Spelling the /er/ Sound with the Letters er

Sep 12, 2023

2 min read

The letters er are the most common way to spell the /er/ sound. They make the /er/ sound about 40% of the time. Unfortunately, there is no rule for when the letters er make the /er/ sound within words. Students will have to orthographically map the spellings of words with the /er/ sound. Luckily, most kids only need one to four exposures to a word to orthographically map it for reading. Spelling will likely take more practice.

Rules for the /er/ Sound with the Letters ER

While we don’t have rulers for the letters er making the -er sound in words, -er is also a suffix. The suffix -er is always spelled with the letters er. There are even two different suffixes spelled with the letters -er.

First, we use -er to turn a verb into a person who does that action.

teach –> teacher

bake –> baker

listen –> listener

paint –> painter

Second, we use -er to turn adjectives into comparative adjectives. Comparative adjectives compare the quality of two things. We often learn about comparative adjectives with superlative adjectives. Superlative adjectives compare the quality of three or more things.

soft –> softer

pretty –> prettier

nice –> nicer

cold –> colder

Practicing the /er/ Sound with the Letters ER

Here is the word list I promised! Click on the picture, and you will get to the .pdf.

free spelling practice list for the er sound spelled er

Reading and Spelling Practice

Learning to read and learning to spell are closely connected. Students will learn how to read faster than they learn how to spell, but reading practice improves spelling and spelling practice improves reading.

Want more reading practice? Check out the scope and sequence for my Learning to Read program.