whistling:
/ˈwɪslɪŋ/
cupboard
/ˈkʌbəd/
foreigner
/ˈfɒrənə(r)/
mosquito
/məˈskiːtəʊ/
Other words with silent letters:
gnarled
/nɑːld/ (of trees) twisted and rough; covered with hard lumps. E.g. a gnarled oak/branch/trunk
(of a person or part of the body) bent and twisted because of age or illness. E.g. gnarled hands. His hands were gnarled with age and arthritis.
gnash:
/næʃ/
gnash your teeth to feel very angry and upset about something, especially because you cannot get what you want. Sp. rechinar los dientes. E.g. He'll be gnashing his teeth when he hears that we lost the contract. The news caused great wailing (cries and complaints) and gnashing of teeth.
gnaw:
/nɔː/ to keep biting something or chewing it hard, so that it gradually disappears. Sp. roer. E.g. gnaw something The dog was gnawing a bone. Gnaw through something Rats had gnawed through the cable. Gnaw at/on something She gnawed at her fingernails. Gnaw away at/on something (figurative) Self-doubt began to gnaw away at her confidence.
gnaw at somebody: to make somebody feel anxious, frightened or uncomfortable over a long period of time. E.g. The problem had been gnawing at him for months. Fear gnawed at her soul.
gnome:
/nəʊm/ (in stories) a creature like a small man with a pointed hat, who lives under the ground and guards gold and treasure.
haute cuisine
/ˌəʊt kwɪˈziːn/ cooking of a very high standard.
heir:
/eə(r)/
heir (to something)/ heir (of somebody). E.g. to be heir to a large fortune. The son and heir of the Earl (Sp. conde) of Lancaster.
honour:
/ˈɒnə(r)/
hors d’oeuvre
/ˌɔː ˈdɜːv/ a small amount of food, usually cold, served before the main part of a meal.
hour
/ˈaʊə(r)/
knack
/næk/
- a special skill or ability that you have naturally or can learn. E.g. It's easy, once you've got the knack. knack of/for (doing) something He's got a real knack for making money.
- knack of doing something a habit of doing something. E.g. She has the unfortunate knack of always saying the wrong thing
/niː/
kneel
/niːl/ E.g. People sometimes kneel to pray.
(death) knell:
/nel/ an event that means that the end or destruction of something will come soon. E.g. If he loses this referendum, it will sound the death knell for his leadership. The opening of the superstore will sound/toll the death knell for (= cause the failure of) hundreds of small independent shops. Due to privatisation the death knell rings for the NHS.
knick-knack:
/ˈnɪk næk/ [usually plural] a small decorative /ˈdekərətɪv/ object in a house. E.g. There were no photographs, no knick-knacks: just a simple table and chairs.
knife
/naɪf/
knight
/naɪt/ (fem . Dame)
knit
/nɪt/ to make clothes, etc. from wool or cotton thread using two long thin knitting needles or a machine. E.g. I knitted this cardigan myself.
knob
/nɒb/ 1. a round switch on a machine such as a television that you use to turn it on and off, etc. E.g.the volume control knob. 2. a round handle on a door or a drawer.
knock
/nɒk/ E.g. Somebody was knocking at/on the door.
knot /
nɒt/ Sailors had to know lots of different knots. (Idm) tie the knot (to get married)
know
/nəʊ/
knuckle
/ˈnʌkl/ any of the joints in the fingers, especially those connecting the fingers to the rest of the hand.
psychology
/saɪˈkɒlədʒi/
psychic
/ˈsaɪkɪk/
psalm
/sɑːm/ a song, poem or prayer that praises God, especially one in the Bible. E.g. the Book of Psalms.
wrangle
/ˈræŋɡl/
wrangle (with somebody)(over something) | wrangle (between A and B) an argument that is complicated and continues over a long period of time. E.g. a legal wrangle between the company and their suppliers. He is currently locked in a bitter wrangle with his wife over custody of the children.
wrap
/ræp/ E.g. He spent the evening wrapping up the Christmas presents.
wreath
/riːθ/ E.g. The Queen laid a wreath at the war memorial. Sp. corona
wreck
/rek/ 1. a ship that has sunk or that has been very badly damaged. 2. a car, plane, etc. that has been very badly damaged in an accident. E.g. Two passengers are still trapped in the wreck. She was pulled from the burning wreck by firefighters.
shipwreck:
/ˈʃɪprek/ 1. the loss or destruction of a ship at sea because of a storm or because it hits rocks, etc. E.g. They narrowly escaped shipwreck in a storm in the North Sea. The shipwreck of the tanker has caused one of the worst oil spills in recent years. 2. a ship that has been lost or destroyed at sea. E.g. The contents of shipwrecks belong to the state.
wreckage:
/ˈrekɪdʒ/ the parts of a vehicle, building, etc. that remain after it has been badly damaged or destroyed. E.g. A few survivors were pulled from the wreckage. Pieces of wreckage were found ten miles away from the scene of the explosion.
wrench:
/rentʃ/ (V) 1. to pull with a violent movement. Sp. arrancar. E.g. He wrenched the gun out of her hand. 2. to sprain. Sp. torcer. E.g. I wrenched my shoulder moving furniture about. (N) 1. a type of strong tool for turning nuts, bolts etc. Sp. llave inglesa. 2. pain or unhappiness that you feel when you have to leave a person or place that you love. E.g. Leaving home was a terrible wrench for me. 3. a sudden and violent twist or pull. E.g. She stumbled and gave her ankle a painful wrench.
wrestle:
/ˈresl/ to fight somebody by holding them and trying to throw or force them to the ground, sometimes as a sport. E.g. As a boy he had boxed and wrestled. 2. to struggle to deal with something that is difficult. E.g. She had spent the whole weekend wrestling with the problem.
wriggle:
/ˈrɪɡl/ (V) to twist and turn your body or part of it with quick short movements. Sp. retorcerse. E.g.
