• 220 words

Spelling Words for 8th Grade, From Maintenance to Silhouette

Choose 1 of 22 lists of hard words, press Start test, and type each word after you hear it.

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List 1: the base word changes

Words to learn. Read each word, cover it, write it, then check it.

  1. 1.maintenanceThe elevator is closed for maintenance.
  2. 2.pronunciationCheck the pronunciation in a dictionary.
  3. 3.curiosityCuriosity led her to open the box.
  4. 4.generosityWe thanked the donors for their generosity.
  5. 5.disastrousThe first rehearsal was disastrous.
  6. 6.monstrousA monstrous wave tipped the raft.
  7. 7.remembranceThe town holds a remembrance ceremony each year.
  8. 8.hindranceThe heavy pack was a hindrance.
  9. 9.wondrousThe canyon at sunrise was a wondrous sight.
  10. 10.ninthShe finished ninth out of sixty runners.

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All 220 words

List 1: the base word changes 10

  • curiosity Curiosity led her to open the box.
  • disastrous The first rehearsal was disastrous.
  • generosity We thanked the donors for their generosity.
  • hindrance The heavy pack was a hindrance.
  • maintenance The elevator is closed for maintenance.
  • monstrous A monstrous wave tipped the raft.
  • ninth She finished ninth out of sixty runners.
  • pronunciation Check the pronunciation in a dictionary.
  • remembrance The town holds a remembrance ceremony each year.
  • wondrous The canyon at sunrise was a wondrous sight.

List 2: ance endings 10

  • acquaintance He is an acquaintance, not a close friend.
  • allegiance The knights swore allegiance to the queen.
  • circumstance Each circumstance calls for a different plan.
  • inheritance The farm was part of her inheritance.
  • nuisance The mosquitoes were a nuisance at dusk.
  • perseverance Learning the violin takes perseverance.
  • resemblance The twins bear a close resemblance.
  • resistance The plan met strong resistance at first.
  • significance Explain the significance of the date.
  • tolerance She has no tolerance for spicy food.

List 3: ence endings 10

  • coincidence Meeting you here is a coincidence.
  • competence The exam measures basic competence.
  • conference The science conference lasts three days.
  • consequence Every choice has a consequence.
  • correspondence Keep all correspondence in one folder.
  • existence Fossils show the existence of ancient life.
  • interference Radio interference garbled the message.
  • occurrence Snow in May is a rare occurrence here.
  • persistence Her persistence finally paid off.
  • preference State your seating preference on the form.

List 4: sc that says s 10

  • abscess The dentist treated an abscess under the tooth.
  • ascend The balloons ascend at dawn.
  • crescent A crescent moon hung over the hills.
  • descend Hikers descend the trail before dark.
  • discipline Training for a marathon takes discipline.
  • fascinate Volcanoes fascinate my little brother.
  • muscle The heart is a muscle.
  • oscillate The fan can oscillate from side to side.
  • scenario Plan for the worst scenario.
  • scissors Pass the scissors handle first.

List 5: tious, cious and xious 10

  • anxious He felt anxious before the audition.
  • conscientious A conscientious worker checks every label.
  • contentious The new rule was a contentious topic.
  • ferocious The kitten gave a ferocious little growl.
  • fictitious The novel is set in a fictitious town.
  • gracious The team was gracious in defeat.
  • infectious Her laugh is infectious.
  • malicious The email carried a malicious link.
  • pretentious The menu used pretentious names for toast.
  • vicious A vicious storm tore off the roof.

List 6: who rules, cracy and arch 10

  • aristocracy The aristocracy owned most of the land.
  • autocracy One ruler holds all power in an autocracy.
  • bureaucracy The permit was lost in the bureaucracy.
  • democracy In a democracy, citizens vote for leaders.
  • matriarch The matriarch leads the elephant herd.
  • monarchy A king or queen heads a monarchy.
  • oligarchy A small group rules in an oligarchy.
  • patriarch The patriarch of the family turned ninety.
  • plutocracy The wealthy rule in a plutocracy.
  • theocracy Religious leaders govern in a theocracy.

List 7: gue endings 10

  • colleague My mother carpools with a colleague.
  • epilogue The epilogue jumps ahead ten years.
  • intrigue The locked drawer was a source of intrigue.
  • monologue The comedian opened with a short monologue.
  • plague A plague of locusts stripped the fields.
  • prologue The prologue sets the scene for the play.
  • rogue A rogue wave surprised the surfers.
  • synagogue The synagogue is on Maple Street.
  • vague His directions were too vague to follow.
  • vogue Bright sneakers are in vogue this year.

