Spelling.School · How to spell

How to spell swell

Swell is spelled S-W-E-L-L. The part people get wrong: double L.

What it means: To expand or increase in size or volume.

In a sentence: The waves at the beach began to swell as the wind picked up. ▶

The part people get wrong

Watch for double l.

Same family: swollen, swelling, swelled, puff, expand. If you can spell one, the shared part carries to the others.

Where it comes from: Swell comes from Old English "swellan," meaning "to grow or increase in size." The adjective "swollen" is the old past participle form and has survived alongside the newer past tense "swelled."

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Words like this

skull · smell · spell · shell · waterfall

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