chieftain
nounThe leader of a tribe or clan.
nounThe head or leader of any group of people.
Syllables
2 syllables
Letters
Phonics breakdown
Phonics Rule: CH Digraph
Sound“ch”·/tʃ/
C and H together make a new sound: "ch", like in 'chop' and 'much'.
When C and H are together, they don't say /k/ + /h/. They make a completely new sound: "ch". This is called a digraph — two letters making one sound.
Tip
CH — choo choo goes the train!
Examples
Phonics Rule: IE Vowel Team (Long E)
Sound“ee”·/iː/
When IE appears in the middle of a word, it usually says long E, like in 'piece' and 'chief'.
The vowel team IE makes the long E sound "ee" in the middle of a word. Examples: piece, chief, field, shield, brief. Remember: I before E except after C.
Tip
IE in the middle says EE — piece, chief, field!
Examples
Phonics Rule: FT End Blend
Sound“ft”·/ft/
FT at the end of a syllable blends /f/ and /t/ together, like in 'left', 'soft', and 'gift'.
FT is an end blend where the voiceless /f/ flows into the voiceless stop /t/. Both teeth-and-lip /f/ and tongue-tap /t/ are heard.
Tip
FT lifts at the end — left, soft, gift!
Examples
Phonics Rule: AI says /ə/ (-tain, -gain)
Sound“uh”·/ə/
At the end of a word in -TAIN or -GAIN, AI relaxes to the lazy schwa "uh" — 'mountain' ends like 'mount-uhn', not 'mount-TAIN'.
AI usually says long A "ay" (rain, train). But in the unstressed endings -tain and -gain the syllable is spoken quickly and the vowel relaxes to schwa "uh": mountain, captain, certain, curtain, bargain. Say the word naturally and listen to the last syllable — it is "uhn", not "ayn". This is the same relaxing that turns the OU of famous into a schwa.
Tip
Mountains are tall but the ending is lazy — mount-uhn!
Examples
Phonics Rule: Letter N
Sound“n”·/n/
The letter N makes the /n/ sound, like in 'net', 'nap', and 'nut'. The tongue tip touches behind the upper teeth.
N is a voiced alveolar nasal — the tongue tip touches the ridge behind the upper teeth while voice hums through the nose. It is one of the most common consonants in English.
Tip
N hums through the nose — say /n/ and feel the buzz!
Examples
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