How to Pronounce S Cluster Words

Keenyn Rhodes
2 min read

An S Cluster?

What the heck is an S Cluster?

As I stood on stage my head began to spin and a strange feeling spread through my stomach. I suddenly struggled to stay upright.

A description of a serious case of stage fright AND a sentence full of S-Cluster words.

An S Cluster word is a word that starts with the letter S followed by another 1or 2 consonant sounds.

And for many speaking English as an additional language (especially my Spanish speakers, my Portuguese speakers, my Farsi speakers) pronouncing these types of words is a challenge.

In this lesson, we’ll talk about why these words are tricky and break down exactly how to correctly pronounce these combinations.

Let’s dive in!

Continue your practice with this list of

100 Super Common S Cluster Words

/sk/ and /sl/	/st/	/sp/	/sm/, /sn/, /sw/	Triple /s/ Blends
school	still	speak	small	strong
skill	state	spend	smile	street
skin	student	special	sweet	strategy
score	start	space	snow	spring
sky	story	sport	smart	structure
sleep	study	specific	smell	strike
scale	stand	speech	smoke	screen
slightly	stop	species	smooth	strength
slow	stay	spirit	swing	spread
slip	star	spot	snap	strange
scholar	step	speed	switch	straight
slide	store	specifically	sweep	struggle
slave	stock	spiritual	swim	stress
scared	staff	Spanish	swear	stretch
scheme	standard	spending	snake	scream
ski	stage	speaker	swallow	stream
scholarship	station	spin	sweat	strongly
scandal	statement	spokesman	sneak	string
scope	style	sponsor	sweater	stranger
slice	stuff	spill	swell	split