2.13: The Consonant Sound [s]

Overview of the Consonant Sound [s]

Three spellings of [s] are <s>, <c>, and <ss>.

Examples

You can hear the sound [s] at the beginning and end of stops.

Review

Underline the letters that spell [s]. It is spelled three different ways.

Use the twelve words above to answer the following questions.
Way #1: [s] is spelled ______ in five of the words.
Way #2: [s] is spelled ______ in four of the words.
Way #3: [s] is spelled ______ in three of the words.

Sort the words into these three groups.

Words with [s] spelled ...
Way #1:	Way #2:	Way #3:

Show Answer

Way #1: [s] is spelled <s> in five of the words.
Way #2: [s] is spelled <c> in four of the words.
Way #3: [s] is spelled <ss> in three of the words.

Words with [s] spelled ...
Way #1:	Way #2:	Way #3:
asked	century	across
coldest	placing	kiss
single	icy	guess
elephants	once
school

Explore More

Word Squares. Each of the following words contains the sound [s], spelled either <s>, <ss>, or <c>. Fit the words into the squares. Be sure to cross off each one as you fit it into the Squares.

Three-letter word: icy

Four-letter words: kiss, once, song

Five-letter words: asked, cents, guess, sound

Six-letter words: across, resell, summer, thanks

Seven-letter words: century, coldest, guessed, hardest, hottest, nearest, placing, spotted, started, starter, stopped, sunning, swimmer

Eight-letter words: lightest, smallest, surprise

Nine-letter words: elephants, hungriest, something

Show Answer

Spelling [s]

About 97% of the time, [s] is spelled <s>, <c>, or <ss>.

We often use a silent final <e> to insulate a single <s> so that it does not come at the end of a base and look like an -s suffix, as in words like lapse and tense (compared to the plurals laps and tens). Very few free bases end in [s] spelled with a single <s>. The only common ones are this, bus, us, gas, canvas, chaos, sis, plus, and yes.

Usually when the <s> spelling of [s] comes at the very end of a word without the insulating final <e>, it is either the -s suffix, as in verbs like obstructs or plural nouns like contracts, or it is part of a suffix like -ous, -us, or -ics, as in words like courageous, radius, and mathematics.

Examples

You can hear the sound [s] at the beginning, in the middle, and at the end of the word success. In success [s] is spelled three different ways: <s>, <c>, and <ss>.

Review

Underline the letters that spell [s] in each of the following words.
\begin{align*} &\text{scratch} && \text{immigrants} && \text{smoky} && \text{situation}\\ &\text{asphalt} && \text{collapse} && \text{mathematics} && \text{radius}\\ &\text{impulse} &&\text{demonstrate} && \text{immense} && \text{analysis}\\ &\text{status} &&\text{schedule} && \text{scandal} && \text{distinguish}\\ &\text{adults} &&\text{dangerous} && \text{destroy} && \text{courageous}\\ &\text{dispatch} &&\text{desserts} && \text{congested} && \text{symphony}\\ &\text{instruction} &&\text{squeezed} && \text{seizure} && \text{emphasis}\end{align*}

Sort the twenty-eight words into the following three groups. Some words go into more than one group.

Words with [s] ...
at the front	in the middle	at the end

In all of these words [s] is spelled _______. The sound [s] is spelled this way about 75% of the time.

The <s> spelling of [s] often occurs in consonant clusters - that is, with one or more consonants before or after it. Nineteen of the words above contain [s] spelled <s> in a consonant cluster. List the words in the blanks below and underline the cluster in each that contains the <s> that spells [s].

Analyze the following words into stem plus suffix.