The baby was wriggling around on my lap.
wring, wrung, wrung:
/rɪŋ/ /rʌŋ/ to twist and squeeze clothes, etc. in order to get the water out of them. E.g.
He wrung the water from his soaking-wet shirt.
write
/raɪt/
wrong
/rɒŋ/
doubt
/daʊt/
dumb
/dʌm/ 1. (old-fashioned, sometimes offensive. It's better to say speech-impaired) unable to speak. E.g. She was born deaf and dumb. 2. stupid. E.g. That was a pretty dumb thing to do.
dumbfounded:
/dʌmˈfaʊndɪd/ unable to speak because of surprise. E.g. The news left her dumbfounded.
debt
/det/
debtor
/ˈdetə(r)/ a person, a country or an organization that owes money. Opp. creditor. E.g. In the old days, debtors used to be sent to jail.
comb
/kəʊm/
combing
/ˈkəʊmɪŋ/
combed /kəʊmd/
bomb
/bɒm/
bombing
/ˈbɒmɪŋ/
bombed
/bɒmd/
climb
/klaɪm/
climbing
/ˈklaɪmɪŋ/
climbed
/klaɪmd/
crumb
/krʌm/ a very small piece of food, especially of bread or cake, that has fallen off a larger piece. E.g. She stood up and brushed the crumbs from her sweater. Breadcrumbs /ˈbredkrʌmz/
lamb
/læm/
limb
/lɪm/ an arm or a leg
ascent
/əˈsent/ the act of climbing or moving up; an upward journey. E.g. the first ascent of Mount Everest.
descent
/dɪˈsent/ an action of coming or going down. E.g. The plane began its descent to Heathrow.
fascinate
/ˈfæsɪneɪt/ to attract or interest somebody very much. E.g. China has always fascinated me.
muscle
/ˈmʌsl/ (homophone: mussel (a small shellfish)
scene
/siːn/
scissors
/ˈsɪzəz/
align
/əˈlaɪn/ to organize things so that they form a straight line or are in the correct position in relation to other things. E.g. The graves were all perfectly aligned.
campaign
/kæmˈpeɪn/ E.g. an anti-smoking campaign
design
/dɪˈzaɪn/
foreign
/ˈfɒrən/ E.g. a foreign accent/language/student
malign
/məˈlaɪn/
malign somebody/something (formal) to say bad things about somebody/something publicly. E.g. She feels she has been much maligned by the press.
reign
/reɪn/
unfeigned
/ʌnˈfeɪnd/ real and sincere. E.g. unfeigned admiration
balmy
/ˈbɑːmi/ (approving) (of the air, weather, etc.) warm and pleasant. E.g. a balmy summer evening. A balmy night. Balmy weather.
calm
/kɑːm/
calf
/kɑːf/ 1. the back part of the leg between the ankle and the knee. E.g. I've torn a calf muscle. 2. a young cow.
half
/hɑːf/
halves
/hɑːvz/
yolk:
/jəʊk/ the round yellow part in the middle of an egg. E.g. Separate the whites from the yolks.
autumn
/ˈɔːtəm/
column
/ˈkɒləm/
condemn
/kənˈdem/
damning
/ˈdæmɪŋ/ critical of somebody/something; suggesting that somebody is guilty. E.g. damning criticism/evidence. A damning conclusion/report.
hymn:
/hɪm/
bristle
/ˈbrɪsl/ one of the short stiff hairs or wires in a brush.
fasten
/ˈfɑːsn/
listen
/ˈlɪsn/
apostle
/əˈpɒsl/
Epistle
/ɪˈpɪsl/
Epistle: any of the letters in the New Testament of the Bible, written by the first people who followed Christ. E.g. the Epistles of St Paul.
mortgage
/ˈmɔːɡɪdʒ/
rustle:
(N) /ˈrʌsl/ a light dry sound like leaves or pieces of paper moving or rubbing against each other. E.g. There was a rustle of paper as people turned the pages. I heard a faint rustle in the bushes. With a rustle of wings the bird landed on the window ledge.
rustle (something) /ˈrʌsl/ (V) if something dry and light rustles or you rustle it, it makes a sound like paper, leaves, etc. moving or rubbing together the sound of the trees rustling in the breeze Her silk dress rustled as she moved.
soften
/ˈsɒfn/
biscuit
/ˈbɪskɪt/
build
/bɪld/
circuit
/ˈsɜːkɪt/
disguise
/dɪsˈɡaɪz/ (V) to change your appearance so that people cannot recognize you. E.g.
The hijackers were heavily disguised. (N) a thing that you wear or use to change your appearance so that people do not recognize you. E.g. She wore glasses and a wig as a disguise.
guilty
/ˈɡɪlti/
league
/liːɡ/
rogue
/rəʊɡ/ (N) a person who behaves badly, but in a harmless way. E.g. He's a bit of a rogue, but very charming.
rogue (adj) behaving in a different way from other similar people or things, often causing damage. E.g. a rogue police officer
vague
/veɪɡ/ E.g. They had only a vague idea where the place was.
answer
/ˈɑːnsə(r)/
sword
/sɔːd/
two
/tuː/
drawer
/drɔː(r)/
ballet
/ˈbæleɪ/
buffet
/ˈbʊfeɪ/
chalet
/ˈʃæleɪ/
valet
/ˈvæleɪ/ 1. a man’s personal servant who takes care of his clothes, serves his meals, etc. E.g. His valet brought him his letters. 2. a person who parks your car for you at a hotel or restaurant. E.g. Do they have valet parking?
yacht
/jɒt/ E.g. a luxury /ˈlʌkʃəri/ yacht
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