Rule #1: CVC rule.
[CVC = Consonant-Vowel-Consonant]
The vowel is short! (99% true) [in CVCC the vowel is also short] (99% true)
Examples: rat, hen, sit, not, cut
Rule #2: CVC + silent “e” rule
[Mr. Silent "e" says, "Change your sound!"]
The vowel is long! (99% true)
Example: rate, here, site, note, cute
Rule #3: hard “c” / soft “c” rule
3a) Hard "C" : When c+a OR c+o OR c+u exists, then "c" has the /k/ sound.
(It doesn't matter if the vowel is short or long).
Examples: The con man can put a cane into a cone and a cub into
a cube.
3b) Soft "C" : When c+e OR c+i OR c+y exists, then "c" has the /s/ sound.
(It doesn't matter if the vowel is short or long).
Examples: The city center has a circle.
More Ex.): I will recite the cyclical cycles of circular cells.
Rule #4: “k” instead of “c” rule
K instead of "C" : Why? Because "c" changes it's sound when followed by e, i, and y, we
needed a new letter in English.
When we need a hard "c" sound + e,i,y, then we have to use "k". It doesn't matter if the
vowel is short or long.
Examples: Kelly keeps kissing the kite, while Kym
keeps kissing Kyle.
More Ex.): Kyle the king is kind, even though he is only a kid.
What about K + a, o, u?!!!
Words that have k + a,o,u are "loan words" from other languages.
Examples: kangaroo (Aus.Aboriginal word), Korea (Korean word), kung fu (Chinese
word)
Rule #5: hard “g” / soft “g” rule
3a) Hard "G" : When g+a OR g+o OR g+u exists, then "g" has the /g/ sound.
(It doesn't matter if the vowel is short or long).
Examples: The bad guy got a gun and put a gag on the gal.
More Ex.): The good guy gave the bad guy a gallon of gas in
his galoshes.
3b) Soft "G" : When g+e OR g+i OR g+y exists, then "g" has the /j/ sound.
(It doesn't matter if the vowel is short or long).
Examples: The gentle gypsy put gel in her hair, then gyrated her
hips.
More Ex.): I like ginseng and ginger.
Exceptions: give, gill, get, geyser, girl
Why? Because "C" has a friend named, "K", but "G" has nobody, nobody, but you!
Ha, ha, ha; I crack myself up!
Rule #6: double consonant rule
Explanation: There's a SHORT VOWEL before a double consonant. (99% TRUE!!!)
NOTE: there are many exceptions to this rule.
SOME EXCEPTIONS: caller, stalling, falling, etc.
ALSO: Occasionally, there may be a single consonant after a short vowel sound. It drives
me crazy.
SOME EXAMPLES: elephant,
Rule #7: CV rule
Explanation: If the word ends in a vowel, it is usually long.
Examples: he, me, we, hi, go, no, so, flu, Katmandu, and Timbuktu.
Some super weird exceptions: to, do, ma, pa, ska, bla, bla, bla
Rule #8: final “a” = schwa sound ( )
Examples:
Linda
pizza
Zebra
Korea
India
America
Rule #9: Change the 'y' to 'i' and add
'es'/'er'/'est'
Explanation: If there is a vowel before the 'y', as in 'day', just add 's' (days).
Examples: day-days, play-plays, way-ways, toy-toys, boy-boys
Explanation: If there is a consonant before the 'y', as in 'try', change the 'y' to 'i' and add
'es'.
Examples: try-tries, cry-cries, dry-dries, fly-flies, sky-skies, country-countries
Explanation: Change the 'y' to 'i' and add 'er' or 'est'
Examples: happy-happier-happiest; funny-funnier-funniest; pretty-prettier-prettiest; dirty-
dirtier-dirtiest
Rule #10: Change the 'f' to 'v' and add 'es'
Explanation: If there is an 'f' at the end of a word, we make it plural by changing the 'f' to 'v'
and add 'es'.
Examples: calf-calves, half-halves, wolf-wolves, wife-wives, knife-knives
Rule #11: Change the 'y' to 'i' and add 'ed' or
'ing'
Explanation: If there is a vowel before the 'y', just add 'ed' or 'ing'.
Examples: play-played-playing, destroy-destroyed-destroying
Explanation: If there isn't a vowel before the 'y', change the 'y' to 'i' & add 'ed' (but not for
'ing').
Examples: dry-dried-drying, cry-cried-crying, try-tried-trying
Exceptions: fly-flew-flying
Rule #12: Change the 'ie' to 'y' when adding
'ing'
Explanation: If the verb ends in 'ie', change the 'ie' to 'y' when adding 'ing'.
