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Silent letters are letters that use to write the word, but we don’t pronounce. You will see them on paper, but you won’t hear them when you say the word. In this post, you will find a comprehensive list of words that contain silent letters. Bookmark this page so that you can check it anytime and download our free guide for more tips on how to improve your English pronunciation.

Why Are There Silent Letters?

Silent letters may seem useless but –believe it or not– they are not always redundant. They may help us in different ways:

👯 Homophones. Silent letters help us distinguish between homophones (i.e. words that are pronounced the same but have different meanings) in writing (e.g. be/bee, in/inn, lent/leant, rest/wrest, new/knew, night/knight, jam/jamb).

🗣️ Pronunciation. Even though these letters are not pronounced, they can help the reader to stress the correct syllable (e.g. physics/physiques) and also change the pronunciation of other letters (e.g. guest/gesture, rid/ride).

🗺️ Origin. Silent letters may help us better understand the origin or meaning of a word and also connect them with one another from the same family (e.g. resign-resignation, vine-vineyard).

Now that you see they’re not totally useless –at least not always– let’s check what words have silent letters. Read the list and pronounce the following terms out loud. Try to use them in a sentence, and you will see much better results in your pronunciation.

Look at the words below and read them out loud. Putting them in a sentence will help you better remember which words include silent letters.

Words With Silent B

The letter B is often silent when it is placed at the end of a word and is preceded by M (-MB).

Aplomb
Bomb
Climb
Comb
Crumb
Debt
Doubt
Dumb
Jamb
Lamb
Limb
Numb
Plumb
Subtle
Succumb
Thumb
Tomb
Womb

Words With Silent C

The letter C is often silent when it is placed after an S (SC).

Abscess
Ascend / ascent
Conscience
Conscious
Crescent
Descend
Disciple
Evanesce
Fascinate
Fluorescent
Muscle
Obscene
Resuscitate
Scenario
Scene
Scissors

Words With Silent D

The letter D is often silent when it is placed in the middle of a word, either after an N or before a G (-DG-, -ND-).

Bridge
Edge
Handkerchief (**NOTE: in the word «hand», the D is not silent)
Handsome
Handful
Grandson
Ledger
Sandwich
Wednesday

Words With Silent E

Many words contain a silent E, especially at the end of a word. Usually these words end in Vowel + Consonant + Silent E. The list is very extensive; here are some examples:

Debate
Desire
Excite
Kite
Love
Make
Name

In American English, we tend to drop silent E’s in some words.

Judgement (BrE) / judgment (AmE)
Programme (BrE) / program (AmE)

Words With Silent G

The letter G is oftentimes silent when it is placed before N, mostly when GN appears at the beginning or the end of the word. It is also usually silent when it appears before H (GH).

Align
Assign
Benign
Champagne
Cologne
Consign
Design
Feign
Foreign
Gnarl
Gnash
Gnaw
Gnome
Gnomic
High
Light
Resign
Sign

Words With Silent H

The letter H is sometimes silent when it is placed after C (CH) and it is always silent when it appears after some consonants (GH, WH, RH). Here are +30 words with silent H:

Anchor
Archeology (in BrE: archaeology)
Architect / architecture
Archive
Borough
Chaos
Character / characteristic
Charisma
Chemical / chemistry / chemist
Choreograph
Chorus
Christmas / Christian
Echo
Heir
Herbs (**only in AmE)
Hour
Honest / honor
Ghost
Psychology
Rhino
Schedule (**only in AmE)
Scheme
School
Tech / technology / techie
Thai / Thailand
Thigh
Thorough
Vehicle
Weigh
What / when / where / why / which
White
While

Words With Silent K

The letter K is silent when it appears at the beginning of a word followed by N (KN-).

Knack
Knave
Knead
Knee
Kneel
Knell
Knickers
Knife
Knight
Knit
Knob
Knock
Knoll
Knot
Know / knew / known
Knowledge
Knuckle

Words With Silent L

The letter L is often silent in the combination ALF, ALM, and OULD.

Almond
Balm
Behalf
Calf
Chalk
Could
Folk
Half
Palm
Salmon
Should
Stalk
Talk
Walk
Would
Yolk

Words With Silent N

The letter N is often silent when it appears at the end of a word preceded by the letter M (-MN).

Autumn
Column
Condemn
Damn
Hymn
Solemn

Words With Silent P

The letter P is often silent at the beginning of a word followed by S (PS-).

Coup
Cupboard
Psychology
Pneumonia
Pseudo
Psychiatrist
Psychiatry
Psychotherapy
Psychotic
Receipt

Words With Silent T

Apostle
Bristle
Bustle
Castle
Fasten
Glisten
Hustle
Listen
Moisten
Often

Words With Silent U

The silent U is used to soften the letter G (GU-). It is also silent in most words with the structure -UIT or -UILT.

Baguette
Biscuit
Build
Building
Built
Circuit
Disguise
Guess
Guest
Guide
Guild
Guilt
Guilty
Guise
Guitar
Rogue
Silhouette

Words With Silent W

The letter W is often silent when it is placed before the letter R (WR).

Awry
Playwright
Sword
Wrack
Wrangle
Wrap
Wrapper
Wrath
Wreak
Wreath
Wreck
Wrestle
Wriggle
Wring
Wrinkle
Wrist
Writ
Write / wrote / written
Wrong

Keep Improving Your English Pronunciation

Some of these may sound like difficult silent words in English (or words with silent letters in them), but it’s only a matter of practice!

Download our free pronunciation guide and learn how to improve your English pronunciation. It includes video tutorials and tips to practice on your own. If you are serious about improving your pronunciation and business English, contact Talaera. We will help you find the program for you and your teams.

Keep Learning

Talaera Free resources
Learning Business English? +20 Top Tips You Need To Know
How To Pronounce The Most Difficult English Sounds Correctly
How To Improve Your English Pronunciation [Free Guide]
How To Effectively Reduce Your Accent in English!

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Источник

We all know that English is not an easy language to learn. It can even prove to be difficult and confusing for students who have a background in two or more languages!

For many students, however, it is the pronunciation that causes most of the problems.

It is evident that there are some very common pronunciation issues that people face when learning English as a second language. This isn’t such a bad thing, as it means we know exactly which areas to target to make these difficulties easier to overcome.

One prominent obstacle can be silent letters.

How Many Silent Letters Are There in English?

Silent letters are ones that you don’t pronounce when saying a word. They are written down, but you don’t say them out loud. There are numerous words with silent letters in the English language.

Let’s first go over the letters that are rarely, if ever, silent. These are: F, Q, R, V, and Y. In British English there can be some silent R’s, but that’s a matter of dialect.

So, if there are five letters that are not silent, then we can say that there are 21 silent letters in English. Here they are in alphabetical order, and with some examples:

Words with Silent B

Rule 1: B is not pronounced after M at the end of a word.

limb
crumb
dumb
comb
bomb
thumb
climb
tomb
aplomb
climb
dumb
jamb
lamb
limb
numb
plumb
succumb
thumb
tomb
womb

Rule 2: B is usually not pronounced before T at the end of a root word.**

debt
doubt
debtor
doubtful
subtle
subtleness

**A root word is the original word in its root form without any prefixes or suffixes attached e.g. doubt is the root word in doubtful, and the ‘ful’ is a suffix. Subtle is the root word, and ‘ness’ is a suffix.

Words with Silent C

Rule 1: C is not pronounced in the combination SC.

muscle
scissors
ascent
miscellaneous
fascinate
scenario
abscess
conscience
conscious
crescent
descend
disciple
evanesce
fluorescent
obscene
resuscitate
scene

Exceptions: Sclera, asclepiad, sclerosis, muscovado, sceptic

Rule 2: C is usually redundant before the letters K or Q.

acquaintance
acknowledge
acquiesce
acquit

Words with Silent D

Rule 1: D is not pronounced in the following common words:

handkerchief
Wednesday
sandwich
handsome
grandson

Rule 2: D is also not pronounced in the combination DG.

pledge
bridge
edge
ledger
dodge
grudge
hedge

Words with Silent E

Rule: E is not pronounced at the end of words, but instead elongates the sound of the vowel before it.

hope
drive
gave
write
site
grave
bite
hide
debate
desire
excite
kite
love
make
name

Exceptions: Giraffe, brunette, cassette, gazelle (You may be able to spot a pattern in these words; they have similar combinations in the last syllable. This shows that the exceptions are generally words with unusual stress on the final syllable – but not always! One example would be the word ‘minute’ as in the time-measuring unit.)

