In
this series of lessons, you will learn useful spelling rules
in
English.
This lesson talks about different letters to make the /k/ sound in
English. We will look at some guidelines and examples so that
you will
feel more comfortable using the letters k, c, and the
combination qu.
As you can see, the letter c
can come almost anywhere in the word. It is used for a /k/ sound before
consonants and the vowels a,
o, and u.
The single c
is the most common letter used for this sound. Here are some common
examples:
actor
corn
bacon
direct
carry
picture
culture
pelican
2. Double C
People have parties to celebrate special occasions.
As you learned in Lesson 1 of this series about the "magic" e,
a single consonant between two vowels can mean that the first vowel is
pronounced with a long sound instead of a short sound.
If the word needs to contain a short vowel sound before the /k/ sound, we can
double the c
in the middle of the word.
Here are some more common words with a double c pronounced with a /k/ sound after a
short vowel sound:
account
broccoli
hiccup
accurate
occupy
tobacco
raccoon
accuse
The letter K
Janet and Emily are very kind.
They love to share.
We saw above that the letter c
is usually used for a /k/
sound before the vowels a, o, and u, but if the /k/
sound is before the vowels e,
i, or y. (When the k comes before a y, it is almost
always at the end of words.)
Here are some common examples of the letter k for a /k/ sound before an e, i, or y.
king
make
skin
skill
risky
poker
keep
The letter k
is also used at the end of one-syllable words after any sound except a
short vowel sound.
For example:
milk
tank
soak
peek
cork
hawk
look
bark
The CK combination
Looking at the clock
can be very stressful during a test!
The ck
combination is used at the end of a one-syllable word after a short
vowel sound.
Here are some common examples:
pick
luck
pack
stick
wreck
lick
duck
We also use the ck combination
after a short vowel sound and before a vowel e, i, or y. This is a little
less common.
Here are some examples:
rocking
picky
lucky
blackest
picnicking
The QU combination
Eleanor wants to ask a question.
The qu
combination is also common in English, but it is important to remember
that this has a /kw/ sound,
not just a /k/ sound.
It can have some different pronunciations, but this is the most common.
The letter q
is not written alone in English, but is always followed by a u.
Here are some common examples of qu
with a /kw/
sound:
quiet
squint
squash
queen
quarter
quack
quiz
square
require
quote
Review
So, let's review what we have learned about common English suffixes:
The single letter c
pronounced as /k/
can come almost anywhere in the word and comes before the vowels a, o, and u.
The double letter c
pronounced as /k/
comes after a short vowel.
The letter k
comes before the vowels i, e, or y. It also comes at
the end of one-syllable words after any sound except a
short vowel sound.
The ck
combination is used at the end of a one-syllable word after a short
vowel sound. Less commonly, it comes after a short vowel sound and
before a vowel e,
i, or y.
The qu
combination is common in English and is pronounced as /kw/.