How many syllables in the word little

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little

 

645389127 syllables

Divide little into syllables:   lit-tle
Stressed syllable in little:   lit-tle
How to pronounce little:   lit-l
How to say little:

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«little.» HowManySyllables.com. How Many Syllables, n.d. Web. 14 April 2023.

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Word

Little

How many syllables?

2 Syllables

How it’s divided?

lit-tle

Definition
  • a. — Small in size or extent; not big; diminutive; — opposed to
    big or large; as, a little body; a little animal; a little piece of
    ground; a little hill; a little distance; a little child.
  • a. — Short in duration; brief; as, a little sleep.
  • a. — Small in quantity or amount; not much; as, a little food; a
    little air or water.
  • a. — Small in dignity, power, or importance; not great;
    insignificant; contemptible.
  • a. — Small in force or efficiency; not strong; weak; slight;
    inconsiderable; as, little attention or exertion;little effort; little
    care or diligence.
  • a. — Small in extent of views or sympathies; narrow; shallow;
    contracted; mean; illiberal; ungenerous.

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English[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Middle English litel, from Old English lȳtel, from Proto-West Germanic *lūtil, from Proto-Germanic *lūtilaz (tending to stoop, crouched, little), from Proto-Indo-European *lewd- (to bend, bent, small), equivalent to lout + -le. Cognate with Dutch luttel, regional German lütt and lützel, West Frisian lyts, Low German lütt, Old High German luzzil, Middle High German lützel, Old English lūtan (to bow, bend low); and perhaps to Old English lytig (deceitful, lot deceit), Gothic 𐌻𐌹𐌿𐍄𐍃 (liuts, deceitful), 𐌻𐌿𐍄𐌾𐌰𐌽 (lutjan, to deceive); compare also Icelandic lítill (little), Swedish liten, Danish liden, lille, Gothic 𐌻𐌴𐌹𐍄𐌹𐌻𐍃 (leitils), which appear to have a different root vowel. More at lout.

Pronunciation[edit]

  • (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈlɪtl̩/, [ˈlɪtʰɫ̩]
  • (General American) IPA(key): /ˈlɪt(ə)l/, [ˈlɪɾɫ̩], [ˈɫɪɾɫ̩]
  • (General Australian) IPA(key): [ˈlɪɾɫ̩]
  • (New Zealand) IPA(key): /ˈlɘtl̩/
  • Rhymes: -ɪtəl
  • Hyphenation: lit‧tle
  • Homophone: Littell

Adjective[edit]

little (comparative less or lesser or littler, superlative least or littlest)

  1. Small in size.

    This is a little table.

  2. Insignificant, trivial.
    • 2013 June 21, Chico Harlan, “Japan pockets the subsidy …”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 2, page 30:

      Across Japan, technology companies and private investors are racing to install devices that until recently they had little interest in: solar panels. Massive solar parks are popping up as part of a rapid build-up that one developer likened to an «explosion.»

    It’s of little importance.

    1. (offensive) Used to belittle a person.

      Listen up, you little shit.

  3. Very young.

    Did he tell you any embarrassing stories about when she was little?

    That’s the biggest little boy I’ve ever seen.

  4. (of a sibling) Younger.

    This is my little sister.

  5. (often capitalized) Used with the name of a place, especially of a country or its capital, to denote a neighborhood whose residents or storekeepers are from that place.
    • 1871 October 18, The One-eyed Philosopher [pseudonym], «Street Corners», in Judy: or the London serio-comic journal, volume 9, page 255 [1]:
      If you want to find Little France, take any turning on the north side of Leicester square, and wander in a zigzag fashion Oxford Streetwards. The Little is rather smokier and more squalid than the Great France upon the other side of the Manche.
    • 2004, Barry Miles, Zappa: A Biography, edition, published 2005, →ISBN, page 5:

      In the forties, hurdy-gurdy men could still be heard in all those East Coast cities with strong Italian neighbourhoods: New York, Baltimore, Philadelphia and Boston. A visit to Baltimore’s Little Italy at that time was like a trip to Italy itself.

    • 2020, Richa Bhosale, «Croatian Hall in need of repairs to remain open,» Timmins Daily Press:
      «The theatre was bought by the Croatian immigrants as so many immigrants came here in the ’30s and mostly for mining jobs, but in Schumacher itself it was called little Zagreb, and Zagreb is the capital city of Croatia. There were so many of them that they wanted to have their own little community, so they bought the theatre and they renovated it at that time, remodelled it and made it into a Croatian Hall,» she explained.
    1. (derogatory) To imply that the inhabitants of the place have an insular attitude and are hostile to those they perceive as foreign.
      • 2012, Comedian Steve Coogan on Daily Mail editor Paul Dacre, «He is the embodiment of Fleet Street bullying, using his newspaper to peddle his Little-England, curtain-twitching Alan Partridgesque view of the world, which manages to combine sanctimonious, pompous moralising and prurient, voyeuristic, judgmental obsession».
  6. Having few members.

    little herd

  7. (of an industry or other field, or institution(s) therein, often capitalized) Operating on a small scale.
    Little Steel (smaller steel companies, as contrasted with Big Steel)
    Little Science (science performed by individuals or small teams, as contrasted with Big Science)
  8. Short in duration; brief.
    I feel better after my little sleep.
  9. Small in extent of views or sympathies; narrow; shallow; contracted; mean; illiberal; ungenerous.
    • The long-necked geese of the world that are ever hissing dispraise, / Because their natures are little.
    • 2001, Nicholas Petsalis-Diomidis, The Unknown Callas: the Greek Years, pg 547.
      Showing unmistakably what a little person he really was, in June 1949 he wrote his newly married daughter with nauseating disregard for the truth

Usage notes[edit]

Some authorities regard both littler and littlest as non-standard. The OED says of the word little: «the adjective has no recognized mode of comparison. The difficulty is commonly evaded by resort to a synonym (as smaller, smallest); some writers have ventured to employ the unrecognized forms littler, littlest, which are otherwise confined to dialect or imitations of childish or illiterate speech.» The forms lesser and least are encountered in animal names such as lesser flamingo and least weasel.

Antonyms[edit]

  • (small): large, big
  • (young): big
  • (younger): big

Derived terms[edit]

  • a little bit of bread and no cheese
  • a little of the creature
  • LBFM
  • little auk
  • Little Barford
  • Little Belt
  • Little Billington
  • little bluestem
  • Little Bookham
  • Little Bourton
  • Little Bowden
  • little boys’ room
  • little brother
  • little by little
  • Little Bytham
  • little cassino
  • Little Chalfont
  • Little Chesterford
  • Little Christmas
  • little corella
  • little did one know
  • Little Dipper
  • little dog syndrome
  • Little Downham
  • Little Eaton
  • little Eichmann
  • little emperor
  • Little England
  • Little Englander
  • Little Falls
  • little finger
  • little folk
  • Little Gem
  • little girl
  • little girls’ room
  • little grebe
  • little green man
  • Little Harrowden
  • Little Haven, Littlehaven
  • little head
  • Little Hereford
  • Little Houghton
  • little hour
  • little house
  • Little Hulton
  • Little Island
  • Little Italy
  • little Ivy
  • Little Kimble
  • little lady
  • Little London
  • Little Malvern
  • little man
  • Little Marlow
  • Little Mill, Littlemill
  • Little Missenden
  • Little Monster
  • Little Munden
  • Little Ness
  • little old, little ol’, little ole
  • little one
  • little owl
  • little peach
  • little penguin
  • little person
  • little pitcher
  • little pitchers have big ears, little pitchers have long ears
  • Little Ponton
  • Little Red Book
  • Little Rhody
  • Little River
  • Little Rock
  • Little Russia
  • Little Russian
  • Little Salkeld
  • Little Scotland
  • Little Shelford
  • little sib
  • little sister
  • little slam
  • little slick
  • Little Smeaton
  • Little Somerford
  • little spiderhunter
  • little spoon
  • little spotted kiwi
  • Little Stoke
  • Little Stour
  • little summer of St Luke
  • Little Sutton
  • little swimmer
  • little tinamou
  • little toe
  • Little Valley
  • Little Weighton
  • little wife
  • Little Wilbraham
  • little woman
  • little wonder
  • Little Wratting
  • Little Yeldham
  • little-ease
  • little-endian
  • little-go
  • little-known
  • little-used
  • littlein
  • littleneck
  • littleness

Translations[edit]

small in size

  • Albanian: vogël (sq)
  • Arabic: صَغِير(ṣaḡīr)
    Egyptian Arabic: صغير(ṣuḡayyar)
    Hijazi Arabic: صغير(ṣaḡīr)
    Moroccan Arabic: صغير(ṣḡīr)
    South Levantine Arabic: زغير(zḡīr)
  • Aragonese: chicote
  • Aramaic:
    Hebrew: זעורא‎ m (z‘ūrā, z‘ūro), זעורתא‎ f (z‘ūrtā, z‘ūrto)
    Syriac: ܙܥܘܪܐ‎ m (z‘ūrā, z‘ūro), ܙܥܘܪܬܐ‎ f (z‘ūrtā, z‘ūrto)
  • Armenian: փոքր (hy) (pʿokʿr), մանր (hy) (manr)
  • Aromanian: njic
  • Asturian: pequeñu (ast)
  • Aymara: jisk’a (ay)
  • Azerbaijani: kiçik (az), balaca (az)
  • Bashkir: бәләкәй (bäläkäy), бәләкәс (bäläkäs), кесе (kese), кескәй (keskäy)
  • Basque: txiki (eu)
  • Belarusian: мале́нькі (be) (maljénʹki), малы́ (malý)
  • Belizean Creole: lee
  • Bengali: ছোট (bn) (chōṭ)
  • Breton: bihan (br)
  • Bulgarian: ма́лък (bg) (málǎk)
  • Burmese: သေး (my) (se:), နုပ် (my) (nup)
  • Catalan: petit (ca)
  • Chechen: жима (žima), кегий pl (kegii)
  • Cherokee: ᎤᏍᏗ (usdi)
  • Chinese:
    Mandarin:  (zh) (xiǎo)
  • Corsican: chjucu (co), picculu
  • Crimean Tatar: kiçik, kiçkene
  • Czech: malý (cs)
  • Dalmatian: pauc
  • Danish: lille (da), (with plural noun) små
  • Dutch: klein (nl)
  • Egyptian: (nḏs)
  • Esperanto: malgranda (eo)
  • Estonian: väike (et)
  • Faroese: lítil (fo)
  • Finnish: pieni (fi)
  • French: petit (fr)
  • Friulian: please add this translation if you can
  • Galician: pequeno (gl)
  • Georgian: პატარა (ka) (ṗaṭara), მცირე (mcire)
  • German: klein (de), wenig (de), (colloquial) lütt (de), lützel (de)
    Alemannic German: chlei
  • Gothic: 𐌻𐌴𐌹𐍄𐌹𐌻𐍃 (leitils)
  • Greek: μικρός (el) (mikrós), λίγος (el) (lígos)
    Ancient: μικρός (mikrós), (Epic) τυτθός (tutthós)
  • Gujarati: please add this translation if you can
  • Haitian Creole: ti
  • Hawaiian: liʻiliʻi
  • Hebrew: קטן (he) (katán)
  • Hindi: छोटा (hi) (choṭā)
  • Hungarian: kicsi (hu), kis (hu)
  • Icelandic: lítill (is)
  • Ido: mikra (io)
  • Igbo: ntakiri
  • Indonesian: kecil (id)
  • Interlingua: parve (ia)
  • Irish: beag
  • Isan: please add this translation if you can
  • Istriot: peîcio
  • Italian: piccolo (it)
  • Jamaican Creole: likkle
  • Japanese: 小さい (ja) (ちいさい, chiisai)
  • Kannada: ಸ್ವಲ್ಪ (kn) (svalpa)
  • Kazakh: кіші (kk) (kışı), кішкене (kışkene)
  • Khmer: តូច (km) (tooc)
  • Korean: 작은 (ko) (jageun)
  • Kurdish:
    Central Kurdish: بِچووک (ckb) (biçûk), بچکۆلە(biçkole)
    Northern Kurdish: çûçik (ku), çûk (ku), piçûk (ku), qicik (ku)
  • Kyrgyz: кичине (ky) (kiçine), кичинекей (ky) (kiçinekey)
  • Lao: ນ້ອຍ (nǭi)
  • Latin: parvus (la), paulus
  • Latvian: mazs (lv)
  • Lithuanian: mažas (lt)
  • Low German: lütt (nds), kleen (nds)
    Middle Low German: (please verify) luttel, (please verify) luttik, (please verify) luttink, (please verify) luttichel
  • Luxembourgish: kleng (lb)
  • Macedonian: мал (mal)
  • Malay: kecil (ms)
  • Malayalam: ചെറിയ (ml) (ceṟiya)
  • Maltese: żgħir m
  • Maori: iti, poniponi, riki, nohinohi, paku
  • Mapudungun: pichi
  • Marathi: लहान (lahān)
  • Mirandese: please add this translation if you can
  • Mongolian: жижиг (mn) (žižig)
  • Nepali: सानो (ne) (sāno)
  • Ngazidja Comorian: -titi
  • North Frisian: litj (Sylt)
  • Northern Thai: please add this translation if you can
  • Norwegian: liten (no), liten (no)
  • Occitan: pichon (oc), petit (oc)
  • Old English: lȳtel
  • Oriya: please add this translation if you can
  • Pashto: وړوکی(waṛukay), کوچنی(kučnay)
  • Persian: کوچک (fa) (kuček), خرد (fa) (xord), که (fa) (kah)
  • Polish: mały (pl)
  • Portuguese: pequeno (pt)
  • Punjabi: ਛੋਟਾ (choṭā)
  • Quechua: as (qu), aslla, ichik, pisi (qu), taksa, uchuy (qu)
  • Rajasthani: please add this translation if you can
  • Rapa Nui: iti, rikiriki
  • Romani: tikno
  • Romanian: mic (ro), mică (ro) f
  • Russian: ма́ленький (ru) (málenʹkij), ма́лый (ru) (mályj)
  • Sanskrit: अर्भ (sa) (arbha), अल्प (sa) (álpa), स्वल्प (sa) (svalpa)
  • Santali: ᱯᱤᱞᱪᱩ (pilcu)
  • Scots: (standard, Ulster) wee, (modern Orkney) peedie, (Shetland, archaic Orkney) peerie
  • Scottish Gaelic: beag (gd), mean, meanbh, mion
  • Serbo-Croatian:
    Cyrillic: ма̑л
    Roman: mȃl (sh)
  • Sicilian: nicu (scn) m, nicu (scn) m, nica (scn) f
  • Sikkimese: please add this translation if you can
  • Sinhalese: කුඩා (si) (kuḍā)
  • Skolt Sami: uˊcc
  • Slovak: malý (sk)
  • Slovene: majhen (sl)
  • Southern Thai: please add this translation if you can
  • Spanish: pequeño (es)
  • Swedish: liten (sv)
  • Tagalog: maliit
  • Tajik: хурд (tg) (xurd)
  • Tamil: சிறிய (ta) (ciṟiya)
  • Tatar: кече (keçe), кечек (keçek), бәләкәй (bäläkäy)
  • Telugu: చిన్న (te) (cinna)
  • Thai: เล็ก (th) (lék)
  • Tibetan: ཆུང་ཆུང (chung chung)
  • Tocharian B: yekte, totka
  • Tok Pisin: liklik
  • Turkish: küçük (tr)
  • Turkmen: kiçi
  • Udi: пӏатӏар (ṗaṭar)
  • Ugaritic: 𐎕𐎙𐎗 (ṣġr)
  • Ukrainian: мале́нький (malénʹkyj), мали́й (uk) (malýj)
  • Urdu: چھوٹا (ur) (choṭā)
  • Uyghur: please add this translation if you can
  • Uzbek: kichik (uz)
  • Vietnamese: nhỏ (vi)
  • Volapük: please add this translation if you can
  • Walloon: pitit (wa)
  • Welsh: bach (cy)
  • West Frisian: lyts (fy)
  • Xhosa: please add this translation if you can
  • Yiddish: קליין(kleyn)
  • Zhuang: iq
  • Zulu: -ncane
  • Zuni: ts’ana

