What Are Syllables, and How Do You Count Them?

A syllable is a beat of sound in a word. The beat can sometimes be part of a word, or the whole word. For example 'window' has two beats ('win' – 'dow') but 'door' has just one ('door'). Breaking words down into their syllables can be helpful when you are learning spellings.

For example:

The word banana has 3 syllables. Every syllable has one vowel sound.

ba + na + na

The word watermelon has 4 syllables. Every syllable has one vowel sound.

wa + ter + me + lon

For example:

The word banana has 3 syllables. Every syllable has one vowel sound.

ba + na + na

The word watermelon has 4 syllables. Every syllable has one vowel sound.

wa + ter + me + lon

Spelling time

Good job!