Silent Letters

Silent Letters 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.

Silent A words The letter A is silent in a bunch of words that include -ea, such as bread dread head thread spread The letter A also remains quiet in a bunch of adverbs that end in -ically, such as basically stoically logically frantically fanatically magically tragically A few words also have a silent A at the beginning that doesn’t seem to do much of anything, such as aisle aesthetic

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 some 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

When learning how to read words with silent letters, it's essential to keep the following notes in mind: 1. Recognize Patterns: Look for patterns in words with silent letters. Certain letter combinations often indicate the presence of a silent letter. 2. Consult Pronunciation Guides: Use pronunciation guides, dictionaries, or online resources to learn the correct pronunciation of words with silent letters. 3. Practice Aloud: Practice reading words with silent letters aloud to reinforce the correct pronunciation and familiarize yourself with common patterns. 4. Understand Word Origins: Explore the origins of words to understand why certain letters are silent. Historical context can provide insights into silent letters in words. 5. Contextual Reading: Pay attention to the context in which words with silent letters are used. Understanding the meaning of the word can help reinforce correct pronunciation. 6. Visualize Silent Letters: Visualize the silent letters in words to help remember their presence. Mentally note the silent letter and its impact on pronunciation. 7. Regular Review: Regularly review words with silent letters to strengthen your reading skills and improve pronunciation accuracy. 8. Seek Feedback: Ask for feedback from teachers, language partners, or pronunciation guides to ensure you are pronouncing words with silent letters correctly. 9. Be Patient: Learning to read words with silent letters may take time and practice. Be patient with yourself and celebrate progress as you improve your reading skills. By keeping these notes in mind and actively practicing reading words with silent letters, you can enhance your reading proficiency and confidently navigate words with silent letters in various languages.