Download Article
Download Article
All words have at least one syllable. A syllable is a vowel sound that's connected or unconnected to consonants that form a unit of pronunciation. For example, the word "banana" is broken up into three parts, or syllables, for each piece of sound you pronounce before you momentarily pause: ba -[pause]- na -[pause]- na . Knowing how to divide words into syllables can greatly help with your spelling and reading skills as well as your ability to pronounce words correctly.
Steps
List of Words
-
Clap your hands as you say a word. Try to form a steady beat for every individual sound you make. [1] X Research source
- For example, ba (clap) - na (clap) -na (clap). This word has three claps, one for every syllable.
- Words have a natural emphasis when you say them regularly. The word "banana" sounds like ba na na because it stresses the middle syllable. Coordinate your claps with the natural stresses and emphases of a word.
- Start with bigger words that you know have more than one syllable, like "hippopotamus." The more syllables there are, the longer and more rhythmic your beat will be, making it easier to divide the word.
-
Use a metronome or Newton's cradle to make a beat. Say a part of the word every time you hear a "click" noise.
- Try to be silent at the same times the metronome or Newton's cradle is silent. Only say a syllable when you hear a click sound. This will help you split up a word into its smallest audible segments.
- This might be easier than clapping because your focus is mostly on saying words and not so much on creating a rhythm. You can also use your hands to tally the syllables in particularly long words.
- If using a metronome, pick a fast but steady tempo. Most hit songs fall into the 120 beats-per-minute (BPM) range, [2] X Research source suggesting that maybe most people appreciate sound at this speed. Try setting your tempo to 120 bpm and saying words on tempo.
Advertisement
-
Write a word down on a piece of paper. Use big letters and leave some room between letters to separate syllables.
- Write the word in a blue. You will later be drawing vertical lines to separate syllables, which you can color in red. This will provide visual contrast and help you picture how words are broken up.
- Look at where the vowels fall in your word. Every syllable will have a vowel, but may not always have a consonant. [3] X Research source
-
Identify any prefix in a word. Prefixes are sets of letters added to the beginning of a word to give it a specific meaning. [4] X Research source
- For example, the word "play" is different than the word "replay." "Play" means to show something once; "replay" means to show something again.
- Many prefixes are usually one syllable, for example re wind, pre determine, and post mortem.
- Some prefixes have more than 1 syllable. If your prefix has more than one vowel and the vowels are separated by consonants, it is more than one syllable. For example, "anti" is a prefix with two syllables. "Ant" is one syllable and "i" is the other.
- Prefixes with more than one vowel that are not separated by consonants most likely are only 1 syllable. For example, "eu" in "eulogy" is only 1 syllable.
-
Draw a line after the prefix of the word. Separate the prefix from the remaining letters in your word.
- For example, "re | wind." Now you can start to see how your word is made up of smaller chunks of letters.
- For prefixes with more than one vowel, look at the where the vowels fall. If your prefix has more than one vowel and has consonants between them, draw a line after the first consonant that follows your first vowel. For example: "an | ti."
- Many words don't have prefixes. If your word doesn't have a prefix, don't worry about this step.
-
Identify any suffix of a word. Suffixes are like prefixes, but they are added to the end of the word to make them mean something different. [5] X Research source
- For example: "calculate" means something different than "calculat or . Calculate is when you find the amount of something; calculator is a tool for helping you find that amount.
- Like prefixes, suffixes are usually one syllable but can sometimes be more than 1. Common suffixes include "s," "ed," and "ing," as in "computer s ," "comput ed ," and "comput ing ."
-
Draw a line before the suffix of a word. If your word has both a prefix and suffix, you should have two lines drawn in your word so far.
- For example: "re | wind | ing."
- If your suffix has more than one vowel, follow the same rule as with prefixes. If vowels have consonants between them, draw a line after the first consonant that follows your first vowel. For example: flex | ib | le .
- Some words don't have prefixes or suffixes. If your word does not have a suffix, do not draw a line.