insignificant, trivial

  • Bulgarian: незначи́телен (bg) (neznačítelen)
  • Catalan: mica (ca) f
  • French: peu (fr), pas beaucoup de
  • Italian: poco (it)
  • Ottoman Turkish: آز(az)
  • Portuguese: menor (pt), pequeno (pt)
  • Quechua: tumpa (qu), wallka
  • Sicilian: muḍḍica f, stizza (scn) f, tanticchia (scn)
  • Spanish: poco (es), menor (es)

very young

  • Aramaic:
    Hebrew: זעורא‎ m (z‘ūrā, z‘ūro), זעורתא‎ f (z‘ūrtā, z‘ūrto)
    Syriac: ܙܥܘܪܐ‎ m (z‘ūrā, z‘ūro), ܙܥܘܪܬܐ‎ f (z‘ūrtā, z‘ūrto)
  • Armenian: փոքր (hy) (pʿokʿr)
  • Bashkir: кесе (kese), бәләкәй (bäläkäy)
  • Bulgarian: ма́лък (bg) (málǎk)
  • Czech: malý (cs)
  • Dutch: klein (nl)
  • Finnish: pieni (fi)
  • German: klein (de)
  • Greek: μικρός (el) m (mikrós)
  • Hebrew: קטן (he) (katán)
  • Irish: beag
  • Jamaican Creole: likkle
  • Latin: iuvenis (la)
  • Macedonian: мал (mal), малечок (malečok)
  • Norwegian: liten (no)
  • Pashto: وړوکی(waṛukay), کوچنی(kučnay)
  • Portuguese: pequenino (pt)
  • Quechua: uchuylla
  • Russian: ма́ленький (ru) (málenʹkij)
  • Scottish Gaelic: beag (gd)
  • Sicilian: nicu (scn) m, jùvini m or f
  • Spanish: pequeño (es)
  • Swedish: liten (sv)
  • Welsh: ifanc (cy)

(of a sibling) younger

  • Armenian: փոքր (hy) (pʿokʿr)
  • Bulgarian: мла́дши (mládši)
  • Chinese:
    Mandarin: (uses different words for each familial title)
  • Czech: malý (cs), mladý (cs)
  • Danish: lille (da)
  • Dutch: jongere (nl), klein (nl)
  • Finnish: pikku- (fi)
  • French: cadet (fr)
  • German: klein (de), jung (de)
  • Greek: μικρός (el) (mikrós)
  • Hebrew: קטן (he) (katán)
  • Hindi: छोटा (hi) (choṭā)
  • Hungarian: kis (hu), (younger brother) öcs (hu), (younger sister) húg (hu)
  • Italian: piccolo (it)
  • Jamaican Creole: likkle
  • Kurdish:
    Central Kurdish: بِچووک (ckb) (biçûk), بچکۆلە(biçkole)
  • Latin: iuvenis (la)
  • Macedonian: мал (mal), малечок (malečok)
  • Malayalam: കുഞ്ഞ് (ml) (kuññŭ)
  • Norwegian: lille-
  • Pashto: وړوکی(waṛukay), کوچنی(kučnay)
  • Portuguese: mais novo
  • Russian: мла́дший (ru) (mládšij)
  • Scots: wee
  • Scottish Gaelic: beag (gd)
  • Sicilian: nicu (scn) m, nica (scn) f
  • Slovene: mlajši (sl)
  • Swedish: yngre (sv), lille- (sv)
  • Telugu: చిన్న (te) (cinna)
  • Urdu: چھوٹا (ur) (choṭā)

small in number, few

  • Apache:
    Western Apache: dayąhą́go
  • Aymara: juk’a
  • Bashkir: әҙ (äð)
  • Bulgarian: ма́лък (bg) (málǎk)
  • Chinese:
    Mandarin: 一些 (zh) (yì xiē)
    Min Nan: 淡薄仔 (zh-min-nan) (tām-po̍h-á) 一些? (chi̍t-sut-lá)
  • Esperanto: iom (eo), malmulta (eo)
  • German: wenig (de)
  • Guaraní: mbovy
  • Hebrew: מְעַט (he) (me’át)
  • Hungarian: kevés (hu)
  • Malayalam: കുറച്ച് (ml) (kuṟaccŭ)
  • Old Turkic: 𐰀𐰕(az /āz/)
  • Ottoman Turkish: آز(az)
  • Portuguese: pequeno (pt), pouco (pt)
  • Quechua: as (qu), aslla, pisi (qu), wallka
  • Sanskrit: ईषत् (sa) (īṣat), स्वल्प (sa) (svalpa)
  • Sicilian: picca (scn), n’anticchia (scn), tanticchia (scn)
  • Spanish: poco (es)
  • Sundanese: sakedik
  • Turkish: az (tr)

Translations to be checked

  • Balinese: (please verify) cenik
  • Gujarati: (please verify) થોડું (gu) (thoḍũ)
  • Icelandic: (please verify) lítill (is)
  • Ido: (please verify) mikra (io)
  • Indonesian: (please verify) kecil (id)
  • Spanish: (please verify) menor (es), (please verify) poco (es)
  • Welsh: (please verify) bach (cy), (please verify) bychan (cy)

Adverb[edit]

little (comparative less or lesser, superlative least)

  1. Not much.

    This is a little known fact.  She spoke little and listened less.

    We slept very little last night.
    • Little disappointed, then, she turned attention to «Chat of the Social World,» gossip which exercised potent fascination upon the girl’s intelligence. She devoured with more avidity than she had her food those pretentiously phrased chronicles of the snobocracy […] distilling therefrom an acid envy that robbed her napoleon of all its savour.
  2. Not at all.

    I was speaking ill of Fred; little did I know that he was right behind me, listening in.

    • 1879, R[ichard] J[efferies], chapter 1, in The Amateur Poacher, London: Smith, Elder, & Co., [], →OCLC:

      But then I had the [massive] flintlock by me for protection. ¶ [] The linen-press and a chest on the top of it formed, however, a very good gun-carriage; and, thus mounted, aim could be taken out of the window [], and a ‘bead’ could be drawn upon Molly, the dairymaid, kissing the fogger behind the hedge, little dreaming that the deadly tube was levelled at them.

    • 2012 May 13, Alistair Magowan, “Sunderland 0-1 Man Utd”, in BBC Sport:

      But as United saw the game out, little did they know that, having looked likely to win their 13th Premier League title, it was City who turned the table to snatch glory from their arch-rivals’ grasp.

Antonyms[edit]

  • much

Translations[edit]

not much

  • Albanian: please add this translation if you can
  • Arabic: قَلِيلاً(qalīlan), قَلِيل (ar) (qalīl)
    Hijazi Arabic: قَليل(galīl)
  • Armenian: քիչ (hy) (kʿičʿ), սակավ (hy) (sakav)
  • Aromanian: putsãn, ptsãn
  • Asturian: pocu (ast)
  • Bakhtiari: کم(kam)
  • Basque: gutxi
  • Belarusian: ма́ла (be) (mála), няшма́т (njašmát)
  • Bengali: কম (kom)
  • Bulgarian: ма́лко (bg) (málko)
  • Burmese: နည်း (my) (nany:)
  • Catalan: poc (ca)
  • Chamicuro: naspejka
  • Chinese:
    Mandarin:  (zh) (shǎo)
  • Czech: málo (cs)
  • Danish: lidt (da)
  • Dutch: weinig (nl)
  • Estonian: vähe (et)
  • Faroese: please add this translation if you can
  • Finnish: vähän (fi)
  • French: peu (fr)
  • Galician: pouco (gl)
  • German: wenig (de), kaum (de)
  • Greek: λίγο (el) (lígo)
    Ancient Greek: please add this translation if you can
  • Gujarati: થોડું (gu) (thoḍũ)
  • Hebrew: קצת (he), מעט (he)
  • Hindi: कम (hi) (kam)
  • Hungarian: keveset, kevéssé
  • Icelandic: lítið (is)
  • Ido: poka (io)
  • Igbo: please add this translation if you can
  • Indonesian: sedikit (id)
  • Irish: please add this translation if you can
  • Italian: poco (it)
  • Japanese: 少ない (ja) (すくない, sukunai)
  • Khmer: តិច (km) (təc)
  • Korean: 적다 (ko) (jeokda)
  • Kurdish:
    Central Kurdish: کەم (ckb) (kem)
  • Ladin: please add this translation if you can
  • Ladino: please add this translation if you can
  • Laboya: mahha
  • Lao: ນ້ອຍ (nǭi)
  • Latin: paucus, non multus, paulo
  • Latvian: please add this translation if you can
  • Lithuanian: please add this translation if you can
  • Macedonian: малку (mk) (malku)
  • Malayalam: അല്പം (ml) (alpaṃ)
  • Northern Sami: unˈnán
  • Norwegian:
    Norwegian Bokmål: lite (no)
    Norwegian Nynorsk: lite
  • Old English: lyt
  • Pashto: لږ (ps) (lëģ)
  • Persian: کم (fa) (kam)
  • Polish: mało (pl)
  • Portuguese: pouco (pt)
  • Romanian: puțin (ro)
  • Russian: ма́ло (ru) (málo), немно́го (ru) (nemnógo)
  • Rusyn: ма́ло (málo)
  • Scottish Gaelic: beagan
  • Serbo-Croatian:
    Cyrillic: ма̏ло
    Roman: mȁlo (sh)
  • Slovak: málo (sk)
  • Slovene: malo (sl)
  • Spanish: poco (es), poquito (es)
  • Sundanese: sakedik
  • Swahili: kidogo (sw)
  • Swedish: lite (sv)
  • Thai: น้อย (th) (nɔ́ɔi)
  • Turkish: az (tr)
  • Ukrainian: ма́ло (uk) (málo), небага́то (nebaháto)
  • Urdu: کم(kam)
  • Veps: please add this translation if you can
  • Vietnamese: ít (vi)
  • Volapük: please add this translation if you can
  • Votic: please add this translation if you can
  • Võro: please add this translation if you can

Determiner[edit]

little (comparative less, superlative least)

  1. Not much, only a little: only a small amount (of).
    There is (very) little water left.
    We had very little to do.

Usage notes[edit]

  • Little is used with uncountable nouns, few with plural countable nouns.
  • Little can be used with or without an article. With the indefinite article, the emphasis is that there is indeed some, albeit not much:
We have a little money, so we’ll probably get by.
With no article or the definite article (or what), the emphasis is on the scarcity:

We have little money, and little hope of getting more.
The little (or What little) money we have is all going to pay for food and medication, so we can’t save any.

