A word with only one syllable

Sometimes, less is more. Very often in English, a one-syllable word will suffice to express an idea over a more complicated multisyllabic word. This article will showcase dozens of different one-syllable words in English, so you can make sure your vocabulary is more varied and rich in knowledge.

What Are Some Good 1 Syllable Words?

One doesn’t often think about words that have only 1 syllable in them, but the truth is that there are a ton of great words that you can use that only include one syllable. Some of the best English words with one syllable are: Cat, dog, car, sky, and laugh.

1 syllable words

Here are some great 1 syllable words:

  1. Cat
  2. Dog
  3. Car
  4. Sky
  5. Laugh
  6. Green
  7. Blue
  8. Far
  9. Close
  10. Rough
  11. Down

Printable PDF List of 1 Syllable Words

Shortest 1 Syllable Words

These are perhaps the most classic examples of words that only have one syllable, because when you think of one syllable, you’re probably thinking about brief, concise words. A short 1 syllable word manages to convey an entire idea in a deceptively small package.

Here’s some of our favorite short one syllable words:

  • Up
  • Yes
  • No
  • Bus
  • Be
  • Go
  • Sue
  • Sun
  • Act
  • Tip

Longest 1 Syllables Words

A word having one syllable doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s going to be short, however. In fact, some English words might have only one syllable when pronounced, but are actually fairly long when typing them out. Some words are monosyllabic even if they’re as long as some multisyllabic words.

Here are some of the English language’s longest words with one syllable:

  • Schmaltzed
  • Schnappsed
  • Scraunched
  • Strengthed
  • Scroonched
  • Broughammed

1 Syllable Words For Kindergarten

One syllable verbs, one syllable adjectives and one syllable nouns are all very relevant to small children, who are still learning to speak. The fact that they are not experienced at reading, writing and speaking guarantees that they will benefit from easy 1 syllable words.

1 Syllable Words For Kindergarten

These are just a few 1 syllable words for kids that can come in handy:

  • Draw
  • Pay
  • Train
  • Shoes
  • Shirt
  • Eat
  • Red
  • Black
  • Grow
  • Fruit

1 Syllable Words About Nature

Though the natural world can seem very complicated, the truth is that there are many 1 syllable words about animals and natural phenomena. In fact, there are also many 1 syllable words about summer and 1 syllable words about winter, among 1 syllable words for the other seasons.

Here are some one syllable words that focus on the natural world and all of its living creatures:

  • Cow
  • Goat
  • Rain
  • Snow
  • Hail
  • Cloud
  • Grass
  • Crow
  • Bird
  • Wolf

1 Syllable Words To Describe Someone

There also exist many one syllable words that can describe people and their qualities. Whether it’s very broad things or specific subjects, there’s many one syllable words in each description category. There are 1 syllable words about love, and about hate, and all the emotions in between.

Here are some 1 syllable adjectives that can describe people:

  • Good
  • Bad
  • Great
  • Fool
  • Brave
  • Kind
  • Tall
  • Short
  • Mean
  • Rich

1 Syllable Words Ending In “-y”

Many words in English can transform from a noun into an adjective by adding a “y” at the end. This transforms the word from being a noun about something, to being a descriptor that says it has the quality of something. Many of those words have only one syllable.

Here are some one syllable words that end in “-y”:

  • Key
  • Sly
  • Wry
  • Shy
  • Gray
  • Stray
  • My
  • Dry
  • Spry
  • Fly

1 Syllable Sentences

For many people, a sentence has to contain multiple words, several of which probably have multiple syllables, for it to be a valid English sentence. But the truth is that, by using a verb in the imperative form, just one monosyllabic verb can be a proper sentence.

Here are a few examples of sentences with only one syllable:

  • Stop.
  • Run.
  • Work.
  • Fight.
  • Cry.

