Spelling the long vowel soung /ā/: a – e, ai, ei, ay

/ā/ as in ape

How to spell the long sound /ā/ sound:

1. In some words of more than one syllable you just need the letter a, for example:
acorn apron alien agent basic basin data fatal
(more on this in the next Unit – Syllables: Vowel and Consonant Patterns)
2. Sometimes youneed to add another letter, for example:
a – e as in snake ai as in train ay as in pray ei as in reindeer

Add e on the end. Many The next most common Use ay on the end of a Only few words use ei.
words use a – e to spell way is to use ai. word.
the long /ā/ sound. Some examples: Some examples: Some examples:
Some examples:
ale aid day reins*
ate* aim Sunday vein*
grade paid Monday veil*
made* fail Tuesday sheik*
trade mail* Wednesday reign*
bake sail* Thursday neigh
brake* tail* Friday weigh*
shake* snail Saturday sleigh*
stake* claim hay eight*
male* main* lay freight
sale* pain* may weight*
vale* chain pay
game plain* ray
flame stain say
frame vain* way*
mane* wait* clay
plane* gait* play
tape paint pray*
grape faint fray
scrape waist tray
chase again slay*
gate* afraid stay
grate* entail sway
plate explain spray
skate complain stray
paste contain away
taste detail always
waste* obtain betray
brave maintain dismay
shave remain display
blaze decay
graze delay
amaze essay
escape portray
inflate relay
translate
migrate
vibrate
behave
calculate
emigrate
estimate
hesitate

Notes:
Words marked * are
homophones.

Spelling list: a – e words – set 1

Many words spell the long /ā/ sound with the letters a – e.

grade He wanted to get good grades in school.

trade I’ll trade you my cards for yours.
bake Which cakes shall we bake today?
brake The car had to brake hard.
shake The earthquake made the ground shake.
game Some of the team was late for the game.
flame The flames of the fire kept us warm.
frame The picture frame is made of silver.
grape Wine is made from grapes.
chase I had to chase my dog through the field.
plate Please pass the plate of chips.
skate Tammy has a new skate board.
paste Cut and paste to move the picture.
taste Leeks taste a bit like onions.
waste Don’t waste your money on that ride.
brave ‘Bolder’ means ‘more brave’.
shave My brother wants to shave all his hair off.
blaze The firefighters quickly put out the blaze.
graze In spring the cows are turned out to graze.
Spelling list: a – e words – set 2

Many words spell the long /ā/ sound with the letters a- e.

amaze You never fail to amaze me!

debate The president took part in a TV debate.
escape He tried to escape from the cell.
inflate How quickly can you inflate all the balloons?
translate Can you translate from French?
migrate Some birds migrate at the same time each year.
vibrate The heavy truck made the bridge vibrate.
behave My dog is being trained to behave well.
inhale Inhale means to breath in.
exhale Exhale means to breathe out.
aeroplane The Wright brothers flew the first aeroplane.
calculate Calculate the cost of all the food.
emigrate Tom plans to emigrate to Mexico when he retires.
estimate I estimate we’ll land in forty minutes.
hesitate If you need me don’t hesitate to call.