Word	= Stem	+ Suffix
5. instructs	=	+
6. courageous	=	+
7. mathematics	=	+
8. status	=	+
9. scandalous	=	+
10. adults	=	+
11. immigrants	=	+
12. dangerous	=	+
13. chorus	=	+
14. radius	=	+

Show Answer

\begin{align*}& \underline{s}cratch && immigrant\underline{s} && \underline{s}moky && \underline{s}ituation \\& a\underline{s}phalt && collap\underline{s}e && mathematic\underline{s} && radiu\underline{s}\\& impul\underline{s}e && demon\underline{s}trate && immen\underline{s}e && analy\underline{s}i\underline{s}\\& \underline{s}tatu\underline{s} && \underline{s}chedule && \underline{s}candal && di\underline{s}inguisted\\& adult\underline{s} && dangerou\underline{s} && de\underline{s}troy && courageou\underline{s}\\& di\underline{s}patch && dessert\underline{s} && conge\underline{s}ted && \underline{s}ymphony\\& in\underline{s}truction && \underline{s}queezed && \underline{s}eizure && empha\underline{s}i\underline{s} \end{align*}

Words with [s]...
at the front	in the middle	at the end
sandwich	asphalt	impulse	mathematics
status	dispatch	status	immense
schedule	instruction	adults	radius
squeezed	demonstrate	immigrants	analysis
smoky	destroy	collapse	courageous
scandal	congested	dangerous	emphasis
seizure	analysis	desserts
situation	distinguish
symphony	emphasis

In all of these words [s] is spelled <s>. The sound [s] is spelled this way about 75% of the time.

\begin{align*}& a\underline{sph}alt && di\underline{sp}atch && demon\underline{str}ate && mathemat\underline{ics} \\& conge\underline{st}ed && impu\underline{lse} && in\underline{str}uction && \underline{sch}edule\\& imme\underline{ns}e && di\underline{st}inguish && \underline{st}atus && immigra\underline{nts}\\& \underline{squ}eezed && \underline{sc}andal && adu\underline{lts} && colla\underline{pse}\\& \underline{sm}oky && de\underline{str}oy\end{align*}

Word	= Stem	+ Suffix
5. instructs	= instruct	+ s
6. courageous	= courage	+ ous
7. mathematics	= mathematic	+ s
8. status	= stat e	+ us
9. scandalous	= scandal	+ ous
10. adults	= adult	+ s
11. immigrants	= immigrant	+ s
12. dangerous	= danger	+ ous
13. chorus	= chor	+ us
14. radius	= radi	+ us

[s] Spelled <ss>

The sound [s] is most often spelled <s>, but it is often spelled <ss>.

Review

Underline the <ss> spellings of [s] in the following words.
\begin{align*} & \text{abyss} && \text{assimilation} && \text{forgiveness} && \text{lioness} \\ & \text{associate} && \text{compress} && \text{caress} && \text{messenger} \\ & \text{bussing} && \text{neighborliness} && \text{gassed} && \text{dangerousness} \\ & \text{foreignness} && \text{ambassador} && \text{misscheduled} && \text{ misspelling} \\ & \text{dissatisfaction} && \text{processor} && \text{recess} && \text{dissension} \\ & \text{venerableness} && \text{missile} && \text{fussy} && \text{plusses}\end{align*}

Two of the twenty-four words above have <ss> because of the full assimilation of the prefix ad- when it was added to a stem that started with <s>. List the two below in the Words column and then analyze them into prefix plus stem and show the full assimilation. As you do them check them off the list above:

Words	Anlysis: Prefix + Stem
associate	a d+ s + sociate

It is rare for <ss> to be due to twinning, for so few free bases end in a single <s>. But three of the twenty-four words above have <ss> due to twinning. List them below, analyze them to show the twinning, and cross them off of the list above:

Word	Analysis: Stem + Suffix

Four of the twenty-four words have <ss> due to simple addition when the prefix dis- or mis- was added to a stem that started with <s>. List them below, analyze them to show the simple addition, and cross them off of the list above:

Word	Analysis: Prefix + Stem

Although the sound [s] is never spelled <ss> at the beginning of words or elements, it is often spelled <ss> at the very end of words. Ten of the twenty-four words above end with <ss>. Five of them end with the same suffix. List those five below; analyze each into stem plus suffix or suffixes, and cross them of the list above:

Word	Analysis: Stem + Suffix(es)

The remaining five words that end in <ss> all have short vowels right in front of the [s] so the <ss> spelling makes a regular VCC pattern. Write those five into the table below:
Also, there should be five words remaining on your list of twenty-four words that contain <ss> in the middle; all five have short vowels in front of the [s]. Write the five words below and mark the VCC pattern in each one:

Show Answer

\begin{align*} & aby\underline{ss} && a\underline{ss}imilation && forgivene\underline{ss} && lione\underline{ss} \\ & a\underline{ss}ociate && compre\underline{ss} && care\underline{ss} && me\underline{ss}enger \\ & bu\underline{ss}ing && neighborline\underline{ss} && ga\underline{ss}ed && dangerousne\underline{ss} \\ & foreignne\underline{ss} && amba\underline{ss}ador && mi\underline{ss}cheduled && mi\underline{ss}pelling \\ & di\underline{ss}atisfaction && proce\underline{ss}or && rece\underline{ss} && di\underline{ss}ension \\ & venerablene\underline{ss} && mi\underline{ss}ile && fu\underline{ss}y && plu\underline{ss}es\end{align*}

abyss	assimilation	forgiveness	lioness
associate	compress	caress	messenger
bussing	neighborliness	gassed	dangerousness
foreignness	ambassador	misscheduled	misspelling
dissatisfaction	processor	recess	dissension
venerableness	missile	fussy	plusses

Words	Analysis: Prefix + Stem
associate	a d + s + sociate
assimilation	a d + s + similate

Word	Analysis: Stem + Suffix
bussing	bus + s + ing
gassed	gas + s + ed
plusses	plus + s + es

Word	Analysis: Prefix + Stem
dissatisfaction	dis + satisfaction
misscheduled	mis + scheduled
misspelling	mis + spelling
dissension	dis + sension

Word	Analysis: Stem + Suffix(es)
foreignness	foreign + ness
venerableness	venerable + ness
neighborliness	neighbor + l y + i + ness
forgiveness	forgive + ness
dangerousness	danger + ous + ness

abyss	success	recess
compress	caress

ambassador	missile	messenger
processor	fussy

[s] Spelled <se> or <ss> at the End of Words

In English we tend to avoid ending words with a single <s> that comes at the end of a base. To keep the single <s> from coming at the end, sometimes we double the <s>. Sometimes we add a final <e>.

There are four very common bases that end <ss> and that often come at the end of words and free stems. Two of them are free bases: pass, with an original meaning “step, pace” and press, “press, squeeze.” Two of them are bound bases: cess, with an original meaning “go” and miss, with an original meaning “let go, cause to go.”

Examples

The final <s> is doubled in fuss and caress.

A final <e> is added to intense and impulse. In words like intense and impulse the final <e> is not marking a long vowel, or a soft <c>, a soft <g> or a voiced <th>. It is just insulating the <s>, keeping it from coming at the end of the base and word.

Review

The following words all end with a base that itself ends with the sound [s]. In each case [s] is spelled <ss> or it is spelled <s> with an insulating final <e>. Words marked n. are nouns. Sort the words into the matrix.
\begin{align*} &\text{intense} && \text{collapse} && \text{fuss} && \text{impulse} \\ &\text{abyss} && \text{excuse}(n.) && \text{reverse} && \text{purchase}\\ &\text{merchandise}(n.) && \text{dispense} && \text{caress} && \text{surpass} \\ &\text{false} && \text{release} && \text{abuse}(n.) && \text{geese} \\ &\text{dismiss} && \text{possess} && \text{immense} && \text{kiss}\end{align*}

Words that end with [s] spelled...
	<s> with an insulating <e>	<ss>
Words that end with a base and have a stressed short vowel right in front of the final [s]
Words that end with a base but do not have a stressed short vowel right in front of the final [s]

In bases that end in an [s] sound spelled either <se> or <ss>, if there is a stressed short vowel sound right in front of the final [s], the [s] will be spelled _______. Otherwise, the [s] will be spelled _______ with an insulating _______.
Each of the following words contains one of these four bases. Analyze the words into their elements as given in the Formula column: ‘P’ means “Prefix,” ‘FB’ means “Free Base,” ‘BB’ means “Bound Base,” and ‘S’ means “Suffix.”