Antonyms[edit]

  • (not much): much

Translations[edit]

small amount

  • Albanian: pak (sq)
  • Arabic: قَلِيل (ar) (qalīl)
  • Armenian: քիչ (hy) (kʿičʿ), սակավ (hy) (sakav)
  • Belarusian: ма́ла (be) (mála)
  • Bulgarian: ма́лко (bg) (málko)
  • Burmese: နည်း (my) (nany:)
  • Catalan: poc (ca), una mica de
  • Chinese:
    Mandarin:  (zh) (shǎo)
  • Czech: málo (cs)
  • Danish: lidt (da)
  • Dutch: weinig (nl), een beetje (nl)
  • Estonian: pisut
  • Faroese: please add this translation if you can
  • Finnish: hieman (fi), vähän (fi)
  • French: peu (fr), peu de
  • German: wenig (de)
  • Greek: λίγο (el) (lígo)
    Ancient: ὀλίγος (olígos)
  • Greenlandic: please add this translation if you can
  • Hindi: थोड़ा (hi) (thoṛā)
  • Hungarian: kevés (hu)
  • Icelandic: lítið (is)
  • Igbo: obere (ig)
  • Indonesian: sedikit (id)
  • Irish: beagán (ga) m
  • Italian: poco (it)
  • Jamaican Creole: likkle
  • Japanese: 少し (ja) (すこし, sukoshi), ちょっと (ja) (chotto)
  • Khmer: តិច (km) (təc)
  • Korean: 적은 (ko) (jeogeun)
  • Kurdish:
    Central Kurdish: نەختێ(nextê), کەم (ckb) (kem)
  • Ladin: please add this translation if you can
  • Ladino: please add this translation if you can
  • Lao: ນ້ອຍ (nǭi)
  • Latin: paulo
  • Latvian: maz
  • Lithuanian: mažai (lt)
  • Macedonian: малку (mk) (malku)
  • Maltese: ftit
  • Northern Sami: veaháš
  • Norwegian:
    Bokmål: litt (no)
    Norwegian Nynorsk: please add this translation if you can
  • Pashto: لږ (ps) (lëģ)
  • Polish: mało (pl)
  • Portuguese: pouco (pt)
  • Romanian: puţin (ro)
  • Russian: ма́ло (ru) (málo)
  • Rusyn: ма́ло (málo)
  • Scottish Gaelic: beagan
  • Serbo-Croatian:
    Cyrillic: ма̏ло
    Roman: mȁlo (sh)
  • Slovak: málo (sk)
  • Slovene: malo (sl)
  • Spanish: poco (es)
  • Sundanese: sakedik
  • Swahili: kidogo (sw)
  • Swedish: lite (sv)
  • Telugu: కొంచెం (te) (koñceṁ), కొంత (te) (konta)
  • Thai: น้อย (th) (nɔ́ɔi)
  • Ukrainian: ма́ло (uk) (málo)
  • Urdu: تھوڑا(thoṛā)
  • Veps: please add this translation if you can
  • Vietnamese: ít (vi)
  • Volapük: please add this translation if you can
  • Votic: please add this translation if you can
  • Võro: please add this translation if you can

See also[edit]

  • a little

Pronoun[edit]

little

  1. Not much; not a large amount.
    Little is known about his early life.

Noun[edit]

little (countable and uncountable, plural littles)

  1. (chiefly uncountable or in the singular) A small amount.
    Can I try a little of that sauce?
    Little did he do to make me comfortable.
    If you want some cake, there’s a little in the refrigerator
    Many littles make a mickle. (Scottish proverb)
  2. (countable, informal) A child; particularly an infant.
  3. (countable, university slang) A newly initiated member of a sorority, who is mentored by a big.
    • 2018, Kelly Ann Gonzales, Through an Opaque Window:

      He was there the night of Cristoph’s party. All the littles were assigned to their bigs. Ian and Christoph had rushed the same fraternity. When they became upperclassmen, they both ended up on the board.

    • 2019 April 1, Audrey Steinkamp, “Sororities pair new members with «bigs»”, in Yale Daily News[2]:

      She added that the relationship between bigs and littles is «what each pair makes of it,» and that a lot of the pairs often get dinner together and become close friends.

    • 2022 September 27, Shreya Varrier, “Gamma Rho Lambda provides LGBTQIA+ community in greek life”, in Iowa State Daily[3]:

      Some traditions of the chapter include lineages with bigs and littles, receiving of paddles from a big, and a national stroll, Wolsch-Gallia said.

  4. (countable, BDSM) The participant in ageplay who acts out the younger role.
  5. (countable) One who has mentally age regressed to a childlike state.
    • 2019 August 30, Kimberly Holland, Healthline[4]:

      People with [dissociative identity] disorder frequently have a younger personality among their distinctive personalities. However, it’s believed that the «little» may not be a separate personality. Instead, it may be a regressed version of the original personality.

    Antonym: big

Derived terms[edit]

  • little space

[edit]

  • a little
  • li’l, li’l’, lil
  • little by little
  • little old
  • belittle (cognate verb)

Anagrams[edit]

  • tillet

Explicit Phonics Lesson

Final Stable Syllable: Consonant –le

Day 1

        A syllable is a word
(flat hands about a foot apart, palms facing)  or part of a word (move hands together until about 6
inches apart) with one talking vowel (left hand
with 2 fingers forming a V {for «vowel»}, right hand with fingers and thumb opening and
closing between the V on the left hand).

Say and
do that again with me. A syllable is a word or part of a word with one talking
vowel. What is a syllable?
A
syllable is a word or part of a word with one talking vowel. How can we decide how many syllables are in a given word?
Clap, snap, hand under chin, or fingers keeping lips closed counting the pushes. 

          Today we are
going to learn about a syllable type. This syllable type comes at the end of a
word and is called a final stable
syllable
, “final” because it is at the end of words and  “stable” because consonant –le is always the
same. When you see this syllable type, you will see a consonant followed by –le
at the end of a 2 (or more) syllable word. The sound of the -le is
/əl/. Let’s look at a word. Write the
word little. This word is little. How many syllables are in the word little?
2 What is the first syllable? lit That leaves
-tle.  That is a final stable syllable. The e on the
end is not long or short. The e uses a schwa sound (
ə: almost like a short ŭ sound)
just before the L in the –tle syllable. Here is the symbol that can be used to
remind us to use the final stable syllable sound.The sound of this syllable is /t
əl/.

                                               

( A big schwa
underlining the –le and circling around to the top of the consonant before the
L)

Follow
the same procedure with the word table (an open syllable and a final
stable syllable.) Write the word table. How
many syllables are in the word table?
2 What is the first syllable in table? ta  The a uses its long
sound because it is on the end of the syllable and there is no consonant to
close it off.  Is the vowel in that
syllable long or short?
long That leaves –ble as
the final syllable. It is a final stable syllable because it ends with –le.

Mark the syllable with the large schwa as was done with the word little.
Then show a list of possible consonants that can begin the final stable
syllable:    -ble, -cle,
-dle, -fle, -gle, -kle, -ple, -tle
, and -zle.

What do
we call a syllable that ends with consonant –le at the end of a word ?

     A
final stable syllable

What is
on the end of a final stable syllable?

–le

Which
syllable type has a schwa vowel sound?

a final stable syllable

PA

          Listen for the
final stable syllable at the end of some words.
Give
me thumbs up if the word has the final stable syllable sound and thumbs down if
the word doesn’t have the final stable syllable sound. For example, if the word
is marble, you would show me thumbs
up because you hear the –ble at the end. If the word is market, you would show me thumbs down because you don not hear
afinal stable syllable.”
Pronounce these words to have the students
indicate if the word has the final stable syllable sound:

pickle          apple           lemon           waffle          pepper         popsicle

saddle         gallop           stable          bridle          blanket        buckle

Decoding

Use
two colors of markers to write the final stable syllable words one syllable at
a time on the board as the class sounds out that syllable. Then blend the word
as a whole.

gig
gle            hum
ble          hud dle         tic
kle

pic
kle           puz zle           bat tle         bot tle

pad
dle        
  buc kle

After
the words are decoded, briefly discuss meanings of words that may be unfamiliar
to the students. Reread the lines of words with the class. Then give clues and
have the students tell their buddy which word is the answer. Call on one set of
buddies to give and spell the answer. Circle the words on the board as they are
given as answers. Clues could be:

1. two sides
working against each other                                    battle

2. used to move a conoe
in the water                                        paddle

3. a cucumber used
in a sandwich                                             pickle

4. a group of
people standing close together                             huddle

5. a little laugh                                                                       giggle

6. pieces fit
together to make a picture                                    puzzle

7. metal latch on
a belt                                                            buckle

8. antonym for
proud                                                               humble

9. a place to
store a liquid                                                        bottle

The last word (tickle) is read by the students and used in a sentence
that is told to their buddy. This exercise will give practice in reading words
with final stable syllable words and will help expose them to oral vocabulary
at the same time.

Reading Decodable Text:

          Use the decoding practice words in
text. Read the passage to the students, have the class read it chorally, and
then have buddy A read to buddy B. Then B will read to A.

Day 2

What
letters are at the end of a final stable syllable?
–le

Where
does a final stable syllable come in a word?
At the end

What
vowel sound is heard in a final stable syllable
? A schwa sound

How do
we mark the final stable syllable?

                                                                  

PA

          Listen to
these sets of two words. Check with your buddy first and then raise your hands
to tell me which word has a final stable syllable. If the two words are timber
and tickle,
you would tell me tickle because it has the final stable syllable.

puddle – pudding              purple
– orange          center – middle

          table – chair                    lacy – ruffles             simple – difficult

          thunder
– rumble             bottle – platter        
story – fable

          apples – peaches              pancakes –waffles     
glitter – sparkle

Decoding

          Follow the Day 1.

grum
ble      shut
tle      
sim ple        mid
dle        

sin gle         a ble            la dle          jun gle

spar kle       gar gle         sam ple        jig gle

1. used to dish
out soup or gravy                                       ladle

2. synonym for
complain                                                   grumble

3. can do                                                                         able

4. rain forest                                                                  jungle

5. carries things
back and forth                                       shuttle

6. to move back
and forth quickly                                     jiggle

7. synonym for
center                                                      middle

8. a way to rinse
your throat                                            gargle

9. a model to show
what something looks like                      sample

10. antonym for
complicated                                             simple

11. only one                                                                      single

Have the students
tell their buddy a sentence using the last word (sparkle.)

Reading Decodable Text:

          Have student Buddies practice reading
the consonant -le phrases. (You will need at least one copy for each pair of
students.)

Day 3

What is
a syllable?
A syllable is a
word or part of a word with one talking vowel.

What is
the  syllable type that we are studying
this week ?
Final stable
syllable

What do
you see that makes you know that the syllable is a final stable syllable?

Consonant –le

Where
does the final stable syllable come in a word?
At the end

What is
the vowel sound in a final stable syllable?
A schwa sound

Encoding:

          Use the dictation procedure.

          1.  
/l/ l        /b
əl/ -ble       / təl/  -tle       /dəl/  -dle     / gəl/ -gle

2.   able          table        stable

          3.  
giggle        wiggle        jiggle

          4.  
timetable           unable

          5.  
The jello will wiggle when you jiggle the table.

Reading Decodable Text:

          Have student Buddies practice rereading
the phrases. (You will need at least one copy for each pair of students.)

Day 4

Display these
words:       bubble      blubber     bottle

Which
word does not have a final stable syllable?
  blubber

How do
you know it doesn’t have a final stable syllable?
It does not end with –le

How do
we mark the final stable syllable?

a large schwa underlining the -le and circling around the end of the word
stopping at the consonant that is before the

–le.


Word
Building

Display cards with
the following syllables randomly in two groups: consonant –le and those that
aren’t.

jun     dim    muf    bun    hum    puz   

gle     ple     fle     dle     ble     zle    

Give the buddy
pairs 3 or 4 minutes to see how many words they can make and write using a
syllable from each group.  Then check to
see how many they got right by matching the cards to form the words. Follow the
same procedure with these syllables on cards.

bot    un      crum 
thim   
han   tat    fa

tle     cle     ble    
ble     
dle   tle    ble

Reading Decodable Text:

                   Provide students with copies
of final stable syllable sentences. Have them locate and circle words with
final stable syllables. Then practice reading the sentences with buddy
strategy.

Day 5

What is
a syllable
? A syllable is a
word or a part of a word with one talking vowel.

What
does a final stable syllable look like?

Consonant –le

What is
the vowel sound in a final stable syllable?
A schwa sound

Where in
a word do you find a final stable syllable?
At the end

How do
we mark a final stable syllable?

With a big schwa around the syllable

Encoding

        Use the dictation procedure.

1.       /k/ -ck        /kəl/ -kle     /pəl/ -ple     /zəl/ -zle     /fəl/ -fle

2.       purple          apple           simple

3.       puddle          paddle          handle

4.       people          candlestick

5.       A simple apple crisp is
not hard to assemble.

Reading Decodable Text:

          Reread final stable syllable sentence
and phrases using the buddy strategy.

Decoding
Practice

bubble    candle     jungle     apple       little

 ankle     cattle      bottle    sample     simple

a
little bottle                   

bubble
bath

the
simple puzzle            

a
candlestick

1.          
Twinkle,
twinkle little star how I wonder what you are.

2.        
Do
you want to eat, a pickle or an apple?

3.        
Mable
went to the stable to saddle her horse.

4.        
Can
you help me buckle the bridle?

5.        
The
purple popsicles are on the table.

6.        
Rock
the baby in the little cradle.

7.        
Uncle
Jake will read a fable about a turtle and a hare.

8.        
They
sell beagle and poodle puppies at the pet store.

Final Stable Syllable
Phrases

1.
a sharp needle             

2.
humble people              

3.
twinkle and sparkle      

4.
purple popsicles           

5.
tickle and giggle           

6.
the pickle jar                

7.
waffles or pancakes      

8.
pull the handle               

9.
wiggle and jiggle           

10.
crumbled crackers       

11.
crumpled paper             

12.
mumbled words            

13. in the mud puddle

14. paddle
boat

15. crabapple tree

16. dinner
table
 

17. space
shuttle
 

18. a
horse stable
 

19. read a
fable
 

20. saddle
and bridle

21. buckle
your belt

22. deep in the
jungle
 

23. a single
waffle
 

24. a simple
riddle
 

Final Stable Syllable
Sentences

1.          
The
fire crackles and sparkles.

2.        
Uncle
Karl is a cattle rancher.

3.        
The
eagle settled in its nest.

4.        
A
little apple was on the table.

5.        
The
purple candle went out.

6.        
Circle
the words that have two syllables.

7.        
The
rattle fell out of the baby’s cradle.

8.        
He
played a simple tune on his fiddle.

9.        
Please
do not tattle to your teacher.

10.     
Wilbur
was a very humble pig.

11.      
A
bundle of sticks is hard to break.

12.     
We
quickly worked the simple puzzle.

13.     
She
hurt her ankle when she jumped the hurdle.

14.     
Let
me sample that apple pie.

15.     
Kendrick
has a little dimple on his cheek.

16.     
The
bottle broke when it fell.

The comparative and superlative forms for adjectives have a few grammar rules we need to pay attention to. Most of those rules come from the number of syllables the adjective has. This article will explore the two forms of “little” and how to use them.

What Is The Comparative Form Of “Little”?

