A syllable is one or more letters that are said together in one sound. Words may consist of one or more syllables. By clapping with each syllable, a person understands where each syllable ends and the next syllable begins. Cutting written words into segments has the same effect. By saying words aloud while looking in a mirror, a person is able to watch how his mouth movements coincide with each syllable.
Closed syllables have a consonant at the end and a short vowel sound, while open syllables have a vowel at the end and a long vowel sound. “Cat” is an example of a closed syllable, while the first syllable of the word “apron” is an open syllable.
In syllables that end with a vowel, a consonant and an “e,” the “e” is silent and the first vowel has a long vowel sound. This type of syllable tends to be at the end of words. The one-syllable word “time” demonstrates this type of syllable.
In a vowel team syllable, two vowels that are adjacent to one another create a new sound, such as in the word “faith.” The syllable “d-l-e,” which is found in words such as “fiddle” and “puddle,” sounds like the word “dull.” The r-controlled syllable has a vowel followed by the letter “r,” which changes the vowel’s sound, as in the word “war.”