Open closed syllable. Closed and open syllables in English: what do they affect

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 silent "e" also belong to this type. For example:

• take
• Pete
• kite
• nose
• cute

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

Closed syllable

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

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

• hat-ha tt er
• pin-pi nn ed
• hot-ho tt est
• red-re dd ish
• cut-cu tt ing

Syllable "vowel + r"

The third type of syllable is one in which the letter "r" follows the vowel. At the same time, the vowel gives a long sound, and the “r” itself is not readable (c).

• car
• herbs
• girl [ɡɜːl]
• form
• turn

Double "r" does not affect the sound of the vowel. In this case, the syllable is read as closed. Compare:

• smi r k - mi rr or [ˈmɪrə]
• cu r l-cu rr ent [ˈkʌr(ə)nt]
• po r t-to rr ent [ˈtɒr(ə)nt]

Syllable "vowel + re"

In a syllable of this type, the letter "r" is also not readable, and the vowel forms a diphthong.

• dare
• more
• hire [ˈhaɪə]
• core
• pure

The syllable "consonant + le"

Sometimes this syllable is singled out - it occurs only at the end of a word. If there is one consonant before -le, the syllable is read as open. If there are two consonants before -le, it is read as closed. Compare:

• ta bl e [ˈteɪbl] - da bbl e, ti tl e [ˈtaɪtl] - li ttl e [ˈlɪtl]
• bu gl e - str ggl e [ˈstrʌɡl], ri fl e [ˈraɪfl] - sni ffl e [ˈsnɪfl]

Not every consonant occurs in combination with -le. Here are those 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 they have many exceptions, so such words must be memorized gradually and systematically.

Basic vowel digraphs

A combination of vowels is not a digraph if these vowels belong to different syllables. In this case, the first vowel is read as in an open syllable, and the second is in an unstressed position and gives the sound [ə]. For example: lion ["laɪən], diet [ˈdaɪət].

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

The practical necessity of syllable division

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 with the help of an analogy. The fact is that the norms for highlighting syllables in both languages ​​are similar. The main similarity of syllable division is the leading role of vowels, they are called syllable-forming.

A simple way to divide words 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.

Rules for syllable division in English

Depending on the sound the word ends with, open and closed syllables are distinguished. Open ones always end in vowels. In addition, when a syllable is formed by 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 syllable division is the need to separate the word not from the beginning, but from the end. The rules of syllable division of the English language become more understandable when studying specific examples.

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

2. The presence of already one vowel 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, i.e. one sound, has only one syllable: like, it cannot be divided into parts.

5. The appearance of a consonant at the syllable boundary leads to its separation into the second syllable: i-ma-gine, if several consonants appear at the junction, then the first one is attributed 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 the adjacent consonant: ta-ble.

8. The consonant combinations ld and nd draw a syllable boundary in front of them: mi-ld, ki-nd.

Syllabification and its role:

1. Norms of correct transfer. It is thanks to the knowledge of the provisions of syllable division that one can competently divide words into parts that need to be highlighted in writing when transferring between lines.

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

3. Language development. The ongoing processes of correlation of syllogomorphism set new parameters for dividing words.

We have outlined the basic rules for syllable division in the English language. In general, they are quite simple and do not present any particular difficulties for mastering. Although, everyone who seeks to improve their language and write correctly, it is necessary not only to learn them, but also to understand them.

A short and clear course on syllable division

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 so deep into learning the language. No need to rush. Only at first glance it seems that the British read completely differently than they write. In fact, there is logic everywhere. Knowing it, you can learn to read confidently. So let's figure it out.

Why is transcription necessary?

Many people don’t teach it at school anymore and you don’t have to memorize these obscure symbols at all, but there is one secret. It is important to learn the division into syllables.

The rule is:

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

Doubted? Open a dictionary. The upper comma in transcription indicates stress.

open and shut

Now you need to know how to determine the type of syllable. Many of you were taught at school, but few will say for sure what an open syllable means. It's the one that ends in a vowel.

Why is the letter r special?

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

Let's put all the information in a table:

Therefore, I recommend subscribing to my blog and get acquainted with 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 advantage is that there is a Russian transcription, therefore, even without knowing the language, you can easily master colloquial phrases.

As a rule, the modern standard school curriculum of the English language does not provide for some important points in learning, and among them is the ability to determine the type of syllable and, accordingly, correctly read the entire word. How to do it?

