Hard C Sound
Related Pages
Phonic Sounds
Consonant Digraph
Other Consonant Sounds
English for Kids
Videos and songs to help Kindergarten kids learn how to pronounce the hard C sound.
Sounds of the Letter “C”
The letter C can make two primary sounds in English: the hard C and the soft C. It is essential to understand the rules that determine its pronunciation and practice with examples.
- Hard C Sound
Pronunciation: /k/ (like the sound of “K”).
When It Happens:
- Before the vowels A, O, U (e.g., cat, cot, cup).
- At the beginning or end of many words. (e.g. corn, coat, picnic, comic).
- In consonant clusters (e.g., clap, crisp).
The following diagram shows some examples of words that start with the hard c sound. Scroll down the page for more examples and songs to help you learn how to pronounce words with the hard c sound.
Have a look at the following tables to compare soft C and hard C words for the letter C in the beginning, middle or ending of the words.
- Soft C Sound
Pronunciation: /s/ (like the sound of “S”).
When It Happens:
- Before the vowels E, I, Y (e.g., cent, city, cycle).
- In some borrowed words from other languages.
- The Silent C
In some words, the “C” is silent and not pronounced.
Examples: muscle, scissors, ascend
Free worksheets to help students practice writing the letter C and the Alphabet.
Letter c Worksheet (lower case)
Letter C Worksheet (upper case)
Write Lower Case Letters
Write Upper Case Letters
Rhymes or songs with a mix of hard and soft C sounds
The Letter C Song
Learn some words starting with the Letter C - car, carrot, crocodile, cat, crab and crayon.
Learn The Letter C Song
Hard /c/ Sound
How to make the “hard c” sound?
Learn words that contain the C consonant.
The Letter C Song
Words starting with C
The C Song
A phonics song to help children learn the hard sound of the letter C.
My “c” Book
A story with words that begin with C.
Phonics Letter - C song
Words starting with C and Ch
Learn the sound of the letters
Learning Short Vowels
| Short Vowels | ||
|---|---|---|
| Short A | Short E | Short I |
| Short O | Short U | Short Vowels |
Learning Long Vowels
| Long Vowels | ||
|---|---|---|
| Long A | Long E | Long I |
| Long O | Long U | Y (vowel) |
| Long Vowels | Short & Long Vowels | |
Compare Short & Long Vowels
| Short & Long Vowels | ||
|---|---|---|
| Short & Long A | Short & Long E | Short & Long I |
| Short & Long O | Short & Long U | |
Learning Consonants
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