Complete List Of 1 Syllable Words

Here are all of the one syllable words contained within this article, all in one list for your convenience and perusal:

  1. Cat
  2. Dog
  3. Car
  4. Sky
  5. Laugh
  6. Green
  7. Blue
  8. Far
  9. Close
  10. Rough
  11. Down
  12. Up
  13. Yes
  14. No
  15. Bus
  16. Be
  17. Go
  18. Sue
  19. Sun
  20. Act
  21. Tip
  22. Schmaltzed
  23. Schnappsed
  24. Scraunched
  25. Strengthed
  26. Scroonched
  27. Broughammed
  28. Draw
  29. Pay
  30. Train
  31. Shoes
  32. Shirt
  33. Eat
  34. Red
  35. Black
  36. Grow
  37. Fruit
  38. Cow
  39. Goat
  40. Rain
  41. Snow
  42. Hail
  43. Cloud
  44. Grass
  45. Crow
  46. Bird
  47. Wolf
  48. Good
  49. Bad
  50. Great
  51. Fool
  52. Brave
  53. Kind
  54. Tall
  55. Short
  56. Mean
  57. Rich
  58. Key
  59. Sly
  60. Wry
  61. Shy
  62. Gray
  63. Stray
  64. My
  65. Dry
  66. Spry
  67. Fly
  68. Stop
  69. Run
  70. Work
  71. Fight
  72. Cry

You may also like:
50+ Good 2 Syllable Words (List & Pictures)
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martin lassen dam grammarhow

Martin holds a Master’s degree in Finance and International Business. He has six years of experience in professional communication with clients, executives, and colleagues. Furthermore, he has teaching experience from Aarhus University. Martin has been featured as an expert in communication and teaching on Forbes and Shopify. Read more about Martin here.

Источник

Page 1: life, love, ER, world, ME, one, Day, AL, you, IN, tip, heart, on, Ate, no, Be, to, ay, AR, near, MA, en, CA, OR, la, Ta, Na, ch, ab, ad, ion, sh, MO, NE, DE, AN, ness, BA, Es, ring, ace, wolf, ap, go, fish, re, five, ae, man, and el

Word Length Consonants Vowels Syllables Origin Favourite
Life 4 2 2 1 Middle English
Love 4 2 2 1 Middle English
ER 2 1 1 1
World 5 4 1 1 Middle English
ME 2 1 1 1
One 3 1 2 1 Middle English
Day 3 2 1 1
AL 2 1 1 1
You 3 1 2 1 Middle English
IN 2 1 1 1
Tip 3 2 1 1 Dutch
Heart 5 3 2 1 Middle English
On 2 1 1 1 Middle English
Ate 3 1 2 1
No 2 1 1 1 Middle English
Be 2 1 1 1
To 2 1 1 1 Middle English
Ay 2 1 1 1 Old Turkic
AR 2 1 1 1
Near 4 2 2 1 Middle English
MA 2 1 1 1
En 2 1 1 1 Latin
CA 2 1 1 1
OR 2 1 1 1
La 2 1 1 1 Latin
Ta 2 1 1 1
Na 2 1 1 1 Latin
Ch 2 2 0 1 Old English
Ab 2 1 1 1 Persian
Ad 2 1 1 1 Latin
Ion 3 1 2 1 Ancient Greek
Sh 2 2 0 1
MO 2 1 1 1
NE 2 1 1 1
DE 2 1 1 1
AN 2 1 1 1
Ness 4 3 1 1 Old English
BA 2 1 1 1
Es 2 1 1 1
Ring 4 3 1 1 Middle English
Ace 3 1 2 1 Middle English
Wolf 4 3 1 1 Middle English
Ap 2 1 1 1 Latin
Go 2 1 1 1 Middle English
Fish 4 3 1 1 Middle English
Re 2 1 1 1 Latin
Five 4 2 2 1 Middle English
Ae 2 0 2 1 Middle English
Man 3 2 1 1 Middle English
El 2 1 1 1 Latin

This should be the most accurate and largest monosyllable words list in the English language.

Источник

This is a list of candidates for the longest English word of one syllable, i.e. monosyllables with the most letters. A list of 9,123 English monosyllables published in 1957 includes three ten-letter words: scraunched, scroonched, and squirreled.[1] Guinness World Records lists scraunched and strengthed.[2] Other sources include words as long or longer. Some candidates are questionable on grounds of spelling, pronunciation, or status as obsolete, nonstandard, proper noun, loanword, or nonce word. Thus, the definition of longest English word with one syllable is somewhat subjective, and there is no single unambiguously correct answer.

