The -ough Family: though, through, thought, brought

Learn the tricky -ough words by sound and meaning, since the letters say different things.

The letters o-u-g-h are famous for making many different sounds. In 'though' they say long o. In 'through' they say /oo/. In 'thought' and 'brought' they say /aw/. In 'enough' and 'tough' they say /uf/. Because the sound cannot be guessed from the letters, these are words you learn by heart. A helpful trick is to group them by sound: 'thought, brought, bought, fought' all rhyme.

Then use meaning to check. Read: 'She thought it was late, though the sun was still up, so she walked through the park. ' 'Thought' means had an idea, 'though' means even if, and 'through' means in one side and out the other.

• 1-ough can make several different sounds.
• 2Group the rhyming ones: thought, brought, bought, fought.
• 3Use meaning to check which word you are reading.