Words with Silent G

Rule: G is not often not pronounced when it comes before N.

champagne
foreign
sign
feign
foreign
design
align
cognac
align
assign
benign
champagne
cologne
consign
gnarl
gnash
gnaw
gnome
gnomic
high
light
resign

Exceptions: Magnet, igneous, cognitive, signature

Words with Silent GH

Rule 1: GH is not pronounced when it comes after a vowel.

thought
drought
through
thorough
borough
daughter
light
might
sigh
right
fight
weigh
weight
Exceptions: Doghouse, foghorn, bighead (As you can see, the exceptions are generally compound words i.e. words that have been formed by combining two complete words)

Rule 2: GH is sometimes pronounced like F.

rough
tough
laugh
enough
cough
clough
draught
Exceptions: Examples from rule 1!

Words with Silent H

Rule 1: H is not pronounced when it comes after W (n.b. some speakers whisper the H before the W).

what
when
where
whether
why
white
while
weigh

Rule 2: H is not pronounced at the beginning of many words (remember to use the article “an” with unvoiced H).

hour
honest
honor
heir
ghost
psychology
schedule
scheme
school
vehicle
thigh

Exceptions: hill, history, height, happy, hereditary (Plus most other words beginning with H that are NOT of French origin – and remember to use the article “a” with voiced H)

Rule 3: H is often not pronounced when it comes after C, G or R.

choir
chorus
ghastly
ghoul
aghast
echo
rhinoceros
rhythm

Words with Silent K

Rule: K is not pronounced when it comes before N at the beginning of a word.

knife
knee
know
knock
knowledge
knead
knack
knight
knit
knob
knock
knot
knuckle

Words with Silent L

Rule: L is not pronounced after the vowels A, O and U.

calm
half
talk
walk
would
should
could
calf
salmon
yolk
chalk
folk
balm
almond
behalf
folk
palm
stalk

Exceptions: Halo, bulk, sulk, hold, sold, fold, mould

Words with Silent N

Rule: N is not pronounced when it comes after M at the end of a word.

autumn
hymn
column
solemn
dawn

Words with Silent P

Rule: P is not pronounced at the beginning of many words using the combinations PS, PT and PN.

Psychiatrist
pneumonia
pneumatic
psychotherapy
psychotic
psychologist
pseudonym
Pterodactyl
receipt
cupboard

Words with Silent PH

Rule: PH is sometimes pronounced like F.

telephone
paragraph
alphabet
epiphany
sophomore

Words with Silent S

Rule: S is not pronounced before L in the following words:

Island
isle
aisle
islet

Words with Silent T

Rule: T is not pronounced in these common words:

Castle
Christmas
fasten
listen
often
whistle
thistle
bustle
hasten
soften
rapport
gourmet
ballet
bristle

Words with Silent U

Rule: U is not pronounced when it comes after G and before a vowel.

guess
guidance
guitar
guest
guild
guard
baguette
biscuit
build
building
circuit
guide
guilty
rogue
silhouette

Words with Silent W

Rule 1: W is not pronounced at the beginning of a word when it is before the letter R.

wrap
write
wrong
wring
wreck
wrestle
wrack
wrist

Rule 2: W is not pronounced in the following words:

Who
whose
whom
whole
whoever
answer
sword
two

List of Words with Silent Letters

A: logically
B: climb, comb
C: acquire, muscle
D: bridge, edge
E: date, name
G: high, sign
H: heir, honest
I: business
J: hallelujah, marijuana
K: knife, know
L: calf, talk
M: mnemonic
N: damn, hymn
O: colonel
P: corps, pneumonia
S: debris, island
T: ballet, listen
U: guess, guilt
W: answer, two
X: faux pass
Z: rendezvous

What Are Silent Letters Called?

Silent letters are just called silent letters. In some slang terms, they are also called dummy letters. There is no linguistic or phonetic name for silent letters, except silent letters.

Rules of Silent Letters

This list contains most of the common silent letters and combinations that cause difficulties for English learners. Here are the rules to help you understand when to use some silent letters, but remember there are usually some exceptions!

(Please note that this is not a comprehensive list of all the rules around silent letters, only some of the most common ones that you may come across).

Check your Grammar ››

More for you:
Give 10 words in which ‘g’ is silent!
Why is K silent when it comes before the letter N?
The English Alphabet – ABC in English
6 Ways to Immediately Improve Your English Communication Skills

Words with Silent Letters at the Beginning

There are over 90 words in English that start with a silent letter. Here are some of them.

pseudoephedrine
ptosis
pterion
pterygium
psilophyte
gnomonist
gnomonic
gnomonics
gnotobiotic
gnosticism
gnu
wrench
wrested
writing
written
writ
wright
wrought
wroth
wrathful
wrangling
wrangler
wrangle
wretch
wreath
wretched
gnostic
wrestling
wrestle
wrest
writhe
wryneck
wraith
wry
psychrotrophic
psychrometer
wrist
honest
homage
knurl
heir
knur
psalm
pteranodon
wrath
write
wrap
who
wrinkle
wren
psychiatry
psychology
psychosis
psychic
pterodactyl
pneumonia
knick-knack
herb
honor
hour
gnomon
gnome
knight
knee
knob
gnaw
gnat
gnarly
czar
aisle
chthonic
mnemonic

Silent Letters for Grade 1

Start with the silent letter e, because it appears in easy words.

Example:

Cake, pie, skate, stove, plane, shoes, kite, lemon, cane.

Make an exercise where the students have to fill in the word under a picture:

C_k_ / P_ _ / S_at_ / Pl_n_ / S_o_ _ / K_t_ / L_mo_ / C_n_

Then you can ask them which letters they do not hear. You can then explain that those are silent letters, and one of them is the letter e. You can use various examples.

Silent Letters for Grade 2

Start with the letter h, and use harder examples.

Example:

Honest, hour, school, stomach, what, when, ache.

Make sure to use words that the students know, and then show them how the words have silent letters. H is a very common silent letter, so ask them to add more examples of words that have a silent h.

Echo, technology, where, when, chrome, character, anchor, ghost, etc.

Silent Letters for Grade 3

Use the letters t and u. These letters appear next to each other in the alphabet, and they can be silent in various places in a word.

Example:

Castle, butcher, match, often, rustle, watch, whistle, soften, scratch.

Ask your students to write down the words when you pronounce them, see if they wrote them with the letter t. From there you can move to the letter u.

Biscuit, guess, guitar, tongue, guard, guest, building.

See if the students have written them with the letter u. From there you can explain how various letters can be silent, and how they can appear in different places within a word.

Silent Letters for Kindergarten

The easiest silent letter is k, so start with those examples.

Example:

Knife, knee, know, knob, knock, knuckle, knight, knot, etc.

Tell your students that the words are written with a k at the start, but the letter is not pronounced. Use examples with k, and make sure the students pronounce the words correctly.

Silent Letters gn, kn, wr list

GN: gnaw, gnat, gnash, gnarl gnome, sign, reign, foreign, sovereign, design, campaign, align, assign
KN: knack, knee, kneel, knife, know, knight, knuckle, knit, knob, knot
WR: wrangle, wrap, wreath, wrench, wreck, wrestle, wriggle, wring, write, wrong

Silent Letters Before N

The two most common letters that are silent before the letter n are K and G.

Knack, gnaw, knee, gnash, knock, align, assign, knuckle, knob, design, gnome, knife, knowledge, campaign, etc.

Silent Letters Activity

Why are Silent Letters Used in English?

You may think that silent letters can’t be all that important if they’re not pronounced, but as a matter of fact, they make a HUGE difference to the meaning of words, and sometimes, they even have the power to change their pronunciation!

🥁 When Were Silent Letters Invented?

If you look into the history of this language, you will see that about 90% of English used to be phonemic (this means that the words sounded the same as they looked). There were hardly any silent letters at all, but this soon began to change around the 15^th century.

Many words from other languages were introduced into English, to make it look more Latin or French. This caused problems as the new words didn’t follow the same rules of grammar as English! That is why, even though the spelling was already fixed for those words, some letters became silent.

🥁 Why do Silent Letters Exist?

