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    Learn Courses Advanced level Pronunciation Vowels

Do we pronounce the "A" the same in these two words: "HAT"/"HATE"? In this lesson you will learn about the different vowels in English and how to pronounce them.

There are many different ways to pronounce vowels in English. In fact there are 20 different sounds associated with vowels (12 pure and 8 diphthong). When discussing vowels we frequently speak about long and short vowel sounds, as well as the short neutral schwa vowel sound. In addition, combinations of vowel sounds, known as diphthongs, also have different pronunciations.

Long vowel sounds

Long vowel sounds are pronounced like the name of the letter and are often indicated by a second, silent vowel in the same syllable (diphthongs).

Examples:

 late/leɪt/
 seal/si:l /
 bike/baɪk/
 boat/bəʊt/
 juice/ʤu:s/

Short vowel sounds

Short vowel sounds are the most common and are generally found alone within the syllable. Short vowels are frequently followed by double consonants.

Examples:

 hat/hæt/
 bus/bʌs/
 stop/stɑ:p/
 set/set/
 ill/ɪl/
Note: Look at the examples below. The vowel in the first word is a short vowel, but when we add the silent “e” to the end of the word, the vowel changes to a long vowel sound.

Examples:

 not/nɑ:t/
 note/nəʊt/
 mad/mæd/
 made/meɪd/
 bit/bɪt/
 bite/baɪt/
 tub/tʌb/
 tube/tu:b/

Schwa

The reduced neutral vowel sound known as schwa is the most common vowel sound in the English language. It is virtually always found in an unstressed syllable (see the following lesson on syllable and word stress for more information). It’s pronunciation is determined by the consonants that are found before and/or after it.

Examples:

 above/əbʌv/
 camera/kæmərə/
 occasion/əkeɪʒən/
 pencil/pensəl/
 industry/ɪndəstri/

Diphthongs

Diphthongs, also known as gliding vowels, refer to two different vowel sounds within the same syllable. The pronunciation of diphthongs is marked by a movement of the tongue.

Examples:

 gate/geɪt/
 row/rəʊ/
 soul/səʊl/
 toy/tɔɪ/
Previous lesson Letters and Sounds
Next lesson Consonants
Vowels Listen to Lesson
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