ListEdit

word pronunciation letters source notes
schtroumpfed 12 Eco[3] The original French name for smurf is schtroumpf, and this word is used as an all-purpose noun and verb by the titular characters. The form schtroumpfed is used in Alistair McEwen’s English translation of an essay by Umberto Eco: «Let us suppose that an English speaker of average culture hears a Schtroumpf poet reciting I schtroumpfed lonely as a schtroumpf.» This does not follow the conventions of English-language versions of The Smurfs, where one would instead encounter the word smurfed.[3]
broughammed 11 Sc.Am.[4] meaning «travelled by brougham», by analogy with bussed, biked, carted etc. Rhymes with fumed, zoomed. Suggested by poet William Harmon in a competition to find the longest monosyllable.
squirrelled 11 LPD;[5] MWOD[6] compressed American pronunciation of a word which in British RP always has two syllables /ˈskwɪrəld/. The monosyllabic pronunciation rhymes with world, curled. In the United States the given spelling is a variant of the more usual squirreled: see -led and -lled spellings.
broughamed 10 Shaw[7] a variant of broughammed, used by George Bernard Shaw in a piece of journalism.
quarrelled 10 OED[8] the more usual British spelling quarreled.
schmaltzed , , 10 OED[9] meaning «imparted a sentimental atmosphere to» e.g. of music; with a 1969 attestation for the past tense.
schnappsed 10 Sc.Am.[4] meaning «drank schnapps»; proposed by poet George Starbuck in the same competition won by his friend William Harmon.
schwartzed 10 [10] meaning «responded ‘Schwartz’ to a player without making eye-contact» in the game Zoom Schwartz Profigliano.
scraunched 10 W3NID;[11] Moser[1] a «chiefly dialect» word, meaning «crunched».
scroonched 10 W3NID;[11] Moser[1] variant of scrunched, meaning «squeezed».
scrootched 10 AHD[12] variant of scrooched, meaning «crouched»
squirreled 10 LPD;[5] MWOD;[6] Moser[1] the more usual American spelling of squirrelled.
strengthed 10 OED[13] an obsolete verb meaning «strengthen», «force», and «summon one’s strength». The latest citation is 1614 (1479 for strengthed), at which time the Early Modern English pronunciation would have been disyllabic.

Proper namesEdit

Some nine-letter proper names remain monosyllabic when adding a tenth letter and apostrophe to form the possessive:

  • Laugharne’s [5]
  • Scoughall’s [14]

Note that both use the ough tetragraph, which can represent a wide variety of sounds in English.

In his short story, «Strychnine in the Soup», P. G. Wodehouse had a character whose surname was «Mapledurham», pronounced «Mum». This is eleven letters, while «Mapledurham’s» is twelve.

It is productive in English to convert a (proper) noun into an eponymous verb or adjective:

  • A 2007–08 promotion in France used the slogan «Do you Schweppes?», implying a past tense Schweppesed (11 letters) for the putative verb.[15]
  • Schwartzed (10 letters) has been used to mean «(re)designed in the style of Martha Schwartz»[16]
  • Schwartzed has also been used to mean «crossed swords with Justice Alan R. Schwartz»[17]
  • Schmertzed (10 letters) has been used to mean «received undue largesse from New York City through the intervention of negotiator Eric Schmertz»[18]

Contrived endingsEdit

In a 1970 article in Word Ways, Ralph G. Beaman converts past participles ending -ed into nouns, allowing regular plurals with -s. He lists five verbs in Webster’s Third International generating 10-letter monosyllables scratcheds, screecheds, scroungeds, squelcheds, stretcheds; from the verb strength in Webster’s Second International he forms the 11-letter strengtheds.[19]

The past tense ending -ed and the archaic second person singular ending -st can be combined into -edst; for example «In the day when I cried thou answeredst me, and strengthenedst me with strength in my soul» (Psalms 138:3). While this ending is usually pronounced as a separate syllable from the verb stem, it may be abbreviated -‘dst to indicate elision. Attested examples include scratch’dst[20] and stretch’dst,[21] each of which has one syllable spelled with ten letters plus apostrophe.

