Silent and invisible letters in English

Silent letters constitute a notorious phenomenon in English: in wréstle, for example, only four out of the seven letters are actually sounded (*résl), and there can be strings of them in place names, exemplified by the trio Léicester, Glóucester and Worcester, pronounced Léster, *Glóster and *Wùster. (The accents show stress and pronunciation, see English phonemes; * is placed before an incorrect spelling.)

Silent letters can be misleading, as in Thaîland and îsland, which rhyme, or they can be easily to ignore, as in wróng, yeôman, and lôw. They can serve to distinguish between words that sound the same:

knôw knowledge = nô ''negative

knót tie = nót ''negative

wráp parcel = ráp ''knock, talk

wrîte read = rîght correct = rîte ''ritual

chéck verify = BrE chéque ''money

Typical silent letters are b finally after m or before final t (-mb -bt); g or k initially before n (gn-, kn-); gh finally or before final t ( -gh -ght); l after à and before final f or m (-lf -lm); n finally after m (-mn).

List of examples
Only J and Q are sounded in every word in which they occur.

Silent A is found in: hëard lëarn  Múrray = Mòray  nébulaê; British English words ending in -ary: sécondary díctionary; and all BrE examples from Latin of aê: nébulaê fŏrmulaê (where American English omits the 'a')

B: thúmb dúmb  númb  clîmb  límb  débt  dòubt  súb'''tle

C: indîct Tûcsón  Connécticut  blancmànge (*bləmónzh); after s before a front vowel: scêne  scîence  effervésc'''e

CH: yàcht (*yót)

D before a soft g: dódge  édgy  lódging  bádger  brídge  wédge; for most speakers in  Wédnesday; and before a French j in  Djiboûti  Abid'''jàn

E: heàrt heàrth  yeôman; final mute as in lâte kîte  hôpe  Jûne; in past tense ending as in loòked and both of these as in hoped; síngeing (*sínjing, from sínge)

F: hâlf'''penny

G: sîgn desîgn dèign  rèign monarch (= rain weather)  campâign  fóreign  phlégm  gnásh  gnåw 	gnôme  gnát  gnàrled  Colôg'''ne

GH: sîgh rîght  fíght  fríght night  fŏught  ŏught  cåught  èight  wèigh'''t

H: hônour hónest  héir  hòur  vêhicle  Jóhn  Thaîland  ghôst  ghàstly and in the name-suffix -ham: 	Béckenham Chéltenham Twíckenh'''am

I:	sûit recrûit  frûit  jûice  sluîce  brûise  crûise  pláit  friénd  pàrliament cárriage  márri'''age

K, initially, before n: knôw knêe  knîght  knít  knâve  knóll  knót  knîfe  knêad massage; after c, as in  báck

L: càlm bàlm  psàlm  càlf  hàlf  hàlve  fôlk  tålk  wålk  sálmon  Líncoln 	hâlf'''penny

M: m'''nemónic

N: cólumn condémn  hýmn  åutumn  dámn  sólemn

NC: blancmange (*bləmónzh)

O: pêople léopard  jéopardy  Géoffrey  (= Jéffrey) and all BrE examples from Latin of oê: phoênix oênólogy fo'''êtus (where AmE omits the 'o')

P: recêipt pneumátic  pneumônia  psàlm  pseûd  ptàrmigan  p'''terodáctyl

R: all BrE only; a small selection: îron  àrm  àrt  céntre  mürder  pãir  mŏre  dŏor  desîre  squãre 	hîre  përson  Thür'''sday

RPS	cŏrps (r sounded in AmE)

S: chássis prècis  Àrkansås  Íllinois  îsland  îsle = aîsle rendezvous (*róndâyvoô)

T: lísten whístle  wréstle  càstle  mústn’t  bùffèt  óften  mŏrtgage  bìdèt  Màrgot  wåltz (*wålce)  bôatswain (can be written bôsun)  Tchaikóvsky tsunàmi and before ch in words such as ítch cát'''ch

U: bìscuit cïrcuit  buíld  buŏyant  guíld  guílt  guîde  guàrd  guéss  guést 	àu'''nt

UE: tòngue burlésque  grotésque  vâgue  rôgue  barôque  unìque  plâgue

W:	two 2 (= to preposition = toô many, also) who (*hû)  whôle entire (= hôle space)  swŏrd  ànswer  wrîte paper  wróng  wréstle  awrŷ  åwful  bôatswain (can be written bôsun), and before a consonant in the next word: knòw nòw yew tree (= yoû' me'')

X: faux-pàs (*fô-pà) and French plurals of -au words cháteaux (*shátô) 		tábleaux (táblô)

Y:	Pêpys Sándys  (= Sánds = sánds)

Z: lâissèz-fãire rendezvous (*róndâyvoô)