The Magic E Rule
Adding a silent ‘e’ makes the vowel say its name — short vowel becomes long diphthong.
The Magic E Rule
Adding a silent ‘e’ to the end of a word makes the vowel say its name.
The E itself is silent — it is never pronounced. It just changes the vowel before it.
Illustrated examples
/kæp/
short /æ/
/keɪp/
long /eɪ/
/pɪn/
short /ɪ/
/paɪn/
long /aɪ/
/kʌb/
short /ʌ/
/kjuːb/
long /juː/
More examples — tap to hear
Tap any word to hear it and reveal the illustration.
/mæn/
/meɪn/
/kɪt/
/kaɪt/
/hɒp/
/hoʊp/
/mæd/
/meɪd/
/næp/
/neɪp/
/rɒd/
/roʊd/
/kɒd/
/koʊd/
/kʌt/
/kjuːt/
/hʌɡ/
/hjuːdʒ/
/tʌb/
/tjuːb/
/dɪm/
/daɪm/
/fɪn/
/faɪn/
/tæp/
/teɪp/
/pæn/
/peɪn/
/fæt/
/feɪt/
Pattern summary
A-E pattern
/æ/ → /eɪ/
cap → cape · man → mane · fat → fate
I-E pattern
/ɪ/ → /aɪ/
pin → pine · kit → kite · dim → dime
O-E pattern
/ɒ/ → /oʊ/
hop → hope · cod → code · rod → rode
U-E pattern
/ʌ/ → /juː/
cub → cube · cut → cute · tub → tube
Hear it in a sentence
“She wore a long silk cape over her shoulders at the costume party.”
“We hiked up the pine forest trail as the sun set behind the mountains.”
“He held on to hope that the delayed flight would still arrive that night.”
“The ice cube melted quickly in the warm lemonade.”
Hear it in the wild
Real speech from native speakers — the most reliable way to check a pronunciation, since automated audio can vary by device and browser.
cap
Hear native speakers say “cap” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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cape
Hear native speakers say “cape” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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pin
Hear native speakers say “pin” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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pine
Hear native speakers say “pine” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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cub
Hear native speakers say “cub” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
Opens YouTube-sourced clips in a new tab.
cube
Hear native speakers say “cube” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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man
Hear native speakers say “man” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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mane
Hear native speakers say “mane” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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kit
Hear native speakers say “kit” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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kite
Hear native speakers say “kite” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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hop
Hear native speakers say “hop” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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hope
Hear native speakers say “hope” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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mad
Hear native speakers say “mad” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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made
Hear native speakers say “made” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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nap
Hear native speakers say “nap” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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nape
Hear native speakers say “nape” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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rod
Hear native speakers say “rod” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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rode
Hear native speakers say “rode” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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cod
Hear native speakers say “cod” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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code
Hear native speakers say “code” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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cut
Hear native speakers say “cut” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
Opens YouTube-sourced clips in a new tab.
cute
Hear native speakers say “cute” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
Opens YouTube-sourced clips in a new tab.
hug
Hear native speakers say “hug” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
Opens YouTube-sourced clips in a new tab.
huge
Hear native speakers say “huge” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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tub
Hear native speakers say “tub” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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tube
Hear native speakers say “tube” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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dim
Hear native speakers say “dim” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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dime
Hear native speakers say “dime” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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fin
Hear native speakers say “fin” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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fine
Hear native speakers say “fine” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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tap
Hear native speakers say “tap” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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tape
Hear native speakers say “tape” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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pan
Hear native speakers say “pan” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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pane
Hear native speakers say “pane” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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fat
Hear native speakers say “fat” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
Opens YouTube-sourced clips in a new tab.
fate
Hear native speakers say “fate” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
Opens YouTube-sourced clips in a new tab.
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