See alsoEdit

  • Longest word in English

ReferencesEdit

  1. ^ a b c d
    Moser, Henry M. (June 1957). Dreher, John J.; Oyer, Herbert J. (eds.). One-syllable words (Report). Technical report. Vol. no.53. Columbus, Ohio: Ohio State University Research Foundation. OCLC 878346994.;
    cited in
    PMC (1978). Albert Ross Eckler (ed.). «Review: English monosyllables«. Word Ways. Indianapolis. 11–12: 118.
  2. ^ «Longest monosyllabic English words». Guinness World Records. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  3. ^ a b
    Eco, Umberto (1999). «§4.7.2: Meaning and the text». Kant and the Platypus: Essays on Language and Cognition. translated by Alistair McEwen. Harcourt Brace. 277–8. ISBN 0-15-100447-1.
  4. ^ a b
    Gardner, Martin (April 1979). «Mathematical games». Scientific American. 240 (4): 18. Bibcode:1979SciAm.240e..18G. doi:10.1038/scientificamerican0579-18.
  5. ^ a b c
    Wells, John C. (2000). Longman Pronunciation Dictionary (2nd ed.). Longman. ISBN 978-0-582-36467-7.
  6. ^ a b
    Spelling: «2squirrel». Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. Retrieved 2009-01-14.
    Pronunciation: «1squirrel». Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. Retrieved 2009-01-14.
  7. ^
    Shaw, George Bernard (1932). Our Theatres in the Nineties. London: Constable and Company. p. 205. ISBN 1-4067-4302-X. …horsed and broughamed, painted and decorated, furnished and upholstered…
  8. ^
    «strength, v.». Oxford English Dictionary (2nd ed.). 1989.
  9. ^
    «schmaltz, v.». Oxford English Dictionary (2nd ed.). 1989.
  10. ^
    Cullen, Ruth (2006). The Little Black Book of Party Games: The Essential Guide to Throwing the Best Bashes. Illustrated by Kerren Barbas. Peter Pauper Press. p. 14. ISBN 1-59359-919-6. If the first person has been schwartzed, he can either look at a new person and say «Zoom,» or send it right back to the second person by saying «Pifigiano»
  11. ^ a b
    Webster’s Third New International Dictionary. Merriam-Webster. 1966. ISBN 0-7135-1038-2.
  12. ^ Joseph P. Pickett; et al., eds. (2000). «scrooch». The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (4th ed.). Boston: Houghton Mifflin. ISBN 0-395-82517-2. Archived from the original on 2007-08-24. Retrieved 2009-01-14.
  13. ^
    «strength, v.». Oxford English Dictionary (2nd ed.). 1989.
  14. ^
    «Scoughall». Scripture Union Holidays. 2007. Archived from the original on 2008-10-11. Retrieved 2009-01-15. Scoughall (pronounced «skole») is in East Lothian, not far from North Berwick.
  15. ^
    «Do you Schweppes» (in French). Orangina Schweppes. December 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-10-31. Retrieved 2009-07-06.
  16. ^
    Diesenhouse, Susan (June 26, 2004). «Landscapes of the mind». Boston Globe. archinect. Retrieved 2009-01-15. So distinctive is her style that her name has become a Euro design verb, as in Barclays at Canary Wharf is being ‘Schwartzed’ .
  17. ^
    Mandel, Roberta G. (Spring 2005). «The End of an Era at the Third District Court of Appeal: The Retirement of Judge Robert L. Shevin, Judge Mario P. Goderich and Chief Judge Alan R. Schwartz» (PDF). The Record. Tallahassee: Florida Bar, Appellate Section. XI (1): 8. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 June 2006. Retrieved 2009-01-14. there is no other jurist who has inspired the formation of a new terminology:»to be Schwartzed» or «to get Schwartzed» or «passing the Schwartz test.»
  18. ^ Barbanel, Josh (October 23, 1990). «Negotiator’s Quiet Style Elicits Loud Protest». The New York Times. Retrieved 2009-01-15. I have now turned Schmertz into a verb and a noun,» the former Mayor said. «If you have been abused, we say you have been Schmertzed. If you get an unwarranted and undeserved payment from the City of New York, you say, ‘Thank you Mr. Mayor, for the Schmertz.’
  19. ^ Beaman, Ralph G. (1970). «Syllabilities». Word Ways (4): 79. Retrieved 23 June 2010.
  20. ^ Woolbert, Charles Henry (1922). Better Speech: A Textbook of Speech Training for Secondary Schools. p. 103.
  21. ^ Shoemaker, Rachel Walter Hinkle (1898). Advanced elocution. p. 129. ISBN 0-89609-169-4.

External linksEdit

  • askoxford.com: What is the longest one-syllable English word?
  • rec-puzzles.org: What words have an exceptional number of letters per syllable?
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Ah, the humble syllable. Such a small part of language, yet syllables make up all the words we say across all languages. So, what are they all about? And how can we identify them?

