R-Controlled Vowels (Bossy R) — Answer Key
Part A: Multiple Choice
Circle the best answer for each question.
1. Which word has the bossy-R /ar/ sound?
A) cat
B) can
C) car
D) cap
Car has 'ar' (bossy r). Cat, can, and cap all have short /a/ because no r follows the vowel. The r after a vowel is what makes bossy-r happen.
2. Which word uses bossy R, not a short vowel?
A) pin
B) pit
C) pig
D) purr
Purr has 'ur' — a vowel plus r, so bossy r bosses the u into /ur/. Pin, pit, and pig all have short /i/ because no r follows the i.
3. Which word matches the short-vowel sound in 'hit'?
A) hurt
B) her
C) hip
D) bird
Hip has short /i/ like hit — no r follows the i, so it stays short. Hurt, her, and bird all have bossy r, so their vowels change to /ur/ sounds.
4. Which pair shows a short vowel AND a bossy-R word?
A) cat and can
B) car and star
C) cat and car
D) her and bird
Cat has short /a/ (no r after a) and car has bossy /ar/ (r after a). The other pairs are either both short vowels or both bossy r.
Part B: Fill in the Blank
Write the correct answer on each line.
1. My pet cat purrs when I pet her soft fur.
Cat has short /a/ because no r follows the a. Compare it with car, which has 'ar' (bossy r). The difference is just one letter, but the sound totally changes.
2. A shiny red car drove past our house.
Car has the 'ar' bossy-r pattern. The r bosses the a into /ar/. Cat and car look similar, but the r at the end of car changes the vowel sound completely.
3. I put a shiny penny in my piggy bank at home.
Bank has short /a/. There is no r right after the a, so the a keeps its short sound. Bossy r only works when r comes right after a vowel.
4. Please don't burn your hand on the hot pan.
Burn uses 'ur' for /ur/. The r bosses the u. Compare burn with bun — bun has short /u/, but adding r turns it into the bossy-r sound.
5. My baby brother just learned to say the word her.
Her uses 'er' for /ur/. The r bosses the e. Compare her with hen — hen has short /e/, but 'er' makes a totally different /ur/ sound.