The spelling of the word "gillings" uses the IPA phonetic transcription /ˈɡɪlɪŋz/, with a hard "g" followed by the "i" sound as in "ill." The double "l" indicates a short vowel sound, followed by the "i" as in "ink," and ending with the "ng" sound. "Gillings" is a plural form of "gilling," which refers to a young herring or other small fish. This spelling follows the English language convention of adding "-s" to the end of a singular word to make it plural.