spell

verb

/spel/

Verb Forms

present simple I / you / we / they spell	/spel/ /spel/
he / she / it spells	/spelz/ /spelz/
past simple spelt	/spelt/ /spelt/
past participle spelt	/spelt/ /spelt/
past simple spelled	/speld/ /speld/
past participle spelled	/speld/ /speld/
-ing form spelling	/ˈspelɪŋ/ /ˈspelɪŋ/

Phrasal Verbs

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[transitive] spell something to say or write the letters of a word in the correct order
- How do you spell your surname?
- You've spelt my name wrong.
- spell something with something I thought her name was Catherine, but it's Kathryn spelt with a ‘K’.
- Should 'internet' be spelled with a capital or lower case i?
Extra Examples
- ‘Nevaeh’ is ‘heaven’ spelled backwards/backward.
- Is ‘necessary’ spelled with one ‘s’, or two?
- The article spelled ‘survey’ as ‘servay’.
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adverb
- correctly
- right
- wrongly
- …
preposition
- as
- with
adverb
- clearly
- explicitly
- fully
- …
verb + spell out
- have to
- need to
preposition
- for
- to
See full entry
[intransitive] to form words correctly from individual letters
- I've never been able to spell.
see also misspell
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adverb
- correctly
- right
- wrongly
- …
preposition
- as
- with
adverb
- clearly
- explicitly
- fully
- …
verb + spell out
- have to
- need to
preposition
- for
- to
See full entry
[transitive] spell something (of letters of a word) to form words when they are put together in a particular order
- C—A—T spells ‘cat’.
Topics Languagea1
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adverb
- correctly
- right
- wrongly
- …
preposition
- as
- with
adverb
- clearly
- explicitly
- fully
- …
verb + spell out
- have to
- need to
preposition
- for
- to
See full entry
[transitive] spell something (for somebody/something) to have something, usually something bad, as a result; to mean something, usually something bad
- The crop failure spelt disaster for many farmers.
- This defeat spelt the end of his hopes of winning the title again.
[transitive] spell somebody (North American English, informal) to replace for a short time somebody who is doing a particular activity so that they can rest
- Carter will be here in an hour to spell you.

Word Originverb Middle English: shortening of Old French espeller, from the Germanic base of spell (noun senses 3 and 4).

spell

noun

/spel/

Idioms

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[countable] a short period of time during which something lasts
- We had a spell of warm weather in April.
- a cold spell
- There will be rain at first, with sunny spells later.
- She went to the doctor complaining of dizzy spells.
see also dry spell
Extra Examples
- He's going through a bit of a bad spell at the moment.
- She managed to write a letter during a quiet spell at work.
- The children began having dizzy spells from hunger.
- Viera ended his barren spell with a goal against Parma.
- a spell of sunny weather
Topics Timec1
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adjective
- lengthy
- long
- prolonged
- …
verb + spell
- go through
- have
preposition
- during a… spell
- spell as
phrases
- a spell of … weather
See full entry
[countable] a period of time doing something or working somewhere
- She had a spell as a singer before becoming an actress.
- I spent a brief spell on the Washington Post.
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adjective
- lengthy
- long
- prolonged
- …
verb + spell
- go through
- have
preposition
- during a… spell
- spell as
phrases
- a spell of … weather
See full entry
[countable] words that are thought to have magic power or to make a piece of magic work; a piece of magic that happens when somebody says these magic words synonym enchantment (3)
- a magic spell
- a book of spells
- The wizard recited a spell.
- to cast/put a spell on somebody
- under a spell to be under a spell (= affected by magic)
Extra Examples
- She uttered the magic word, and the spell was broken.
- Sleeping Beauty was under a spell when the prince found her.
- The witch cast a spell on them.
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adjective
- magic
- magical
- powerful
- …
verb + spell
- be under
- come under
- fall under
- …
spell + noun
- book
preposition
- under a/the spell
- under somebody’s spell
See full entry
[singular] a quality that a person or thing has that makes them so attractive or interesting that they have a strong influence on you synonym charm
- I completely fell under her spell.
- It was a magic night until the spell was broken.
- Since last century the spell of the pyramids has drawn tourists to Egypt.
Extra Examples
- This place had woven its spell over them.
- the hypnotic spell of the cicadas singing in the trees
- The audience was completely under his spell.
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adjective
- magic
- magical
- powerful
- …
verb + spell
- be under
- come under
- fall under
- …
spell + noun
- book
preposition
- under a/the spell
- under somebody’s spell
See full entry

Word Originnoun senses 1 to 2 late 16th cent.: variant of dialect spele ‘take the place of’, of unknown origin. The early sense of the noun was ‘shift of relief workers’. noun senses 3 to 4 Old English spel(l) ‘narration’, of Germanic origin.

Idioms

weave a spell (over somebody) | weave your magic

(especially British English) to perform or behave in a way that is attractive or interesting, or that makes somebody behave in a particular way
- Japan is gradually weaving a spell over me.