Phonics Spelling Dictionary

sound page sound page sound page sound page

/s/ 1 /o/ 27 /i-ee/ 51 unvoiced/th/ 77

/a/ 3 /u/ 29 /or/ 53 voiced /th/ 79

/t/ 5 /l/ 31 /z/ 55 /kw/ 81

/i/ 7 /ul/ 33 /ng/ 57 /ou/ 83

/p/ 9 /f/ 35 /ngk/ 59 /oi/ 85

/n/ 11 /b/ 37 /v/ 61 /yoo/ 87

short /oo/
/k/ 13 /j/ 39 63 /er/ 89

/e/ 15 /y/ 41 long /oo/

65 schwa /er/
91

/h/ 17 /ai/ 43 /ks/ 67 /ar/ 93

/r/ 19 /w/ 45 /gz/ 69 /air/ 95

/m/ 21 /oa/ 47 /ch/ 71 /eer/ 97

/d/ 23 /igh/ 49 /chu/ 73 /zh/ 99

25 51 75 Phonics International
/g/ /ee/ /sh/ by Debbie Hepplewhite
 The Alphabetic Code /d/ d -dd -ed
dig puddle rained
sounds
& picture
PI simple
code
PI complex
code
graphemes ( spelling alternatives )
which are code for the sounds
/g/ g -gg gu gh -gue
prompts units 1-5 units 6-12 girl juggle guitar ghost catalogue

/s/ s -ce -se ce ci cy /o/ o wa qua alt

snake palace house cents city bicycle octopus watch qualify salt

-ss sc -st- ps /u/ u o -ou -ough

glass scissors castle pseudonym umbrella son touch thoroughfare

/a/ a /l/ l -ll

apple ladder shell

/t/ t -tt -ed schwa

-le -il -al -el
tent letter skipped
/ul/ kettle pencil hospital camel

/i/ i -y /f/ f -ff ph -gh

insect cymbals feathers cliff photograph laugh

/p/ p -pp /b/ b -bb bu

pan puppet bat rabbit building

/n/ n -nn kn gn -ne /j/ j -ge ge gi gy -dge

net bonnet knot gnome engine jug cabbage gerbil giraffe gymnast fridge

/k/ k c -ck ch qu que /y/ y

kit cat duck chameleon bouquet plaque yawn

/e/ e -ea -ai a /ai/ ai a -ae a-e

egg head said again any many aid table sundae cakes

/h/ h wh -ay -ey eigh -ea -aigh

hat who tray prey eight break straight

/r/ r -rr wr rh /w/ w wh -u

rat arrow write rhinoceros web wheel penguin

/m/ m -mm -me -mb -mn /igh/ -igh -ie i -y i-e ei

map hammer welcome thumb column night tie behind shy bike eider duck
/oa/ oa o -oe o-e /sh/ sh ch -ti -ci -ssi
oak yo-yo oboe rope sheep chef station magician admission

ow -ough -eau unvoiced

th voiced
th
bow dough plateau
/th/ thistle
/th/ there

/ee/ ee e e-e -ey -ie -ine /kw/ qu

eel emu concrete key chief sardines queen

ea /i-ee/ -y -ey -ie /ou/ ou ow -ough

eat sunny monkey movie ouch owl plough

/or/ or ore oar -oor -our war /oi/ oi oy

fork snore oars door four wardrobe ointment toy

aw au -al augh ough quar /yoo/ -ue u u-e ew eu

dawn sauce chalk caught thought quarter statue unicorn tube new pneumatic drill

/z/ z -zz -s -se -ze /er/ er ir ur ear wor

zebra jazz fries cheese breeze mermaid birthday nurse earth world

/ng/ -ng -n /ngk/ -nk -nc schwa uh

-er -our -re -ar -or
gong jungle ink uncle
/er/ mixer humour theatre collar sailor

/v/ v -ve /ar/ ar a alm -alf -alves

violin dove artist father palm half calves
short
-oo -oul -u /air/ air -are -ear -ere
/oo/ book should push hair hare bear where
long
oo u-e -ew -ui -ou -o /eer/ eer ear -ere -ier
/oo/ moon flute crew fruit soup move deer ears adhere cashier

-ue /zh/ -si -s -z g -ge by

Debbie
blue television treasure azure courgette collage Hepplewhite

-x -ks -cks -kes /gz/ -x

The complexities of the English Alphabetic Code:
/ks/ 1. one sound (phoneme) can be represented by one, two, three or four letters
e.g. /a/ a, /f/ ph, /igh/ igh, /ai/ eigh
fox books ducks cakes exam 2. one sound can be represented by multiple spelling alternatives (graphemes)

/ch/ ch -tch /chu/ -ture 3.

e.g. /oa/: o, oa, ow, oe, o-e, eau, ough
one grapheme can represent multiple sounds
chairs patch picture e.g. ough: /oa/ though, /or/ thought, long /oo/ through, /ou/ plough, schwa /er/ thorough
 /s/
s -ss
s -ce
snake glass palace
1 2 5