The Latin alphabet was also adapted into the English language, and so there are only 26 letters to represent approximately 41 different significant sounds. For this reason, an attempt to use combinations of letters to represent sounds was introduced, thus ensuring that all the major sounds in English were covered.

This does make silent letters quite interesting, as you can see the history of each word in the way it is spelt, and track its origins!

As time passed, pronunciation continued to change, but the old spelling was preserved by the printing press, which came to England around the Middle English period. That’s why there are words that end in a silent ‘e’, or have other silent letters in the middle, such as ‘fright’.

Now, modern day English is only 40% phonemic!

WRITE
KNEE
KNOCK
LAMB
WRIST
HALF
PLUMBER
PSYCHOLOGY
AISLE
DAUGHTER

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Why is ‘t’ silent in these words Watch, Listen, Butcher …

Now I bet you’re thinking – “I hate spelling! This will make learning English even harder!” I can assure you; it’s not that bad, really.

As I mentioned before, around 60% of English words contain silent letters, so it is important to know how to spot them, when they can be pronounced and when they cannot.

It could also cause problems if you are trying to find a word in a dictionary by the ‘sound’ of it, and not realizing that it has a silent letter in it!

Let’s use the word ‘knowledge’ as an example, if you didn’t know how to spell this word, you might look under the letter ‘N’ in a dictionary!

What are the Rules for Silent Letters in English?

Don’t worry too much, there is (sort of) a ‘solution’ ….there are some rules that explain which letters are supposed to be silent, before and after certain letters (the only ‘minor’ issue about this is that, like all English rules – there are usually some exceptions!).

Once you start practising these rules and use any new vocabulary that you learn, it will become easier to remember which letters are silent in some words, and in which words they are supposed to be pronounced.

Silent letters are not there to confuse you, even though you may think so! Identifying and understanding them will undoubtedly improve your spelling, speaking and writing skills, as well as boost your confidence!

🥁 Helpful Uses of Silent Letters

They can be beneficial for readers, when having to distinguish between homophones (these are words that have the same sound, but different definitions and different spelling). Some examples of homophones are

know/no, knot/not, their/there/they’re, band, banned and to/too/two.

Silent letters can change the pronunciation of words, even though they are silent! For example,

sin/sign, grim/grime, cop/cope, and rat/rate.

So it is very beneficial to know where they are and when they are used, as they’ll help you to work out the meaning of the word!

The letter ‘H’, when pronounced alone, should sound like ‘aitch’, but when used at the start of most words beginning with H, it uses its pronounced sound (e.g. hotel, house, ham), BUT it is usually silent in words that are of French origin such as

hour, honest, heir, and honour.

If Etymology (the origin of words) interests you, then you’ll find learning silent letters very fascinating, as they provide so much information about the history of words!

The magic ‘e’ is another one of course! If you add ‘e’ at the end of words with short vowel sounds, it elongates the sound of the vowel, some examples would be:

tap/tape, mat/mate, rid/ride, con/cone and fin/fine.

Check your Grammar ››

More for you:
Hilarious Homophones. 50 Stupid Writing Mistakes to Avoid
Difference between Homonyms and Homographs

If you really want to improve your English and grow to love spelling, I would recommend you take an interest in the words you are learning. Try to understand the background of the words, think about how and why they’re spelt the way they are, and discover the logic behind them!

This is a great way of understanding, and in turn, remembering any new vocabulary that you learn, but it is especially helpful with silent letters.

🥁 How to Identify Silent Letters in English?

Identifying silent letters in English is not something you can do without practice. There are two ways to identify them. One is by listening to the pronunciation, and the other is finding them directly in a written text.

In order to know which letters are silent you have to know how to pronounce them. Identifying silent letters is most commonly done by listening, and then writing. When you know how the word is spoken you will know which letters are silent.

When you’ve been practicing for a while and know how to pronounce words with silent letters, you’ll be able to recognize them in a text immediately. Without knowing the pronunciation beforehand it may be hard to recognize the silent letters.

So, to be able to identify silent letters you need to practice you pronunciation. You have to be able to pronounce the words correctly. Once you’ve practiced enough you’ll be able to identify all the silent letters in written form too.

🥁 How to Teach Silent Letters?

Silent letters are very frequent in English, and there are numerous exercises and ways to teach them. Because silent letters are different and so many words have them it’s not easy to teach silent letters. You can’t just learn them by heart, so you have to develop a vocabulary and understanding.

One of the best ways to start teaching silent letters is to first make sure your students understand what they are. You need to explain that not all letters are pronounced when saying a word, and that they are only for written spelling. When your students know that you can start using various exercises to teach them how to identify silent letters.

A good exercise to start with is a written test where students have to determine which letters are silent. This is a good way for them to get used to seeing more letters in words than they have to pronounce. This is also a good way to teach silent letter because the students won’t have to pronounce the words first, which means they don’t have to be shy about speaking the words wrong.

Example:

Determine which letters are silent in the following words:
ascent / ledger / cupboard / knuckle / autumn / sword / guess / listen / chaos / would

When your students are finished determining the letters you can complete the exercise by checking their results. This is a great opportunity to continue with another important step in teaching silent letters. After the students have worked with written words, it’s time for them to pronounce them.

Pronunciation is the most important lesson when teaching silent letters. Before you can start practicing that it is important to prepare students. Let your students know that there are many words with silent letters, and that they have to practice in order to learn how to pronounce them.

It is often best to start by pronouncing the words you used in written exercises. Make sure the teacher pronounces the words first, and then the students follow. Teaching silent letters takes time, and practice, so give your students good examples they can follow.

Another way to continue teaching silent letters is to choose one letter and start from there. Instead of having multiple examples, you can just have one letter in different words. That way your students can practice, and expand later on.

Example:

knack, knave, kneel, knead, knee, knew, knickers, knife, knight, knit, knob, knock, knoll, knot, know, knowledge, knuckle

K is one of the most famous silent letters in English, and a lot of students know it. This is a good starting point. From here you can continue to work with other letters.

Since k is silent in front of the letter n, you can choose other examples that are the same. This way students will be able to identify the silent letter in front of n more often. G is another letter that is silent in front of n.

Example:

align, assign, resign, design, benign, sign, gnaw, gnome, foreign, etc.

When teaching silent letters in English always use similar examples so that your students can remember them easier. Make sure to pronounce all the words, and practice finding them in writing and saying them out loud. Teaching silent letters in English works best when combining written and spoken exercises.

🥁 Silent Letters Exercise:

See if you can figure out how many words that contain silent letters there are in this paragraph (Please note – not all the words have been used as examples in this blog, that would be too easy..!):

It is undoubtedly a tough skill to acquire, you may even consider condemning this language, with all its oddities and words that are spelt the same but do not rhyme! I hope whoever attempts to decipher and recognise silent letters is successful and manages to train their tongue to listen to the sounds, ignore the unspoken ghosts and soften their speech. Also, that they are able to talk with folk in any matter, may it be business or pleasure, with dialogue as that of a native speaker. So grab your friend’s wrist and practise until your brain feels numb! If you try hard enough, fluent you will become!

How to Explain Silent Letters to a Child?

To explain silent letter to a child you have to be patient. A child does not easily work with something as complex as silent letters. To children, a language that has extra letters you don’t read may seem stupid.

The best way to explain silent letters to a child is through examples. Depending on the child’s age and skill level they can already know something about the topic. If they don’t know a thng about silent letters, then start with some basic examples like:

knee, knife, gnome, autumn, etc.

These are very famous examples, so first tell the child the word, and then show it written down. They should recognize that there are extra letters in written form. Then you can start explaining that those are silent letters.

Be patient and always make sure to pronounce the words correctly. Let the child repeat after you. Once they know how to correctly pronounce the word you can start explaining what silent letters are, and why they exist.

One way to bring this topic closer to a child is by comparing silent letters to similar silent letters in the child’s native language. If your native language also has silent letters, tell the child that English does too. There are many languages where the pronunciation is not the same as the written word.

If the child’s native language has no silent letter then explain why the English language does. Start by telling the child that English is not the only language that has silent letters. French is another example.

To explain silent letters to a child make sure they understand that silent letters are not unnecessary. Because English was created from other languages, and has their influence, there are multiple letters in various words to show you how they are pronounced.

