Unit 1: Vowel Sounds

The vowel sounds / iː / and / ɪ /

To make the /iː/ sound, set your To make the /ɪ/ sound, lower
lips 1 cm apart. Widen your lips your jaw slightly. The lips are
into a big smile. /iː/ is a long relaxed and are about 6 mm
sound. apart. /ɪ/ is a short sound.

key /kiː/, cheese /tʃiːz/, scene miss /mɪs/, if /ɪf/, pick /pɪk/, still
/siːn/, police /pəˈliːs/, people /stɪl/, fish /fɪʃ/
/ˈpiːpl/
The vowel sounds /ʊ/ and /uː/
To make the /ʊ/ sound, keep
your jaw slightly open. The lips
are 6 mm apart and pushed
outward to make an open circle.
/ʊ/ is a short sound.
book, good, woman, push, pull
To make the /uː/ sound, keep
the mouth slightly open and the
lips 1 cm apart. The lips are
tense and pushed forward into a
small circle. /uː/ is a long sound.
food, rude, true, who, fruit
The vowel sounds /e/ and /æ/
To make the /e/ sound, lower
your jaw slightly. The lips are
tense and spread outward in a
half-smile, about 1.3 cm
apart. /e/ is a short sound.
egg, many, again, head, friend
To make the /æ/ sound, keep
your lips 1.5 cm apart and form
a half-smile, with tense lips. /æ/
is a short sound.
back, cat, tap, bag, cab
The vowel sounds /ɒ/ and /ɔː/
To make the /ɒ/ sound, round your lips a
little. The front of your tongue is low and
towards the back of your mouth. /ɒ/ is a
short sound.
To make the /ɔː/ sound, drop your jaw
until the lips are 1.5 cm apart. Tense
your lips and round them forward
halfway. /ɔː/ is a long sound.

all, call, daughter, caught, awful

jog, hobby, hospital, job, bottle

American English: /a:/
jogs, hobby, hospital, job, bottle
The vowel sounds /aː/ and /ʌ/
To make the /aː/ sound, drop your jaw To make the /ʌ/ sound, keep the mouth
until the lips are about 2 cm apart, but slightly open, with lips about 1 cm apart.
relaxed. /aː/ is a long sound. /ʌ/ is a short sound.

aunt, laugh, heart, half, father

Pronouncing only /a:/: bus, colour, come, cup, front
1. How far’s the car park?
2. We went to a large bar full of film
stars.
3. We’re starting in half an hour.
Pronouncing /a:/ with “r”:
1. How far’s the car park?
2. We went to a large bar full of film
stars.
3. We’re starting in half an hour.
The vowel sounds /ə/ and /ɜː/

To make the /ə/ sound, open
your mouth very slightly; your
lips should be about 3 mm
apart; relax your lips; make a
short sound with your voice.
To make the /ɜː/ sound, make
the same sound as /ə/, but
longer.
earn, heard, bird, girl, first

ago, occur, soda, after, open

The vowel sounds /ɑʊ/, /əʊ/, /eɪ/
These sounds are diphthongs.
To make the /ɑʊ/ To make the /əʊ/ To make the /eɪ/
sound, begin with /ɑ/ sound, begin with /ə/ sound, begin with /e/
then glide into /ʊ/, then glide into /ʊ/, then glide into /ɪ/.
forming a circle with forming a circle with
your lips. your lips.

how, now, brown, over, go, slow, face, day, pain,

house, aloud owner, window straight, great
References

Marks, J. (2007). English pronunciation in use Elementary.

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Hewings, M., & Goldstein, S. (1999). Pronunciation plus. New
York: Cambridge University Press.
Yates, J. (1995). Pronounce it perfectly in English. Hauppauge, NY:
Barron’s Educational Series.
 THE END
Thank you for listening!