Oregon Educator Licensure Assessments (ORELA) Practice Exam

Which syllable pattern corresponds to the word "car"?

1. Open

2. R-controlled

3. Vowel teams

4. Consonant -le

The correct answer is: R-controlled

The word "car" features an r-controlled syllable pattern. In phonetics, an r-controlled vowel occurs when a vowel is followed by the letter "r," which alters the way the vowel is pronounced. In this case, the vowel "a" is followed by the "r," creating a distinct sound that is neither a typical long nor short vowel. This characteristic defines it as an r-controlled syllable. The other patterns do not apply to "car." An open syllable would end in a vowel that typically has a long sound, which does not occur here since "car" contains that r-controlled element. Vowel teams involve two vowels working together to make a single sound, which is also not present in "car." Lastly, a consonant-le pattern occurs when a syllable ends in a consonant followed by "le," which again is not the case here. Thus, the r-controlled pattern accurately describes the structure of the word "car."