Editing Syllable (section)

====Open and closed====
{{Redirect|Checked syllable|checked syllables in Chinese|Checked tone}}
A coda-less syllable of the form V, CV, CCV, etc. (V = vowel, C = consonant) is called an '''open syllable''' or '''free syllable''', while a syllable that has a coda (VC, CVC, CVCC, etc.) is called a '''closed syllable''' or '''checked syllable'''. They have nothing to do with [[open vowel|open]] and [[close vowel]]s, but are defined according to the phoneme that ends the syllable: a vowel (open syllable) or a consonant (closed syllable). Almost all languages allow open syllables, but some, such as [[Hawaiian language|Hawaiian]], do not have closed syllables.

When a syllable is not the last syllable in a word, the nucleus normally must be followed by two consonants in order for the syllable to be closed. This is because a single following consonant is typically considered the onset of the following syllable. For example, Spanish {{lang|es|casar}} ("to marry") is composed of an open syllable followed by a closed syllable (''ca-sar''), whereas {{lang|es|cansar}} "to get tired" is composed of two closed syllables (''can-sar''). When a [[Gemination|geminate]] (double) consonant occurs, the syllable boundary occurs in the middle, e.g. Italian {{lang|it|panna}} "cream" (''pan-na''); cf. Italian {{lang|it|pane}} "bread" (''pa-ne'').

English words may consist of a single closed syllable, with nucleus denoted by ν, and coda denoted by κ:
*i''n'': ν = {{IPA|/ɪ/}}, κ = {{IPA|/n/}}
*cu''p'': ν = {{IPA|/ʌ/}}, κ = {{IPA|/p/}}
*ta''ll'': ν = {{IPA|/ɔː/}}, κ = {{IPA|/l/}}
*mi''lk'': ν = {{IPA|/ɪ/}}, κ = {{IPA|/lk/}}
*ti''nts'': ν = {{IPA|/ɪ/}}, κ = {{IPA|/nts/}}
*fi''fths'': ν = {{IPA|/ɪ/}}, κ = {{IPA|/fθs/}}
*si''xths'': ν = {{IPA|/ɪ/}}, κ = {{IPA|/ksθs/}}
*twe''lfths'': ν = {{IPA|/ɛ/}}, κ = {{IPA|/lfθs/}}
*stre''ngths'': ν = {{IPA|/ɛ/}}, κ = {{IPA|/ŋθs/}}

English words may also consist of a single open syllable, ending in a nucleus, without a coda:
*''glue'', ν = {{IPA|/uː/}}
*''pie'', ν = {{IPA|/aɪ/}}
*''though'', ν = {{IPA|/oʊ/}}
*''boy'', ν = {{IPA|/ɔɪ/}}

A list of examples of syllable codas in English is found at [[English phonology#Coda]].