SnapPhonics

ways

WAYZ/ˈweɪz/noun
  1. nounMore than one road or direction that you can travel along.

  2. nounMore than one method or manner of doing something.

  3. nounMore than one opening or passage to enter or leave a place.

  4. nounMore than one set of customs and values that a group of people follows.

  5. nounMore than one area or region that is not exactly marked on a map.

  6. nounMore than one measure or degree of something.

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Syllables

ways

1 syllable

Letters

Base word

way

Related words (same phonics pattern)

Phonics breakdown

w

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

ay

Phonics Rule: AY Vowel Team

AY at the end of a word says long A, like in 'play' and 'day'.

The vowel team 'ay' makes the long A sound /eɪ/ and typically appears at the end of a word or syllable. It's the end-of-word partner to 'ai'.

Tip

AY at the end of the day says long A!

Examples

s

Phonics Rule: Plural -S (/z/ sound)

After voiced sounds, -S says /z/, like in 'dogs' and 'birds'.

After voiced consonants and vowels, the plural -s says /z/. Most people don't notice this — it sounds natural.

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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