How many words have /s/ in the medial position?

Our dictionary lists 1249 medial /s/ words suitable for speech therapy practice.

What are some example medial /s/ words?

Examples include ask, asked, asks, asp, based, beast, best, blast.

Why do some medial S words sound like Z?

Because they are Z. In busy and music the letter s carries a /z/ sound, so those words sit on the medial Z list. Only words where the pronunciation is a true /s/ appear here.

Is medial S harder than initial S?

Usually somewhat, because the surrounding sounds compete for tongue position. It is not a fixed order, though — some children carry medial S more easily than a word-initial one.

Medial S Words for Speech Therapy

Words carrying /s/ inside the word — pencil, bicycle, castle. The S here is flanked on both sides, so the sounds around it shape how it is produced.

Word list

1-syllable

ask
asked
asks
asp
based
beast
best
blast
blessed
boost
breast
burst
cast
chest
coast
cost
costs
crest
desk
disc
discs
disk
disks
dressed
dust
east
est
faced
fast
first
fist
forced
frost
ghost
guest
guests
host
hosts
just
last
least
list
lists
lost
mask
missed
most
must
nest
passed
past
paste
pest
placed
post
posts
pressed
priced
priest
quest
rest
risk
risks
sixth
task
tasks
taste
test
tests
texts
trust
trusts
twist
vast
waste
west
whilst
worst
wrist
yeast

2-syllable

absence
absent
abstract
abstracts
accent
accept
accepts
access
accessed
acer
acid
acids
addressed
adjust
advanced
against
almost
also
amongst
announced
answer
answered
answers
arrest
artist
artists
aside
asking
aspect
aspects
assault
assess
assessed
asset
assets
assign
assigned
assist
assists
assume
assumed
assumes
august
awesome
axis
balanced
baptist
baseball
baseline
basement
bases
basic
basics
basin
basis
basket
baskets
beside
besides
biggest
bookstore
boston
boxes
bracelet
bracelets
breakfast
bristol
broadcast
brussels
buses
cancel
cancelled
cancer
casa
cases
cassette
casting
castle
census
chances
charleston
chassis
cheapest
checklist
choices
christian
christians
cisco
classes
classic
classics
classroom
closely
closer
closest
cluster
clusters
coastal
compressed
concept
concepts
concern
concerned
concerns
concert
concerts
consent
consist
consists
console
consoles
constant
constraint
constraints
construct
consult
contest
contests
context
contrast
convinced
costa
costume
costumes
council
councils
counsel
courses
crisis
crossing
crossword
crystal
cursor
custom
customs
dancing
decent
decide
decreased
dentists
describe
described
describes
desktop
desktops
desperate
despite
destroy
destroyed
diesel
digest
discharge
disclose
disco
discount
discounts
discrete
discuss
discussed
dispatch
dispatched
display
displayed
displays
dispute
disputes
distance
distant
distinct
district
districts
disturbed
dosage
dresses
dressing
easter
eastern
elsewhere
endorsed
enhanced
escape
escorts
essay
essays
essence
estate
estates
exceed
excel
except
excerpt
excess
exchange
exclude
excuse
exhaust
exist
exists
expect
expects
expense
experts
explains
exports
exposed
express
expressed
extends
extract
extras
faces
facing
fancy
faster
fastest
finest
fiscal
fixes
fixtures
florist

