Spelling.School · How to spell

How to spell whose

What it means: Used to ask who owns something.

In a sentence: Whose teddy bear is this on the sofa? ▶

The part people get wrong

Watch for an unstressed vowel that is hard to hear. Often misspelled as whoes or whos.

Sounds like, but is not: who's. Same sound, different spelling and meaning.

Same family: who, whoever, whom, who's, whosever. If you can spell one, the shared part carries to the others.

Where it comes from: “Whose” comes from Old English “hwæs,” the genitive (possessive) form of “hwā,” meaning “who.” It has been used as the possessive form of both people and things for many centuries, even though some modern speakers think it should only refer to people.

Patterns it uses: The unstressed vowel (schwa)

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.

Words like this

where · one · toe · to · no · some · hour · were

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