hop · hope

Magic E — short /ɒ/ vs diphthong /oʊ/: one silent letter changes everything.

A classic magic E pair. Adding a silent e to hop changes the vowel completely: short /ɒ/ (hop) becomes a diphthong /oʊ/ (hope). The vowel gets longer and changes shape.

The magic E rule

h-o-p+ silent e →h-o-p-e→/hɒp/becomes/hoʊp/

⠿ reorder

verb — a small jump — 'The rabbit hops across the field'

mouth shape

short /ɒ/ — jaw drops open, back of mouth, quick — like 'top', 'stop', 'got'

hop

/hɒp/

vowel length

short /ɒ/

⠿ reorder

noun / verb — an expectation of good — 'I hope it goes well'

mouth shape

diphthong /oʊ/ — lips round and glide forward, held longer — like 'go', 'show', 'low'

hope

/hoʊp/

vowel length

diphthong /oʊ/

Key difference

hop /ɒ/: short and open — jaw drops, back of mouth, quick — like top, pot, got. hope /oʊ/: diphthong — lips round, vowel glides and holds — like go, show, low. Silent E makes the vowel longer and changes its quality.

More magic E pairs

hop→hope

not→note

rod→rode

cod→code

Example sentences

hop:“The frog gave a little hop and landed on the lily pad.”

hope:“I hope you feel better soon.”

Hear it in a sentence

“The rabbit gave a little hop and disappeared under the hedge.”

“She held onto the hope that the test results would come back clear.”

Hear it in the wild