Word	Formula	Analysis
3. impressively	P + B + S¹ + S²
4. submissive	P + BB + S
5. accessed	P + BB + S
6. surpassing	P + FB + S
7. expressive	P + FB + S
8. processor	P + BB + S
9. missiles	BB + S¹ + S²
10. passage	FB + S
11. excessive	P + BB + S
12. abscessed	P + BB + S
13. underpass	P + FB
14. trespassing	P + FB + S

Show Answer

Words that end with [s] spelled...
	<s> with an insulating <e>	<ss>
Words that end with a base and have a stressed short vowel right in front of the final [s]		abyss dismiss possess fuss caress surpass recess kiss
Words that end with a base but do not have a stressed short vowel right in front of the final [s]	intense merchandise false collapse excuse dispense release reverse abuse immense impulse purchase

In bases that end in an [s] sound spelled either <se> or <ss>, if there is a stressed short vowel sound right in front of the final [s], the [s] will be spelled <ss>. Otherwise, the [s] will be spelled <s> with an insulating (silent final) <e>.

Word	Formula	Analysis
3. impressively	P + B + S + S	i n + m + press + ive + ly
4. submissive	P + BB + S	sub + miss + ive
5. accessed	P + BB + S	a d + c + cess + ed
6. surpassing	P + FB + S	sur + pass + ing
7. expressive	P + FB + S	ex + press + ive
8. processor	P + BB + S	pro + cess + or
9. missiles	BB + S + S	miss + ile + s
10. passage	FB + S	pass + age
11. excessive	P + BB + S	ex + cess + ive
12. abscessed	P + BB + S	abs + cess + ed
13. underpass	P + FB	under + pass
14. trespassing	P + FB + S	tres + pass + ing

Another Suffix with <ss>

In many words the sound [s] is spelled <ss> in the suffixes -less and -ness. Another suffix that ends <ss> is -ess, which adds the meaning “female, feminine” to nouns: host “male” + ess = hostess “female”

Sometimes, when -ess is added to a male noun that ends in the suffixes -er or -or, an unusual deletion occurs: waiter + ess = wait e r + ess = waitress; actor + ess = act o r + ess = actress. In these cases when the -ess is added, we delete the <e> or <o> in front of the final <r>.

Today we are less anxious to distinguish between males and females in our words than people were in the past. Some people find words ending in -ess to be offensive, and many of the -ess words are falling out of use. But we still do use a number of words that contain -ess and thus the <ss> spelling of [s].

Examples

In the male nouns ending in -er or -or that you have worked with so far, the -ess was added to the male noun. Sometimes, however, the -ess is added to the same stem to which the -er or -or is added to form the male noun, as with the stem sorcer.

Stem	Male Noun: Stem plus -er or -or	Female Noun: Stem plus -ess
sorcer	sorcerer	sorceress

Review

Analyze each of the following nouns into stem noun and suffix. Show any changes that took place when the suffix and stem combined:

Noun	= Stem Noun	+ Suffix
1. hostess	= host	+ ess
2. lioness	=	+
3. goddess	=	+
4. princess	=	+
5. countess	=	+
6. poetess	=	+

Now try some the other away around. Add the suffix -ess to the stem nouns to form new nouns, showing any changes:

Stem Noun	+ Suffix	= Noun
7. priest	+ ess	= priestess
8. giant	+	=
9. steward	+	=
10. shepherd	+	=
11. prince	+	=
12. god	+	=

Analyze the following words to show that change:

Noun	= Stem Noun	+ Suffix
13. waitress	= wait e r	+ ess
14. actress	= act o r	+ ess
15. tigress	=	+
16. huntress	=	+
17. enchantress	=	+
18. eldress	=	+
19. tempter	=	+
20. mister	=	+

Write out the male and female nouns in the two right hand columns and be ready to talk about any changes that too place:

Stem	Male Noun: Stem plus -er or -or	Female Noun: Stem plus -ess
21. murder
22. govern
23. adventure
24. launder

Show Answer

Noun	= Stem Noun	+ Suffix
1. hostess	= host	+ ess
2. lioness	= lion	+ ess
3. goddess	= god +d	+ ess
4. princess	= princ e	+ ess
5. countess	= count	+ ess
6. poetess	= poet	+ ess

