Sound To Spelling Correspondences
The following table shows for each sound, the various spelling patterns used to denote it. The symbol "…" stands for an intervening consonant. The letter sequences are in order of frequency with the most common first. Some of these patterns are very rare or unique, such as au for the sound in laugh (some accents). In some cases, the spellings shown are found in only one known English word (such as "mh" for /m/, or "yrrh" for /ɜr/).
| Consonants | ||
|---|---|---|
| IPA | Spelling | Examples |
| /p/ | p, pp, gh | pill, happy, hiccough |
| /b/ | b, bb | bit, rabbit |
| /t/ | t, tt, ed, pt, th, ct | ten, hitter, topped, pterodactyl, thyme, ctenoid |
| /d/ | d, dd, ed, dh, t (in some dialects), tt (in some dialects) | dive, ladder, failed, dharma, waiter, flatter |
| /ɡ/ | g, gg, gue, gh | go, stagger, catalogue, ghost |
| /k/ | c, k, ck, ch, cc, qu, cu, que, kk, kh, q | cat, key, tack, chord, account, liquor, biscuit, mosque, trekker, khan, burqa |
| /m/ | m, mm, mb, mn, mh, gm, chm | mine, hammer, climb, hymn, mho, diaphragm, drachm |
| /n/ | n, nn, kn, gn, pn, nh, cn, mn | nice, funny, knee, gnome, pneumonia, piranha, cnidarian, mnemonic |
| /ŋ/ | ng, n, ngue | sing, link, tongue |
| /r/ | r, rr, wr, rh, rrh | ray, parrot, wrong, rhyme, diarrh(o)ea |
| /f/ | f, ph, ff, gh, pph, u | fine, physical, off, laugh, sapphire, lieutenant (Br) |
| /v/ | v, vv, f, ph, w (in some dialects) | vine, savvy, of, Stephen, Diwali |
| /θ/ | th, chth, phth, tth, fth (in some dialects) | thin, chthonic, phthisis, Matthew, twelfth |
| /ð/ | th | them, breathe |
| /s/ | s, c, ss, sc, st, ps, sch (in some dialects), cc, se, ce, z (in some dialects) | song, city, mess, scene, listen, psychology, schism, flaccid, horse, juice, citizen |
| /z/ | s, z, x, zz, ss, ze, c (in some dialects) | has, zoo, xylophone, fuzz, scissors, breeze, electricity |
| /ʃ/ | sh, ti, ci, ssi, si, ss, ch, s, sci, ce, sch, sc | shin, nation, special, mission, expansion, tissue, machine, sugar, conscience, ocean, schmooze, crescendo |
| /ʒ/ | si, s, g, z, j, ti, sh (in some dialects) | division, leisure, genre, seizure, jeté, equation, Pershing |
| /tʃ/ | ch, t, tch, ti, c, cc, tsch, cz | chin, nature, batch, bastion (some accents), cello, bocce, putsch, Czech |
| /dʒ/ | g, j, dg, dge, d, di, gi, ge, gg | magic, jump, judgment, bridge, graduate, soldier, Belgian, dungeon, exaggerate |
| /h/ | h, wh, j, ch | he, who, fajita, chutzpah |
| /j/ | y, i, j, ll, e | yes, onion, hallelujah, tortilla, eoarchean |
| /l/ | l, ll, lh | line, hallo, Lhasa |
| /w/ | w, u, o, ou, wh (in most dialects) | we, persuade, choir, Ouija board, what |
| /hw/ | wh (in some dialects) | wheel |
| Vowels | ||
|---|---|---|
| IPA | Spelling | Examples |
| /iː/ | e, ea, ee, e…e, ae, ei, i…e, ie, eo, oe, ie...e, ay, ey, i, y, oi, ue, ey, a | be, beach, bee, cede, Caesar, deceit, machine, field, people, amoeba, hygiene, quay, key, ski, city, chamois, Portuguese, geyser (Br), karaoke |
| /ɪ/ | i, y, ui, e, ee, ie, o, u, a, ei, ee, ia, ea, i...e, ai, ii, oe | bit, myth, build, pretty, been (some accents), sieve, women, busy, damage, counterfeit, carriage, mileage, medicine, bargain, shiitake, oedema |
| /uː/ | oo, u, o, u…e, ou, ew, ue, o…e, ui, eu, oeu, oe, ough, wo, ioux, ieu, oup, w | tool, luminous, who, flute, soup, jewel, true, lose, fruit, maneuver (US), manoeuvre (Br), canoe, through, two, Sioux, lieutenant (US), coup, cwm |