This article is all about syllables and will give a definition for syllable definition, cover the types of syllables in English, and provide some syllable examples. We’ll also cover syllable division – in other words, how to divide a word into its constituent syllables.

Syllable: definition

Before we dive into the intricacies of syllables, let’s begin with our syllable definition. You might already have a good idea of what a syllable is but just in case:

A syllable is a unit of pronunciation that can join other syllables to form longer words or be a word in and of itself. Syllables must contain a singular vowel sound and may or may not have consonants before, after, or surrounding the vowel sound.

To illustrate this, here are some brief examples of what a syllable can look like:

  • The indefinite article «a» is a syllable (one vowel sound, with no consonants).
  • The word «oven» has two syllables because it has two vowel sounds – «ov» /-ʌv/ + «en» /-ən/ (each of these syllables includes a vowel sound and a consonant).
  • Many words consist of only one syllable, such as «run,» «fruit,» «bath,» and «large.» Each of these comprises a combination of one vowel sound and various consonants.

Syllables, playmobil figurines, StudySmarterFig 1. Whenever we speak, we use syllables.

Types of syllables in English

Since you’re an English Language student, we’ll be focusing on the types of syllables in English rather than looking at syllables on a more global level.

There are six key types of syllables in English:

  • Closed syllable: syllables that end in a consonant and have a short vowel sound (e.g., In «picture,» the first syllable, «pic» /pɪk/ ends in a consonant, and the /ɪ/ sound is short).

  • Open syllable: syllables that end in a vowel and have a long vowel sound (e.g., In «zero,» the last syllable «ro» /roʊ/ ends with the vowel sound /oʊ/, which is long).

  • Vowel-consonant-e syllable: syllables that end with a long vowel, a consonant, and a silent -e (e.g., «Fate» is a one-syllable word which ends with a long -a /eɪ/, a consonant (t), and a silent -e).

  • Diphthong (vowel team) syllable: syllables that include two consecutive vowels making a singular sound (e.g., in «shouting,» the first syllable «shout» (ʃaʊt) includes an -o and a -u together that makes one sound — the diphthong /aʊ/).

  • R-controlled syllable: syllables that end in at least one vowel followed by -r (e.g., In the name Peter, the end syllable «er» /ər/ consists of an -e followed by an -r.)

R-controlled syllables are specific to rhotic accents, that is, accents where the -r is pronounced wherever it appears. In Standard American English, the -r at the end of r-controlled syllables is a rhotic /r/, which means it is more pronounced than the non-rhotic /r/ of Standard British English.

In Standard British English, the -r at the end of most words and syllables ending in -r would make a schwa sound (ə) instead of a strong, rhotic /r/ sound. Therefore, non-rhotic British English (and other non-rhotic accents) does not include r-controlled syllables.

There are some British accents that are rhotic, however, such as the Cornish and Devon accents, and there are a couple of American accents which are non-rhotic, such as the Chicago or Upstate New York accents.

  • Consonant-le syllable: syllables that end with a consonant followed by -le (e.g., In «syllable,» the last syllable «ble» /bəl/ ends with the consonant -b followed by -le.)

Each of these syllable types follows the rule of having a singular vowel sound and either no consonants or a range of consonants before, after, or surrounding the vowel sound.

Syllable: examples

An example of a syllable is the word ‘hello’, which has two syllables: «hel» and «lo». To ensure each of these syllable types is cemented in our minds, let’s look at a few more syllable examples for each type:

Closed Syllables

  • cat (/kæt/)
  • napkin – nap(/næp/) + kin (/kɪn/)
  • spin (/spɪn/)
  • doughnut – dough + nut (/nʌt/)

In all of these examples, the underlined syllables end with a consonant and have a short vowel sound.

This is generally the first kind of syllable that children are taught to read; many early reading words follow the consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC) pattern («cat,» «mat,» «pin,» «dip,» «dog,» etc.)

Open Syllables

  • go (/goʊ/)
  • sky (/skaɪ/)
  • we (/wi/)
  • mosquito – mos + qui + to (/toʊ/)

In all of these examples, the underlined syllables end in a vowel that has a long vowel sound.

