syllables

A syllable is a unit of speech sound built around one peak, usually a vowel, with any consonants that cluster before or after it.

Linguists describe three positions inside a syllable. The nucleus is the peak, most often a vowel. The onset is whatever consonants come before it, and the coda is whatever follows. In the English word cat, the onset is the k sound, the nucleus is the vowel and the coda is the t sound. A syllable that ends in a vowel is called open, and one that ends in a consonant is called closed. Languages differ in the shapes they allow: nearly all permit open syllables, while some permit no closed ones at all. Syllables also carry stress and tone, so they set the rhythm of speech and of verse.

Syllables matter because they are the size of piece that speakers hear, say and count naturally. Poets measure lines by them, and some writing systems, such as the Japanese kana, give each one a symbol of its own. For anyone learning to read, spell or pronounce an unfamiliar word, cutting it into syllables turns a long string of letters into a few pieces that can each be spoken aloud.