-se ce ci cy
house cents city bicycle
6

sc -st- ps
scissors castle pseudonym
7 8 12

1
s -ss -ce -se -st-

ce ci cy sc

2
 /a/
Many words which start with
letter a are pronounced with
a sound which is closer to the
schwa uh sound like about.

a
apple
1

3
a

4
 /t/
t -tt -ed
tent letter She skipped.
1 3 4

5
t -tt -ed other

6
 /i/
i -y
insect cymbals
1 9

7
i -y other
women

8
 /p/
p -pp
pan puppet
1 3

9
p -pp

10
 /n/
n -nn kn
net bonnet knot
1 3 7

gn -ne
gnome engine
8 12

no

11
n -nn kn gn

-ne

12
 /k/
c k -ck
cat kit duck
1

ch qu que
chameleon bouquet plaque
7 11

13
c k -ck ch qu

que

14
 /e/
e -ea -ai
egg head said again
1 3 2

15
e -ea other
friend
said says
again
against
any many

16
 /h/
h wh
hat who ?
1 10

17
h wh
who
whom
whose
whole

18
 /r/
r -rr wr
rat arrow write
1 3 7

rh
rhinoceros

19
r -rr wr rh

20
 /m/
m -mm -mb
map hammer thumb
2 3 7

-mn -me
column welcome
12

21
m -mm -mb -me

-mn

22
 /d/
d -dd -ed
dig puddle rained
2 3 4

23
d -dd -ed

24
 /g/
g -gg gu
girl juggle guitar
2 3 7

gh -gue
ghost catalogue
8 12

25
g -gg gu -gue

gh

26
 /o/
o wa qua
octopus watch qualify
2 8

alt
salt
12

27
o wa qua alt

what
28
 /u/
u o -ou
umbrella son touch
2 8

-ough
thoroughfare
11

29
u o -ou

-ough

30
 /l/
l -ll
ladder shell
2

31
l -ll

32
 /ul/
-le -il -al
kettle pencil hospital
2 7

-el
camel

33
-le -il -al -el

34
 /f/
f -ff ph
feathers cliff photograph
2 8

-gh
laugh

35
f -ff ph -gh

36
 /b/
b -bb bu
bat rabbit buildings
2 3 7

37
b -bb bu

38
 /j/
j -ge -dge
jug cabbage fridge
2 5 7

ge gi gy
gerbil giraffe gymnast
6

39
j ge gy -ge -dge

gi

40
 /y/
y
yawn
2

41
y

42
 /ai/
ai -ay a
first aid tray table
2

-ae a-e -ey

sundae cakes prey
6 9

eigh -ea ________

-aigh
eight break straight

43
ai ay a a-e -ey

eigh

-ea

reins
reign
44
 /w/
w wh -u
web wheel penguin
2 3

45
w wh -u

46
 /oa/
oa ow o
oak bow piano
2 6

-oe o-e -ough

oboe rope dough
10

-eau
plateau
12

47
oa ow o o-e -oe

-eau

-ough

48
 /igh/
-ie -igh i
tie night behind
2

-y i-e ei
fly bike eider duck
6 9

49
-igh -ie i i-e -y
I

ei

eye
50
 /ee/
ee ea e
eel eat emu
3 2

e-e -y -ey
concrete sunny* key monkey*
6 4 9

-ie -ine */i-ee/

chief movie* sardines sunny monkey movie
12
may be pronounced between /i/ and /ee/

51
 ee ea e -y -ey

e-e -ie -i

people
52
 /or/
In various accents, some of these graphemes
may be pronounced closer to an /aw/ sound.

or aw au
fork dawn sauce
3 7

-al oar -oor

chalk oars door

ore -our war

snore four wardrobe
8

augh ough quar

caught thought quarter
11

53
 or aw au ore -our

-oor

-al (w, qu) -ar

-augh ough
oar

water
54
 /z/
z -zz -s
zebra jazz fries
3

-se -ze
cheese breeze

55
z -zz -s -se -ze

56
 /ng/
-ng -n
gong jungle
4 12

57
-ng -n

58
 /ngk/
-nk -nc
ink uncle
4 12

59
-nk -nc other

60
 /v/
v -ve
violin dove
4

61
v -ve

-vv

62
 short /oo/
-oo -oul -u
book should push
4 2

63
-oo -u other
push wolf wolves
pull
put
cushion

would
could
should
64
 long /oo/
oo -ue u-e
moon blue flute
4 5 6

-ew -ui -ou

crew fruit soup
10

-o -ough -u
move through superb
11

65
oo -ue u-e -ui -o
to do
who whom
whose

-ew -ou

-u

through
66
 /ks/
For spelling, think about singular words,
plural words and verb endings when you
identify /ks/ in the spoken word.

-x -ks -kes
fox books Max bakes cakes.
4

-cks -cs -ques

ducks We love picnics. plaques
11

67
-x -ks -kes -cks -cs

-ques

68
 /gz/
For spelling, think about singular words,
plural words and verb endings when you
identify /gz/ in the spoken word.

