Syllabification in English is determined by the vowels in a word, for example: word - one vowel, one syllable made - one vowel, one syllable up - one vowel, one syllable of - one vowel, one syllable a - one vowel, one syllable single - two vowels, two syllables (sin-gle) syllable - 3 vowels (y is a semi-vowel, considered to be a vowel when in the interior of a word or at the end of a word), 3 syllables (syl-la-ble) but - 1 vowel, 1 syllable that - 1 vowel, 1 syllable contains - 2 vowels (the combination ai, although it contains 2 vowels, functions like a single vowel), 2 syllables (con-tains) three - 1 vowel (the combination ee, although it contains 2 vowels, functions as a single vowel), 1syllable sonority - 4 vowels (y here functions as a vowel since it comes at the end of a word), 4 syllables (so-no-ri-ty) peaks - 1 vowel (the combinations ea, although it contains 2 vowels, functions as a single vowel), 1 syllable The word "sticks" has one vowel and therefore one syllable. I've never studied sonority theory, but I can see where in actual speech there are multiple "peaks" in sound in this word. There is the initial st sound, then the i sound, and finally the cks sound.
New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.