English's notorious silent letters aren't random—they follow patterns based on word origins. Understanding these patterns helps you predict pronunciation and remember spellings.
Greek Origins: Silent Initial Consonants
Words from Greek often have silent letters at the beginning that were originally pronounced in Ancient Greek:
Silent P (before N, S, T)
Pattern: pn-, ps-, pt- = silent P
Silent G (before N)
Silent K (before N)
These come from Old English/Germanic, not Greek, but follow a similar pattern:
French Origins: Silent Final Consonants
French loanwords often keep their spelling but drop final consonant sounds:
Silent Final T
Silent Final S
Silent Final X
Latin Origins: Silent Letters in the Middle
Latin-origin words often have silent consonants in consonant clusters:
Silent B
Silent C
Patterns Summary
| Origin | Pattern | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Greek | Silent initial pn-, ps-, pt- | pneumonia, psychology, pterodactyl |
| Greek | Silent initial gn- | gnome, gnostic |
| Greek | Silent ch = /k/ | chaos, character |
| French | Silent final -t | ballet, depot, debut |
| French | Silent final -s, -x | debris, faux, rendezvous |
| Latin | Silent b after m | climb, tomb, bomb |
| Latin | Silent b before t | doubt, debt, subtle |
| Germanic | Silent kn-, wr-, gn- | knife, write, gnaw |
Words Where Letters Aren't Silent
Be careful—similar spellings can have different pronunciations:
| Silent | Pronounced |
|---|---|
| knife /naɪf/ | kindred /ˈkɪndrəd/ |
| gnome /noʊm/ | ignite /ɪɡˈnaɪt/ |
| psychology /saɪˈkɑːlədʒi/ | upset /ʌpˈset/ |
| debt /det/ | obtain /əbˈteɪn/ |
Practice: Predict the Pronunciation
Using the patterns above, try to predict how these words are pronounced:
- pneumatic - (Greek pn-) = /nuːˈmætɪk/
- chassis - (French final -s) = /ˈʃæsi/
- gnocchi - (Italian gn-) = /ˈnjɒki/
- rapport - (French final -t) = /ræˈpɔːr/