How to spell direct

hear itdi·rect/dɪ'rɛkt/verbSilent and tricky

What it means: To guide or show someone the way.

In a sentence: The teacher will direct us to our seats.

The part people get wrong

Often misspelled as derect or dirrect.

Same family: direction, director, directing, directly, directed. If you can spell one, the shared part carries to the others.

Where it comes from: Direct comes from Latin *directus*, meaning 'straight' or 'in a straight line.' Over time, the idea of 'making something go straight' turned into the modern meaning of guiding, managing, or supervising a project or activity.

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