SnapPhonics

indian

IHN-dee-uhn/ˈɪn.diː.ən/adjective
  1. nounA person who comes from India.

  2. adjectiveBelonging to or coming from India.

  3. nounA type of marble toy with colored bands on a black base.

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Syllables

indian

3 syllables

Letters

Related words (same phonics pattern)

Phonics breakdown

i

Phonics Rule: Short I

The letter I makes a short sound, like in 'sit' and 'big'.

When the letter I appears in a closed syllable, it usually makes the short I sound /ɪ/. This is one of the trickiest short vowels because it sounds similar to short E.

Tip

I says /ɪ/ like an itch you can't miss.

Examples

nd

Phonics Rule: ND End Blend

ND at the end of a syllable blends /n/ and /d/ together, like in 'hand', 'sand', and 'send'.

ND is a common end blend (coda blend). The nasal /n/ and voiced stop /d/ are both heard. It appears very frequently in English words.

Tip

ND ends with a d-d-d — hand, sand, send!

Examples

i

Phonics Rule: Open Syllable E (Long E)

When E is the last letter of a syllable, the syllable is open and the E says its name /iː/ — like in 'he' and 'me'.

This is the open-syllable pattern: a syllable that ends in a vowel leaves it 'open', so it says its long name. Here, a lone E at the end of a syllable says /iː/ (he, me, we, be). The long E sound is also spelled other ways, each its own rule — vowel teams (ee in tree, ea in read) — but those are not open syllables.

Tip

Long E says its name — E!

Examples

a

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

n

Phonics Rule: Letter 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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