Stem Noun	+ Suffix	= Noun
7. priest	+ ess	= priestess
8. giant	+ ess	= giantess
9. steward	+ ess	= stewardess
10. shepherd	+ ess	= shepherdess
11. prince	+ ess	= princess
12. god +d	+ ess	= goddess

Noun	= Stem Noun	+ Suffix
13. waitress	= wait e r	+ ess
14. actress	= act o r	+ ess
15. tigress	= tig e r	+ ess
16. huntress	= hunt e r	+ ess
17. enchantress	= enchant e r	+ ess
18. eldress	= eld e r	+ ess
19. tempteress	= tempt e r	+ ess
20. misteress	= mist e r	+ ess

Stem	Male Noun Stem plus -er or -or	Female Noun Stem plus -ess
21. murder	murderer	murderess
22. govern	governor	governess
23. adventure	adventurer	adventuress
24. launder	launderer	laundress

[s] Spelled <c> or <sc>

The sound [s] is spelled <s> or <ss> about eight times out of ten. The rest of the time it is usually spelled <c>.

The letter <c> spells the sound [s] only when it is followed by the letters <e>, <i>, or <y>. When the letter <c> spells the sound [s], it is called soft <c>.

Examples

Whenever <c> spells [s], there will be an <e>, <i>, or <y> following it. But the problem is that often [s] is spelled with an <s> with an <e>, <i>, or <y> after it, too. Read the following pairs of words aloud and look at how [s] is spelled in each of them:

\begin{align*} &\text{sell} && \text{cell}\\ &\text{sent} && \text{cent}\\ &\text{serial} && \text{cereal}\\ &\text{site} && \text{cite}\\ &\text{symbol} && \text{cymbal}\end{align*}

Words like the ones in each of these pairs are called homophones. Homo- means “same,” and phone means “sound.” Homophones are two or more words that have the same sound but different meanings and spellings:

\begin{align*} &\text{sent} && \text{cent}\\ &\text{scent}\\ &\text{site} && \text{cite}\\ &\text{sight}\end{align*}

Review

Underline the letters that spell [s] is each of the following words:
\begin{align*} &\text{perceive} && \text{certainty} && \text{emergency} &&\text{reduce}\\ &\text{icily} && \text{prejudice} && \text{deception} && \text{icy}\\ &\text{introducing} && \text{dependence} &&\text{conscience} &&\text{criticism}\\ &\text{receipt} && \text{balance} && \text{produce} && \text{ceiling}\\ &\text{citizen} && \text{decision} && \text{secession} && \text{accelerate}\\ &\text{advancing} && \text{juicy} && \text{assurance} &&\text{piece}\end{align*}

Sort the words into these three groups:

Words with <c> followed by an ...
<e>		<i>	<y>

The <sc> spelling of [s] is very rare, but it does occur in a few common words. Underline all of the different spellings of [s] in the words below:
\begin{align*} &\text{susceptible} && \text{scissors} && \text{descent} && \text{science}\\ &\text{abscess} && \text{discipline} && \text{ascend} && \text{scenic}\\ &\text{scent} && \text{ascertain} && \text{fascinate} && \text{scythe}\\ &\text{scientific} && \text{condescension} && \text{discern} && \text{fluorescent}\end{align*}

Now sort the sixteen words into these three groups:

Words in which <sc> is followed by an ...
<e>		<i>	<y>

Four ways of spelling [s] are _______, _______, _______, and _______.

Show Answer

\begin{align*}& per\underline{c}eive && \underline{c}ertainty && emergen\underline{c}y && redu\underline{c}e \\& i\underline{c}ily && prejudi\underline{c}e && de\underline{c}eption && i\underline{c}y \\& introdu\underline{c}ing && dependen\underline{c}e && conscien\underline{c}e && criti\underline{c}ism \\& re\underline{c}eipt && balan\underline{c}e && produ\underline{c}e && \underline{c}eiling \\& \underline{c}itizen && de\underline{c}ision && se\underline{c}ession && ac\underline{c}elerate \\& advan\underline{c}ing && jui\underline{c}y && assuran\underline{c}e && pie\underline{c}e\end{align*}