The child has to understand that these letters are necessary. They have to practice proper pronunciation, and after a while the silent letters won’t seem stupid to them anymore.

Where Do Silent Letters Come From?

Silent letters come from languages that have used them over the course of history. Some languages have had silent letters since their beginning, and in others silent letters evolved over the course of history. Silent letters don’t come from one singular source.

There are multiple sources where silent letters come from. Two languages that are famous for having silent letters are French and Italian. In those languages, the silent letters denote the proper pronunciation.

In other languages, silent letters come from umlauts, which are two letters that fuse into one. In Germanic and Scandinavian languages letters like ae, sch, oe, ue, and others become ä, ö ü, or ß. These are the ancestors of silent letters.

So, silent letters come from different languages all across the world. In English the exist because other languages had a great deal of influence over English.

When were Silent Letters Invented?

🥁 Examples of the Origins of Words

The origin of silent ‘k’ and ‘g’ in words such as gnaw, gnat, knee and knife:

These are examples of Viking words with letters that used to be pronounced, so they are still spelt the same way, but the pronunciation has changed. Although these letters are silent, they remain so that you can see their history and origin. In Sweden, they still pronounce the ‘k’ in their word for knife (kneefe)!

Why the word island has a silent ‘s’ in it:

Apparently the word ‘island’ comes from Middle English, and was always pronounced the way it is today. It used to be spelt in a different way, without a silent letter, but the spelling was modified during the 15^th century because of the word ‘isle’ that was borrowed from the French.

The origins of the words with silent ‘gh’ like daughter, and why the ‘gh’ in enough and rough is pronounced with a /f/ sound:

This is one of the most difficult silent letters, as it is pronounced in more ways than one! This pattern is from the Anglo Saxons, other examples are dough, bright, fight and fright.

The ‘gh’ sound used to be spelt with just the letter ‘h’, and was pronounced like the Scottish word ‘loch’ – a hard sound to pronounce! When the French invaded, they modified the spelling of these words and added the ‘g’ to make ‘gh’. This combination then either became silent or pronounced with the /f/ sound.

Here is a word that might confuse you – Hiccough is pronounced ‘hiccup’! The earliest English form of this word (in 1544) evolved into what it is in modern English today, in this order: hicket, hickot, hickock, hickop, hiccup and finally hiccough.

The last word in the series (hiccough) was apparently invented because someone thought that there should be a link between ‘cough’ and ‘hiccup’! Personally, I can’t see why!

More for you:
A BIG List of Prefixes and Suffixes and Their Meanings
When do we use the suffixes -er and -or?

How Many Languages Have Silent Letters?

There are many languages across the world that have silent letters. Many of these languages have evolved and have been influenced by history. Most languages that have silent letters use the Latin Script.

Danish, Faroese, German, French, Indonesian, Irish (Gaelic), Norwegian, Italian, Spanish, and Turkish

Some languages that don’t use the Latin Script also have silent letters. These are Chinese (Mandarin and Cantonese), Japanese, and Russian.

🥁 Who Invented Silent Letters?

Silent letters were not invented. One person, or more people, or even a while country, did not invent silent letters. The history and evolution of language caused silent letters to be a part of the English language.

Источник

This material contains a list of words with mute consonant letters, with phonetic transcription and Russian translation. Examples of words with the mute final vowel E are also included in the list.

Немые буквы

Данный материал содержит список слов с немыми согласными буквами, с фонетической транскрипцией и русским переводом. Примеры слов с немой конечной гласной E также включены в список.

Transcription symbols in this material

[p], [b], [t], [d], [k], [g], [f], [v], [s], [z], [h], [m], [n], [l], [r], [w];

[θ], [ð], [sh], [zh], [ch], [j], [ŋ];

[i:], [i], [e], [æ], [a:], [o:], [o], [u:], [yu:], [u], [ʌ], [ə], [ər]; [ei], [ai], [au], [ou];

[æ] as in CAT, MAN; [a:] as in CAR, HARD, CALM;

[i:] as in SEE, READ, CHIEF; [i] as in SIT, IN, MYSTERY;

[ai] as in LIFE, ICE, MY, BUY; [au] as in NOW, OUT;

[e] as in GET, TEN; [ei] as in LATE, RAIN, DAY, EIGHT;

[o] as in LOT, ROB; [o:] as in FORM, ALL, CAUSE, LAW, BOUGHT;

[oi] as in TOY, BOIL; [ou] as in NO, ROAD, LOW;

[u:] as in COOL, GROUP, BLUE; [yu:] as in USE, CUTE, FEW;

[u] as in LOOK, PUT, COULD;

[ʌ] as in BUT, FUN, SON, SOME; [ə] as in AWAY, LESSON;

[ər] as in SIR, BURN, WORD, MISTER;

[ð] as in THIS, THERE; [θ] as in THICK, THANK;

[sh] as in SHE, FISH, NATION; [zh] as in USUAL, MEASURE, MIRAGE;

[j] as in JOKE, GIN, PAGE; [ch] as in CHEESE, RICH, PICTURE;

[n] as in NO, PIN, RUN; [ŋ] as in SONG, KING, BANK; [y] as in YES, YARD.

Transcription is given according to American pronunciation. (Транскрипция даётся согласно американскому произношению.)

The stress mark [‘] before a syllable indicates the syllable with primary stress; [,] indicates secondary stress. (Знак ударения [‘] перед слогом указывает слог с главным ударением; [,] указывает второстепенное ударение.)

Silent B

lamb [læm] (ягнёнок); lambs [læmz] (ягнята);

jamb [jæm] (косяк двери; боковая подпорка);

climb [klaim] (взбираться); climbed [claimd] (взобрался);

limb [lim] (конечность); limbs [limz] (конечности);

bomb [bom] (бомба); bombs [bomz] (бомбы); bomber [‘bomər] (бомбардировщик);

comb [koum] (расчёска; причесать); combed [koumd] (причесал);

tomb [tu:m] (надгробие, гробница); tombstone [‘tu:mstoun] (надгробная плита);

womb [wu:m] (анатом.: матка);

crumb [krʌm] (крошка); But: crumble [‘krʌmbəl], [‘krʌmbl] (крошиться);

dumb [dʌm] (немой); dumbness [‘dʌmnis] (немота); dumbbell [‘dʌmbel] (гантель, гиря); dumbhead [‘dʌmhed] (сленг: тупица);

numb [nʌm] (онемевший); numbness [‘nʌmnis] (онемение);

plumb [plʌm] (отвес);

plumber [‘plʌmər] (слесарь-сантехник); plumbing [‘plʌmiŋ] (водопроводная система);

succumb [sə’kʌm] (не устоять, уступить);

thumb [θʌm] (большой палец руки); thumbnail [‘θʌmneil] (ноготь большого пальца; уменьшенное изображение);

debt [det] (долг); debtor [‘detər] (должник);

doubt [daut] (сомнение); doubting [‘dautiŋ] (сомневающийся);

subtle [‘sʌtl], [‘sʌtəl] (тонкий, неявный); subtlety [‘sʌtlti], [‘sʌtəlti] (тонкость); subtly [‘sʌtli] (тонко).

Silent C

Connecticut [kə’netikət] (Коннектикут);

indict [in’dait] (предъявлять обвинение в суде); indictment [in’daitmənt] (обвинительный акт);

victuals [‘vitlz] (провиант, провизия, продовольствие); to victual [‘vitl] (снабжать провиантом);

corpuscle [‘ko:rpəsəl], [‘ko:rpʌsl] (частица); But: corpuscular [ko:r’pʌskyulər] (корпускулярный);

muscle [‘mʌsəl], [‘mʌsl] (мускул, мышца); But: muscular [‘mʌskyələr], [‘mʌskyulər] (мускулистый).

Note: The combination SC represents the sound [s] before the vowels E, I, Y and the sound [sk] before the vowels A, O, U and before consonants. Compare: scene [si:n] – score [sko:r]. See Spelling Patterns for Consonants (4. LETTER C: sounds [s], [k]) in the section Writing.

Примечание: Сочетание SC передает звук [s] перед гласными E, I, Y и звук [sk] перед гласными A, O, U и перед согласными. Сравните: scene [si:n] – score [sko:r]. См. Spelling Patterns for Consonants (4. LETTER C: sounds [s], [k]) в разделе Writing.

