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What is a silent letter?

Silent letters are letters that can’t be heard when the word is spoken.

For example in the word 'sword', you don’t pronounce the letter ‘w’.

sword

And the letter ‘h’ is silent in the word 'ghost'.

ghost

There are lots more examples of words with silent letters in English. So keep an eye out for them, because you won’t be able to hear them!

Watch: Silent letters

Activity 1

Activity 2

See how well you can spot silent letters with this quiz.

Activity 3

Can you find the words with silent letters in these short stories. There are 5 in each.

1. One starry night, bright stars whispered secrets to a knight. Silent moonbeams lit his quest for hidden gems. Happy dreams danced as he slept under the sky.

2. Silly gnome found treasure quietly. His happy forest friends helped search and giggled. Sunset sparkled, they celebrated within the magical feast.