Vowels - EnglishSolo

🗣️ Understanding Vowel Sounds

📚 Words Need Vowels

Almost every word in English has one or more vowels. For example, the words car, hit, and mad all have one vowel sound. A few words have no vowels, such as the words psst or shh.

💨 Steady Air Flow

We create vowel sounds with a steady vibration of air as we talk. Unlike consonants, vowel sounds flow continuously without blocking the air.

🎯 Try This Exercise

💨

Practice saying these vowel sounds with steady air flow:

I ate eggs, apples, and oranges.

Make the vowel sound of the first letters of each word without stopping the air flow from your mouth:

/aɪ/ I, /eɪ/ ate, /ɛ/ eggs, /æ/ apples, /ə/ and, /ɔ/ oranges

🔤 Vowel Letters

A E I O U

(Y can also act as a vowel in some words)

These five letters (plus Y) represent all the vowel sounds in English, but they can make many different sounds depending on the word!

🎵 Types of Vowels

📖 Long and Short Vowels + Diphthongs ▼

Vowel sounds are commonly described as long and short. This is a quick, simple way to talk about the sound of vowels. Just remember, vowel sounds are not only long and short; each sound changes based on the position and tenseness of the tongue and lips.

📏 Long & Short Vowels

/i/ long e sound
/ɪ/ short i sound
/eɪ/ long a sound
/ɛ/ short e sound
/æ/ short a sound
/ɑ/ short o sound
/ə/ schwa sound
/u/ long u sound
/ʊ/ short u sound
/oʊ/ long o sound

🔄 Diphthongs

A diphthong combines two vowel sounds:

/eɪ/ as in "day"
/aɪ/ as in "my"
/oʊ/ as in "no"
/aʊ/ as in "out"
/ɔɪ/ as in "boy"
/ɪə/ as in "near"

📚 For more detailed examples and pronunciation symbols, check the Pronunciation Guide.