Silent CH

yacht [yot] (яхта); yachtsman [‘yotsmən] (яхтсмен);

yachting [‘yotiŋ] (плавание на яхте; яхтенный спорт; парусный спорт).

Silent D

handkerchief [‘hæŋkərchi:f] (носовой платок);

handsome [‘hænsəm] (красивый);

Wednesday [‘wenzdei] (среда).

Silent E

Note: The mute vowel E at the end of the syllable makes this syllable open. Final E is not pronounced, except in some words of foreign origin: apostrophe [ə’postrəfi], catastrophe [kə’tæstrəfi], cafe [kæ’fei], psyche [‘saiki].

Примечание: Немая гласная E в конце слога делает этот слог открытым. Конечная E не произносится, кроме как в некоторых словах иностранного происхождения: apostrophe [ə’postrəfi] (апостроф), catastrophe [kə’tæstrəfi] (катастрофа), cafe [kæ’fei] (кафе), psyche [‘saiki] (душа).

late [leit] (поздний); lately [‘leitli] (за последнее время);

race [reis] (гонка), racehorse [‘reis ho:rs] (скаковая лошадь);

save [seiv] (спасать); saved [seivd] (спас);

life [laif] (жизнь); lifeless [‘laiflis] (безжизненный);

drive [draiv] (вести машину); driveway [‘draivwei] (подъездная дорога к дому);

note [nout] (отмечать; заметка); notebook [‘noutbuk] (тетрадь);

more [mo:r] (больше); care [keər] (заботиться); hire [‘haiər] (нанимать);

use [yu:s] (польза); useful [‘yu:sfəl] (полезный);

blue [blu:] (синий); blueprint [‘blu:print] (схема);

clue [klu:] (подсказка, ключ);

lie [lai] (лежать; лгать); tie [tai] (связывать);

dye [dai] (краситель; окрашивать); toe [tou] (палец ноги).

Silent G

Silent G in words like «gnome»

gnash [næsh] (скрежетать зубами);

gnat [næt] (комар, мошка);

gnaw [no:] (грызть); gnawing [‘no:iŋ] (грызущий; терзающий, ноющий);

gnome [noum] (гном);

gnostic [‘nostik] (относящийся к знанию; гностический); gnosis [‘nousis] (гностицизм);

But: agnostic [æg’nostik] (агностик; агностический); agnosticism [æg’nostisizm] (агностицизм);

gnu [nu:] (антилопа гну).

Silent G in words like «foreign»

campaign [cæm’pein] (кампания);

champagne [shæm’pein] (шампанское);

foreign [‘fo:rin], [‘forin] (иностранный); foreigner [‘fo:rinər], [‘forinər] (иностранец);

feign [fein] (притворяться, симулировать);

reign [rein] (царствование; царствовать);

sovereign [‘sovrin] (верховный правитель; суверенный);

sign [sain] (знак); But: signature [‘signəchər] (подпись);

assign [ə’sain] (назначать); assignment [ə’sainmənt] (назначение; задание); But: assignation [,æsig’neishən] (назначение; условленная встреча);

design [di’zain] (замысел; дизайн); But: designation [,dezig’neishən] (обозначение);

resign [ri’zain] (уходить в отставку); But: resignation [,rezig’neishən] (отставка);

benign [bi’nain] (благоприятный; доброкачественный);

malign [mə’lain] (пагубный); But: malignant [mə’lignənt] (злокачественный);

diaphragm [‘daiəfræm] (диафрагма);

phlegm [flem] (слизь, флегма); But: phlegmatic [fleg’mætik] (флегматичный);

paradigm [‘pærədaim] (парадигма).

Silent GH

Silent GH at the end of words

high [hai] (высокий);

sigh [sai] (вздыхать);

thigh [θai] (бедро);

weigh [wei] (весить; взвешивать);

neighbor (AmE), neighbour (BrE) [‘neibər] (сосед);

dough [dou] (тесто);

though [ðou] (хотя; тем не менее);

through [θru:] (сквозь, через);

thorough [‘θʌrou], [‘θʌrə] (тщательный); thoroughly [‘θʌrəli] (тщательно);

plough [plau] (плуг; пахать);

bough [bau] (сук, ветвь);

slough [slau] (болото, трясина, топь);

But: cough [ko:f], [kof] (кашель; кашлять); laugh [læf] (смеяться); enough [i’nʌf] (достаточно); rough [rʌf] (грубый); tough [tʌf] (жесткий); slough [slʌf] (сброшенная кожа змеи; струп).

Silent GH in words like «bought, caught»

bought [bo:t] (купил – прошедшее время от buy);

brought [bro:t] (принёс – прош. вр. от bring);

fought [fo:t] (сражался, воевал – прош. вр. от fight);

ought to [‘o:tə] (следовало бы);

sought [so:t] (искал; пытался найти – прош. вр. от seek);

thought [θo:t] (думал – прош. вр. от think);

drought [draut] (засуха);

caught [ko:t] (поймал – прош. вр. от catch);

taught [to:t] (научил – прош. вр. от teach);

distraught [di’stro:t] (в смятении; обезумевший);

But: draught [dræft], [dra:ft] (тяга; нацеживание; сквозняк); Note: AmE draft (сквозняк).

Note: BrE draughts [dra:fts] (игра в шашки); AmE checkers (игра в шашки).

haughty [‘ho:ti] (высокомерный; заносчивый);

daughter [‘do:tər] (дочь);

slaughter [‘slo:tər] (бойня, резня; забой скота);

But: laughter [‘læftər], [‘la:ftər] (смех).

Silent GH in words like «bright, eight»

bright [brait] (яркий; сообразительный);

fight [fait] (сражаться, воевать; бой, борьба; ссора);

flight [flait] (полет);

fright [frait] (испуг);

knight [nait] (рыцарь);

light [lait] (свет);

might [mait] (мощь; мог бы);

night [nait] (ночь);

right [rait] (право; правильный);

sight [sait] (зрение; вид);

tight [tait] (тугой; плотный; тесный);

straight [streit] (прямой);

eight [eit] (восемь);

freight [freit] (грузовая перевозка; груз; фрахт);

weight [weit] (вес);

height [hait] (рост, высота).

Silent H

Silent H in words like «hour, vehicle»

hour [‘auər] (час);

honor, honour [‘onər] (честь); honest [‘onist] (честный);

heir [eər] (наследник); But: inherit [in’herit] (наследовать); inheritance [in’heritəns] (наследство);

herb [hərb], [ərb] (трава, травяное растение, особенно лекарственное или ароматическое); herbal [‘hərbəl], [‘ərbəl] (травяной);

forehead [‘fo:rid], [‘fo:rhed], [‘forid] (лоб);

shepherd [‘shepərd] (пастух);

vehicle [‘vi:ikəl], [‘vi:ikl] (транспортное средство);

vehement [‘vi:əmənt] (неистовый); vehemence [‘vi:əməns] (неистовство);

John [jon]; Hannah [‘hænə]; Zachariah [,zækə’raiə];

messiah [mi’saiə] (мессия, спаситель).

Silent H in words like «ghost, rhyme»

ghost [goust] (призрак);

ghastly [‘gæstly], [‘ga:stly] (наводящий ужас);

Ghana [‘ga:nə] (Гана);

ghetto [‘getou] (гетто);

yogurt, yoghurt, yoghourt [‘yougərt] (йогурт);

rhapsody [‘ræpsədi] (рапсодия);

rhetoric [‘retərik] (риторика); rhetorical [ri’to:rikəl] (риторический);

rheumatism [‘ru:mətizm], [‘ru:mətizəm] (ревматизм); rheumatic [ru:’mætic] (ревматический);

Rhine [rain] (Рейн);

rhombus [‘rombəs] (ромб);

rhyme [raim] (рифма, стих; рифмовать);

rhythm [‘riðəm], [‘riðm] (ритм); rhythmical [‘riðmikəl] (ритмичный);

diarrhea, diarrhoea [daiə’ri:ə] (диарея, понос).