Vowel-Consonant-e Syllables

  • plate (/pleɪt/)
  • tame (/teɪm/)
  • mite (/maɪt/)
  • bone (/boʊn/)

In all of these examples, the syllables underlined consist of a vowel, followed by a consonant, followed by a silent (or «magic») -e. The -e in each syllable elongates the sound of the vowels.

Diphthong Syllables

  • sky (skaɪ)
  • trail (/treɪl/)
  • spoiled — spoi (/spɔɪ/) + led

In all of these examples, the underlined syllables include two vowels together that make a singular vowel sound.

R-Controlled Syllables

  • fir (/fɜːr/)
  • burr (/bɜːr/
  • plumber – plumb + er (/ər/)
  • corridor – cor + ri + dor (/dər/)

In all of these examples, the underlined syllables are made up of a vowel followed by an — r. To reiterate, r-controlled syllables are specific to rhotic accents. Non-rhotic accents do not have r-controlled syllables.

Consonant-le Syllables

  • turtle — tur + tle (/təl/)
  • hurdle — hur + dle (/dəl/)
  • maple — ma + ple (/pəl/)

In all of these examples, the underlined syllables are formed by placing -le after a consonant.

Syllables, letter dice, StudySmarterFig 2. Every syllable must have one vowel sound and can have a variety of consonants

Syllable division

If you aren’t used to doing it, syllable division can sometimes be a bit tricky. What do we mean by ‘syllable division’?

Syllable division simply refers to the process of dividing a word into its constituent syllables.

There are several ways to divide words into syllables, and these ways depend on the composition of the word. There are seven rules you can learn to make syllable division easier.

Syllable rules

The seven syllable rules mentioned above are as follows:

  • A syllable can only have one vowel sound. Using this logic, you can divide words into syllables by looking at the vowel sounds.

Vowels and vowel sounds are two different things.

  • a vowel is one of the letters: a, e, i, o, u (and sometimes y)
  • a vowel sound is the sound made by the vowel or vowels in a word

The number of vowels in a word does not always equal the number of vowel sounds. For instance, words with a silent «-e,» such as «rate» have two vowels (a and e) but only one vowel sound (eɪ).

The word «plant» only has one vowel sound, so the word itself is only one syllable. The word «coriander,» however, has four vowel sounds and is therefore divided into four syllables – «co» + «ri» + «an» + «der,» where each syllable has a vowel sound.

  • Dividing between two of the same consonant. If a word has two of the same consonant (e.g., «mopping»), you can divide the word into syllables between them (e.g., «mopping» becomes «mop» + «ping»). For this rule to work, the double consonant must have a vowel on either side. In the «mopping» example, there is an «-o» on one side of the double -p and an «-i» on the other.

  • Divide according to the length of the vowel sound. Some vowel sounds are short, some are long, and some words include both. You can figure out where to divide a word into syllables depending on the kind of vowel sounds in that word.

If the first vowel sound in a word is long, then the divide should come after the first vowel. For instance, in the word «deepen,» the first vowel sound is the long -e, so the division into syllables would look like: «dee» + «pen.» In this case, the middle consonant becomes attached to the second vowel sound.

If the first vowel sound in a word is short, then the divide should come before the second vowel sound in the word. In the word «figure,» the first vowel sound is the short -i, so the division into syllables would look like: «fig» + «ure». In this case, the middle consonant attaches to the first vowel sound.

  • Divide between two vowels if they make different sounds. If a word has two vowels next to each other that produce two different sounds, then you should divide between these two vowels (e.g., «diet» becomes «di» + «et», and «diaspora» becomes «di» + «as» + «por» + «a»).

  • Affixes become separate syllables. If a word has been inflected to include a prefix, suffix, or both, then these affixes become their own syllables (e.g., «endless» becomes «end» + «less» and «reread» becomes «re» + «read»).

  • Compound words are always divided between the two words. If a word is made up of two or more other words, then there should be syllable divisions between them.

«Cupcake»: «cup» + «cake»

«Something»: «some» + «thing»

«Sunflower»: «sun» + «flow» + «er» (here, «flower» is split into two syllables because it includes two different vowel sounds — ˈflaʊ + ər ).

  • Divide before consonant-le structures. If a word ends with a consonant followed by -le, then you should divide the word before the consonant preceding the -le (e.g., «needle» becomes «nee» + «dle» and «turtle» becomes «tur» + «tle»).

By following these seven rules, you should be able to identify where a word should be divided into syllables.