“Littler” and “more little” are both correct comparative forms for the adjective “little.” We can use both to compare one thing as more “little” than another. Since “little” is a two-syllable adjective, we can choose whether we prefer “more” or the “-er” suffix in the word.

little comparative

Comparative rules can be pretty confusing with two-syllable adjectives. That’s because they vary based on the word we use.

Generally, most two-syllable adjectives allow us to choose our favorite form, and we can stick with that form in our writing. For example:

  • I am the littler of the two.
  • She is more little than I am.

Both of the sentences above are correct. One uses the standard “-er” ending for the comparative form, while the other uses “more” to compare something before the adjective.

The beauty of two-syllable words is the choice we get with them. However, this choice also leads to confusion. It’s best to try and remember that if a word has two syllables (lit-tle), then we can play around with the comparative form.

What Is The Superlative Form Of “Little”?

“Littlest” is the correct superlative form of “little.” Unlike the comparative form, the superlative form is strict. We usually include the “-est” ending with the superlative form for two-syllable adjectives. “Most little” is correct, but it’s not nearly as common to see.

The superlative form works to show that someone or something is the most “little” thing in a group. There has to be more than one other thing to compare to when using the superlative form.

However, things get a little more complicated with “little” when you look at its superlative form.

Most shorter words allow for an “-est” ending, which is great when trying to establish that something is comparatively the “most” little of a group of things. However, some people like to think that “most little” also works since “more little” does.

The truth is, they’re not wrong. “Most little” is correct. Grammatically, there is nothing wrong with it. However, it’s better to use “littlest” because it’s the most conceptually appropriate form that most native speakers default to in their own writing.

  • Correct: That is the littlest object I’ve ever seen.
  • Incorrect: He has the most little guitar in the world!

What Are The Different Forms Of “Little”?

It would help for you to understand the different forms of “little” a little closer. There are only three forms we need to worry about here.

Adjective  Little
Comparative  Littler / More little
Superlative  Littlest

“Littler” and “more little” are both correct as the comparative forms, allowing us to choose. However, we must only stick to the one superlative form (littlest) if we want to be correct.

How Prevalent Is The Use Of “More Little” And “Littler”?

Now that we’ve covered everything you need to understand about the comparative form, it’s time to look into the popularity of the different choices. Since there are two choices, it would help to know which is more likely.

According to Google Ngram Viewer, “more little” is the most common choice, but not by much. “More little” is more common because it sounds a little more appropriate, while “littler” almost seems to lose the “-er” ending when you say it aloud.

littler,more little

Most people prefer “more little” because it’s more obvious when they write the comparative form:

  • That is more little than I would have imagined it.

Sometimes, “littler” is overlooked as a typo or an error because only an “R” is added to the end of the world. Also, when you try to pronounce it, you might notice that it’s not the easiest word that rolls of the tongue.

  • This bag is littler than my last one.

Still, both are common. We just prefer “more little” in most cases.

How Prevalent Is The Use Of “Most Little” And “Littlest”?

The graph for the superlative form is vastly different. After all, there is only one common choice that most people stick with.

According to Google Ngram Viewer, “littlest” is by far the most common superlative form for “little.” We use it because it follows the rules where two-syllable words have an “-est” ending added to them.

This is the preferred version:

  • He is the littlest man I’ve ever met!

While “most little” is correct, it does not do the superlative form justice. We do not want to use it in most cases because the additional word can be a bit too much in most sentences.

  • You are the most little person I’ve seen in a long time.

The extra word “most” can sometimes put people off reading the sentence. That’s why “littlest” is more common.

Examples Of How To Use The Comparative Form Of “Little” In A Sentence

  1. I am littler than my brother, even though I’m older than him.
  2. You are more little than me, but that’s okay.
  3. This bag is littler than my last one, and I’d like to return it.
  4. My phone is more little than yours!
  5. You have grown littler since we last met! I’m sure of it.
  6. I am more little than they say I am, but I don’t like to admit to that.
  7. You are littler than her, so you should swap positions in this lineup.

Examples Of How To Use The Superlative Form Of “Little” In A Sentence

  1. I am the littlest person in my class.
  2. She is the littlest girl I’ve ever seen.
  3. You are the littlest person here.
  4. This is the littlest I’ve ever cared about a subject.
  5. This is the littlest I’ve seen you speak.
  6. You are the littlest idiot on this planet.
  7. I have the littlest ego, I swear.

Is “Littler” Grammatically Correct?

“Littler” is grammatically correct. It is one of the two choices we have for the comparative adjective form of “little.” While it’s not the most popular choice (“more little” is), we can still use it to compare one thing as more “little” than another.

You may also like:
“Shy” – Comparative and Superlative Forms Explained
“Funnier” Or “More Funny” – Comparative & Superlative Forms
“Much” And “Many” – Comparative and Superlative Forms Explained

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.

Tagged With: Dark L, Flap T

LITTLE is more than a little hard to pronounce.  Get the tips and tricks you need to say this word like natives, in American English.

YouTube blocked? Click here to see the video.

Video Text:

In this American English pronunciation video, we’re going to go over the pronunciation of the word ‘little’.

Because of the Flap T and the Dark L, the pronunciation of the word ‘little’ is pretty tough. Thanks so much to those who suggested that I make a video on this topic.

Yesterday, Tom and I had a long discussion about this word. With each do something differently with our tongues when we pronounce it, and we both agree, it’s incredibly hard to describe. The thing that makes this word so hard is the Flap-schwa-Dark L ending. Other words that end with this sound combination: battle, bottle, hospital, title, capital, total, metal, subtle, ladle, middle, model, pedal, noodle, cuddle, paddle. A lot of words!

So, we both decided, this is a really hard topic to teach. You’re going to see some up close, slow motion footage of the mouth, and I’m going to do my best to describe what’s happening.

In ‘little’ and all of the words I listed, this is an unstressed, ending syllable. So the syllable li- is stressed, and –ttle is unstressed. That means it will be flatter and lower in pitch than the stressed syllable. Li–ttle, –ttle, li-, –ttle. Little, DA-da, little.

We start with the L consonant. This is a Light L because it starts the syllable. That means it’s different from the second L, which is at the end of the second syllable, a Dark L.

The Light L can be made two different ways. First, it can be made with the tip of the tongue at the roof of the mouth, ll, like this. Li-. Or, it can be made with the tongue tip coming through the teeth. Ll, like this, li-. In this case, it looks like the TH, but the tongue is not relaxed, letting the air vibrate it like it does for the TH. For this L, the tongue is a little stiff, ll, ll. You’ll see this L in the slow motion clip at the end of the video.

The vowel in this stressed syllable is the IH as in SIT vowel. A lot of people want to go towards EE, lee, lee-ttle, but we want IH, little – relax everything to get a more accurate vowel sound. Ih, li-. The tip of the tongue touches the back of the bottom front teeth, and the front part arches up towards the roof of the mouth, li, ih. Notice how the pitch of my voice goes down. Li-. This is the shape of a stressed syllable.

Now we get to the tough part, the unstressed, second syllable. We have the Flap T followed by the schwa/Dark L sound. Normally for the Flap T, the tongue bounces against the roof of the mouth and right back down. Uh-duh, uh-duh. If this sounds like the R, that’s because it is the same sound as the R in your native language.

But the tongue does something a LITTLE different in this word, little. Tom describes making the Flap T in ‘little’ like this: The tongue does a little release, then goes right back to the roof of the mouth for the Dark L. So the tongue doesn’t really do a full bounce for the flap, just a little release.

I pronounce this a little differently. I don’t release the tip of my tongue, I leave it right where it is at the roof of the mouth, li-ttle, uhl. Instead, I release the back part of the tongue, pulling it back like we do for the Dark L, while leaving the tip where it is.

Usually I make the dark sound of the Dark L with the tongue tip down, but in this sound sequence, I leave it up. I think you’ll find, when you get the hang of it, that it makes the word easier to pronounce. Let’s break it down and practice putting a break between the flap up and the Dark L. Litt-le, litt-le. The back part of the tongue releases down and back a little to make this dark sound, ul. Little, little.

Let’s watch this word up close and in slow motion.

Here, my tongue comes through my teeth for the beginning L. The tongue tip slides down behind the bottom front teeth, and the teeth part. The front part of the tongue arches up. This is the IH vowel.

Watch as the tongue tip goes to the roof of the mouth. Now, of course you can’t see it, but the back part of the pulls away and back to make the dark L sound, uul. And the tongue tip comes back down at the end of the word. Let’s watch again.

This word is very common in the phrase ‘a little bit’, where we have the schwa before, and the stressed syllable ‘bit’ after. The T at the end of ‘bit’ is going to be a Stop T, if the sentence ends there or if the next word begins with a consonant:

>> Are you tired?
>> A little bit

or

>> I’m a little bit frustrated.

Those were both stop Ts, bit, where we don’t, tt, make the final release, but just cut off the air for an abrupt stop. A little bit.

The ‘t’ at the end of ‘bit’ will be a Flap T if it’s not the end of the sentence and the next word begins with a vowel or diphthong. For example:

>> Tell me a little bit about that.

Bit-a-bout, bit about. Bit-a-, bit-a-, bit-a-. Here it’s a flap, which sounds like the D between vowels in American English, and might sound like the R in your own native language. Bit a-, bit-a, bit-a, bit about.

I hope this has given you an idea of how to practice this word. It’s a very common word, so practice it a lot and get comfortable with it. If there’s a word or phrase you’d like help pronouncing, please put it in the comments below.

Are you signed up for my mailing list? If you are, you get a weekly email with English lessons and fun stories and photos from my day-to-day life. It’s absolutely free. Please sign up, it’s a great way to keep in touch. Either click here or look in the description below.

Also, I’m very pleased to tell you that my book is available for purchase. If you liked this video, there’s a lot more to learn about American English pronunciation, and my book will help you step by step. You can get it by clicking here, or in the description below.

That’s it, and thanks so much for using Rachel’s English.

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сколько слогов в английском слове

How to tell that someone «Most» or «more», than others? Everything seems simple — sculpt yourself er, est, more yes the most to the words, and that’s all. But why do these «casts» often sound so ridiculous — ridiculous and stupid?

Because you need to delve into principle formation of degrees of comparison of adjectives — which we will do today.

Both in Russian and in English, adjectives have an original form (cute) and two degrees of comparison — comparative (nicer) and excellent (the sweetest, sweetest).

In English, there are two models for the formation of degrees of comparison: by adding suffixes (-er, -est) and using auxiliary words (more — the most).

When does each of these models apply?

It all depends on two main factors:

First factor. Length of the adjective you are comparing

More precisely, the number of syllables in it (let me remind you that these very syllables in English are counted by pronunciation, not by spelling — for example, in the word tired it seems to be 2 syllables, but we pronounce all this as a whole — [taied], therefore, it is believed that there are ONE words).

Second factor. What the adjective ends with

And let’s not forget to take into account the subtleties spelling — spelling.

So:

1 syllable + -er / -est =
cold — coldER — the coldEST

1 syllable, at the end of the adjective 1 vowel — 1 consonant (only one, roughly speaking) + -er / -est! this very last consonant is doubled =
hot — hoTTER — the hoTTEST;
big — biGGER — the biGGEST

2 syllables, the word ends in -y + -er / -est! spelling changes: comparatively “y → ier”, in excellent — “y → iest” =
happy — happIER — the happIEST;
funny — funnIER — the funnIEST

2 syllables, word ends in -er, -le, -ow + -er / -est =
tender — tenderER — the tenderESTsimple — simplER — the simplEST

narrow — narrowER — the narrowEST

2 syllables (excluding the endings above), 3 or more syllables + more, the most =
beautiful — more beautiful — the most beautiful
modern — more modern — the most modern

1 or 2 syllables, but the word ends in -ed, -ing + more, the most =
tired — more tired — the most tired
boring — more boring — the most boring

That’s all the wisdom, in short.

Has a shitty life
He’s the happiest man in the world anyway.

Mood like “When the gym is the most exciting part of the day, and you’ve already been there today”

The most difficult thing in life is knowing yourself.
WRONG: The most difficult thing in the world is neurosurgery on the brain.

The only thing that I will note separately is the fact that superlative degree almost always accompanied by the article the… It’s not so hard to remember if you “catch on” for the best — a well-known word, almost always “going” with a definite article.

In addition, there is also exceptions — adjectives, the degree of comparison of which you just need learn. But usually there are no problems with them, because many of these forms are heard:

Good — better — the best (good — better — best)
Bad — worse — the worst (bad — worse — worst)
Little — less — the least (small — less — smallest).
Many / much — more — the most (much — more — the largest).

Old — older — the oldest (old — older — oldest) (it’s the oldest house in this street)
Old — elder — the eldest (old — older — oldest) — about family members (my elder brother)
Late — later — the latest / last (latest — later — latest / most recent).

Late — the latter — the last (the latter is the second of the two listed is the last in order) (What do you think about the latter book?)
Far — farther — the farthest (the farthest village)
Far — further — the furthest (further instruction, further info)

You can do better!

Mister Cat: “after further deliberation, we decided that we should scratch it and scratch it again”.

If you could do more with less (with fewer resources) that would be awesome.

The biggest (literally — worst) fear of a science teacher: “today I said“ orgasm ”instead of“ organism ”in front of thirty 13-year-olds”

Was it difficult? Or is it possible to understand the comparison of adjectives? In any case, English classes should be systematic. And language practice — ideally — daily. Our short 15 minute lessons will give you both a grammar block and a language load. Come to a free trial lesson and you will understand how it works!

Registration for the lesson is here. We are waiting for you!

Anna Miroshnichenko

Source: https://anglomania.ru/brain/stati/byistree,-vyishe,-slozhnee-sravnenie-prilagatelnyix-v-anglijskom-yazyike

сколько слогов в английском слове

The English alphabet has six vowels, but individually and in combination with each other, they form more than two dozen sounds, including diphthongs. The reading of a vowel depends on the letters adjacent to it and on the type of syllable in which it is located.