Silent H in words like «whale, when, white»

whale [weil] (кит);

what [wot] (что); why [wai] (почему); when [wen] (когда); where [weər] (где); which [wich] (который); whether [‘weðər] (ли);

But: who [hu:] (кто); whom [hu:m] (кого); whose [hu:z] (чей);

wheat [wi:t] (пшеница);

wheel [wi:l] (колесо);

whether [‘weðər] (ли);

while [wail] (в то время как);

white [wait] (белый);

whine [wain] (жалобный вой; скулить, хныкать);

whip [wip] (хлыст; хлестать);

whisper [‘wispər] (шепот; шептать);

whiskers [‘wiskərz] (усы);

whiskey, whisky [‘wiski] (виски);

whistle [‘wisəl], [‘wisl] (свисток; свистеть);

whirl [wərl] (вертеться, кружиться).

Note: In American English, «wh» in words like «whale, when, white» is pronounced [hw] or [w].

Примечание: В американском английском «wh» в словах типа «whale, when, white» произносится [hw] или [w].

Silent H in words like «exhaust, exhibit»

exhaust [ig’zo:st] (выхлоп; истощать);

exhibit [ig’zibit] (экспонат; выставлять, показывать); exhibition [eksi’bishən] (выставка);

exhilarate [ig’ziləreit] (оживлять, возбуждать);

exhort [ig’zo:rt] (побуждать; увещевать);

But: exhale [eks’heil], [ig’zeil] (выдыхать); exhume [eks’hyu:m], [ig’zu:m] (эксгумировать); exhumation [,eks hyu:’meishən] (эксгумация).

Silent K

know [nou] (знать);

knit [nit] (вязать);

knee [ni:] (колено); kneel [ni:l] (встать на колени);

knife [naif] (нож); knives [naivz] (ножи);

knight [nait] (рыцарь);

knock [nok] (стучать);

knob [nob] (шишка, бугор; шарообразная ручка двери);

knot [not] (узел);

knuckle [‘nʌkəl], [‘nʌkl] (сустав пальца);

knack [næk] (сноровка, умение);

knap [næp] (удар; дробить).

Silent L

Silent L in words like «calm, half»

calm [ka:m] (спокойный);

balm [ba:m] (бальзам);

palm [pa:m] (ладонь; пальма);

salmon [‘sæmən] (лосось);

almond [‘a:mənd], [‘æmənd] (миндаль);

alms [a:mz] (милостыня, подаяние);

psalm [sa:m] (псалм);

qualm [kwa:m], [kwo:m] (приступ сомнения, неуверенности, тревоги; приступ тошноты);

calf [kæf], [ka:f] (теленок; икра ноги); calves [kævz], [ka:vz] (телята; икры ног);

half [hæf], [ha:f] (половина); halves [hævz], [ha:vz] (половины); to halve [hæv], [ha:v] (делить пополам);

salve [sæv], [sa:v] (целебная мазь); But: salvage [‘sælvij] (спасение); salvation [sæl’veishən] (спасение).

Silent L in words like «talk, folk»

talk [to:k] (разговаривать);

walk [wo:k] (идти пешком; гулять);

stalk [sto:k] (стебель; выслеживать);

chalk [cho:k] (мел);

balk [bo:k] (препятствовать); But: Balkan [‘bo:lkən] (Балканский); bulk [bʌlk] (объём, масса; большая часть чего-то);

falcon [‘fo:lkən], [‘fælkən], [‘fo:kən] (сокол);

folk [fouk] (народный);

yolk [youk] (желток);

could [kud] (мог, мог бы); should [shud] (следовало бы); would [wud] (хотел бы);

Lincoln [‘liŋkən] (Линкольн);

solder [‘sodər], [‘soldər], [‘souldər] (припой; паять); But: soldier [‘souljər] (солдат); sold [sould] (продал).

Silent M

mnemonic [ni’monik], [ni:’monik] (мнемонический);

mnemonics [ni’moniks], [ni:’moniks] (мнемоника);

mnemotechnics [,ni:mou’tekniks] (мнемотехника).

Silent N

autumn [‘o:təm] (осень); But: autumnal [o:’tʌmnəl] (происходящий осенью; осенний);

column [‘koləm] (колонна; столб(ик); колонка); columnist [‘koləmnist], [‘koləmist] (журналист-обозреватель); But: columnar [kə’lʌmnər] (в виде колонны);

hymn [him] (гимн); hymns [himz] (гимны); But: hymnist [‘himnist] (сочинитель гимнов);

solemn [‘soləm] (торжественный); solemnly [‘soləmli] (торжественно); But: solemnity [sə’lemniti] (торжественность);

condemn [kən’dem] (осуждать, приговаривать); condemned [kən’demd] (осудил; осуждённый, приговорённый); But: condemnation [kondem’neishən] (осуждение);

damn [dæm] (проклятие; проклинать); damned [dæmd] (проклял; проклятый, ужасный); But: damnation [dæm’neishən] (проклятие, осуждение).

Silent P

pneumonia [nu’mouniə], [nyu:’mouniə] (пневмония);

pneumatic [nu’mætik], [nyu:’mætik] (пневматический);

psalm [sa:m] (псалм); psalms [sa:mz] (псалмы); psalmist [sa:mist] (сочинитель псалмов);

psychology [sai’koləgi] (психология); psychologist [sai’koləgist] (психолог);

psyche [‘saiki] (душа); psychic [‘saikik] (относящийся к душе, психике; обладающий телепатией);

psychopath [‘saikoupæθ] (психопат); psycho [‘saikou] (сленг: псих, психопат);

psychiatry [sai’kaiətri] (психиатрия); psychiatrist [sai’kaiətrist] (психиатр);

pseudonym [‘su:dənim], [‘syu:dənim] (псевдоним); pseudo [‘su:dou], [‘syu:dou] (ложный, фальшивый);

pterodactyl [,terə’dæktil] (птеродактиль); pterosaur [‘terəso:r] (птерозавр);

Ptolemy [‘toləmi] (Птолемей);

corps [ko:r] (корпус, организация); мн. число: corps [ko:rz] (корпусы, организации);

But: corpse [ko:rps] (труп); corpus [‘ko:rpəs] (свод законов; собрание сочинений; тело).

coup [ku:] (мастерский ход, удар; успешный манёвр);

coup d’etat [‘ku: dei ‘ta:] (государственный переворот);

But: coupe [ku:p], [ku:’pei] (автомобиль с кузовом купе);

cupboard [‘kʌbərd] (буфет, сервант);

raspberry [‘ræzberi], [‘ra:zbəri] (малина);

sapphire [‘sæfaiər] (сапфир);

receipt [ri’si:t] (квитанция).

Silent S

aisle [ail] (проход между рядами в театре, самолёте, магазине); aisles [ailz] (проходы между рядами);

island [‘ailənd] (остров); islands [‘ailəndz] (острова);

isle [ail] (остров); isles [ailz] (острова);

viscount [‘vaikaunt] (виконт); viscountess [‘vaikauntess] (виконтесса);

corps [ko:r] (корпус, организация); мн. число: corps [ko:rz] (корпусы, организации);

Note: The combination SC: see note for Silent C. (Примечание: Сочетание SC: см. примечание к Silent C.)

Silent T

Silent T in words like «listen, castle»

listen [‘lisən] (слушать);

glisten [‘glisən] (сверкать);

fasten [‘fæsən], [‘fa:sn] (прикреплять, пристегивать); fastener [‘fæsənər], [‘fa:sənər] (застежка; крепление); But: fast [fæst] (быстрый; крепкий);

hasten [‘heisən] (спешить, торопить); But: haste [heist] (спешка);

often [‘ofən] (часто);

soften [‘sofən] (смягчать); But: soft [soft] (мягкий);

moisten [‘moisən] (увлажнять); But: moist [moist] (влажный); moisture [‘moischər] (влага, влажность); moisturizer [‘moischəraizər] (увлажнитель);

christen [‘krisən] (крестить, давать имя); Christmas [‘krisməs] (Рождество); But: Christ [kraist] (Христос); Christian [‘krischən] (христианский);

apostle [ə’posəl], [ə’posl] (апостол);

castle [‘kæsəl], [‘ka:sl] (замок, дворец);

bustle [‘bʌsəl], [‘bʌsl] (суматоха; шумно, энергично действовать);

hustle [‘hʌsəl], [‘hʌsl] (толкотня, суета; толкаться);

rustle [‘rʌsəl], [‘rʌsl] (шелест; шелестеть);

nestle [‘nesəl], [‘nesl] (уютно примоститься, угнездиться; прильнуть); nestling [‘nesliŋ], [‘nestliŋ] (птенчик, неоперившийся птенец);

bristle [‘brisəl], [‘brisl] (щетина);

whistle [‘wisəl], [‘wisl] (свисток; свистеть); whistling [‘wisliŋ] (свист; свистящий);

wrestle [‘resəl], [‘resl] (борьба; бороться); wrestler [‘reslər] (борец); wrestling [‘resliŋ] (спорт: борьба);

mistletoe [‘misəltou], [‘misltou] (омела белая);

chestnut [‘chesnʌt], [‘chesnət] (каштан);

mortgage [‘morgij] (заклад; залог; закладная; ипотека);

