Syllable Structure Diagrams

Counting the number of syllables in a word is something most people learn to do in elementary school. What many people do not think about when it comes to syllables, however, is that syllables have an internal structure. What this means is that syllables can be divided into smaller parts. Following are two syllable structure diagrams that will help explain.

The two main parts of a syllable are the onset and the rhyme (sometimes spelled rime). The rhyme is composed of a nucleus and an optional coda and is the part of a syllable that is used in poetry to form rhymes. The nucleus, as its name indicates, is the core part of a syllable and is always a vowel. Syllables can also appear without an onset; so the smallest possible syllable would be made up of a nucleus only.

In sum:

onset = optional start of syllable = Consonant

nucleus = mandatory core of syllable = Vowel

coda = optional end of syllable = Consonant

Example syllables:

Nucleus only: a

Onset and nucleus: la

Onset, nucleus and coda: lab

nucleus and coda: at