Wording

How to spell wording

7 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce wording

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does wording mean?

1. nounThe particular choice of words used to express something.

Wording in a sentence

• The wording of the contract left both parties confused.

• She changed the wording of the email to sound more polite.

Where does wording come from?

Language of origin: Germanic

This word grows directly from the native English noun 'word', which descends from Old English 'word', meaning a unit of speech or an utterance, and which traces back to a Proto-Germanic root shared with Dutch 'woord' and German 'Wort'. That same ancient root is also linked, far back, to the Latin 'verbum' meaning 'word', the source of our 'verbal'. The suffix '-ing' was added to turn the verb 'to word' (meaning 'to express in words') into a noun naming the result of that act, namely the particular way something is phrased. English has used 'wording' in the sense of 'the manner in which something is put into words' since at least the 1500s. Because it is built so plainly from 'word' plus '-ing', the only spelling point to watch is the single 'd': there is no doubling, since the stress and the short closed syllable keep it as 'wording', not 'wordding'.

How the word is built

• word (from Old English word: speech, utterance)
• -ing (noun suffix forming a result or activity)