Cancelled vs. Canceled: Pronunciation
While pronouncing ‘cancel,’ we emphasize the first syllable. And, when a word is stressed on its final syllable, it generally takes two l’s before “ed.” For example, cancelled, compelled, rebelled, repelled, etc.
It’s the case for both American and British English spellings. In order to figure out whether this rule applies, just try to pronounce the words in your head.
Canceled or Cancelled – Which One is Correct?
“American and British English have many similar habits when it comes to past and present participles: both double the final consonant of a word when it follows a short vowel and has the stress on the syllable attached to the suffix (such as remit/remitted/remitting). However, if the stress does not come on the syllable that attaches to the suffix then the final consonant is not doubled (as is the case with edit/edited/editing).” – Lynne Murphy
Canceled or cancelled is the past tense of the verb ‘cancel.’ Both spellings are right. It’s just that Americans prefer ‘canceled‘ or ‘canceling,’ whereas ‘cancelled‘ or ‘cancelling‘ is used in British English and other dialects. However, the word ‘cancelation’ is rarely used and is technically correct, while ‘cancellation’ is by far the most widely-used spelling.