What words spelled with ea have a short E sound?

You're right to be asking that! The "ea" combination often makes the long E sound (like in "sea" or "read"). But, there are a few exceptions where it makes the short E sound. Here are some common examples:

* bread

* dead

* heavy

* feather

* threat

* health

* wealth

* spread

* guess

Let me know if you'd like to explore other tricky spelling combinations!