Open syllable

A syllable is considered open if it ends in a vowel (to-tal, ri-val, bi-ble, mo-tor). The vowel in this case gives a long sound — that is, it is read as in the alphabet. Words with a dumb «e» also belong to this type. For example:

  • take [teɪk]
  • Pete[pi:t]
  • kite [kaɪt]
  • nose [nəʊz]
  • cute [kju: t]

Some monosyllabic words also represent open syllables. For example, me, she, he and no, so, go.

Closed syllable

The closed syllable is the most common spelling unit of the English language; it makes up about 50% of the syllables in the text. A closed syllable ends in one or more consonants, and the vowel is read briefly in this case.

In English, there are many closed-type monosyllabic words (cat, pin, hen). If a suffix starting with a vowel is added to them, the consonant in front of it is doubled. This is done in order to avoid changing the sound. For example:

  • hat [hæt] — hatter
  • pin [pɪn] — pinned
  • hot [hɒt] — hottest
  • red [red] — reddish
  • cut [kʌt] — cutting

The syllable «vowel + r»

The third type of syllable is one in which the vowel is followed by the letter «r». The vowel makes a long sound, and the «r» itself is unreadable (in British English).

  • car [kɑː]
  • herb [hɜːb]
  • girl [ɡɜːl]
  • form [fɔːm]
  • turn [tɜːn]

The doubled «r» does not affect the sound of the vowel. In this case, the syllable is read as closed. Compare:

  • smirk [sməːk] — mirror [ˈmɪrə]
  • curl [kəːl] — current [ˈkʌr (ə) nt]
  • port [pɔːt] — torrent [ˈtɒr (ə) nt]

The syllable «vowel + re»

In a syllable of this type, the letter «r» is also not read, and the vowel forms a diphthong.

  • dare [deə]
  • mere [mɪə]
  • hire [ˈhaɪə]
  • core [kɔː]
  • pure [pjʊə]

The syllable «consonant + le»

Sometimes this syllable stands out separately — it occurs only at the end of a word. If -le is preceded by one consonant, the syllable is read as open. If there are two consonants in front of -le, it is read as closed. Compare:

  • table [ˈteɪbl] — dabble [dæbl], title [ˈtaɪtl] — little [ˈlɪtl]
  • bugle [bju: gl] — struggle [ˈstrʌɡl], rifle [ˈraɪfl] — sniffle [ˈsnɪfl]

Not every consonant is found in combination with -Le… Here are the ones that are typical for the English language:

  • -ble (bubble) -fle (rifle) -stle (whistle) -cle (cycle)
  • -gle (bugle) -tle (brittle) -ckle (pickle) -kle (tinkle)
  • -zle (dazzle) -dle (bridle) -ple (staple)

Vowel combinations (digraphs)

A digraph is a combination of two letters that are pronounced as one sound. In the case of vowels, it can be a long, short sound or a diphthong. Most often, digraphs are found in old Anglo-Saxon words, the pronunciation of which has undergone changes over hundreds of years: thief, boil, hay, boat, straw. They are read according to special rules, but there are many exceptions to them, so these words need to be learned gradually and systematically.

Basic vowel digraphs

Spelling Pronunciation Examples
ai / ay [eɪ] bait, hay
au / aw [ɔː] taunt, draw
ea [i:] meat, deal
[e] bread, steady
ee [i:] feed, reel
ei [eɪ] feint, vein
[i:] (after c) ceiling, receive
eu / ew [ju:] Feud, Strewn
ie [i:] thief, priest
oa [əʊ] coat, goal
oi / oy [ɔɪ] coin, toy
oo [u:] root, food
[ʊ] (before k) book, look
ou [aʊ] loud, noun
[u:] soup, ghoul
ow [aʊ] cow, howl
[oʊ] know, low

Source: https://skyeng.ru/articles/kakie-byvayut-slogi-v-anglijskom-yazyke

How to determine the number of syllables in an English word

сколько слогов в английском слове

According to the rules of syllabus division, the correct pronunciation of a word is determined in many aspects (and this applies to all languages). After reading this article, everyone will master the rules of transfer and, in general, will be better at understanding the intricacies of the English language.

The practical necessity of slogan splitting

A syllable in a language is the minimum phonetic-phonological unit. It is characterized by the greatest acoustic (sound) fusion of sounds included in it. This unit received such a name because the syllable does not matter at all in semantic word formation.

It will be easier for the reader of the article, as a person who has Russian as a native language, to master the rules of syllabus division in English. This is because the emphasis on syllables in words in both of these languages ​​are almost the same… Accordingly, every native Russian speaker can practice this topic using the principle of analogy.

The main common feature is, of course, syllabic vowels (as taught in elementary school: «as many vowels in a word, as many syllables»).

Almost everyone who has gone through elementary school has been taught the easiest way of «verbal» division of words into syllables. The first method looks simple enough. When pronouncing a certain word with every vowel that occurs in it, you need to clap.

Next, you need to count how many claps were. The number of claps will be equal to the number of syllables in the word. Another method is much simpler than the one described above. In order to count the number of syllables in a particular spoken word, you need to bring your hand to your chin.

How many times the chin touches the hand, there are so many syllables in the word.

Slogan rules in English

It’s time to talk about how to correctly split (divide) words into syllables in English.

Syllables in English are open and closed. It depends on which sound the word ends with.

  • As for open syllables, they end in vowels. Plus, the syllable will also be open when it is formed by a diphthong (diphthong Is a sound, the pronunciation of which involves a transition from one vowel sound type to another) or a long vowel sound on which the stress falls.
  • Closed syllables, respectively, end in consonants. If a particular syllable is formed by a consonant paint, it will also be closed.

The main feature of syllabus separation in English is the need to separate words from the end (not like in Russian, from the beginning).

It is worth giving the rules of syllabus in English, clearly showing them with specific examples.

Rule number one

The number of syllables in a certain word depends on the vowels used in it: «To-ma- to» (UK: [tmt], US: [t-me-to]) (translation: tomato, tomato).

Rule number two

One vowel sound is enough to form a syllable: «A-bo-ut» ([-ba-t]) (translation: o / pro (meaning “about something), about / approximately (illustrative example: The speed of the car was about one hundreds and twenty seven kilometers per hour. The car was traveling at a speed of about one hundred twenty seven kilometers per hour (about one hundred twenty seven).

Rule number three

If there are two consonant letters on the «border» of syllables, it must be divided into two parts: «po-et» (UK: [pt], US: [po-t]) (translation: poet).

Rule number four

If a word has several sounds formed by a diphthong (this definition was presented above), then it has only one syllable: ([lak]) (translation: like (verb) (example: I the way you do it! I like how you do it!), like (noun)).

Rule number five

If there is a consonant sound in a word at the «edges» (boundaries) of syllables, it is highlighted in the second: «E-co-lo-gy» (UK: [-kl-di], US: [ikl-di]) (translation: ecology).

Rule number six

Syllables can also be formed in the presence of the letter combination «er», which comes after the letter «W»: «Show-er» (UK version: [a-], American version: [ar]) (translation: rain, shower).

Rule number seven

The letter «L», being on the border of syllables (when colliding with another letter), refers to the following syllable: «Ta-ble» (British version: [te-b () l], American version: [te-bl]) (translation: table, scoreboard, table).

Rule number eight

This rule may seem rather strange to many at first glance. However, it operates and is used throughout almost the entire existence of modern English («post-Shakespearean» or, in the scientific «language», New English).

Before such combinations of letters (letters) as «Ld» and «nd», the border of the syllable is drawn.

In other words, these combinations are a separate syllable: «mi-ld» ([ma-ld]) (translation: mild (mainly — climate), light, temperate), «mi-nd» ([ma-nd]) ( mind, against (to be mind example: do you mind, if I drink of your cup a bit? Do you mind if I drink a little from your cup?).

Most likely, every attentive reader noticed that in the last syllables formed by the above-mentioned letter combinations, the last two examples given completely lack vowel sounds (as, in other cases, in the American pronunciation of the word «table», which was given in the previous rule).

This is the main «strangeness» of this rule (at least for those who happened to think in Russian). After reading the last rule, English may seem even more insidious to many. But one should not be afraid of such «cunning words».

Plus, in English, in most words, the rules for dividing them into syllables are applied, similar to the rules in Russian.

What is the role of slogan splitting?

1. Due to the correct division into syllables, it is easier to comply with the rules of correct transfer.
2. In the English language there are several principles of syllabus division:

  • phonetic;
  • morphological;
  • orthographic.

3. The ongoing processes of division into syllables set other parameters for the division of words. In the course of the evolution of language, metamorphoses can lead to the emergence of new rules for syllabic division.

The rules above are simple enough to understand. However, everyone who wants to learn English to the fullest should not only read and memorize them, but also delve into, that is, try to correctly understand and understand them.
However, this is not enough to fully immerse yourself in the topic and get the opportunity to apply these rules in practice. You need to know which of the syllables you need to focus on in this or that case.

To correctly pronounce (or read) any word in English, you must:

  1. Put stress correctly;
  2. Determine the type of syllable.

As for the stressed syllable, there are several combinations of letters (suffixes / postfixes) that allow you to determine the stressed syllable:

  • ious;
  • ial;
  • ion;
  • ian;
  • iant;
  • iance;
  • ience;
  • ic;
  • ical.

The syllables in the word before the above letter combinations (suffixes) are stressed. Example: «De-li-cious»: [dls] (UK), [dls] (US).

That’s all, these are quite simple rules for determining the number of syllables in English.

Source: https://bestcube.space/slogodelenie-v-anglijskom-yazyke

Rules for reading English for beginners, table. Intonation and stress in English

At the initial stage of learning English, you inevitably have to deal with the differences between your native language and a foreign one. Reading in English for beginners, children and adults is usually one of the first steps in learning.

And the first such differences between Russian and English are revealed as soon as you start learning to read in English. You are faced with the transcription and reading rules of the English language.

These two concepts are related, since with the help of transcription we can record and read the sounds that vowels and consonants convey in various combinations. But the reading rules explain exactly how the letters are pronounced in different environments.

There are a lot of reading rules in English, and they relate to both vowels and consonants. In addition, a huge number of words are not read according to the rules, that is, they are exceptions. Therefore, it begins to seem that it is extremely difficult to learn all this.

In fact, the rules of reading need to be learned, but there is no need to memorize them. After doing a few exercises on reading rules, you will already know how exactly the same type of words are read.

In the learning process, when you read and listen to a variety of study materials, the spelling, pronunciation and meaning of new words will be memorized as a whole.

Features of English pronunciation

At first, reading in English for beginners presents some difficulties due to the peculiarities of pronunciation — words are very often pronounced differently than they are spelled. Linguists even have a saying — «We write — Manchester, we pronounce — Liverpool.»

This situation is due to the fact that historically in the English language there existed, and there are still many dialects in which the same letters and letter combinations were read in different ways, which eventually became entrenched in official English. An example is the combination of letters ough.

The words though, through, thought differ by only one letter, and the combination of letters ough is read differently in all words.

The role of transcription in teaching English reading

So, as we have already said, in addition to the numerous rules for reading in English, difficulties arise when mastering the transcription of the English language. Transcription is the recording of speech sounds using special characters.

You should not avoid it, as it is the best assistant in learning a language, which, firstly, will save you time when memorizing new words, and secondly, it will help to avoid mistakes in pronunciation. After all, when you write out or memorize new words, you definitely need to know how they are read correctly.

There are two options for how to do this. The first is to listen to it in some online resource, and the second is to watch the transcription. 

Now in some tutorials, as well as on training sites, you can find «English transcription in Russian». It is believed that writing an English word in Russian letters is much easier than learning some incomprehensible phonetic symbols. In fact, this is a delusion.

English phonetics differs from Russian so much that Russian letters can only approximately convey the pronunciation of English words, and mostly the simplest ones, the reading of which even without this kind of «transcription» is not difficult.

Some English sounds in Russian simply do not exist, and the correct pronunciation of English and Russian sounds similar at first glance may have certain differences.

Therefore, we recommend that you take the time to study transcription icons and read sounds. This is one of the basic knowledge in mastering the rules of reading English for beginners. Knowledge of transcription will serve you faithfully at all stages of your learning.

We analyze the rules for reading English

There are different classifications of the rules for reading consonants and vowels in English. For vowels, as a rule, there are 4 types of syllables. These are the 4 types of environment a vowel can find itself in and which affects its pronunciation.

Some textbooks consider only the first two types of syllables — open and closed, but take into account whether the letter r is involved in these types of syllables — since it affects the reading of vowels. Consonants in different combinations can also be read differently.

I must say that the number of exceptions and variants of reading the same letter combinations in different words give reason to consider the reading rules rather general recommendations that should be studied before starting to read.

To familiarize yourself with the rules of reading in English, we suggest that you take as a basis the tables with options for reading letters, which are given in his textbook for children “English. 1-4 grades in diagrams and tables «N.Vakulenko.

These English reading rules for children cover almost every possible reading of vowels and consonants in English.

But before we go directly to the tables, we will deal with two more concepts that you will surely come across when you get acquainted with the reading rules. it open и closed syllable.

The syllable is called openWhen

  • ends in a vowel and is the last in a word
  • the vowel is followed by a consonant and then a vowel again
  • the vowel is followed by another vowel

Examples of words with an open type of syllable (you can listen with sound):

age, blue, bye, fly, go 

The syllable is called closedWhen

  • ends in a consonant and is the last in a word
  • the vowel is followed by several consonants

Examples of words with a closed type of syllable:

bed, big, box, hungry, stand 

So, let’s formulate the rules for reading English for beginners: tables for reading vowels and consonants.

