ward
nounA section of a hospital where sick or injured people stay in beds.
nounA child or young person that a guardian looks after.
nounA district or section of a city or town for local government.
verbTo keep safe and watch over someone or something.
verbTo protect someone or something from harm.
nounA boy's name.
Phonics breakdown
Phonics Rule: Letter 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
Phonics Rule: W changes AR to /ɔːr/
After W, the letters AR say /ɔːr/ instead of /ɑːr/, like in 'war' and 'warm'.
W changes the sound of AR: instead of the /ɑːr/ in 'car', AR after W says /ɔːr/ (the 'or' sound): war, warm, ward, swarm, dwarf.
Tip
W changes AR to OR — war, warm, ward!
Examples
Phonics Rule: Letter D
The letter D makes the /d/ sound, like in 'dog', 'day', and 'dig'. The tongue tip touches behind the upper teeth.
D is a voiced alveolar stop. The tongue tip touches the ridge just behind the upper front teeth, then releases with voice. It reliably makes the /d/ sound in almost all positions.
Tip
D is for dog — and dog starts with /d/!
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.
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