Syllables in English

Some theoretical aspects of linguistics are not always required for beginners. Perhaps among the optional skills for those who do not study English at a professional level is syllable division. Usually this does not present serious difficulties, but in this case it is necessary to know the basic rules, since they differ significantly from those accepted in Russian phonetics.

The general rule is that the number of syllables corresponds to the number of vowels. This means that you should not look at the letters, but listen to the pronunciation of the word, since silent vowels, diphthongs, etc. are abundant in English. In addition, the so-called sonorous consonants can also be syllabic, so the word "mild" will turn out to be divided thus: mi|ld. It will become clear later why this is so.

Syllable division is made from the end of the word: student - stu|dent, money - mo|ney, permission - per|mis|sion.

A consonant that is on the border of two syllables is thus adjacent to the vowel that follows it. Doubled sounds are divided. All this matters if you need to figure out how to pronounce this or that unfamiliar word. Also, for this you need to know about closed and open syllables in English.

Impact on reading rules

The types of syllables in English differ from the classification in Russian. Four varieties are distinguished here, while in others, as a rule, only two.

First, it is an open syllable. In English, it ends in At the same time, the rules of reading come into play.

The second type is a closed syllable. It ends with one or more consonants (with the exception of "r"). In this case, the vowels are read briefly.

The third and fourth types of syllables are conditionally open. They end in "r" or "re", while the preceding vowels are read in a special way, which will be discussed below.

Of course, there are exceptions to all rules. Closed and open syllables in English are not a guarantee that vowels will be read one way or another. However, such cases are not very common.

By the way, first of all, you need to determine the stressed syllable for the word, because whether it is open or closed is of paramount importance. The vowels in the rest, as a rule, are pronounced quite neutrally or even become mute. But there are usually problems with stresses, because English is one of the languages ​​\u200b\u200bwith their free arrangement.

open

This type of syllables includes those that end in a vowel. Analyzing a word visually, it is imperative to take into account the presence of a mute "e" at the end, since it is it that opens the previous syllable.

In this case, most of the vowels are diphthongs.

The general rules for reading in this case will be as follows:

A - pale, name;

E - to be, she;

I - to bite, kite;

O - to go, so;

U - to use, pupil;

Y - to type.

But this does not always work, for example, in the word "to come" phonetically "o" does not comply with the accepted rules, despite the presence of a mute "e" at the end of the word. In this case, it is read according to the principle of a closed syllable. What is this principle?

Closed

Syllables of this type, unlike open ones, always end in consonants (except for r).

Accordingly, the vowels in this case are pronounced briefly and easily.

A [æ] - bad, cat;

E [e] - to let, pen;

I [i] - list, to sit;

O [ɔ] - to lock, pot;

U [ʌ] - must, sun;

A closed syllable in English is perhaps somewhat less common than an open one. This happens precisely due to the fact that there is often a mute "e" at the end of the word. But closed and open syllables in English, unlike Russian, are not the only types. There are two more varieties that are not always considered. But their features are also important to consider when studying the rules for reading vowels.

Conditionally open

These two types of syllables are sometimes also called semi-closed. They end in "r" or "re". In theory, in this case it will be, respectively, closed and open syllables. In English, everything is different, and vowels, being in front of these letter combinations, acquire a new, more complex sound, before "re" some of them even become diphthongs.

In the first case, if we are talking about syllables ending in r, everything will be like this:

A - park, dark;

E [ə:] - term, her;

I [ə:] - bird;

O [ɔ:] - port, short, world;

U [ə:] - to burn;

Y [ə:] - Myrtle.

In the second, if there is "re" after the vowels, they will sound differently:

A [ɛə] - to care, nightmare;

E - here, mere;

I - fire;

O [ɔ:] - core;

U - cure, sure, pure;

Y-tyre.

In addition to the fact that open and closed syllables in English, as well as the third and fourth types, affect the reading of certain vowels, there are a huge number of letter combinations that also have a special sound. This knowledge can be obtained both in theory, and simply memorize the transcription of words, meeting them in practice.

For simple use of the language in everyday communication or correspondence, you may not know such subtleties as the rules for dividing words and classifying syllables.

The rules for reading vowels have so many exceptions that they almost lose their meaning. That is why closed and open syllables in English are more interesting and useful for linguists than for ordinary people.