Silent Letters in English
Silent Letters in English (ইংরেজিতে নীরব বর্ণ)
Introductionভূমিকা
English spelling keeps letters it no longer pronounces — the k in 'know', the b in 'comb', the w in 'write'. These silent letters trip up learners who try to say every letter. Knowing the common patterns lets you read new words with confidence.
ইংরেজি বানানে এমন বর্ণ থাকে যা আর উচ্চারণ হয় না — 'know'-এর k, 'comb'-এর b, 'write'-এর w। প্রতিটি বর্ণ উচ্চারণ করতে গিয়ে শিক্ষার্থীরা ভুল করে। সাধারণ প্যাটার্ন জানলে নতুন শব্দও আত্মবিশ্বাসে পড়া যায়।
Definitionসংজ্ঞা
A silent letter is a letter written in a word but not pronounced. English has many, often in fixed patterns: silent k before n (know), silent b after m (comb), silent w before r (write), silent l (talk), and silent gh (night).
Silent letter হলো এমন বর্ণ যা শব্দে লেখা থাকে কিন্তু উচ্চারণ হয় না। ইংরেজিতে অনেক আছে, প্রায়ই নির্দিষ্ট প্যাটার্নে: n-এর আগে k (know), m-এর পরে b (comb), r-এর আগে w (write), silent l (talk), silent gh (night)।
Bangla Explanationবাংলা ব্যাখ্যা
বাংলায় সাধারণত যা লেখা হয় তা-ই উচ্চারণ হয়, তাই ইংরেজির silent letter অস্বাভাবিক লাগে — আমরা 'know'-কে 'ক-নো' বা 'knife'-কে 'ক-নাইফ' বলে ফেলি। কিছু সহজ প্যাটার্ন মনে রাখুন: (১) 'kn'-এ k নীরব — know, knife, knee, knock; (২) 'mb'-এ শেষের b নীরব — comb, thumb, climb, lamb; (৩) 'wr'-এ w নীরব — write, wrong, wrist; (৪) অনেক শব্দে l নীরব — talk, walk, half, calm; (৫) 'gh' প্রায়ই নীরব — night, high, though; (৬) কিছু শব্দে h নীরব — hour, honest। প্যাটার্ন চিনে নিলে নতুন শব্দ দেখেই ঠিক পড়তে পারবেন।
Examplesউদাহরণ
- know — sounds like "NO", the k is silentজানা; k নীরব, 'NO'-এর মতো।
- knife — sounds like "NIFE", silent kছুরি; k নীরব।
- comb — sounds like "COHM", the b is silentচিরুনি; শেষের b নীরব।
- write — sounds like "RITE", the w is silentলেখা; w নীরব।
- talk — sounds like "TAWK", the l is silentকথা বলা; l নীরব।
- hour — sounds like "OUR", the h is silentঘণ্টা; h নীরব।
- night — sounds like "NITE", the gh is silentরাত; gh নীরব।
- island — sounds like "EYE-land", the s is silentদ্বীপ; s নীরব।
Common Mistakesসাধারণ ভুল
know pronounced "ka-now"
know said as "no"
In the 'kn' pattern the k is always silent (know, knee, knock, knife).
comb pronounced "komb" with a spoken b
comb said as "cohm"
In the 'mb' pattern the final b is silent (comb, thumb, climb, lamb).
write and wrong pronounced with a 'w'
write = "rite", wrong = "rong"
In the 'wr' pattern the w is silent (write, wrong, wrist, wrap).
hour and honest pronounced with an 'h'
hour = "our", honest = "onest"
In these words the h is silent, so 'an' is used before them: an hour, an honest man.
Tipsটিপস
- Learn silent letters as patterns (kn, mb, wr, gh) rather than one word at a time. — silent letter আলাদা শব্দ নয়, প্যাটার্ন (kn, mb, wr, gh) হিসেবে শিখুন।
- When you meet a new word, check a dictionary's pronunciation before assuming every letter is spoken. — নতুন শব্দে প্রতিটি বর্ণ উচ্চারিত ধরে নেওয়ার আগে অভিধানে উচ্চারণ দেখুন।
- Remember the h-words: use 'an hour' and 'an honest' because the h is silent. — h নীরব শব্দে 'an' বসে — an hour, an honest man।
- Group and repeat word families out loud: know–knee–knife, comb–thumb–climb. — শব্দ-পরিবার জোরে বলুন: know–knee–knife, comb–thumb–climb।
Quizকুইজ
Tap an answer to check yourself — a free preview of the full graded quiz in the app.
1. Which letter is silent in 'knife'?
2. How is 'comb' pronounced?
3. Which word has a silent 'h'?
Practiceঅনুশীলন
Try each one, then reveal the answer.
1. Cross out the silent letter: 'write'.
Hint: Look at the 'wr' start.
2. Say 'walk' and 'talk' — which letter do you drop?
Hint: Listen for the missing consonant.
3. Choose a or an: '___ honest answer'.
Hint: Silent h behaves like a vowel start.
Related Lessonsসম্পর্কিত পাঠ
- English Consonant SoundsMaster the English consonant sounds in Bangla and English: v vs w, f vs p, voiced vs voiceless, examples, common Bangla-speaker mistakes and a quiz.
- Word Stress in EnglishWord stress in english explained for Bangla speakers: which syllable to stress, examples like PHOtograph vs phoTOgraphy, mistakes and a free quiz.
- English Vowel SoundsLearn the English vowel sounds in Bangla and English: long vs short vowels, the ship/sheep difference, the schwa, examples, common mistakes and a free quiz.
AI Practiceএআই অনুশীলন
Practise this topic in a real conversation with your AI teacher — it asks questions, corrects you gently, and adapts to your level, all inside EnglishBD.
Practise with the AI teacher →Frequently Asked Questionsসাধারণ জিজ্ঞাসা
Why does English have silent letters?
Many were once pronounced but the sounds faded over centuries while the spelling stayed. Others come from the word's original language. The spelling kept the letters even after the sound was lost.
What are the most common silent-letter patterns?
Silent k before n (know), silent b after m (comb), silent w before r (write), silent l (talk, calm), silent gh (night) and silent h (hour, honest).
How do I know if a letter is silent?
Learn the common patterns above, and check a dictionary's pronunciation for new words. Over time the patterns become predictable and you can read most new words correctly.