Spelling.School · How to spell

How to spell screw

hear itscrew/skru/nounLong vowels

What it means: A metal fastener with a spiral thread.

In a sentence: Dad used a screw to fix the broken chair.

The part people get wrong

Often misspelled as skrew or scrue.

Same family: screws, screwing, screwed, screwdriver. If you can spell one, the shared part carries to the others.

Where it comes from: This slang use of "screw" for a prison guard dates back to the 19th century in British English, possibly from the idea of a guard "tightening the screws" on prisoners, meaning to apply pressure or strict control.

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