How to spell align

hear ita·lign/ə'laɪn/verbSilent and tricky

What it means: To form or be in a straight line.

In a sentence: The books align perfectly on the shelf.

The part people get wrong

Watch for a silent g, and an unstressed vowel that is hard to hear. Often misspelled as aligne or aline.

Same family: alignment, aligned, realign, misalign, line. If you can spell one, the shared part carries to the others.

Where it comes from: “Align” comes from French *aligner*, formed from *à* (“to”) + *ligne* (“line”). It literally meant “to bring to the line,” which is why the spelling keeps the silent g from *line*’s Latin ancestor *linea*.

Patterns it uses: The unstressed vowel (schwa) · Silent letters

Try spelling it

You will hear the word and a sentence. Type it and press Enter. Then four more words from the same level, so you know where you stand.

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