R-Controlled Vowels — Answer Key
Part A: Multiple Choice
Circle the best answer for each question.
1. Which spelling is correct for the word that means a young female child?
A) girl
B) gurl
C) gerl
D) gorl
Girl uses IR, one of three /ur/ spellings. Only IR is correct here.
2. Which spelling is correct for a place where nurses and doctors work?
A) nirse
B) nerse
C) nurse
D) norse
Nurse is spelled with UR. ER and IR also make /ur/, but UR is the standard spelling here.
3. Which spelling is correct for the opposite of same?
A) diffurent
B) diffirent
C) different
D) diffarent
Different uses ER. All three spellings (ER, IR, UR) sound alike, so you must memorize each word.
4. Which spelling is correct for a muddy, unclean state?
A) derty
B) durty
C) dirty
D) dorty
Dirty is spelled with IR. Remembering correct patterns matters because all three look like /ur/.
Part B: Fill in the Blank
Write the correct answer on each line.
1. The little girl waved hello to her friend.
Girl uses IR to make the /ur/ sound in one syllable.
2. My friend has a different way of laughing that is all her own.
Different uses ER for /ur/, even though it sounds like IR or UR.
3. The kind nurse gave me a bandage for my scraped knee.
Nurse uses UR to spell the /ur/ sound.
4. My socks got dirty after I played outside in the mud.
Dirty uses IR to spell /ur/ in the first syllable.
5. My dog's fur is curly and brown, with tight ringlets.
Curly uses UR to spell /ur/ in the first syllable.