Vowel reading tables

A
A [ei] — in an open syllable lake, make
A [æ] — in a closed syllable rat, map
A [a:] — in a closed syllable on r car, bar
A [εə] — at the end of a word vowel + re care, fare
A [ɔ:] — combinations all, au all, tall
O
O [əu] — in an open syllable no, home
O [ɒ] — in a closed stressed syllable lot, boss
O [ɜ:] — in some words with «wor» word, work
O [ɔ:] — in a closed syllable with r horse, door
O [u:] — in combination «oo» too, food
O [u] — in combination «oo» good look
O [aʊ] — in combination «ow» in the stressed syllable Now, CLOWN
O [ɔɪ] — in combination «oy» boy, joy
U
U [yu:], [yu] — in an open syllable blue, duty
U [ʌ] — in a closed syllable butter, cup
U [u] — in a closed syllable put, bull
U [ɜ:] — in combination «ur» Purse, hurt
E
E [i:] — in an open syllable, a combination of «ee», «ea» he, meet, leaf
E [e] — in a closed syllable, combination «ead» head, bread
E [ɜ:] — in combinations «er», «ear» her, pearl
E [ɪə] — in ear combinations near, dear
I
i [aɪ] — in an open syllable nice, fine
i [aɪ] — in combination «igh» high, night
i [ɪ] — in a closed syllable big, in
i [ɜ:] — in combination «ir» bird girl
i [aɪə] — in combination «ire» hire, tired
Y
Y [aɪ] — at the end of a word under stress my cry
Y [ɪ] — at the end of a word without stress happy family
Y [j] — at the beginning of a word yes, yellow

Consonant reading tables

С
C [s] — before i, e, y Place, Cinema
C [tʃ] — in combinations ch, tch children, catch
C [k] — in other cases cat, picnic

Source: https://lim-english.com/posts/pravila-chteniya-angliiskogo-yazika-dlya-nachinaushih/

How the letter i is read in English. Letters i, y: how to read: or? Rules for reading the English letter I in four types of syllables

Hello dear friends! If you are just starting to learn English, then the first thing you need to do is learn to read.

This can be done quickly and easily, as there are certain reading rules in the English language. First, let’s get acquainted with to find out how English letters are read.

English letters are accompanied by English transcriptions so that you can easily learn how to read English letters on your own. Why do you need to know the English alphabet?

First of all, while you are learning English and do not know many more English words, your interlocutors will often spell unfamiliar words to you, helping you to understand the word. You will do the same when the interlocutor does not understand you or does not know the word you said.

Rules for reading English words depending on the type of syllable

Syllable type
open syllable closed syllable vowel + r vowel + re unstressed syllable
А [æ] [ə]
make cat car share August
Е [e] [ɜː] [ɪə] [ə] [i]
we bed here here absent
I / Y [I] [ɜː] [I]
team sit girl nature music
U [ʌ] [ɜː] [ə]
tube cup turn cycle success
О[əʊ] [ɒ] [ɔː] [ɔː] [ə], [əʊ]
notes Note shorts more more

Why «spelled Liverpool, but pronounced Manchester» or how to read the word in English correctly?

To begin with, learn the 4 basic types of vowel reading E, A, Y, U, O, I in stressed syllables in English

Type I of a syllable is an open syllable, it ends in a vowel. For example: make, note. II type of syllable is a closed syllable, it ends in a consonant letter. For example: cat, system.III type — a syllable, where the stressed vowel is followed by the letter «r». For example: girl, turn.

Type IV is a syllable, where the stressed vowel is followed by «re». For example: cure, fire.

Let’s reinforce the vowel reading with the following exercise:

I type of syllable — open syllable

Note, lone, mice, rice, type, tune, shy, lay, say, he, hay, name, same, nine, nice, game, came, make, Kate, Pete, five, tie, life, eve, me, size, no, cope, smoke, rose, nose, spine, sly, cry, vine, maze, home, tube, made, fume, cube, pace, lace, sky, hale, spine.

II type of syllable — closed syllable (a syllable ending in a consonant is considered closed). This is the second line in the table. Pay attention to the words rat, hot, red, bit, myth, run, at the end of which there is no mute vowel. These words sound like «Rat, Hot, Ed, Beat, Miss, Ran.»

Cap, pen, bed, ten, not, spot, lot, bad, rat, sit, send, test, pit, in, send, spell, tin, less, ban, mad, fat, Sam, land, did, fit, sat, pet, tin, slip, sad, glad, bag, jam, gap, lag, can, kin, Jim, Jack, yes, ink, cup, run, cod, spin, not, doll, hop, hot, bank, rank, spin, up, us, bus, bun, cut, fun, vet, well, but, nut.

III type of syllable — vowel + letter «r», which affects the sound of the vowel at the root of the word, giving it a certain length. So the words car, sort, term, fir, Byrd, fur sound like «ka: co: t, te: m, fe: be: d, fe:».

Source: https://donschool86.ru/leksika/kak-chitaetsya-bukva-i-v-angliiskom-yazyke-bukvy-i-y-kak-chitat.html

Vowel reading rules in English

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Today let’s talk about rules for reading vowels in Englishyou need to know in order to successfully master both the oral and written aspects.

First, let’s review the English alphabet and do it using a nursery rhyme. I think rap style fans will especially like it! It is great if you add some of the typical movements that are typical of this style of music during your performance.

Alphabet song

AA, B, C, D, E

stand up and look at me.

F, G, H, I, J

I play football every day.

K, L, M, N, O

I Cake of All.

P, Q, R, S, T

Hey people, listen to me.

U, V, W, X, Y, Z

The alphabet is in my head!

recording: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or higher) is required to play this audio recording. Download the latest version here. In addition, JavaScript must be enabled in your browser.

As you may have noticed, in the English alphabet 26 letters: 6 vowels и 20 consonants.

They form 44 sound: 20 vowels and 24 consonants.

Vowel sounds are divided into:

  • short [i], [e], [ɔ], [u], [ʌ], [æ], [ǝ]
  • long [i:], [ɜ:], [ɔ:], [u:], [a:]
  • diphthongs [ei], [ai], [ɔi], [iǝ], [ǝu], [au], [ɛǝ], [aiǝ], [auǝ]

The difficulty is that vowels are read differently, depending on which syllable the vowel occurs in.

It is generally accepted that in English there is 4 types of syllables.

Let’s analyze each of them, noting the characteristic features.

French Alphabet

I type of syllable (vowel + consonant + vowel):

open, vowel reads like this, how is shecalled in the alphabet… We consider only the striking position.

In words like bake, smile, Rope, tubefinal «e» not pronounced, it is called dumb (mute buttonletter).

 Monosyllabic words like we, go, hi, my are also of the first type.

Samples

a[ei] — name, face, cake, make, bake, take, mistake, lake, snake, lazy, crazy, nature, cage, potato

e [i:] — Egypt, Greece, tree, free, three, street, green, sleep, meter, fever, emu, lemur, he, she, we

i [ai] — five, nine,, ride a bike, drive, smile, time, nice, kite, diving, pine, spider, tiger, white

o [ǝu] — nose, rose, home, hope, rope, stone, sofa, notebook, October, composer, phone, model

u [ju:] — Pupil, Student, Tulip, Computer, Cucumber, Excuse, Music, Cuba, Future, Huge, Tube, Blue

y [ai] — why, sky, cry, spy, dry, fly, butterfly, my, shy, type, style, to rely on, July, xylophone by

IIsyllable type (vowel + consonant + consonant):

closed, vowel readable briefly. We consider only the striking position. The lexical meaning of the word depends on the length and brevity of the pronunciation of the sound in English. For example, take words like sheep (I type of syllable [ʃi: p]) and ship (II type of syllable [ʃip]).

Correct

There is a sheep On the meadow.

There is a ship in the sea

Incorrect

There is a ship On the meadow.

There is a sheep in the sea

(The poor lamb got it!)

Samples

a [æ] —  black, happy, cabbage, carrot, rabbit, daddy, granny, gallery, Africa, hand, cap, cat, map

e [e] — red, December, letter, kettle, pen, pencil, desk, address, left, cherry, chess, egg, hen, ten

i [i] — Pink, Six, Fifty, Little, Big, Pig, Spring, Winter, King, Finger, Kitchen, Milk, Fish, Children

o [ɔ] — golden, fox, dolphin, dog, hospital, doctor, bottle, box, clock, hobby, coffee, concert

u[ʌ] — summer, butter, hundred, number, brush, duck, club, jump, lunch, plum, mushroom, cup

y [i] — gym, gymnastics, lynx, myth, mystery, symbol, symphony, symptom, syllable, system

IIIsyllable type (vowel + r + consonant):

vowel is read long… Long sounds are indicated by two dots «:» to the right of the sound sign. We consider only the striking position.

Letter «r« in this type of syllable is not pronounced.

Monosyllabic words like jar, bar, here , sir, fur are also of the third type.

Samples

ar [a:] — farmer, garden, party, car, scar, bar, barber, marmalade, shark, garlic, parsley, starling

er [ɜ:] — Advertisement, Person, Perfect, University, To Prefer, Dessert, Germany, Term, Interpreter

ir [ɜ:] — bird, girl, the first, the third, thirteen, thirty, birthday, shirt, T-shirt, circus, skirt, sir, fir

or [ɔ:] — pork, orchard, orchestra, order, orchid, (un) fortunately, divorce, enormous, immortal

ur [ɜ:] — curl (y), curds, curtain, to disturb, purple, Thursday, turnip, windsurfing, surface, hurt

yr [ɜ:] — martyr (martyr), myrrh (myrrh), Kyrgyz, Kyrgyzstan

IVsyllable type (vowel + r + vowel):

reading like diphthongs. Diphthongs are combinations of two vowel sounds, the first of which is pronounced more energetically than the second. We consider only the striking position. In some words, the letter «r» is not pronounced, while in others it makes the sound [r].

Samples

are [ɛǝ] — parents, care, rarely, various, to compare, scarecrow, canary, malaria, square, share

ere [iǝ] — Here, Imperial, Serious, Mysterious, Nigeria, Serial, Sincere, Zero, Hero, Cereal, Interfere

ire [aiǝ] — tired, retired, to admire, desire, Ireland, iron, environment, requirement, biro, virus

or [ɔ:] — Ore, Store, Snore, Score, Bore, BORING, Shore, To IGNORE, To Explore, Story, Storey, Glory

ure [juǝ] — pure, cure, curable, incurable, during, Europe, euro, curious, mural (fresco), security

yre [aiǝ] — lyre (lyre), tire (US — tire tire), tyrant (tyrant), papyrus (papyrus)

Important! Research shows that total 30% words English can be read using the rules above; rest 70% words — historically developed vocabulary. Therefore, I strongly recommend actively using dictionaries in the process of learning English.

 I think the article is about rules for reading vowels in English will be useful for those who plan to take the exam in English. In the oral part of the exam there is a task in which you need to read the proposed passage of text (1.5 minutes), observing all the rules for reading vowels and consonants.

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Source: http://smashtrash.ru/pravila-chteniya/pravila-chteniya-glasnykh-v-angliyskom-ya.html

Types of syllables in English in a nutshell

Hello dear friends! Today I will tell you about the types of syllables in English. Some readers will now close the article and say that they do not want to go deep into language learning. There is no need to rush. Only at first glance it seems that the British read completely differently from the way they write. In fact, there is logic everywhere. Knowing it will help you learn to read with confidence. So let’s figure it out.

Why do you need transcription?

Many people no longer teach it at school and you do not have to memorize these incomprehensible symbols, but there is one secret. It is important to learn how to divide into syllables.

The rule is:

If there is a consonant behind a stressed vowel (except for r), then we give it to the next unstressed vowel, as in the word stu / dent. Pronounced u more clearly. The stress falls on it. Therefore, d goes to the second part. If there are two or more consonants after the stressed, the first one takes the stressed part of the word, and the second one is unstressed (pat / tern).

Doubt? Open the dictionary. The upper comma in the transcription indicates stress.

Open and shut

Now you need to know how to determine the type of syllable. Many of you learned in school, but few will say for sure what an open syllable means. This is the one that ends in a vowel.

Would you like to visit Oxford? Learning a language is the first step to this trip.

Examples: he, go, me. His rule is to read the vowel as it is pronounced in the alphabet.

«Why, then, does cave read like cave?» — you ask, — «this contradicts the above!». Such syllables are called conditionally open. In them, the dumb e conventionally indicates this. More examples: late, fine.

Having learned the open type of syllable, you probably thought about the fact that there is an opposite to it — a closed syllable. And you are right. It ends with one or more consonants. The vowel in this case is read short, as in shut, cat, pen.

Why is the letter r special?

Because she does not obey general rules, but dictates her own. In the third type, it stands after the letter under stress and makes it long. Pay attention to fur (fёёё), fork (fook), serve (syёёv). Syllable type 4 is similar to type 3, but there is still an e after the r. As in care, mere, more.

Let’s put all the information in the table:

Now you are convinced that it is easy to read English words. It takes desire and practice.

Therefore, I recommend subscribing to my blog and reading other articles. You will also receive as a gift, completely free of charge, an excellent basic phrasebook in three languages, English, German and French. Its main plus is that there is Russian transcription, therefore, even without knowing the language, you can easily master colloquial phrases.

And the most interested readers can enroll in courses taught by a native speaker. All dialogues and texts are voiced by English speakers. This will allow you to learn the correct pronunciation and remove the language barrier, as well as travel around England, meet the locals, visit museums and the most interesting places!

I was with you, Natalia Glukhova, I wish you a good day!

Source: https://vivaeurope.ru/languages/english/gramatika/tipi-slogov

Open syllable in English. The importance of stress in a word

Learning any foreign language is based on grammar and phonetics. Clear rules of English grammar are usually not difficult to understand and apply. The rules of phonetics, on the other hand, become an obstacle to achieving good pronunciation. A closed and open syllable in English, stressed and unstressed position of vowels, a special combination of letters — these are the basics of the rules for the pronunciation of sounds in the English language.

Dividing a word into syllables

Before you learn all the phonetic rules, you should learn to determine where to use which. If you want to correctly read an English unfamiliar word by applying the pronunciation rules, there are two things to keep in mind:

  1. Correct word stress. All rules are separated: for reading stressed vowels and for reading unstressed and neutral vowels.
  2. Determine the type of syllables. In total, there are four types of syllables: two basic and two conventional. The sound of the vowel in it depends on whether it is a closed or open syllable in English.

