” sound.
If a word has CK, ignore the “c” and just say “k.”

Silent D

Silent D appears when D comes before G or after N in some common English words. You write the “d,” but you don’t hear it.

Rule: Silent before G or after N

20 Examples of Silent D

1. Edge

2. Bridge

3. Badge

4. Wedge

5. Fudge

6. Hedge

7. Ledge

8. Judge

9. Handkerchief

10. Wednesday

11. Sandwich

12. Handsome

13. Grudge

14. Dodge

15. Smudge

16. Pledge

17. Knowledge

18. Sledge

19. Wadge

20. Nudge

Silent E

Silent E appears mainly at the end of English words. It changes the vowel sound but is not pronounced.

Rule: Silent "E" at the end of words

20 Examples of Silent E

1. Name

2. Like

3. Love

4. Gate

5. Please

6. Hate

7. Kite

8. Bite

9. Gene

10. Change

11. Breathe

12. Clothe

13. Plate

14. Note

15. Race

16. Hope

17. Cute

18. Fine

19. Make

20. Write

Silent F

English does not have regular silent F words. It appears only in very rare cases or in old spellings.

Rule: No standard silent F in modern English

Examples (very rare / borrowed)

1. Halfpenny (older pronunciation)

2. Houf (Scottish)

3. Calfskin

4. Sheaf (historically silent)

5. Knife (F pronounced, but historically changed)

Silent G

Silent G becomes silent when it appears before N or in the GH pattern after a vowel.

Rule: Silent before N or in GH words

20 Examples of Silent G

1. Sign

2. Design

3. Assign

4. Resign

5. Foreign

6. Benign

7. Campaign

8. Champagne

9. Cologne

10. Gnome

11. Gnaw

12. Gnat

13. Gnash

14. Light

15. Right

16. Tight

17. Sigh

18. Dough

19. Though

20. Brought

Silent H

Silent H appears after W, after C, or in some borrowed words. It is not pronounced in many everyday words.

Rule: Silent after W, after C, or in foreign words

20 Examples of Silent H

1. What

2. When

3. Where

4. Why

5. While

6. Which

7. ECho

8. Chaos

9. Character

10. Choir

11. Chemical

12. Architect

13. School

14. Stomach

15. Rhythm

16. Honest

17. Honor

18. Hour

19. Ghost

20. Vehicle

Silent I

Silent I appears in very few common English words.

Rule: Silent in rare cases

20 Examples of Silent I

(English has very limited real silent I words, so some are borderline.)

1. Business

2. Parliament

3. Fruit

4. Suit

5. Cruise

6. Juice

7. Build

8. Guilt

9. Circuit

10. Biscuit

11. Braille

12. Faint

13. Said

14. Certiain

15. Captain

16. Mountain

17. Fountain

18. Villain

19. Curtiain

20. Domain

Silent J

Silent J appears only in a few foreign/borrowed words.

Rule: Silent in foreign words

Examples

1. Marijuana

2. Hajj (varies)

3. Taj (borrowed, pronunciation varies)

Silent K

Silent K appears before N. In KN words, the K is never pronounced.

Rule: Silent before N

20 Examples of Silent K

1. Knife

2. Knee

3. Knew

4. Know

5. Known

6. Knock

7. Knuckle

8. Knight

9. Knot

10. Knack

11. Kneel

12. Knob

13. Knockout

14. Knapsack

15. Knowledge

16. Knitter

17. Knit

18. Knoll

19. Knelt

20. Knurl

Silent L

Silent L appears after vowels and before certain consonants.

Rule: Silent after A, O, U or before D, K, M

20 Examples of Silent L

1. Talk

2. Walk

3. Calm

4. Palm

5. Half

6. Salmon

7. Should

8. Could

9. Would

10. Folk

11. Yolk

12. Chalk

13. Balm

14. Almond

15. Colonel

16. Golf (varies)

17. Holm

18. Kiln

19. Calf

20. Talked (L still silent)

Silent M

Silent M appears only in a few Greek-origin words.

Rule: Silent before N in rare Greek words

Examples

1. Mnemonic

2. Mnemonics

3. Mneumon

Silent N

Silent N appears after the letter M.

Rule: Silent after M at word endings

20 Examples of Silent N

1. Autumn

2. Column

3. Condemn

4. Solemn

5. Hymn

6. Damn

7. Design

8. Foreign

9. Kiln

10. Benign

11. Align

12. Campaign

13. Resign

14. Sign

15. Gnaw

16. Gnome

17. Gnarl

18. Gnat

19. Gnash

20. Consign

Silent P

Silent P appears before S, T, N, B in many English words.

Rule: Silent before S, T, N, B

20 Examples of Silent P

1. Psychology

2. Psychic

3. Pseudonym

4. Pseudo

5. Pneumonia

6. Pneumatic

7. Psalm

8. Psycho

9. Psychiatrist

10. Raspberry

11. Receipt

12. Cupboard

13. Corps (P silent)

14. Coup

15. Pterodactyl

16. Pshaw

17. Pneumonitis

18. Psychosis

19. Psychopath

20. Psyllid

Silent Q

Silent Q appears in very few borrowed words.

Rule: Silent in rare foreign words

Examples

1. Lacquer

2. Oblique (q not fully pronounced)

3. Chequer (British)

Silent R

Silent R appears mostly in British English where R is not pronounced at the end of a word.