Silent T in words like «beret»

ballet [bæ’lei], [‘bælei] (балет); ballets [bæ’leiz], [‘bæleiz] (балеты);

beret [bə’rei], [‘berei] (берет); berets [bə’reiz], [‘bereiz] (береты);

bouquet [bou’kei], [bu:’kei] (букет цветов; букет, аромат вина);

buffet [bə’fei], [bu’fei] (буфет; шведский стол);

fillet, filet [fi’lei], [‘filei], [‘filit] (филе мяса или рыбы); мн. число: fillets, filets [fi’leiz];

gourmet [‘gurmei], [gur’mei] (гурман);

debut [dei’byu:], [di’byu:], [‘deibyu:], [‘debyu:] (дебют); But: debutant [‘debyuta:nt] (дебютант); debutante [‘debyuta:nt] (дебютантка);

depot [‘di:pou] (депо).

Silent W

who [hu:] (кто); whom [hu:m] (кого); whose [hu:z] (чей);

whole [houl] (целый);

wrack [ræk] (разрушение);

wrangle [‘ræŋgəl], [‘ræŋgl] (яростно спорить; пасти стадо (верхом); wrangler [‘ræŋglər] (спорщик, полемист; пастух, ковбой);

wrap [ræp] (обертка; заворачивать);

wrath [ræθ] (гнев, ярость);

wreck [rek] (крушение, катастрофа; терпеть крушение);

wrench [rench] (гаечный ключ; выкручивать);

wrestle [‘resəl], [‘resl] (бороться; борьба); wrestling [‘resliŋ] (спорт: борьба);

wretch [rech] (жалкий, негодный человек);

write [rait] (писать); written [‘ritn], [‘ritən] (письменный; написанный);

wrist [rist] (кисть руки);

wrinkle [‘riŋkəl], [‘riŋkl] (морщина; морщить);

wriggle [‘rigəl], [‘rigl] (извилина; извиваться);

wrong [ro:ŋ] (неправильный);

wry [rai] (перекошенный, искажённый);

sword [so:rd] (меч); But: swan [swon] (лебедь); swamp [swomp] (болото);

answer [‘ænsər] (ответ; ответить);

two [tu:] (два); But: twice [twais] (дважды); twenty [‘twenti] (двадцать); twins [twinz] (близнецы);

Greenwich [‘grinij], [‘grinich] Гринвич.

Источник

Сложности при изучении английского языка могут возникнуть не только с грамматикой или удивительными по своему дословному переводу идиомами и фразеологизмами, но и с пополнением словарного запаса. Основные трудности вызывает наличие в более чем половине английских слов Silent letters, то есть непроизносимых согласных и гласных звуков.

Чтобы избежать ошибок при заучивании или прочтении новых слов, нужно уделить особое внимание правилам произношения определенных буквосочетаний и их исключениям. Настройтесь на серьезную работу, так как в английском языке существует более тысячи способов письменно передать 44 звука – своего рода рекордные показатели.

Для чего нужны Silent letters

Важнейшими задачами, которые выполняют «немые» согласные, являются:

распознавание омофонов (слова, которые звучат одинаково, но имеют разное значение и написание), например:

rite [raɪt] (обряд) – write [raɪt] (писать) – right [raɪt] (правильный);

представление о происхождении и историческом значении слова. Основная причина несоответствия написания и произнесения слов — в большом количестве лексических единиц, заимствованных с других языков, а также постоянном развитии самого английского языка. Разбор данных аспектов может быть увлекательным способом запоминания новых слов:

pseudonym [‘su:dənim] – (от греч. «ложный» + «имя») — псевдоним

образование открытого слога для I типа чтения. Благодаря непроизносимой «e», которая следует за согласной, формируется «алфавитный» тип чтение, то есть гласная предыдущего слога произносится, как в алфавите:

cake [keɪk] — торт
bike [baɪk] — велосипед

Правила для Silent letters

Единого правила по определению присутствия «немых» букв в английском языке нет. Для сравнения, в русском, мы можем наблюдать непроизносимые согласные в таких словах, как сердце, звездный, грустный, праздник. Многие из них легко проверить на наличие этих букв подбором однокоренного слова: сердечный, звезда, грусть, остальные заучиваются, как словарные. Подобное правило применимо и к английскому языку, однако, к очень малому количеству слов, например:

muscle [mʌsl] (мускул) – muscular [ˈmʌskjʊlə] (мускулистый)
resign [riːˈzaɪn] (уходить в отставку) – resignation [rezɪgˈneɪʃn] (отставка)

Для всех остальных случаев потребуется запоминание ниже приведенных правил и буквосочетаний.

Silent B

Никогда не произносится в конце слова в сочетаниях MB и BT. В подобных словах «b» сохраняет свою беззвучность, даже если к основе прибавляются аффиксы или окончания (существуют исключения):

limb [lim] – конечность, limbed [limd] — имеющий конечности
tomb [tu:m] – могила, tombs [tu:ms] – могилы
doubt [daut] – сомнение, doubtable [‘dautəbl] — сомнительный
debt [det] – долг, debtor [deʹti:] – заимодавец, кредитор
crumb [krʌm] (крошка), хотя «крошиться» — crumble [‘krʌmbl]

Silent C

Не передает звучания в буквосочетании SC, если далее следуют гласные E, I, Y:

scenarist [‘si:nərist] – сценарист
science [‘saiəns] – наука
scythe [saɪð] – коса; косить

В конце существительных, пришедших из латинского языка, SC также произносится как [s], хотя при образовании из данных слов прилагательных, «немая C» обретает звучание:

arbuscle [‘ɑːbʌsl] – древовидный кустарник, НО arbuscular [ɑːˈbʌskjələ] — древовидный
corpuscle [‘kɔ:pʌsl] – частица, НО corpuscular [kɔ:’pʌskjulə] – корпускулярный; атомный
muscle [mʌsl] – мускул, НО muscular [ˈmʌskjulə] (мускулистый)

«С» также теряет свое произношение, если после нее стоит «Q»:

acquire [ə’kwaiə] – приобретать
acquit [ə’kwit] – оправдывать

И запомните слова, в которых без видимой причины «С» также не отображается в транскрипции:

Connecticut [kə’netikət] (Коннектикут);
indict [in’dait] — предъявлять обвинение в суде; indictment [in’daitmənt] — обвинительный акт;
victuals [‘vitlz] — продовольствие; to victual [‘vitl] — снабжать провиантом;

Silent D

Никогда не произносится самостоятельно в словах с сочетанием DJ и DG, в транскрипции [ʤ] – это единый звук:

lodger — [‘lɔʤə] — жилец, квартирант
bridge — [briʤ] — мост
adjoin — [ə’ʤɔin] — соединяться

Также не произносится в некоторых словах-исключениях:

handkerchief [‘hæŋkərchi:f] — носовой платок
handsome [‘hænsəm] — красивый
Wednesday [‘wenzdei] — среда

Silent E

Не считая иностранных слов, присутствующих в английском языке, «немая» E теряет свое звуковое значение в конце слова, чаще выполняя лишь функцию образования открытого типа чтения слога. Например:

mate [meit] – товарищ
plate [pleit] – тарелка
kite [kait] – бумажный змей

Silent G

В словах, начинающихся с GN, буквосочетание всегда теряет звук «g»:

gnawer [‘nɔ:ə] -грызун
gnostic [‘nɔstik] – познавательный, НО agnostic [æg’nostik] (агностик)
gnu [nu:] – гну (антилопа)

В словах, оканчивающихся на GN и GM, мы также не услышим «g», но будьте внимательными, некоторые производные от данных слов имеют иное произношение:

reign [rein] – царствование
foreign [‘forin] – иностранный; foreigner [‘forinər] – иностранец
assign [ə’sain] — назначать; assignment [ə’sainmənt] — назначение; задание, НО assignation [,æsig’neiʃən] назначение; условленная встреча
malign [mə’lain] -злобный, НО malignant [mə’lignənt] – зловредный
phlegm [flem] – флегма; слизь, НО phlegmatic [fleg’mætik] – вялый, флегматичный

Silent H

Существует множество лексических единиц, содержащих Silent H в разных частях слова. Однако, вывести единое правило, согласно которому можно было бы определить, в каких случаях «H» становится непроизносимой, вряд ли выйдет, так как каждое из условий имеет большое количество исключений.

honor [ˈɒnə] — честь, почет
exhibition [eksi’biʃən] — выставка
shepherd [‘shepərd] – пастух
ghost [goust] – призрак
rhyme [raim] – рифма
what [wot] – что

Поэтому при запоминании слов с участием этой буквы, советуем дополнительно проверять транскрипцию по словарям.

