Spelling.School · How to spell

How to spell official

Official is spelled O-F-F-I-C-I-A-L. From office: double F and the C stay, then add -IAL: of-fi-cial.

What it means: Holding a position of authority; formal and recognized.

In a sentence: The principal is the official leader of our school. ▶

The part people get wrong

Watch for double f, and an unstressed vowel that is hard to hear.

Same family: office, officially, officer, officialdom, unofficial. If you can spell one, the shared part carries to the others.

Where it comes from: “Official” comes from the Latin word *officium*, meaning “service” or “duty,” through Old French *oficial*. It originally described a person with a duty in an office and later came to describe things that are formal or authorized.

Try spelling it

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Words like this

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