List 8: silent h 10

  • exhaust Bus exhaust hung in the cold air.
  • exhibit The dinosaur exhibit opens in June.
  • exhilarate Fast rides exhilarate some people and scare others.
  • heir The prince is heir to the throne.
  • honorary The college gave her an honorary degree.
  • rhetoric The speech was full of fiery rhetoric.
  • rhubarb Rhubarb pie is tart and sweet.
  • shepherd The shepherd moved the flock uphill.
  • vehement She made a vehement objection to the plan.
  • vehicle Park the vehicle behind the building.

List 9: borrowed from French 10

  • boulevard Palm trees line the boulevard.
  • chandelier A crystal chandelier hung over the stairs.
  • charade His show of confidence was only a charade.
  • croissant I had a warm croissant for breakfast.
  • cuisine The cafe serves Thai cuisine.
  • limousine A white limousine waited outside.
  • marionette The marionette danced on eight strings.
  • millionaire The inventor became a millionaire at thirty.
  • questionnaire Fill out the questionnaire before your visit.
  • silhouette We saw the silhouette of a deer.

List 10: double or single 10

  • accidentally I accidentally deleted the file.
  • aggressive The goose became aggressive near its nest.
  • commission The city set up a commission on parks.
  • committee The committee meets every other Tuesday.
  • mayonnaise Spread mayonnaise on the bread.
  • millennium A millennium is one thousand years.
  • opportunity The internship is a great opportunity.
  • possession The ball changed possession twice.
  • professor The professor held office hours on Friday.
  • tariff A tariff is a tax on imported goods.

List 11: state names 10

  • Arkansas The last s in Arkansas is silent.
  • Connecticut Hartford is the capital of Connecticut.
  • Illinois The last s in Illinois is silent.
  • Louisiana Baton Rouge is the capital of Louisiana.
  • Massachusetts Boston is the capital of Massachusetts.
  • Minnesota Minnesota's capital is Saint Paul.
  • Mississippi Jackson is the capital of Mississippi.
  • Missouri Jefferson City is the capital of Missouri.
  • Pennsylvania Harrisburg is the capital of Pennsylvania.
  • Tennessee Nashville is the capital of Tennessee.

List 12: Latin and Greek plurals 10

  • analyses Both analyses reached the same result.
  • bacteria Yogurt is made with live bacteria.
  • cacti Tall cacti dotted the hillside.
  • crises The mayor handled two crises in one week.
  • criteria The essay met all four criteria.
  • fungi Mushrooms and molds are fungi.
  • hypotheses The team tested three hypotheses.
  • nuclei The nuclei showed up dark under the stain.
  • parentheses Put the date in parentheses.
  • phenomena Rainbows and halos are optical phenomena.

List 13: hard able and ible 10

  • accessible The ramp makes the stage accessible.
  • compatible The charger is not compatible with my phone.
  • eligible Students over twelve are eligible to enter.
  • feasible A two-day trip is feasible.
  • indispensable A good map is indispensable on this trail.
  • inevitable With that much rain, flooding was inevitable.
  • irresistible The smell of fresh bread was irresistible.
  • manageable Break the project into manageable parts.
  • negligible The difference in price was negligible.
  • rechargeable The flashlight runs on a rechargeable battery.

List 14: where i before e breaks down 10

  • caffeine Tea and coffee both contain caffeine.
  • counterfeit The clerk spotted a counterfeit bill.
  • efficient An efficient route saves fuel.
  • financier A wealthy financier funded the railroad.
  • foreign She speaks two foreign languages.
  • forfeit Without enough players, the team had to forfeit.
  • glacier The glacier carved a wide valley.
  • seizure The seizure of the ship made headlines.
  • species Two species of owl nest in this forest.
  • sufficient One coat of paint was sufficient.

List 15: homophone pairs 10

  • canvas The tent is made of heavy canvas.
  • canvass Volunteers canvass the neighborhood before an election.
  • complement The sauce is a perfect complement to the fish.
  • compliment She paid him a compliment on his speech.
  • discreet Be discreet about the surprise party.
  • discrete The course has six discrete units.
  • foreword Another author wrote the foreword to the book.
  • forward Move your chair forward a little.
  • hangar The plane rolled into the hangar.
  • hanger Put your coat on a hanger.

List 16: near twins 10

  • adapt Animals adapt to cold in many ways.
  • adopt They plan to adopt a rescue dog.
  • allusion The poem makes an allusion to a Greek myth.
  • eminent An eminent scientist gave the lecture.
  • illusion The mirror gives an illusion of space.
  • imminent Dark clouds meant a storm was imminent.
  • moral The moral of the fable is patience.
  • morale A win lifted the morale of the team.
  • personal Keep your personal items in a locker.
  • personnel Only authorized personnel may enter the lab.

List 17: cede and ceed 10

  • concede The candidate refused to concede.
  • concession The concession stand sells popcorn.
  • exceed Do not exceed the speed limit.
  • intercede A teacher had to intercede in the argument.
  • precede A short talk will precede the film.
  • procedure Follow the safety procedure exactly.
  • proceed Proceed to gate four for boarding.
  • recede Flood waters began to recede on Friday.
  • secede The region voted to secede.
  • succeed You will succeed if you keep practicing.