Silent K

Никогда не произносится в начале слова в сочетании KN:

know [nou] — знать
knit [nit] – вязать
knee [ni:] – колено

Silent L

Касательно отсутствия звука «l» в транскрипции некоторых слов, единого правила тоже нет. Рекомендуем проверять его присутствие в словах, где «l» соседствует с M, K и F, так как часто именно рядом с ними буква теряет звучание:

palm [pa:m] — ладонь
walk [wo:k] – пешая прогулка
half [ha:f] – половина
salmon [‘sæmən] — лосось

Модальные глаголы could [kud] (мог, мог бы); should [shud] (следовало бы); would [wud] (хотел бы) также произносятся без участи звука «l».

Silent N

Слова, оканчивающиеся на MN, всегда произносятся без последней буквы, хотя некоторые суффиксы придают N значимость в произнесении слова:

autumn [‘o:təm] – осень, НО autumnal [o:’tʌmnəl] – осенний
hymn [him] — гимн, НО hymnist [‘himnist] — сочинитель гимнов
damn [dæm] – проклинать, НО damnation [dæm’neishən] — проклятие, осуждение

Silent P

С «немой» P начинается множество терминов, пришедших в английский из греческого и латинского языков, начинающихся на PS, PN:

psyche [‘saiki] — душа
psellism [ʹselız(ə)m] – (мед.) заикание
pseudo [sju:dəu] – ложный, фальшивый
pneuma [ˈnju:mə] – дыхание

Также в виде исключения «p» может не создавать звука в середине некоторых слов:

raspberry [‘ra:zbəri] — малина
sapphire [‘sæfaiər] — сапфир

Silent S

У звука «S» в арсенале тоже есть несколько слов, произношение которых никак не выдает ее наличие:

aisle [ail] — проход между рядами в театре, самолёте, магазине
island [‘ailənd] – остров и isle [ail] — остров
viscount [‘vaikaunt] – виконт и viscountess [‘vaikauntess] — виконтесса

Silent T

В словах, обязанных своим происхождением французскому языку, конечная «t» не произносится:

beret [bə’rei] — берет
ballet [bæ’lei] – балет
bouquet [bu:’kei] — букет

Непроизносимая «t» также часто попадается в словах с буквосочетаниями FT и ST:

soften [‘sofən] – смягчать, хотя soft [soft] — мягкий
often [‘ofən] — часто
moisten [‘moisən] – увлажнять, хотя moist [moist] – влажный
hustle [‘hʌsl] — суета толкотня

Silent U

В подавляющем большинстве случаев не произносится, когда находится между G и другой гласной:

guard [ga:d] – охрана; стража
guess [ges] – догадка, предположение
guile [gail] – обман; вероломство, коварство

Silent W

Произнесение слов, в которых O предшествует сочетанию WH, начинается со звука «h»:

who [hu:] — кто; whom [hu:m] — кого; whose [hu:z] — чей;
whole [houl] — целый
whodunit [‘hu:dʌnit] – (разг.) детективный роман, фильм

Буквосочетание WR, с которого начинается масса английских слов, в звуковом обличии не имеет «w»:

wrack [ræk] — разрушение
write [rait] — писать
wrinkle — [‘riŋkl] — морщина
wrong [ro:ŋ] – неправильный

В некоторых других случаях произнесение «w» также опускается, но это скорее просто исключения:

two [tu:] – два, НО twice [twais] — дважды; twenty [‘twenti] — двадцать; twins [twinz] — близнецы;
sword [so:rd] — меч, НО swan [swon] — лебедь; swamp [swomp] – болото

Silent CH, GH

В английском языке существуют слова, в написании которых используются непроизносимые сочетания букв.
К примеру, слова, связанные с парусным спортом: yacht [yot] — яхта; yachtsman [‘yotsmən] – яхтсмен; yachting [‘yotiŋ] — плавание на яхте, пишутся с CH, но произносятся иначе.

Лексем, в составе которых есть GH намного больше, и довольно часто сочетание тоже оказывается «немым»: high [hai] — высокий; thigh [θai] — бедро; weigh [wei] — взвешивать; though [ðou] — хотя; тем не менее; through [θru:] — сквозь; bought [bo:t] — купленный; brought [bro:t] — принесённый; fought [fo:t] — сражавшийся; daughter [‘do:tər] -дочь; bright [brait] — яркий; fight [fait] — бой; flight [flait] — полет; fright [frait] — испуг; knight [nait] — рыцарь; light [lait] — свет; night [nait] — ночь; right [rait] — правый; eight [eit] — восемь.

Как вы могли убедиться правописание, или spelling (произнесение слова по буквам) на английском языке не простая задача. Чтобы выработать изначально грамотное письмо и правильное произношение, при знакомстве с новыми словами не ленитесь заглядывать в словарь, уделяйте транскрипции слова достаточное внимание.
Все приходит с практикой, а на начальном этапе пусть данная статья станет вам хорошим помощником в разборе данной темы.

Источник

Silent letters in English! Learn a full list of silent letters from A to Z to improve your pronunciation! A silent letter is a letter that appears in a particular word but not pronounced such as the ‘b’ in ‘douBt’/daʊt /.

There are a lot of silent letters in English, and they create problems for both native and non-native speakers of English because they make it more difficult to guess the spelling of many spoken words or the pronunciation of many written words.

Silent Letters from A-Z

Here is the list of Silent Letters in English:

Silent A – artistically, logically, musically, romantically, stoically

Silent B – aplomb, bomb, climb, comb, coulomb, crumb, debt, doubt, dumb, jamb, lamb, limb, numb, plumb, subtle, succumb, thumb, tomb, womb

Silent C – abscess, abscend, ascent, conscience, conscious, crescent, descend, descent, disciple, evanesce, fascinate, fluorescent, muscle, obscene, resuscitate, scenario, science, scene, scissors

Silent D – bridge, edge, handkerchief, handsome, handful, grandson, ledger, sandwich, Wednesday

Silent E – plaque, vegetable, bridge, clothes, hate, name, like, breathe

Silent G – align, assign, benign, champagne, cologne, consign, design, feign, foreign, gnarly, gnash, gnat, gnaw, gnome, gnomic, high, light, reign, resign, sign

Silent H – anchor, archeology, architect, archives, chaos, character, characteristic, charisma, chemical, choreograph, chorus, Christian, Christmas, echo, hour, ghost, when, where, whether, which, while, white, why

Silent K – knack, knave, knead, knee, kneel, kneel, knew, knickers, knife, knight, knit, knob, knock, knoll, knot, know, knowledge, knuckle

Silent L – would, should, calf, half, salmon, talk, yolk

Silent P – psychology, pneumonia, pseudo, psychiatrist, psychiatry, psychotherapy, psychotic, receipt, corps, coup, cupboard, psalm, raspberry

Silent S – aisle, island, debris, isle, patios, viscount.

Silent T – apostle, bristle, bustle, castle, fasten, glisten, hustle, listen, moisten, often

Silent N – autumn, column, condemn, damn, hymn, solemn, chimney, government

Silent U – baguette, biscuit, build, circuit, disguise, guess, guest, guide, guild, guilt, guise, guitar, rogue, silhouette

Silent W – awry, playwright, sword, wrack, wrangle, wrap, wrapper, wrath, wreak, wreath, wreck, wrestle, wriggle, wring, wrinkle, wrist, writ, write, wrong, wrote.

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