Saturday, May 31, 2014

Rules for Predicting S or Z sound (besides 3rd person/plural endings)

Many sources have published the rules for pronouncing s or z at the end of a 3rd person singular or plural word.  Fewer sources have published other rules governing S and Z.  This is what I've come up with:

1)      The following letter combinations often make the “S” sound: ce, ci, cy, x, psy, consonant +se, cc +e, i or y, sc, ss and s
a.      Ce: Ice, rice, price, entrance, since, face, trace, peace, place, niece, procedure, necessary, police, office, license, cent, certain, receive, cell
b.      Ci: Accident, decision, circulate, acid, aerobicize, anglicize, annunciate, carcinogen, cigar, anticipate, homicide, society, athleticism, calcium, cinch, circus, civil, crucify, decimal, docile
                                                               i.      Exceptions: (sh instead) ancient, commercial, artificial, social, appreciate, atrocious, suspicious
c.      Cy: Lucy, lacy, fancy, juicy, cylinder, cycle, vacancy, conspiracy, cymbal, cyanide, cyber, cypress, cyst
d.      X + consonant, unstressed vowel or final X: excavate, exceed, exhale, axle, expire, expert, expect, extreme, extra, next, elixir, toxic, axon, fix
                                                               i.      Exception: (sh instead) sexual, luxury, complexion
e.      Ps (beginning of word): Psychology, pseudo, psalm, psyllium
f.        Consonant +se: Course, worse, disperse, hoarse, corpse, eclipse, tense, expense, censor, rinse, immense, defense, Farsi, absent, false, curtsey
                                                               i.      Exception: observe, birdseye, cleanse
g.      Cc + e, i or y: accent, accept, accident, success, eccentric, accessory, vaccine
                                                               i.      Exception: bocci, soccer, cappuccino
h.      Sc: ascent, crescent, descend, disciple, fascinate, fluorescent, isosceles, luminescent, miscellaneous, muscle, obscene, resuscitate, scenario, scene, scent, science, scissors
i.        Ss: lesson, gloss, chess, bassoon, assign, assist, assassinate, address
j.        s: soft, escape, small, statistics, mistake, chemistry, minister, register, miniscule, slow, snow, spout, spray, display, squeak, sweet

2)      The following letter combinations often make the “Z” sound:
a.      X + stressed vowel: examine, example, exact, exist, executive, exotic, exude, exuberant, exult
                                                               i.      Exception: ation words: taxation. relaxation
b.      S is between two vowel sounds: music, reason, season, cousin, disease, easy, posie, resign, isn’t, present, physician, position, positive, president, preside, visit, physique
                                                               i.      Exception:  second vowel sound begins plural or 3rd person ending or other suffix:  leases, places, nooses, houses (noun), defenses, busing, curiosity
                                                             ii.      Exception: (zh instead) ambrosia, corrosion
                                                            iii.      Exception: atherosclerosis
c.      Vowel + se: use (verb), these, lose, cause, because, choose, phase, tease, raise, cruise 
                                                               i.      exceptions: promise, house (noun), use (noun), close (adj.), mouse, lease, loose, moose, noose, caboose, chartreuse, dose
d.      ZZ:  dizzy, puzzle, fuzz
                                                               i.      Exception: (Italian words) pizza, pizzicato
e.      Z: Zipper, crazy, doze, razor
f.        Other: Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, lens

3)      S can be silent:  aisle, island, isle, debris, Arkansas, Illinois, rendezvous, corps

4)   Z can be silent: rendezvous, laissez-faire

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