-
Divide any compound words. If there are two separate words have been put together, draw a line between them. [6] X Research source
- For example: "tree | house" or "water | slide."
-
Draw lines in the remaining chunks according to vowel placement. If you have a section of letters with multiple vowels that are separated by consonants, divide it so that there is at least one vowel in each segment.
- For example, "comput | ing" would be broken up into "com | put | ing."
-
Say your word. Pause every time you get to a line. This should help you audibly separate your word into smaller chunks.
Advertisement
Community Q&A
Search
-
QuestionHow do I break down the word escoger?DonaganTop Answereres-co-ger
-
QuestionWhy is it ther-mom-e-ter and not ther-mo-me-ter?DonaganTop AnswererThe usual practice is to divide syllables after a consonant that follows a "short" vowel. In this case, the second "m" follows the "short o," and so the division comes after the "m". Another example is "habit," in which the division comes after the consonant "b" because the "a" is "short" (hab-it). However, in the word "basin," the "a" is "long," so the division comes before the consonant "s" (ba-sin).
-
QuestionHow do I divide the word "queue"?SherringfordCommunity AnswerThe word "queue" is one syllable. Although it looks wrong, you can't divide it any more than it already is.
Ask a Question
200 characters left
Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered.
Submit
Advertisement
Video
Tips
- Read the word out loud. This will help you syllabicate words on paper as well as say words correctly that you are unfamiliar with when reading. When in doubt on where to split a word into syllables, follow the common practice that an open-ended vowel, or a vowel at the end of a portion of sound, will say its long sound. A vowel that is closed off with a consonant will say its short sound.Thanks
- Place the back of your hand under your chin for an easy way to determine syllables. Speak. Every time your jaw moves, it is a new syllable.Thanks
- Government, for example, is 3 syllables.Thanks
Submit a Tip
All tip submissions are carefully reviewed before being published
Name
Please provide your name and last initial
Thanks for submitting a tip for review!
Advertisement
References
- ↑ https://cliengagefamily.org/syllable-clapping/
- ↑ https://gizmodo.com/the-most-mathematically-perfect-playlist-for-running-u-5906815
- ↑ http://www.howmanysyllables.com/whataresyllables
- ↑ https://mlpp.pressbooks.pub/writingsuccess/chapter/4-4-prefixes-and-suffixes/
- ↑ https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/grammar/british-grammar/suffixes
- ↑ https://www.grammarly.com/blog/open-and-closed-compound-words/
- http://www.education.com/reference/article/syllabication-rules/
About This Article
Article Summary
X
Learning how to divide words into syllables can help your spelling and reading skills as well as your ability to pronounce words correctly. To find the syllables in a word, try clapping your hands on each individual sound as you say the word. For example, if you’re working with the word “banana,” you’d clap on “ba,” “na,” and “na.” If you’re more of a visual learner, try writing the word down and drawing verticle lines to separate the syllables. Another way to identify syllables is to identify compound words and draw a line separating them. For instance, for the word "treehouse," draw a line between "tree" and "house." To learn how to use vowels to find syllable breaks, keep reading!
Did this summary help you?
Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 533,056 times.
Reader Success Stories
- "My name is Jennifer. People often ask me if I spell my nickname Jen or Jenn. I spell it Jen because the rule is when there are two consonants in the middle of a word, you divide between the consonants. This article confirmed that." ..." more
Advertisement
"My name is Jennifer. People often ask me if I spell my nickname Jen or Jenn. I spell it Jen because the rule is when there are two consonants in the middle of a word, you divide between the consonants. This article confirmed that."
..."
more
"Drawing lines between syllables and putting your hand under your chin to know how to syllabicate correctly are awesome tips. It will greatly help my 2nd grade son. Thank you very much!"
..."
more
"The things that helped out most relate to bifurcation according to prefix, suffix, and complex words. It has helped me a lot in writing limericks. Thanks a ton!"
..."
more
"I could read the rules and see the examples."
