IELTS Laboratory
Menu
Log in

Homework series · speakers

Consonant clusters

By Will SalisburyUpdated

A consonant cluster is a group of two or more consonant sounds said together with no vowel between them, like /str/ in street or /sts/ at the end of tests. English allows up to three consonants at the start of a syllable and four at the end. Say them as one smooth blend and do not add a vowel.

1 · Read the problems2 · One lesson a day3 · Review your mistakes4 · Go round again

1 · Pronunciation

Hear it, see it, say it

IELTS tip. In the Speaking test your answers are full of clusters in everyday words: friends, projects, months, asked, strongly. If you drop or split them, listeners can lose plurals and past tenses. Practise the endings of the words you use most, such as 'projects' and 'I worked', before a pause.

How to make it

  1. Start with a long /s/: tongue tip close to the ridge behind your top teeth, air hissing, no voice.
  2. Move to /t/ without adding a vowel: touch the ridge, then release.
  3. Move to /r/ or /l/ with your voice on, still before the vowel.
  4. Only now open into the vowel: street, spring, school.

Say it after me

school (add a vowel: 'eschool')
school /skuːl/
plan (split: 'pelan')
asked (drop the end: 'ask')
asked /ɑːskt/
tests (add a vowel: 'testsu')
tests /tests/
help (add a vowel: 'helpu')

street, spring, school, plans, asked, texts, worlds, sixth, twelfth

Quick answers

How many consonants can English have together?

Up to three at the start of a syllable, like street, and up to four at the end, like texts. The start clusters of three always begin with /s/.

Is a cluster about letters or sounds?

Sounds. Knife begins with the letters kn but the k is silent, so it starts with a single sound /n/.

Why do I add a vowel?

Your first language probably does not allow some clusters, so your mouth adds a vowel to make the word easier. You can train yourself to blend the consonants instead.

Do native speakers drop sounds in clusters?

Sometimes, in fast speech, a middle /t/ or /d/ disappears, as in next door. They do not add vowels.

Read the full lesson: Consonant clusters