Words with <c> followed by an ...
<e>		<i>	<y>
perceive	conscience	icily	juicy
receipt	produce	introducing	emergency
certainty	assurance	citizen	icy
dependence	reduce	advancing
balance	ceiling	decision
secession	accelerate	piece
deception	prejudice	criticism

\begin{align*}& \underline{s}u\underline{sc}eptible && \underline{sc}issors && de\underline{sc}ent && \underline{sc}ien\underline{c}e \\& ab\underline{sc}e\underline{ss} && di\underline{sc}ipline && a\underline{sc}end && \underline{sc}enic \\& \underline{sc}ent && a\underline{sc}ertain && fa\underline{sc}inate && \underline{sc}ythe \\& \underline{sc}ientific && conde\underline{sc}ension && di\underline{sc}ern && fluore\underline{sc}ent\end{align*}

Words in which <sc> is followed by an ...
<e>		<i>	<y>
susceptible	descent	scientific	scythe
abscess	ascend	scissors
scent	discern	discipline
ascertain	scenic	fascinate
condescension	fluorescent	science

Four ways of spelling [s] are <s> , <ss>, <c>, and <sc>.

Rare Spellings of [s]

The sound [s] is spelled <s>, <ss>, or <c> just about all of the time. Occasionally it is spelled <sc>. On rare occasions, [s] is spelled <st>, <ps>, <sw>, and <z>.

Examples

In words like castle and fasten, where there is an <le> or an <en> right after the <st>, the <t> is not pronounced. It was pronounced a long time ago, but not anymore. Notice that we still pronounce the [t] in some words, like consistent or restless - though you can feel how hard it is to keep it in a word like restless. It is the loss of that earlier [t] that leads to the rare <st> spelling of [s].

The <ps> in psalm, psychology, and psychiatrist comes from the Greek letter psi,Ψ, pronounced [sī]. When Greek words were taken into Latin and English, psi was represented by <ps>. The <p> was pronounced long ago, but gradually it came not to be, which leads to the rare <ps> spelling of [s].

The <w> is not pronounced in answer because the [w] sound tends to drop out when it is weakly stressed and is followed by [r]. Notice that there is also no [w] in conquer, with a following [r], but there is one in conquest, with no following [r]. The same pattern holds in liquor and liquid. Answer is related to the word swear, in which the <w> is pronounced, because swear is usually stressed. Remembering the relationship with swear can help you remember to put the <w> in answer.

The <w> is not pronounced in sword because [w] is sometimes lost in front of certain vowel sounds. This is the same thing that led to our dropping the [w] sound in two.

The [s] in words like waltz and quartz comes from German. In German <z> is pronounced [ts]. So in these words [s] is spelled <z>.

Review

Underline the letters that spell [s]:
\begin{align*} &\text{castle} && \text{psalm} && \text{psychology} && \text{fastener}\\ &\text{psychiatrist} && \text{listen} && \text{wrestle} && \text{moisten}\\ &\text{answer} && \text{sword} && \text{quartz} && \text{rustle}\\ &\text{hasten} && \text{waltz} && \text{whistle} && \text{thistle}\end{align*}

You should have found four different spellings of [s]. The first spelling occurs in nine words. The second spelling occurs in three words, and the third and fourth spellings occur in two words each. Label the four groups below and sort the words into them:

Words with [s] spelled ...
<st>		<ps>	<sw>	<z>
castle	fastener	psychiatrist	answer	waltz
hasten	moisten	psalm	sword	quartz
listen	rustler	psychology
wrestle	thistle
whistle

Show Answer

\begin{align*}& ca\underline{st}le && \underline{ps}alm && \underline{ps}ychology && fa\underline{st}en\\ & \underline{ps}ychiatrist && li\underline{st}en && wre\underline{st}le && moi\underline{st}en\\ & an\underline{sw}er && \underline{sw}ord && quart\underline{z} && ru\underline{st}le\\& ha\underline{st}en && walt\underline{z} && whi\underline{st}le && thi\underline{st}le\end{align*}

Words with [s] spelled ...
<st>		<ps>	<sw>	<z>
castle	fastener	psychiatrist	answer	waltz
hasten	moisten	psalm	sword	quartz
listen	rustler	psychology
wrestle	thistle
whistle