Select the correctly spelt word.

Correct — A. The word is privilege, spelt p-r-i-v-i-l-e-g-e.

Two checks fix it. The vowel after the v is an i, not an e, and the ending is -lege with no d in it.

The ending comes from Latin lex, legis, 'law', through privilegium, a law affecting one person. Run both checks across the four options and only option (a) survives.

Why the others are wrong

• (b)
  Privilej — Privilej ends in a bare j. English does not close a word this way, and the sound here is spelt -ge.
• (c)
  Priviledge — Priviledge inserts a d before the -ge, on the model of 'knowledge'. Privilege has no d anywhere in it.
• (d)
  Privelege — Privelege puts an e where the second i belongs. The vowels run i, i, e.

Spelling items reward one structural test per word rather than a visual guess, because all four options are built to look plausible at a glance.

For privilege the test is its root: Latin privus, 'private', plus lex, legis, 'law'. The -leg- of legis survives whole, which is why the ending is -lege and never -ledge.

The first half keeps privi-, so the vowel after the v is an i. Those two checks separate the real word from all three lures.

Key facts

• Privilege contains no letter d, and its ending is -lege.
• The vowel sequence is i, i, e: p-r-i-v-i-l-e-g-e.
• It comes from Latin privilegium, from privus (private) and lex, legis (law).

Common traps

• Importing the d from 'knowledge' or 'acknowledge' and choosing Priviledge.
• Deciding by look alone after saying the word aloud, since all four sound alike.

No directly related past PYQ was found.