Usually the vowel followed by one consonant is given the long sound, whereas, when the consonant is doubled, the vowel usually has the short sound, as illustrated in the following words.
| biter | plater | toper | hoping |
| bitter | platter | stopper | hopping |
| diner | shiny | tiny | doted |
| dinner | shinny | tinny | dotted |
| cuter | hater | poker | offer |
| cutter | hated | paper | wider |
| holy | hatter | taper | spider |
| holly | riding | favor | diver |
| bony | ridding | fever | gallon |
| bonny | biting | clover | racer |
| bogy | bitting | over | cider |
| boggy | caning | halo | label |
| Mary | canning | solo | yellow |
| marry | planer | polo | jolly |
| mate | planner | flabby | jelly |
| matter | ruder | shabby | maker |
| robed | rudder | ruddy | taker |
| robbed | loping | tulip | dummy |
| pining | lopping | cedar | common |
| pinning | baker | tamer | moment |
| tuning | shady | liner | silent |
| stunning | lady | pacer | ruby |
| planing | tidy | giddy | bonnet |
| planning | pony | sudden | penny |
The following words illustrate silent k, g, w, b, l, t, and gh.
| knee | kneel | knelt | knell | knit |
| knife | knot | knock | knob | knew |
| knave | knead | know | knack | gnat |
| gnaw | gnu | gnash | gnarl | gnome |
| wry | wren | wrist | wrote | write |
| wrap | wring | wrung | wrong | wrest |
| wreck | wrath | wretch | wreak | wrench |
| writhe | wreath | high | sigh | wright |
| thigh | light | fight | tight | sight |
| knight | right | fright | plight | night |
| blight | slight | bright | flight | might |
| caught | naught | taught | daughter | aught |
| tightly | brightly | lightly | lightning | naughty |
| climb | comb | crumb | dumb | lamb |
| limb | numb | thumb | debt | doubt |
| combing | calf | half | balm | calm |
| chalk | stalk | walk | folks | talk |
| often | soften | castle | jostle | rustle |
| thistle | whistle | chestnut | fasten | listen |