earwig
Pronouncedearwig
nounA small insect with a long body and two large pincers at the end of its tail.
verbTo try to change someone's mind by talking to them in secret or persuading them over and over.
Syllables
2 syllables
Letters
Phonics breakdown
Phonics Rule: EAR says “eer”
Sound“eer”·/ɪər/
EAR usually makes the “eer” sound, like in 'ear', 'hear', and 'near'.
EAR most often says “eer” (the 'ear' sound): ear, hear, near, year, clear, dear, fear.
Tip
Hear with your ear — hear, near, year!
Examples
Phonics Rule: Letter W
Sound“w”·/w/
The letter W makes the /w/ sound, like in 'win', 'wet', and 'web'. The lips round into an O shape.
W is a voiced bilabial approximant — the lips round tightly then open as voice flows. W is sometimes silent (write, wrong) and can act as a vowel in some combinations (aw, ew, ow).
Tip
W rounds your lips — make an O then say /w/!
Examples
When the letter I appears in a closed syllable, it usually makes the short I sound “ih”. This is one of the trickiest short vowels because it sounds similar to short E.
Tip
I says “ih” like an itch you can't miss.
Examples
Phonics Rule: Hard G
Sound“g”·/ɡ/
G makes the /g/ sound before A, O, U, or a consonant, like in 'go' and 'game'.
The letter G makes the hard /g/ sound when followed by A, O, U, or a consonant. Examples: go, game, give, glad, grab.
Tip
G says /g/ before A, O, U — go, game, glad!
Examples
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