| /ʊ/ | oo, u, o, oo...e, or, ou, oul | look, full, wolf, gooseberry, worsted, courier, should |
| /eɪ/ | a, a…e, aa, ae, ai, ai...e, aig, aigh, al, ao, au, ay, e (é), e...e, ea, eg, ei, ei...e, eig, eigh, ee (ée), eh, er, es, et, ey, ez, ie, oeh | bass, rate, quaalude, reggae, rain, cocaine, arraign, straight, Ralph (sometimes in Br), gaol (Br), gauge, pay, ukulele (café), crepe, steak, thegn, veil, beige, reign, eight, matinee (soirée), eh, dossier, demesne, ballet, obey, chez, lingerie (US), boehmite |
| /ə/ | a, e, o, u, ai, ou, eig, y, ah, ough, ae, oi | another, anthem, awesome, atrium, mountain, callous, foreign, beryl, Messiah, borough (Br), Michael, porpoise |
| /oʊ/ | o, o…e, oa, ow, ou, oe, oo, eau, oh, ew, au, aoh, ough, eo | so, bone, boat, know, soul, foe, brooch, beau, oh, sew, mauve, pharaoh, furlough, yeoman |
| /ɛ/ | e, ea, a, ae, ai, ay, ea…e, ei, eo, ie, ieu, u, ue, oe | met, weather, many, aesthetic, said, says, cleanse, heifer, jeopardy, friend, lieutenant (Br), bury, guess, foetid |
| /æ/ | a, ai, al, au, i | hand, plaid, salmon, laugh (some accents), meringue |
| /ʌ/ | u, o, o…e, oe, ou, oo, wo | sun, son, come, does, touch, flood, twopence |
| /ɔː/ | a, au, aw, ough, augh, o, oa, oo, al, uo, u, ao | fall, author, jaw, bought, caught, cord, broad, door, walk, fluorine (Br), sure (some accents), extraordinary |
| /ɒ/ | o, a, eau, ach, au, ou | lock, watch, bureaucracy, yacht, sausage, cough |
| /ɑː/ | a, ah, aa, i | father, blah, baa, lingerie (US) |
| /aɪ/ | ae, ai, aie, aille, ais, ay, aye, ei, eigh, ey, eye, i, i…e, ia, ie, ic, ig, igh, is, oi, ui, uy, uye, y, y...e, ye | maestro, krait, shanghaied, canaille (RP), aisle, kayak, aye, heist, height, geyser (US), eye, mic, fine, diaper, tie, indict, sign, high, isle, choir, guide, buy, guyed, tryst, type, bye |
| /ɔɪ/ | oi, oy, awy, uoy oy…e, eu | foil, toy, lawyer, buoy, gargoyle, Freudian |
| /aʊ/ | ou, ow, ough, au | out, now, bough, tau |
| /ɑr/ | aar, ar, are, arre, ear, er, our, uar, arrh | bazaar, car, are, bizarre, heart, sergeant, our (some accents), guard, catarrh |
| /ɛər/ | aar, aer, air, aire, ar, are, ayer, ayor, ear, eir, er, ere, err, erre, ey're, e'er | Aaron, aerial, hair, millionaire, ware, vary, prayer, mayor, bear, heir, stationery (some accents), where, err (variant), parterre, they're, e'er |
| /ɪər/ | ear, eer, eir, eor, ere, ers, e're, ier, iere, ir | ear, beer, weir, theory (US), here, revers, we're, pier, premiere, menhir |
| /ɜr/ | er, or, ur, ir, yr, our, ear, err, eur, yrrh, ar, oeu, olo | fern, worst, turn, thirst, myrtle, journey, earth, err, amateur, myrrh, grammar, hors d'oeuvre, colonel |
| /juː/ | u, u…e, eu, ue, iew, eau, ieu, ueue, ui, ewe, ew | music*, use, feud, cue, view, beautiful*, adieu*, queue, nuisance*, ewe, few, * in some dialects, see yod-dropping |
Read more about this topic: English Orthography, Spelling Patterns
Famous quotes containing the words sound and/or spelling:
“My idea of heaven is eating paté de foie gras to the sound of trumpets.”
—Sydney Smith (1771–1845)
“We drove the Indians out of the land,
But a dire revenge those Redmen planned,
For they fastened a name to every nook,
And every boy with a spelling book
Will have to toil till his hair turns gray
Before he can spell them the proper way.”
—Eva March Tappan (1854–1930)