How to spell drought
drought
Drought is spelled D-R-O-U-G-H-T.
Not drout.
Why is drought easy to misspell?
The word drought has a silent GH, and the misspelling drout spells only what is said. The GH is written but not heard, so the ear gives no hint of it.
That spelling matches the sound exactly, which is why it looked right. English keeps letters long after the sound has moved on, so the conventional spelling is often the one that looks least like it sounds.
Native English spelling: silent gh, ough, one spelling for several sounds
What does drought mean?
noun. A prolonged period of abnormally low rainfall, leading to a shortage of water.
Which other words set the same trap?
Where does English spelling come from?
The conventions each language layer left in English spelling, with their sources, are on where English spelling comes from.
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Play today's Daily FiveSpellingIQ is a skill rating for spelling ability, not a clinical or psychometric IQ measure. American English is canonical; common variants are accepted.