Examples: die-died-dying,
lie-lied-lying (if 'lie' = to tell a falsehood)
tie-tied-tying
Exceptions: lie-lay-lain (to put one's self in horizontal position on the floor or ground)
Part 2: Digraphs (Ch & Th)
The symbols that we use for English today are from the Roman language. Yet English
contains words from Old English, Middle English, German, Latin, Greek, Arabic, Italian,
and French. This makes English pronunciation quite complicated. Of course, all of Europe
uses Roman symbols, but the Romanization of each language is quite different from one
country to another. Sometimes digraphs were invented to represent consonant sounds,
which don’t exist in Latin. For example, Latin doesn’t have the / / sound. In English, we
represent this sound with the digraph “Sh.” In French, the same sound is represented with
the digraph “Ch.” Sometimes digraphs were invented to distinguish the origin of the word.
For example, the Greek letter /x/ (spelled: ‘chi’, pronounced, /kai/) is transliterated as the
digraph “Ch,” but it sounds like /k/. Why did they do this? I don’t know. It really makes
things confusing. So in English, the digraph “Ch” has three sounds, depending on the
origin of the word. See table below.
1. “Ch” Rule(s)
Original English words, which begin with "ch" are pronounced like " "
Greek-English words, which begin with "ch" are pronounced like a "k".
French-English words, which begin with "ch" are pronounced like " "
Examples:
Pure-English Words Greek-English Words French-English Words
"ch" = / / "ch" = /k/ "ch" = / /
champion ache champagne (wine)
chalk stomach chauffeur (driver)
cherry chemistry Cheri (name)
chip chiropractor chic (cool)
chop chorus / choir Chopin (name)
church Christmas -
- chrome -
- chronicle -
NOTE: there are some exceptions, like the English word "channel" is from French, but it
has the pure-English pronunciation.
2. “Th” Rule(s)
There are TWO "th" sounds: / / & / /.
Notice that the latter symbol looks much like a "d". That's because it sounds much like a
"d", and many non-native English speakers (or Pidgin/Creole speakers), will substitute the
"d" sound for the sound. The former symbol looks unlike any other alphabetical letter in
English (or Roman), and that's because it is unlike any other sound in English (or
Roman). Since the symbol is a Greek symbol, many words with that sound are from
Greek (but not all).
Look at the diagrams (below) of the articulations of , , and d...
In the first diagram, we see that the tongue is clenched tightly between the teeth, blocking
all air from going in or out. Then, the tongue is drawn in very quickly, and by the laws of
physics, air must go out, but also combined the intercostal muscles in the chest
contracting, a very strong, almost plosive wind comes out of the mouth. (some say it is a
fricative, but I firmly believe it to be a plosive).
In the second diagram, the tongue is pressed up against the back of the upper teeth and
alveolar ridge. Like the , the initial articulation blocks the would-be hole between the
open teeth, not allowing any air to go in or out. BUT, unlike the , the movement forces
the tongue out of the mouth between the teeth (slowly), and then slowly the tongue goes
back in and down. Because of the slow movement of the tongue, it is labeled a fricative.
In the third diagram, we see that the "d" movement is almost identical to the movement,
except that the tongue doesn't actually leave the mouth. The initial articulations are
different as well, but not far apart, which would account for the similarity in sound.
In fact, many native speakers will use the "d" sound in place of the sound, when trying
to be funny.
Example: "Duh Bears!" (Chicago Bears are a football team, and Chicagoans will often
call them "Duh Bears!").
Also, many non-native English speaker, which speak a Creole of English, like in Jamaica,
will use the "d" sound in place of the ; AND, they will use the "t" sound in place of the
sound. This works well, because both "d" and are fricatives, and both "t" and are
plosives.
Part 3: Vowel Teams (or Vowel Strings) with more than 1
sound
'ea' (short e sound); bread, breath, dead, death, head, lead, read, wealth,
'ea' (long e sound); bead, beat, breathe, eat, feat, heat, lead, leak, meat, neat, read,
treat, weak, wheat
'ea' (long a sound); break, great, steak
'ew' ( /u:/ ); dew, blew, chew, crew, flew, grew, knew, lewd, mew, stew,
'ew' ( /ju:/ ); few, new, pew
'oo' (short sound / /); book, foot, good, hood, hook, look, nook, rook, soot, took, wood,
'oo' ( /u:/ ); balloon, boot, cartoon, goose, loose, moose, loop, loot, moon, noon, poop,
root, stoop, toon, toot,
'oo' (schwa sound / /); blood, flood
'oo' (long o sound); boor, floor, door, moor
'ou' ('au' "short" sound); bough, grouse, house, louse, mouse, plough
'ou' ('ou' "long" sound); though
'ou' (schwa sound / /); enough, rough, tough
'ow' ('au' "short" sound); brown, cow, how, now, wow
'ow' ('ou' "long" sound); blow, flow, grow, know, low, sow, tow,
