exchanges
nounTimes when two people give things to each other instead of buying and selling.
nounConversations between people.
nounPlaces where people buy and sell things like stocks or goods.
nounThe numbers that come after the area code in a telephone number.
nounTimes when one chess piece is lost and the other side loses a piece too.
nounThe difference in value of money from different countries.
Phonics breakdown
Phonics Rule: Schwa
In unstressed syllables, vowels often make a lazy 'uh' sound called schwa, like the A in 'about'.
Schwa /ə/ is the most common vowel sound in English. Any vowel letter can make the schwa sound when it's in an unstressed syllable. It sounds like a quick, lazy 'uh'.
Tip
Schwa is lazy — any vowel can say 'uh' when it's not stressed!
Examples
Phonics Rule: Letter X
The letter X usually makes the /ks/ sound, like in 'fox', 'box', and 'mix'.
X is unusual — it represents two sounds blended together: /k/ + /s/ = /ks/. At the start of a word it sometimes makes a /z/ sound (xylophone). At the end of words it reliably says /ks/.
Tip
X says /ks/ — like a fox in a box!
Examples
Phonics Rule: CH Digraph
C and H together make a new sound: /tʃ/, like in 'chop' and 'much'.
When C and H are together, they don't say /k/ + /h/. They make a completely new sound: /tʃ/. This is called a digraph — two letters making one sound.
Tip
CH — choo choo goes the train!
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: NG Digraph
NG together makes the /ŋ/ sound at the back of your mouth, like in 'ring' and 'song'.
The digraph 'ng' makes the nasal sound /ŋ/. This sound is made at the back of your mouth/throat. It almost always appears at the end of a word or syllable.
Tip
Sing a song — NG rings along!
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.