List 18: ph that says f 10

  • apostrophe A contraction needs an apostrophe.
  • catastrophe Quick action prevented a catastrophe.
  • emphasize Bold type can emphasize a key term.
  • hyphen Twenty-one is written with a hyphen.
  • metaphor Time is a thief is a metaphor.
  • pamphlet The nurse handed out a health pamphlet.
  • pharmacy The pharmacy closes at nine.
  • prophecy The old prophecy in the story came true.
  • sophomore My sister is a sophomore in high school.
  • triumph The final goal sealed their triumph.

List 19: science class 10

  • acceleration Acceleration is the rate of change of velocity.
  • buoyancy Buoyancy is the upward push of a fluid.
  • catalyst A catalyst speeds up a chemical reaction.
  • chromosome Each chromosome is a package of DNA.
  • equilibrium The two pans of the scale reached equilibrium.
  • igneous Granite is an igneous rock.
  • mitochondria Mitochondria supply a cell with chemical energy.
  • molecule A water molecule has three atoms.
  • precipitation Rain and snow are forms of precipitation.
  • sedimentary Sandstone is a sedimentary rock.

List 20: math class 10

  • circumference Measure the circumference of the jar lid.
  • coefficient In 5x, the coefficient is 5.
  • congruent Congruent triangles have the same size and shape.
  • cylinder A soup can is a cylinder.
  • equilateral An equilateral triangle has three equal sides.
  • hypotenuse The hypotenuse is opposite the right angle.
  • irrational Pi is an irrational number.
  • isosceles An isosceles triangle has two equal sides.
  • perpendicular Perpendicular lines meet at a right angle.
  • trapezoid A trapezoid has a pair of parallel sides.

List 21: English class 10

  • alliteration Wild and windy is alliteration.
  • antagonist The antagonist opposes the main character.
  • bibliography List every source in the bibliography.
  • foreshadowing The early storm clouds were foreshadowing.
  • hyperbole I could eat a horse is hyperbole.
  • personification The wind whispered is personification.
  • plagiarism Copying without credit is plagiarism.
  • protagonist The protagonist is the main character.
  • simile Busy as a bee is a simile.
  • soliloquy The actor delivered the soliloquy alone on stage.

List 22: words people misspell 10

  • acquire The museum hopes to acquire the painting.
  • awkward There was an awkward pause.
  • bizarre A bizarre noise came from the vent.
  • eighth August is the eighth month.
  • gauge Check the fuel gauge before we leave.
  • grateful I am grateful for the ride home.
  • jewelry She makes jewelry from sea glass.
  • license You need a license to fish here.
  • lightning Lightning struck the old oak.
  • twelfth He finished twelfth at the state meet.

How it works

These spelling words for 8th grade come as 22 lists of 10, one trouble spot per list: ance against ence, sc that says s, plurals like crises. List 11 is ten state names, the only words that need a capital.

Read the full guide

How these eighth grade spelling words are ordered

List 1 holds words whose base changes: pronounce loses an o in pronunciation. Lists 2 to 8 each take one letter pattern, such as the sc in fascinate. Lists 9 to 14 cover French loans, double letters, state names, Latin plurals, ible and ei. Lists 15 to 17 sort out look-alikes, and Lists 18 to 22 hold ph words, class terms and everyday traps.

Sound-alikes, near twins and state names

Thirteen of the 220 words sound like another word, such as hangar and hanger. Typing the twin gets a note in the results. The near twins in List 16 differ by one sound, adapt from adopt. Capitals count starts ticked, so the ten state names need their capital. Untick it under Voice, speed and marking.

  • Only three everyday verbs end in ceed: exceed, proceed, succeed. List 17's others take cede, and procedure drops an e.
  • Questionnaire keeps the double n of the French word. Millionaire lost one on the way into English: French writes millionnaire.
  • Muscle comes from Latin musculus, little mouse, and Latin sounded that c as k.

Questions and answers

Which are the hard spelling words for 8th graders?

The long ones with two traps. Occurrence doubles the c and the r, then ends in ence. Bureaucracy is easier in two parts: spell bureau, then add cracy. Silhouette follows no English pattern: it is the surname of a French finance minister.

How do I spread 22 lists over a school year?

One list a week fills 22 weeks. After a test, Retry the missed words repeats only the misses, and Next opens the following list. Every few weeks, open Review test from several lists, tick the finished ones and press Start review test for 10 words.

Does the test accept a second spelling of a word?

No, it marks against the list. The American Heritage Dictionary also lists monolog, prolog, epilog, synagog and caffein as second spellings, and the test wants the gue ending and caffeine. The grade is only our suggestion: change any line under Edit this list.

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