The rules for dividing English words into syllables:

  • The division of a word into syllables begins at the end of the word. As a rule, each subsequent syllable begins with a consonant and most often comes after a vowel.
  • Mute sounds, unpronounceable vowels, are not included in the transcription and do not participate in dividing the word into syllables.
  • Different syllables can include doubled consonants and a combination of two consonants (if they do not produce the same sound).
  • Separate syllables in a word can be prefixes and suffixes.
  • The temporary ending -ed is an independent syllable only with the full pronunciation of «e», if it is dumb, then this ending is not a syllable.
  • The gerund ending -ing is a syllable in its own right.
  • in complex words written with a hyphen, it is worth dividing each component part into syllables separately.

The easiest way to determine the number of syllables in English words is with the palm under the chin. When reading a word in transcription, try to carefully pronounce each sound, while the chin will touch your hand as many times as there are syllables in the word.

Open and conditionally open syllable in English

The concept of an open syllable in English and our languages ​​is the same: a syllable that ends in a vowel sound is open.

Studying the phonetics of modern English, they attach importance only to stressed syllables, since in a neutral position vowels are either pronounced with neutral sounds, or are generally dumb.

In addition to the concept of a closed and open syllable in English, there are also paired open and paired closed syllables (conditionally open and conditionally closed).

For vowels in a conditionally open syllable, the rules that are intended for open syllables do not apply. A feature of the conditionally open syllable is that after it (stressed vowel) follows the letter «r» with a dumb «e». In this case, when pronouncing vowels, you just need to add the sound [ə] to the alphabetical name of the letter.

In its pure form, this rule is fulfilled:

  • «I» — [aıə];
  • «U» — [(j) ʊə];
  • «Y» — [aıə].

examples:

  • pure [pjʊə] — pure;
  • fire [faıə] — fire;
  • tire [taıə] — tire.

Two letters shorten the sound:

examples:

  • care [keə] — care;
  • here [hıə] — here.

And only one letter gives a long vowel sound:

Example: more [mɔ:] — more.

Exception: are [a:] and were [wз:] — verb forms.

Definition of stressed syllable

English is a free-stress language. With the correct pronunciation of words similar in sound and, accordingly, when writing a transcription, the main and secondary stresses are of great importance.

Difficulties often arise in determining the word stress in English words.

Basic stress rules in English words:

  • Determine the presence of prefixes and suffixes, since prefixes shift the stress to the root, and individual suffixes indicate the stressed syllable by their presence.
    1. The suffixes that always appear after the stressed syllable are -ion, -ious, -ial, -ian, -iant, -iance, -ient, -ience and -ic, -ical. Example: republic [rI’pAblIk] — republic.
    2. The stress retains its position (as in the original word) in derived words, which are formed by adding suffixes: -ly, -ful, -less, -nees, -ism, -ing, -er, -or, — (e) d, — (e) s.
  • We determine the actual (pronounced) syllables in the word, since the stress is distributed between them.
  • Most of all used English words do not exceed three syllables, therefore:
    1. Without taking into account the prefix (prefix), the stress in words consisting of 2 syllables falls on the first syllable;
    2. If a two-syllable word contains a suffix, then the stress falls on the second syllable (counting syllables from right to left).
    3. In words consisting of 3 or more syllables, the third syllable from the end of the word is stressed.
    4. In polysyllabic words (more than four syllables), the secondary stress is placed one syllable to the left of the main stress.

    Exceptions to the rule are words borrowed from other languages:

    • canal [kəˈnæl] — channel;
    • diploma [dɪˈpləʊmə] — diploma;
    • tobacco [təˈbækəʊ] — tobacco;
    • tomato [təˈmɑːtəʊ] — tomato and others.

Pronunciation rules for vowels in a stressed open syllable

For Russian-speaking people, it is especially difficult to understand such a number of vowel sounds with a minimum number of vowels. Vowel sounds are of the following types:

  1. short vowel sounds;
  2. long vowel sounds;
  3. vowel diphthongs (combination of 2 vowels).

After the word is divided into syllables and the main stress is correctly determined, you can read the word, guided by the following rules:

«Basic rule»

In a stressed open syllable, an open vowel is read as in the alphabet:

  • «A» — [eı];
  • «O» — [əʊ]; Exceptions: «o» — [Λ] after «m», «th», «n» and «v». Examples some, dove, come.
  • «U» — [ju:] as [u:] if the letter comes after:
    1. letters «r»: rude [ru: d] — rough;
    2. consonant + l: flute [flu: t] — flute;
    3. hissing sound: June [dʒu: n] — June.
  • «E» — [i:], doubling the letter «e» — [i:]. Example: see [si:] — to see. The letter «e» is dumb at the end of a word, except in monosyllables, where it is the only vowel. Example: he [hi:] — he, me [mi:] — I, be [bi:] — to be.
  • «I» — [aı]. Exception: «i» — [ı] only in the pronunciation of the verb «to give».
  • «Y» — [aı].

Cases when the sounds: «a», «i», «u» end the stressed syllable are not entirely natural for English speech, and this indicates a foreign origin or a contraction of the word.

Example:

Abbreviations:

  • flu [flu:] — flu;
  • hi [haı] — hello.

«Rule of the third syllable»

The third stressed syllable from the end is always read according to the rules for a closed syllable. This rule is also valid for the fifth, seventh syllables when the secondary stress falls on them. Vowel digraphs are not affected by this rule and are read according to the basic rules of an open syllable.

Only regular training of the speech apparatus in the pronunciation of vowel sounds will help to develop accurate articulation (the position of the speech organs during the pronunciation of vowel sounds) and bring it to automatism. Repeating vowel sounds with a tendency to repeat the reference is the easiest way to develop true English pronunciation.

Article recommended by an expert: Maria Solomatina

Source: https://1hello.ru/grammatika/otkrytyj-slog-v-anglijskom-yazyke.html

Lesson 8. Pronunciation of consonants [f] and [v]. Closed syllable in English

Hello! In this lesson, we again return to consonant sounds and now we learn to pronounce sounds [f] и [v] and accordingly read the English letters Ff [ef] and Vv [vi]. And let’s also remember what a closed syllable is in English, since this is one of the basic concepts in teaching reading.

So, from lesson number 8 you will learn:

  • how to pronounce english consonants [f] и [v] correctly;
  • what is a closed syllable in English;
  • and repeat how the vowel is read y at the end of the word.

If you have just joined us, then here is a link to the section «Author’s English lessons for teaching reading and pronunciation at the same time»

* * *

Rules for reading letters f and v in English

So, let’s begin! English consonants f и v transmit sounds [f] и [v]. The sounds [f] and [v] are labiodental, that is, to pronounce them, you need bite the lower lip with the upper teeth.

At first glance, the English sounds [f] and [v] are similar to the Russian “f” and “v”. But there is also a significant difference: the English sounds [f] and [v] are long.

To pronounce the English sound [v] correctly, it is necessary to pronounce it for a long time, as, for example, the doubled «v» in the words «up», «introduction».

To pronounce the English sound [f] correctly, bite the lower lip and exhale vigorously. The English sound [f] is very long and strong. In the transcription [f] should be designated [fff].

Listen to how the sounds [f] and [v] are pronounced — HERE

As for the concept of «voiced» — «deaf», the British do not understand at all what it is. They have the concept of «weak» (we call this sound «voiced» in Russian) and the concept of «strong» (we call this sound «dull»).

Now we need to practice a little. Let’s get down to the exercises. After that we will repeat again, how words are divided into syllables, which syllable is in the word MAIN and what is a closed syllable in English.

Now we start working out English sounds [fff] and [vvv]

* * *

Phonetic exercises with audio recording (closed content no.19)

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Description: Access to a course of lessons on teaching reading in English and pronunciation at the same time. 50% discount until 01.01.2020/XNUMX/XNUMX. Author T.V. Nabeeva

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What is a closed syllable in English?

If you learn English from scratch on our website, then from lesson number 6 you learned what the third type of syllable is in English. Now we’ll talk about how words are divided into syllables. (1)which syllable in the word is the most important (2) и what is a closed syllable in English(3) (it was already mentioned in lesson 1)

(1) So, words are divided into syllables by the number of vowels… That is, how many vowels there are in a word, there are so many syllables in it. Take a word for example, happy Doubled consonant p divides a word into two syllables.

`hap — py

  1. hap — this syllable ends with a consonant sound, and is called closed;
  2. py — this syllable, ends in a vowel sound, and is called open.

(2) The main thing is the STRICT syllable. It is in it that the vowel sound is read according to the rules that you have already learned. By the way, I remind you that the unstressed letter y at the end of a word reads like [i], for example, party [`pa: ti]

(3) A closed syllable is a syllable that ends in a consonant.

Now let’s remember the passed rules for reading vowels in a closed syllable in English:

a is readAs [æ]. Examples. hat, happy

e readAs [e]. Examples. men, mental

i, y are readAs [i]. Examples. kit, kitty

u readAs [ʌ]. Examples. bud, buddy

0 is often read as [ʌ]. Examples. love, glove, lovely.

NOTE. How to read the vowel Oo in a closed syllable, you will learn further — Lesson number 9. Reading the English letter Oo in a closed syllable.

NOTE. Sonorous consonants m, n, l — also form a syllable, because they can be pulled. Try saying [mmmm], [nnnn], [llll]. Therefore, in the word apple there are two syllables: ap-ple (the second syllable is a sonor consonant — l).

Also, remember, in English vowel e at the end of a word NEVER readable.

Once there is closed syllable, then, accordingly, there is open syllable, but you will learn about it in the following lessons. For now, let’s figure out how unstressed vowels are read in English.

 * * *

The rule of reading an unstressed vowel in English

So, as a rule, there is usually one stressed syllable in a word, in which the vowel is read according to the rules, then a logical question arises: how is an unstressed vowel read?

In English there is a universal sound similar to the Russian «e» — [ə]… This is the most common sound, as it is read in all unstressed syllables. This sound is called «Seam». Sometimes it is replaced by the sound [i], as, for example, in the words above.

Exercise 5. Read two-syllable words with learned sounds:

apple, badly, balcony, happy, garden, party, hardly, carpet, dummy, funny, muddy, puppy, lovely, kitty, ditty, mitten, kitten, affect, Betty, heaven [`hevən]

Exercise 6. Finally, memorize a few English phrases:

  1. Have fun! — Have fun!
  2. Have tea. — Have some tea.
  3. Keep fit. — Keep in shape.
  4. Be happy! — Be happy!

Let’s sum up the results of the eighth lesson from the cycle «Teaching reading in English and pronunciation at the same time», from which you learned and hopefully remembered that:

  1. words are divided into syllables by the number of vowels;
  2. closed is a syllable that ends in a consonant;
  3. in a closed stressed syllable, the vowel is read according to the rules that must be memorized;
  4. in unstressed syllables, the vowel reads like [ə] or [i]. So, for example, the unstressed letter y at the end of a word it reads like [i].

* * *

And of course you now know how to pronounce sounds [f] и [v] in english is correct.

Lesson 9. Pronunciation of the English vowel [ɒ]. Reading the English letter O in a closed syllable. You will learn how to pronounce the very English sound [ɒ] and how to read the vowel Oo in a closed syllable. 

Source: http://englishstory.ru/urok-8-proiznoshenie-soglasnyih-zvukov-f-i-v-ponyatie-o-zakryitom-sloge.html

What are the syllables in English. Slogan making in English

Before we begin to understand what an open and closed syllable is, I would like to warn you right away — in English, reading rules have so many exceptions that it is better to just remember reading as many words as possible, and read the rest by analogy.

But at school they teach the rules and give grades. In order to apply the rules correctly, first we will deal with the syllables.

In English, as well as in Russian, words are divided into syllables. Very often, in order to correctly read a vowel in a syllable, it is necessary to determine the type of syllable — an open or closed syllable.

Let’s take the usual Russian word “book»We divide it into syllables: BOOK… Both syllables end in a vowel sound, which means that both syllables OPEN.

Let’s take the word “trap«, We divide into syllables: TRAP… In this example, both syllables end in a consonant sound, which means that both CLOSED.

But defining the syllable of an English syllable is not as easy as in Russian. A typical English word contains 2, maximum 3 syllables, so it is not difficult to find a syllable.

If you take the floor name, then you might think that there are 2 syllables in it, but we all know that this is read, that is, there is one syllable. Let’s take a closer look at why everything is so.

Open syllable1. If there is no consonant in the syllable after the vowel.

For example: go, no, ago, my, hi, be, me.

2. If after the vowel there is immediately «e» at the end of the word

For example: pie, lie, toe, blue, bye, dye.

3. If there is a consonant letter, but it is immediately followed by a «mute» vowel «e», which is not readable.

For example: name, blade, take, these, mine, time, type.

3. After the stressed vowel — consonant + le

For example: table, noble.

Remember !!! In an open syllable, vowels are read sameas they are called in.

Closed syllableIf in a syllable after a vowel there is one or more consonant letters (except for the letter r).

For example: bad, cat, vet, strip, stop, camp, battle, end, center, pink.

But in English there are «tricky» vowels and consonants. They can be read differently depending on how they are positioned in the word.

The pronunciation of words, in any language, is largely determined by the norms of syllabus. Having understood the main provisions, you will not only learn the rules of competent transfer, but also begin to better understand the language.

The practical necessity of slogan splitting

A syllable is a phonetic-phonological unit. Simply put, it stands out only during pronunciation, but does not play any role in semantic word formation. Therefore, this unit is called pronunciation.

The easiest way for native Russian speakers to understand the rules for dividing words in English is by analogy. The fact is that the norms for distinguishing syllables in both languages ​​are similar. The main similarity of syllabary definition is the leading role of vowels, they are called syllabic.

A simple way of dividing a word is told in elementary school. The hand is brought to the chin, after which the word is pronounced. The number of touches of the chin of the hand determines the number of syllables.

Slogan rules in English

Depending on the sound the word ends with, open syllables and closed ones are distinguished. Open ones always end in vowels. In addition, when a syllable is formed with a long stressed vowel or diphthong, it will also be open.

Closed syllables always end in a consonant. If the syllable is formed by a short vowel, it will also be closed.

