Long I Sound Words

Long I at a glance:

• Words with i_e sound include bike, time, smile
• Words with i sound include child, kind, pilot
• Words with y sound include my, sky, reply
• Words with igh sound include sigh, tight, flight
• Words with ie sound include pie, tie, die

Spelling Frequencies:

• i_e - 37%
• i - 37%
• y - 14%
• igh - 6%
• ie - 2%

Rare Spelling Patterns:

• ais (aisle)
• ay (kayak)
• eigh (height)
• ye (bye)
• y_e (type)
• ei (feisty)
• is (island)
• uy (buy)
• ia (diamond)
• eye (eye)

Common Spelling Generalisations or Patterns:

• English words do not end in i
• i represents long i in open syllables and when followed by 2 consonants e.g. kind, child
• y and i may represent long i at the end of an open syllable e.g. ty/rant, gi/ant, li/on
• igh is typically used in the middle of a word, but can also be found at the end of word e.g. night, tight, sigh
• y is the most common way to spell long i at the end of a word e.g. by, cry, why
• When the long i sound is at the end of words with three or more syllables, the ‘y’ usually follows an ‘f’ e.g. testify, satisfy, terrify