Rule: Silent in non-rhotic accents

20 Examples of Silent R

1. Car

2. Far

3. Bar

4. Mother

5. Father

6. Work

7. Word

8. More

9. Core

10. Store

11. Bird

12. Hurt

13. Curve

14. Color (US spelling; R silent in UK)

15. Rumor (US spelling; R silent in UK)

16. Fire (silent/weak R)

17. World

18. Tire

19. Higher

20. Ever

Silent S

Silent S appears before L or after I.

Rule: Silent before L, silent after I

20 Examples of Silent S

1. Island

2. Isle

3. Aisle

4. Viscount

5. Debris

6. Bourgeois

7. Crescent

8. Gros

9. Rendezvous

10. Arkansas (final s silent in American pronunciation)

11. Apostle

12. Hors d'oeuvre (the s in hors is silent)

13. Assemble

14. Dess ert (first s silent → sounds like “dez-ert”)

15. Miscue

16. Chassis

17. Gl isten

18. Listen

19. Mosquito (first s is silent → “mos-kee-toe”)

20. Fascia (“fay-sha” → s silent)

Silent T

Silent T appears in many everyday English words, especially in STL/ STLE / STEN patterns.

Rule: Silent in –STLE, –STEN, –STL combos

20 Examples of Silent T

1. Castle

2. Whistle

3. Listen

4. Hastle

5. Fasten

6. Bristle

7. Rustle

8. Bustle

9. Christmas

10. Sotten

11. Often (silent in modern speech)

12. Glisten

13. Mosten (in moisten, the T is silent → moisten)

14. Nestle

15. Thistle

16. Castor (in British English, t is often silent)

17. Listless (first T silent)

18. Mistle (as in mistletoe)

19. Hunstman → pronounced "hunss-man"

20. Postman (in fast speech the T weakens or disappears)

Silent U

Silent U appears after G and in some French-origin words.

Rule: Silent after G or in GU-words

20 Examples of Silent U

1. Guess

2. Guide

3. Guitar

4. Guard

5. Guest

6. Guilt

7. Built

8. Biscuit

9. Circuit

10. Disguise

11. Rogue

12. Vogue

13. Tongue

14. Catalougue

15. League

16. Plague

17. Dialougue

18. Antique

19. Critique

20. Silhouette

Silent V

There are no normal English words with silent V.

Silent W

Silent W appears before R and in WH words.

Rule: Silent before R or in WH-words

20 Examples of Silent W

1. Write

2. Wrong

3. Wrist

4. Wrap

5. Wrath

6. Wreck

7. Wren

8. Wrinkle

9. Wrestle

10. Wriggle

11. Whole

12. Who

13. Whose

14. Whom

15. Whistle

16. Sword

17. Two

18. Answer

19. Awry

20. Wretch

Silent X

Silent X appears in some French-origin words.

Rule: Silent in French-derived words

Examples

1. Faux

2. Sioux

3. Prix

4. Bordeax

5. Champs-Élysées (the s at the end is silent in French)

Silent Y

Silent Y is extremely rare in English.
There is no strong, standard list of “silent Y” words the way we have for silent K, W, B, etc.

Silent Z

Silent Z appears in words borrowed from French.

Rule: Silent in French-origin words

Examples

1. Rendezvouz

2. Laisses-vouz (rare, but real French form used in English texts)

3. Chez → chez (z silent)

4. Croiz (archaic English form borrowed from French; z silent)

5. Douzaine (old loanword; z silent)

6. Pizza (the second z is silent: /ˈpiːtsə/)

7. Marblization (variant where z is silent in older pronunciation)

8. Tchaikozsky (old English variant spelling; silent z)

Extra List: Words With Silent GH

Silent GH appears after a vowel
Examples: Light, Night, High, Sigh, Daughter, Brought, Though, Through, Eight, Weigh, Freight, Height

Rule: GH is silent when it comes after a vowel

Examples:

• High
• Tough
• Alight
• Light
• Might
• Right
• Sight
• Fight
• Night
• Tight
• Bright
• High
• Sigh
• Daughter
• Brought
• Bought
• Caught
• Thought
• Though
• Through
• Plough (UK spelling)
• Weigh
• Weight
• Freight
• Sleigh
• Eight
• Height

Extra List: Words With Silent O

Silent O appears in EO and OU combinations
Examples: People, Leopard, Jeopardy, Enough, Rough, Trouble, Would

Rule: O is silent in the combinations of EO and OU

Examples:

• People
• Trouble
• Jeopardy
• Rough
• Enough
• Favorite
• Jeopardy
• Laboratory (first o can be silent)
• Leopard
• People
• Would

BCECE LE PYQ Questions Based on Silent Letters

PYQ 2024 – Silent Letter Questions

1. Psalm → Silent P

2. Receipt → Silent P

3. Debris → Silent S

4. Aisle → Silent S

5. Dough → Silent G

PYQ 2023 – Silent Letter Questions

1. Assign → Silent G

2. Mnemonic → Silent M

3. Raspberry → Silent P

4. Wreath → Silent W

5. Phlegm → Silent G

Summary Table (Quick Revision)

Silent letters are an important part of English spelling and pronunciation. They appear often in exams and reading passages, so knowing these rules helps you answer questions without confusion. When you understand where a letter becomes silent, you also improve your pronunciation and spelling habits.

If you are preparing for BCECE LE or any competitive exam, revise these rules regularly and practice the examples. With time, silent letters will feel natural and easy to remember.