lose — From the words lettered A-D, choose the word that rhymes with the given word

Analyze the question: You need the word that rhymes with "lose". Rhyme depends on sound, not spelling.

Explain the concept: Words rhyme when their vowel sound and ending consonant sound match. "Lose" is pronounced /luːz/, with a long "oo" vowel and a "z" sound at the end.

Solution: check each option

• A. shoes is pronounced /ʃuːz/. It has the long "oo" vowel and ends in "z". This matches /luːz/, so it rhymes.
• B. loose is pronounced /luːs/. The vowel is the same, but it ends in an "s" sound, not "z". It is a near-rhyme, but not a perfect one. This is the classic trap, because it looks almost identical to "lose".
• C. does is pronounced /dʌz/. The vowel is short, as in "buzz", so it does not rhyme.
• D. mouse is pronounced /maʊs/. The vowel is different and it ends in "s", so it does not rhyme.

Answer: The correct option is A. shoes.

Tip: In rhyming questions, ignore spelling and say each word aloud. Beware of look-alike words such as "lose" and "loose", which are spelled almost the same but end in different sounds (z versus s). Match both the vowel sound and the final consonant sound.