The ph Sound (ph says f)
Learn the ph sound in phonics. The letters p and h together say 'f' in words like phone, photo and dolphin. A fun reading lesson for kids with word games.
Key takeaways
- ph is a digraph: two letters, one sound
- ph makes the 'f' sound, like in phone
- ph can be at the start, middle or end of a word
Two letters, one trick
A digraph is two letters that make one sound. Today's digraph is a tricky one: ph. It does NOT say 'p' and it does NOT say 'h'. It says 'f'! 📱
Many of these words came from old Greek a long, long time ago.
ph at the start
- phone 📱
- photo 📷
- phonics 🔤
Say phone slowly: ph - one. It sounds just like 'fone'! 📱
ph in the middle
- dolphin 🐬
- elephant 🐘
- alphabet 🔤
- trophy 🏆
Say dolphin slowly: dol - ph - in. The ph says 'f'! 🐬
ph at the end
- graph 📊
- telegraph 📡
A helpful tip
When you see p and h together, swap them in your head for an f:
ph → f
So photo becomes fo-to and elephant becomes el-e-fant. 🐘
A little word list
Read these ph words out loud:
- phone 📱
- photo 📷
- dolphin 🐬
- elephant 🐘
- alphabet 🔤
- graph 📊
Play the games below to match each ph word!
When you can read ph, meet the other consonant digraphs sh, ch and th and the surprising silent letters.
Quick quiz
Test yourself and earn XP
What sound do the letters ph make?
ph makes the 'f' sound, like in phone and photo.
Which word has the ph sound?
Dolphin has ph in the middle: dol - ph - in.
How do you say 'photo'?
ph says 'f', so photo sounds like 'fo-to'.
Play & learn
ph word cards +5 XP
Completed ✓ +5 XP
Match the ph word and picture +10 XP
Completed ✓ +10 XP
FAQ
Many words with ph came from old Greek. We keep the ph spelling, but we say it as 'f', like in phone and elephant.
ph can be at the start (phone), in the middle (dolphin) or at the end (graph). It always says 'f'.
Keep exploring
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