Words without competing sounds

ask
asked
asks
asp
based
beast
best
blast
blessed
boost
breast
burst
cast
chest
coast
cost
costs
crest
desk
disc
discs
disk
disks
dressed
dust
east
est
faced
fast
first
fist
forced
frost
ghost
guest
guests
host
hosts
just
last
least
list
lists
lost
mask
missed
most
must
nest
passed
past
paste
pest
placed
post
posts
pressed
priced
priest
quest
rest
risk
risks
task
tasks
taste
test
tests
texts
trust
trusts
twist
vast
waste
west
whilst
worst
wrist
yeast
absence
absent
abstract
abstracts
accent
accept
accepts
access
accessed
acer
acid
addressed
adjust
advanced
against
almost
also
amongst
announced
answer
answered
arrest
artist
artists
aside
asking
aspect
aspects
assault
assess
assessed
asset
assets
assign
assigned
assist
assists
assume
assumed
august
awesome
axis
balanced
baptist
baseball
baseline
basement
basic
basics
basin
basis
basket
baskets
beside
biggest
bookstore
boston
bracelet
bracelets
breakfast
bristol
broadcast
cancel
cancelled
cancer
casa
cassette
casting
castle
census
charleston
chassis
cheapest
checklist
christian
cisco
classic
classics
classroom
closely
closer
closest
cluster
coastal
compressed
concept
concepts
concern
concerned
concert
concerts
consent
consist
consists
console
constant
constraint
constraints
construct
consult
contest
contests
context
contrast
convinced
costa
costume
council
counsel
crisis
crossing
crossword
crystal
cursor
custom
dancing
decent
decide
decreased
dentists
describe
described
desktop
desktops
desperate
despite
destroy
destroyed
diesel
digest
discharge
disco
discount
discounts
discrete
discuss
discussed
dispatch
dispatched
display
displayed
dispute
disputes
distance
distant
distinct
district
districts
disturbed
dosage
dressing
easter
eastern
elsewhere
endorsed
enhanced
escape
escorts
essay
essence
estate
estates
exceed
excel
except
excerpt
excess
exchange
exclude
excuse
expect
expects
expense
experts
exports
express
expressed
extract
facing
fancy
faster
fastest
finest
fiscal
florist

Related lists

Other S positions

Initial S words843 words Final S words791 words

Other sounds in the medial position

Medial R words Medial Z words Medial L words Medial TH words Medial SH words Medial CH words Medial J words Medial K words Medial G words Medial F words Medial V words

All S word lists

Take Medial S to the next level

Ready-made, pronunciation-checked practice beyond single words:

Medial S phrases Medial S sentences

Themed worksheets for Medial S

The same target inside themes children love — verified lists plus a printable worksheet:

Food School Vehicles

Worksheet preview

Articulation practice

Target /s/ · Medial

/s/

01ask

02asked

03asks

04asp

05based

06beast

07best

08blast

verified/s/: 1249 words · competing-free 920

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About Medial S words

Medial S is where a newly established S meets real coarticulation. The sounds on either side pull the tongue toward their own positions, and a production that was stable at the start of a word can lose its groove in the middle of one.

This position also exposes the difference between a lisp and a placement error. A lateral lisp usually persists across every position, while a child who is simply still learning placement often holds initial S and loses medial S — a useful thing to listen for before choosing a treatment approach.

Practising Medial S

Words where S opens the second syllable, as in pencil, effectively give a fresh initial S with a preceding vowel for momentum. Words where S closes one syllable and a consonant opens the next are harder and belong later in the sequence.

Acquisition ages: Crowe & McLeod (2020), American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology. Educational content — an SLP chooses the target for a specific child.

Frequently asked questions

How many words have /s/ in the medial position?: Our dictionary lists 1249 medial /s/ words suitable for speech therapy practice.
What are some example medial /s/ words?: Examples include ask, asked, asks, asp, based, beast, best, blast.
Why do some medial S words sound like Z?: Because they are Z. In busy and music the letter s carries a /z/ sound, so those words sit on the medial Z list. Only words where the pronunciation is a true /s/ appear here.
Is medial S harder than initial S?: Usually somewhat, because the surrounding sounds compete for tongue position. It is not a fixed order, though — some children carry medial S more easily than a word-initial one.

When do kids master each sound?

Free interactive checker: pick a sound and an age, see the research norm — all 24 consonants, sourced from Crowe & McLeod (2020).

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