preposterous
Pronouncedprih-PAHS-ter-uhs
adjSo silly or strange that it makes no sense at all.
Syllables
4 syllables
Letters
Related words (same phonics pattern)
Phonics breakdown
Phonics Rule: Prefix PRE-
Sound“pree”·/priː/
PRE- means 'before'. 'Preview' means to view something before.
The prefix pre- is added to the start of a word to mean 'before' or 'in advance'. 'View' → 'preview' (view before); 'heat' → 'preheat' (heat before).
Tip
PRE- comes before — preview, predict, preheat!
Examples
Phonics Rule: Letter P
Sound“p”·/p/
The letter P makes the /p/ sound, like in 'pan', 'pig', and 'pot'. Both lips press together then pop open.
P is a voiceless bilabial stop — both lips press together and release with a puff of air but no voice. It pairs with B (which is the voiced version of the same mouth position).
Tip
P pops open — press your lips and let it POP!
Examples
When the letter O appears in a closed syllable, it usually makes the short O sound “ah”. In American English, this sounds like 'ah'.
Tip
O says “ah” like 'Ahh!' said the doctor.
Examples
Phonics Rule: ST Blend
Sound“st”·/st/
S and T blend together — you hear both sounds! Like in 'stop' and 'fast'.
The blend ST combines /s/ and /t/ spoken quickly together. It can appear at the beginning or end of a word.
Examples
Phonics Rule: R-Controlled ER
Sound“er”·/ɜːr/
When R comes after E, it makes the “er” sound, like in 'her' and 'fern'.
ER makes the same sound as IR and UR — they all say “er”. ER is the most common spelling of this sound, especially at the end of words.
Tip
ER, IR, and UR all sound the same — Bossy R wins again!
Examples
Phonics Rule: OU says “uh” (-ous)
Sound“uh”·/ə/
OU says the lazy schwa “uh” in the ending -OUS, like in 'famous' and 'generous'.
In the suffix -ous, OU is unstressed and says schwa “uh”: famous, generous, nervous, dangerous, enormous.
Tip
- OUS is famous for the lazy uh — famous, nervous!
Examples
Phonics Rule: Plural -S (/z/ sound)
Sound“z”·/z/
After a buzzing sound or a vowel, the plural ending says /z/ — like 'dogs' and 'shoes'.
Put a finger on your throat and say 'zzzz' — you feel a buzz. When the word ends in a buzzing (voiced) sound or a vowel, the plural ending buzzes too and says /z/. This happens whether the word is spelled -s (dogs) or -es (shoes, trees), because in shoes the e is silent and only the s is sounded. Most people never notice they are doing this.
Examples
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