-x -gs -ggs
exam pegs eggs
7 2

. -gues
catalogues
12

69
-x -gs -ggs -gues

70
 /ch/
ch -tch
chairs patch
4 7

71
ch -ch -tch

72
 /chu/
-ture
picture
12

73
-ture

74
 /sh/
sh ch -ti
sheep chef station
4 8

-ci -ssi
magician admission

75
sh ch -ti -ci -ssi

76
 unvoiced /th/
th
thistles
4

77
th

78
 voiced /th/
th
over there
4

79
th

80
 /kw/
qu
queen
5

81
qu

82
 /ou/
ou ow -ough
ouch ! owl plough
5 11

83
 ou ow -ough

our house
every hour
84
 /oi/
oi oy
ointment toy
5

85
oi oy

86
 /yoo/
-ue u u-e
statue unicorn tube
5 2 6

ew eu
new shoes pneumatic drill
10

87
-ue u u-e ew eu

88
 /er/
er ir ur
mermaid birthday nurse
5 6

ear wor
earth world

89
er ir ur ear wor

90
 /er/
Many people pronounce the highlighted
graphemes close to an uh sound. The
schwa is an unstressed syllable and is
very common in spoken language.
schwa

-er -our -re

mixer humour theatre
5 6

-or -ar
sailor collar

91
-er -our -re -or -ar

other

92
 /ar/
ar a alm
artist father palm
5 12

-alf -alves
half calves

93
 ar a alm -alf

-alves

are
94
 /air/
air -are -ear
hair hare bear
6

-ere
where ?

95
 air -are -ear -ere

other

their things
heir
aeroplane heirloom
96
 /eer/
eer ear -ere
deer ears adhere
6

-ier
cashier

97
eer -ear -ere -ier

98
 /zh/
-si -s -z
television treasure azure
8

-g -ge
courgette collage

99
-si -s -g -ge

-z

100
1

Suggestions for use

Do you know about the fascinating historic development of the complex English alphabetic code for the writing and reading system?

Spelling in the English language: Even proficient adult spellers approach the spelling of words mainly through a phonics route (linking sounds and
graphemes) - based on their lifetimes experience of reading and writing - noting syllable chunks, general spelling patterns and unique spellings.
We teach beginners to spell with words consisting of simple spellings at first, identifying the sounds all-through-the-spoken-words (a skill called
oral segmenting), followed by learning, and thinking, w hich graphemes (letters or letter groups) to select to spell the words. This is a lifelong skill.
To spell well, we need to be able to identify the sounds from beginning to end of the words and think in terms of W hich spelling alternatives do I
need for this w ord? We become increasingly knowledgeable about spelling alternatives leading to the building up of, and recalling, spelling word
banks which consist of words with the same sounds and spellings (e.g. words with the grapheme ir as code for the /er/ sound: girl, bird, dirt, stir,
fir tree, shirt, skirt, birth, squirt, thirsty...). We also need to learn various unique spellings for individual words (e.g. yacht) and various small
groups of words with the same, unusual, spelling patterns (e.g. would, could, should in these words, oul is code for the short /oo/ sound).

The Phonics Spelling Dictionary raises spelling awareness and can be used in a number of ways to support the teaching and learning of spelling:

1) Words can be added in more than one section (by the beginning sound and grapheme, and/or where a medial or final grapheme is of interest: for
example, castle could be filed under c as code for the /k/ sound, under st as code for the /s/ sound and under le as code for the /ul/ sound).
Over time, note and learn which words are spelt with which alphabetic code (e.g. castle, whistle, trestle, nestle, glisten, listen, bustle... are all spelt
with st as code for the /s/ sound). Find ways to link these words together to recall them (e.g. write a spelling story, poem or play to include all the
words in a particular spelling word bank, then act out the story, or the list of words, and work in pairs to recall as many of the words as possible,
then repeat the words the next day to help embed the word list).
2) You can add any discovered sound/grapheme correspondences (alphabetic code not listed) to the sound picture pages and word pages.
3) Include words in your dictionary arising from incidental spelling across the curriculum and from systematic spelling lessons (for groups and
whole classes) to note specific spelling alternatives and patterns, spelling word banks and unique spellings.

The spelling routine is a sound to print process: Say the word to be spelt very slowly. Break down a longer word into syllable chunks first, then
identify the sounds all through each syllable to spell the word. Say the sound (aloud or silently) as you write each grapheme. Finally, check the
spelling by saying the sounds of the selected graphemes from left to right of the written word. If in doubt, check with a supporting adult, or check in
a conventional dictionary for confirmation of the spelling or use the spell-checker for computer-based writing.

* Use the Phonics Spelling Dictionary as a work in progress booklet for each individual to build up a personal spelling dictionary. Adults can
support and check, and contribute useful words, as required. Active participation in building up the spelling dictionary will increase learning.
*Share a spelling dictionary between pairs or small groups as appropriate. Adults can support, or direct, as required during spelling lessons and
throughout the wider curriculum. USE THE GRID LINES AS WRITING LINES AND WRITE CAREFULLY AT ALL TIMES.
The English language has a very complex alphabetic code. To support reading and spelling, the alphabetic code FREE To hear the sounds and see
or print the alphabetic code, visit
can be taught both systematically and incidentally. Display a main Alphabetic Code Chart in every classroom.
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