The main feature of syllabic separation is the need to separate the word not from the beginning, but from the end. The rules for the division of the English language become clearer when studying specific examples.

1. As a rule, the number of syllables depends on the vowels used: po-ta-to.

2. The presence of one vowel already forms a syllable: a-bo-ut.

3. Two consonants on the border of a syllable are the basis for division into parts: po-et.

4. A word that has several vowels formed by a diphthong, ie. one sound, has only one syllable:, it cannot be divided into parts.

5. The appearance of a consonant at the border of syllable division leads to its allocation in the second syllable: i-ma-gine, if several consonants appear at the junction, then the first one belongs to one syllable, and the rest to another: ab-sent.

6. Syllables are formed by the combination –er, located after w: flow-er.

7. The appearance of the letter l on the border of syllables refers it to the next syllable, together with a nearby consonant: ta-ble.

8. Combinations of consonants ld and nd draw a syllable boundary before them: mi-ld, ki-nd.

Slogan making and its role:

1. Norms of correct transfer. It is thanks to the knowledge of the provisions of syllabus that you can competently divide words into parts that must be highlighted in the letter when wrapping between lines.

2. Criteria for dividing a word into components. In the English language, there is no single standard of syllabus division, therefore morphological, phonetic or spelling principles of division can be used.

3. Development of the language. The ongoing processes of correlation of syllable morphology set new parameters for the division of words.

We have outlined the basic rules for syllabus in the English language. In general, they are quite simple and not particularly difficult to master. Although, everyone who seeks to improve their language and write competently, it is necessary not only to learn them, but also to understand them.

A short and clear course on slogan splitting

The reading of a vowel depends on the letters adjacent to it and on the type of syllable in which it is located.

Closed syllables

This is the most common syllable. It ends in a consonant (one or more), and the vowel in the syllable is read briefly. We have selected a few examples for you to help you remember the rule better:

bad — bad
cat — cat
lip — lip
sad — sad
black — the blackExceptions:

As usual, this rule has a few exceptions to keep in mind:

Free lesson on the topic:

Irregular verbs of the English language: table, rules and examples

Discuss this topic with your personal tutor in a free online lesson at Skyeng School

Leave your contact details and we will contact you to register for the lesson

Source: https://domsireni.ru/otopitelnye-sistemy/kakie-byvayut-slogi-v-angliiskom-yazyke-slogodelenie-v-angliiskom/

Stress in English: how to determine the stressed syllable

On this page you can familiarize yourself with the stress setting rule in English:

— two important rules for stating stress in English — dividing a word into syllables — designating a stressed syllable in transcription — rules for stressing the first syllable — rules for stressing the last syllable — rules for stressing the second syllable from the end — rules for stressing the third syllable from the end

— rules of stress in compound words

Pronunciation

In English, we don’t pronounce every syllable with the same strength. In each single word, the stress falls only on one syllable. We pronounce this syllable louder and clearerand everyone else quieter and less audible.

An example of stress setting

Let’s consider this phenomenon in the following example — let’s take three words photograph, photographer и PhotoGraphic… Do they sound the same? No. This is because we strike one particular syllable, and each time it is different. Thus, the schematic representation of each of the words we have taken is different.

Schematic

word image

Common

number of syllables

Shock

syllable

PHO to GRAPH

‘. …

3

№ 1

PHO TO GRAPHER

… ‘. …

4

№ 2

PHO TO GRAPH IC

… … ‘.

4

№ 3

This happens in all two or more complex words: TEACHer, JaPAN, CHINa, aBOVE, converSAtion, INteresting, imPORtant, deMAND, etc.

The importance of correct stress

Unstressed syllables are weak, quiet and less clear. Native speakers, perceiving someone’s speech by ear, are guided by drums syllables, not unstressed. Thus, if you correctly place the stress in words, you automatically improve your pronunciation and listening skills.

Stress rules in English

There are two extremely important rules for placing stress in English:

  1. One word — one main stressed syllable. (There cannot be two main stresses in one word (meaning main stress). If you hear two stresses, these are two words. In some words, the presence of a secondary stress is possible, but it is much weaker than the main stress and occurs only in long words.)
  2. The stress always falls on the vowel.

To understand the rules for stating stress, you need to understand how words are divided into syllables. Each word consists of a number of syllables: one, two, three or more syllables.

word

number of syllables

dog

dog

1

green

green

1

quite

quite

1

quiet

quiet

2

Orange

or-ange

2

backgammon

ta-ble

2

expensive

ex-pen-sive

3

interesting

in-ter-est-ing

4

realistic

re-al-is-tic

4

unexceptional

un-ex-ception-al

5

Please note that (with a few rare exceptions) each syllable contains at least one vowela letter (a, e, i, o or u) or vowel.

Stress notation

There are a number of rules about which syllable is stressed. As you learn a new word, you also need to remember where the stress falls in it. If you are unsure, you need to consult the dictionary.

They all give a transcription, which denotes the phonetic spelling of the word. The stressed syllable is usually indicated by the apostrophe (‘), standing directly before or after stressed syllable.

However, these rules are quite complex and can vary from vocabulary to vocabulary.

Example:

transcription:
vocabulary A

transcription:
dictionaryB

PLAS TIC

‘.

‘.

/ plæs’tIk /

/ ‘plæs tIk /

Stress on the first syllable

Rule:

Example:

Most

disyllabic nouns

PRESent, EXport, CHINA, TABLE

Most

disyllabic adjectives

PRESent, SLENder, CLEVer, HAPpy

 Accent on the last syllable

Rule:

Example:

Most

disyllabic verbs

to preSENT, to export, to deCIDE, to beGIN

In English, there are a large number of disyllabic words whose meaning changes with the change of stress. So the word present, for example, consists of two syllables. If the stress falls on the first syllable, then it is a noun («gift») or an adjective («present»).

But if the stress falls on the second syllable, this word becomes a verb («to offer»). This group includes the following words, whose meaning directly depends on where the stress falls: export, import, contract и object.

Stress on the second syllable from the end

Rule:

Example:

The words,

ending in -ic

GRAPHic, geoGRAPHic, geoLOGic

The words,

ending in sion и production

teleVIsion, reveLAtion

There are a number of words where native speakers disagree about where the stress is. For example, some say televisionwhile others say TELEvisionAnother example of a similar double standard: CONtroversy и conTROversy.

Stress on the third syllable from the end

Rule:

Example:

The words,

ending in cy, ty, physical и gy

deMOcracy, dependentBIlity, phoTOgraphy, geOLogy

The words,

ending in -to the

CRItical, geoLOGical

Compound words

Rule:

Example:

Complex of nouns

stress falls on first часть

BLACKbird, GREENhouse

Complex adjectives

stress falls on the second часть

bad-TEMPERED, old-FASHioned

Complex verbs

stress falls on the second часть

to underSTAND, to overFLOW

Additional materials:

Source: https://www.activeenglish.ru/vocabulary/udarenie-v-anglijskom-jazyke-word-stress/

In today’s lesson, I’m going to answer the question, what is a syllable? And more importantly, I’ll also teach you how to count the syllables inside words.

The topic of counting syllables gets introduced to people in primary school, but it is often poorly taught. Consequently, many people can’t count the number of syllables inside a word properly. To clear up the confusion around counting syllables, I made this lesson! Watch the video version below:

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We will begin with a basic definition of the syllable:

A syllable is a section of a word. The number of syllables equals the number of sections that the word can be split into.

The number of syllables in a word corresponds to the number of sections that ‘stand out’ inside that word. The sounds that stand out are the vowels and syllabic consonants l, m, n. When a vowel sound stands out inside a word (is prominent), it has a kind of magnetic attraction, which is capable of drawing consonants to it.

A magnet attracting ball bearings.
Vowels can attract consonants to form syllables.

Importantly, we are not going to the smallest possible level of detail and counting every individual sound/phoneme in a word. To count the number of syllables in a word, we must count at the level above that. For example, consider the word ‘problems’…

At the smallest level of sound, the word ‘problems’ /ˈprɒb.ləmz /contains 8 individual sounds/phonemes. p-r-ɒ-b-l-e-m-z

If we then zoom out a little, the word ‘problems’/ˈprɒb.ləmz /consists of two syllables: PROB-LEMS. 

Finally, if we zoom out further, we can say that the word ‘problems’ /ˈprɒb.ləmz / is a single word.

IMPORTANT: you were probably taught at school that the number of syllables inside a word corresponds to the number of vowels that it contains. However, this is an oversimplification which can lead to mistakes when counting syllables. This is because the syllabic consonants l, m, and n are powerful enough to form syllables that don’t require a vowel. Examples of words containing syllabic consonants are:

little → /ˈlɪtl̩/ (2 syllable word)

mmm → /m̩ː/ (1 syllable interjection with no vowel sound)

button → /ˈbʌtn̩/ (2 syllable word)

Notice that in the example words above, the mark under the l̩, m̩, and n̩ symbols is there to denote a syllabic consonant. If you have never seen these strange phonetic symbols before, don’t be overwhelmed by them! Most dictionaries don’t think that it is necessary to go into this level of detail when transcribing words.


Why Knowing About Syllables Is Important for Your English

Learning how to properly count the number of syllables inside a word benefits your English in a number of ways:

  • PRONUNCIATION BENEFITS: Understanding syllables makes your English sound much more natural because it improves your sense of English rhythm. For upper-intermediate and advanced students – you can’t apply word stress properly unless you have a good understanding of syllables.
  • READING BENEFITS: Correctly segmenting words into syllables makes you a faster reader who can tackle extremely long words such as ‘antidisestablishmentarianism’ (12 syllables!).
  • SPELLING BENEFITS: Breaking up words into chunks/syllables makes you a far better speller.
  • ARTISTIC BENEFITS: Knowing about syllables will make you a much better poet!

Why Counting Syllables Is Difficult for Some Students

Counting the number of syllables inside a word is difficult for some students of English. There are a few main reasons for this.

Firstly, the length of English syllables is uneven. Some are short and some are long. This could be different to how syllables operate in your native language. Take for example the words ‘a’ and ‘strengths’. Remarkably, both words are one-syllable words!

A second reason is that the widely taught clapping technique for counting syllables doesn’t always work.

A third reason that some students struggle with the topic is because they have invented their own pronunciation of English words! This happens a lot to students who mostly taught themselves English by reading books and following along with subtitles. This leads them to pronounce words according to the number of vowels that are present in the spelling of a word, which in many cases doesn’t correspond to the pronunciation. A common example of this is found in the one-syllable word ‘called’ /kɔːld/, which many students incorrectly pronounce as ‘CALL-ED’ (two syllables).

And lastly, students with audio processing difficulties find it more difficult than most to break words up into syllables. This is because they ‘hear’ sounds differently, which makes the boundaries between syllables seem blurry or unclear. For help with this issue, see my English Jade course.


How to Count Syllables

The best way to learn how to count the number of syllables in a word is to follow along with a demonstration. Watch the video at the top of the page, skipping to 5.10 min to practise counting syllables with me.

Let’s talk now about the solution… How do we make counting the number of syllables in words easy? Here are some factors we must consider: 

  1. Sound exploration: The first step is exploring the sounds inside words; this requires practice.
  2. Syllable breaks: We have to learn to recognise where syllables break. Some rules and patterns can help us with this, but there will still be some ‘grey areas’. At times it is unclear where a syllable break occurs.
  3. Open syllables VS closed syllables: We also have to know the difference between two types of syllables, as explained below.

Open Syllables

An open syllable describes a syllable in a word that is not followed by a consonant sound. This type of consonant is easy to identify at the end of a word, but can also occur in other positions. For example, the word ‘see’ /siː/ contains a vowel that is not followed by a consonant. This makes it an open syllable word. Now consider the word ‘seed’ /siːd/, which is a closed syllable word because it ends with a final /d/ consonant. The words ‘see’ and ‘seed’ are both one-syllable words.

It’s easy to count the number of syllables in words that consist of open syllables. Even the unreliable clapping technique to count syllables works for words like this.

Open Syllable Examples (1 Syllable in Length) ➔ see, by, there

Open Syllable Examples (2 Syllables in Length) ➔ before, later, coma

Closed Syllables

Words that contain closed syllables are more difficult for us to count. A closed syllable refers to a vowel that is followed by one or more consonants. Take for example the closed syllable word ‘his’ /hɪz/. We have the consonant /h/ before the vowel and a /z/ after it. The vowel /ɪ/ is in the middle of the syllable, making three sounds in a kind of sandwich.

Closed Syllable Examples (1 syllable in length):

  • bag /bæg/
  • need /niːd/
  • make /meɪk/
  • part /pɑːt/
  • could /kʊd/
  • search /sɜːʧ/ *Notice how there are 6 letters in the spelling, but it’s still only one syllable.
  • earth /ɜːθ/

Tip: When counting syllables, say each word as naturally as you can. If your pronunciation is too slow and perfect, it can confuse your brain! 

Jade Joddle

Closed Syllable Examples (2 Syllables in Length) ➔ sentence, children, mountain.

The place where the syllables break is shown here with a dash ➔ sen-tence chil-dren moun-tain

The three words above have a common pattern. Notice that the syllables break where two consonants meet. Also, pay special attention to the word ‘mountain’ because this word shows us that a single vowel sound can be spelt with more than one letter.

Finally, we will look at two words in closer detail…

FRIENDS /frendz/ – Think of the vowel in the word as a magnet to which consonants can be attracted. In the case of ‘friends’, we have two consonants before the vowel and three after it, which creates a complex syllable. It is common to simplify the pronunciation of this word by dropping the /d/ ➔ /frenz/.

STRENGTHS /streŋkθs/ – This special word provides an example of the most complex syllable that can be created in English! It has three consonants before the vowel, and four after the vowel. This is a very difficult word to pronounce, even for most native speakers. If you want to cheat with the pronunciation, you can say /strenθs/ instead (non-standard pronunciation).

Thank you for learning to count syllables with me!

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Extend Your Learning

▶︎ Learn more about English rhythm by practising the schwa sound.

▶︎ Advanced students are advised to watch my lesson on the confusing topic of syllable breaks…

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