brakes
nounDevices used to slow down or stop a vehicle or wheel.
nounThick areas of plants, bushes or undergrowth.
nounSomething that slows down or stops an action or process.
Syllables
1 syllable
Letters
Phonics breakdown
Phonics Rule: BR Blend
B and R blend together — you hear both sounds! Like in 'brown' and 'bring'.
The blend BR combines /b/ and /r/ spoken quickly together.
Examples
Phonics Rule: Open Syllable A (Long A)
When A is the last letter of a syllable, the syllable is open and the A says its name /eɪ/ — like in 'ba-by' and 'pa-per'.
This is the open-syllable pattern: a syllable that ends in a vowel leaves that vowel 'open', so it says its long name. Here, a lone A at the end of a syllable says /eɪ/ (ba-by, a-pron, lady). The long A sound is also spelled other ways, each its own rule — silent E (cake), or vowel teams (ai in rain, ay in play) — but those are not open syllables.
Tip
Long A says its name — A!
Examples
Phonics Rule: Letter K
The letter K makes the /k/ sound, like in 'kite', 'kit', and 'king'.
K always makes the /k/ sound. It is used before E, I, and Y where C would make an /s/ sound instead. K is silent before N at the start of a word (knife, know).
Tip
K is for kite — and kite starts with /k/!
Examples
Phonics Rule: Suffix -ES
The suffix -ES is added to words ending in S, X, Z, CH, or SH to make them plural or third-person singular.
When a word ends in a hissing or buzzing sound (s, x, z, ch, sh), adding just -S would be hard to say. So -ES is added instead and pronounced /ɪz/ — it adds a syllable. For example: box → boxes, wish → wishes, buzz → buzzes.
Tip
-ES adds a whole extra syllable — box-es, wish-es!
Examples
What is SnapPhonics?
A phonics reference for teachers, parents and learners. Every English word, broken into the sounds that make it — with audio, syllables, and the rule behind each spelling.
Save words to study lists, build flashcard decks, and scan your own worksheets and books.