Choose the correct spelling: 'The capital of the United States is [Wahsington / Washington / Washinton], D.C.'

WASHINGTON is on the USCIS WRITING VOCABULARY list. Correct spelling: 'W-A-S-H-I-N-G-T-O-N.' Pay attention to all the letters — the order is W-A-S-H-I-N-G-T-O-N (the 'sh' in the middle is followed by 'ington'). The word 'Washington' can mean the person George Washington OR the place (Washington, D.C., or Washington state). For the writing test, the dictated sentence will give context. Common dictation sentences using 'Washington': 'Washington is the capital.' 'Washington, D.C., is the capital of the United States.' 'George Washington was the first President.' 'The capital is in Washington.' Other PLACES VOCABULARY for the writing test: Alaska, California, Canada, Delaware, Mexico, New York City, United States, Washington, Washington, D.C. WHEN WRITING D.C.: write the letters D-period-C-period (D.C. with periods). Some applicants write 'DC' without periods; either is generally accepted. Always CAPITALIZE place names — Washington, D.C., America, the United States, Mexico, etc. The article 'the' is typically used with 'United States' but not with 'America' alone — 'the United States is...' / 'America is....' The USCIS officer should be patient and clear with dictation; if you didn't hear clearly, you can ask the officer to repeat the sentence.