Syllables, t-rex skeleton, StudySmarterFig 3. «Tyrannosaurus Rex» has six syllables! Typically, the longer the word, the more syllables it has.

Names with two syllables

For a bit of fun, we’ll end this article by looking at some names with two syllables.

This table shows the two-syllable names and how they can be divided into their constituent syllables in IPA (international phonetic alphabet).

Name Syllables
Harvey -hɑr + -vi
Shannon -ʃæ + -nən
Michael -maɪ + -kəl
Gertrude -gɜr + -trud
Sarah -sɛ + -rə

Syllable — Key takeaways

  • A syllable is a unit of pronunciation that can either be its own word or can come together with other syllables to make longer words.
  • Each syllable can only have one vowel sound in it and may or may not have a variety of consonants around the vowel sound.
  • There are six key types of syllables in English: closed, open, vowel-consonant-e, diphthong, r-controlled, and consonant-le.
  • Syllable division refers to how words are broken down into their constituent syllables.
  • There are seven rules for syllable division.

Frequently Asked Questions about Syllable

A syllable is a unit of pronunciation that can either come together with other syllables to form longer words or be a word in and of itself. Syllables contain a singular vowel sound and may or may not have consonants before, after, or surrounding the vowel sound. 

An example of a syllable is the word «English». The syllables are «Eng» and «lish». 

There are six types of syllables in English, and knowing these types can help you to identify them in a word. They are: 

  • open
  • closed
  • vowel-consonant-e
  • diphthong
  • r-controlled
  • consonant-le

Once you understand what each of the syllable types consists of, you can identify these types in words. 

These are some examples of two-syllable words: 

  • English: Eng + lish
  • exact: ex + act
  • mother: mo + ther
  • classroom: class + room
  • begin: be + gin

There are seven rules of syllable division which are as follows: 

  • A syllable can only have one vowel sound. 
  • Dividing between two of the same consonant. 
  • Divide according to the length of the vowel sound. 
  • Divide between two vowels if they make different sounds. 
  • Affixes become separate syllables. 
  • Compound words are always divided between the two words. 
  • Divide before consonant-le structures. 

Every syllable needs to include one vowel sound. Syllables can either be a vowel on their own, or can have consonants attached to the vowel sound.

Final Syllable Quiz

Syllable Quiz — Teste dein Wissen

Question

Briefly describe what a syllable is. 

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Answer

A syllable is a unit of pronunciation that can either come together with other syllables to form longer words, or it can be a word in and of itself. Syllables contain a singular vowel sound and may or may not have consonants before, after, or surrounding the vowel sound. 

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Question

True or false, a syllable can have more than one vowel sound in it.

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Question

True or false, syllables can sometimes include consonants, but don’t always. 

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Question

List the six kinds of syllable in English.

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Answer

  • closed
  • open
  • vowel-consonant-e
  • diphthong
  • r-controlled
  • consonant-le

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Question

How many syllable division rules are there in English?

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Question

What is «syllable division»?

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Answer

When a word is divided into its constituent syllables. 

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Question

Using this rule, divide the word «pineapple» into syllables: 

A syllable can only have one vowel sound. 

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Question

Using this rule, divide the word «rabbit» into syllables: 

Dividing between two of the same consonant. 

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Question

Using this rule, divide the word «feature» into syllables: 

Divide according to the length of the vowel sound. 

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Question

Using this rule, divide the word «dieting» into syllables: 

Divide between two vowels if they make different sounds.  

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Question

True or false, affixes become their own syllables. 

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Question

Where should you divide a compound word during syllable division?

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Answer

Compound words should always be divided between their constituent words, as well as following the other syllable division rules. 

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Question

Which of these words has the most syllables?

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Question

Divide the word «plumber» into syllables. 

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Question

Briefly describe each of the six syllable types. 

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Answer

  • Closed syllable: syllables that end in a consonant and have a short vowel sound 

  • Open syllable: syllables that end in a vowel and have a long vowel sound 

  • Vowel-consonant-e syllable: syllables that end with a long vowel, a consonant, and a silent -e 

  • Diphthong (vowel team) syllable: syllables that include two consecutive vowels making a singular sound

  • R-controlled syllable: syllables that end in at least one vowel followed by -r 

  • Consonant-le syllable: syllables that end with a consonant followed by -le 

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