This rhyme is a useful guideline to help you remember when to use the
vowel combination ie
and when to use ei.
However, it is only a guideline and not a strict rule.
In fact, there are some longer versions of the rhyme to help you
remember the exceptions.
We will start with some common words that follow the guideline.
In general, when there is an ie
combination after a letter other than c, the i will come first.
However,
it is important to remember that these letters can be pronounced in
different ways. This guideline really applies especially when the ie combination is
pronounced with a long E sound.
Here are some common words with an ie combination
and a long E pronunciation:
believe
fierce
achieve
piece
chief
belief
priest
countries
brief
collie
All of these words have a letter other than c before the ie combination.
Here are some common words with an ie
combination pronounced with a long E sound after the letter c:
ceiling
deceive
receipt
perceive
receive
conceited
It is also important to remember that whenever you must add -s or add -ed to words that end in y, you need
to change the y
to an ie.
In these cases, you will often see an ie combination after
a letter other than c
at the end of a word.
In these cases, these vowels are usually pronounced with a long E sound, according to the rule.
2. IE: other sounds
John, Eric, and Amy are friends.
You will find many words in English that have an ie combination after
a letter other than c, though they will not have a long E sound. For these words, you should learn
the pronunciation of each individually.
Here are some common examples:
die
tie
flies
funnier
client
3. IE exceptions: after C
Do you want to be a scientist
when you grow up?
There are some common words that have an ie combination after
the letter c
in the middle of the word. These are exceptions to the rule, and you should memorize them:
science
efficient
species
sufficient
4. EI exceptions: long A Sound
Penny likes to talk to her neighbor,
Angela.
This guideline does not apply to words in which the ei combination is
pronounced with a long A sound. In these words, even
if there is not a c
before the vowels, the e
will come before the i.
Here are some common words in which the ei combination is
pronounced with a long A sound:
weigh
vein
beige
eight
veil
reign
5. EI exceptions: long E sound
Coffee contains a chemical called caffeine,
which gives you energy.
There are a few words in English that contain an ei
combination that is pronounced like a long E, after a letter
other than c.
Of course, this goes against the "I before E except after C" rule that
applies to this sound.
In fact, some people say the rhyme as:
"I before E,
except after C, and except for in weird words like neighbor and weigh."
The last part refers to the long A sound discussed above (neighbor
and weigh),
and the word weird
is an example of a very common exception to the rule. It has a long E
sound, but contains an ei
combination after a letter other than c.
Here are some more common exceptions with an ei combination
pronounced like a long E after a letter other than c:
seize
weird
protein
either
neither
The last two words, either
and neither,
are pronounced differently in different countries. In the United
States, the ei
combination has a long E sound, so they are important exceptions to the
rule here.
Review
So, let's review what we have learned about ei and ie combinations in
English words:
The "I before E except after C" guideline applies to words
in which the ie combination has a long E sound.
You will see an ie
after the letter c
at the end of words and in a few important exceptions.
When the ei
combination is pronounced like a long A, it will be used after letters
other than c.
"I before E except after C" is only a guideline, not a
strict rule. There are exceptions!