UNIVERSIDAD DE LA SERENA

PRONUNCIATION IN ENGLISH II
CARLOS TAPIA MICHEA
THE ENGLISH VOWEL SOUNDS: ARTICULATORY FEATURES AND
PRACTICE

THE ENGLISH PURE VOWEL SOUNDS

Main characteristics

They are voiced sounds, i.e., they are produced with vibration of the vocal folds.
Their articulation is given by the height and backness of the tongue and the position of
the lips. According to the height of the tongue, vowels can be high, mid or low; according
to the backness of the tongue, vowels can be front, central or back. The lips can be
spread, neutral or rounded.
According to which part is more elevated, vowels are front vowels, central vowels or
back vowels.
According to the degree of elevation of the tongue, vowels can be high, mid or low. The
elevation of the tongue will result in a more or less opennes of the mouth, so the same
vowels can be termed as being close vowels, half close / half open vowels and open
vowels.

When the articulators are kept still, we say that a pure vowel sound is being produced.
In English there are twelve pure vowel sounds that are identified with numbers

UNIT 1: Vowels / i:/ and /I/

1- / i:/
Articulatory characteristics
Tongue position: The front of the tongue is raised to a height slightly below and behind
the front close position.
Lips position: The lips are spread.

Complementary articulatory features: The tongue is tense, with the side rims making a
firm contact with the upper molars. Make your mouth wide, like a smile. The most common
realization is a slight diphthong /Ii/, especially in accented open syllables. It is generally
long and tense.

Sound and spelling

Usual spellings:
a) ee: see - agree - green - deep - meet - teen - feel - fees - heel - seem - wheel -
feet - keen - reel - seek - week - creek - sheet - beef - feed - jeep - need - steep -
freezer - cheese - cheesy - keeper - sheen - esteem - street - fleet - sheep - squeeze -
b) ea: eat - meat - dean - seal - veal - feast - clean - lead - please - steal - meal - leak -
each - lease - reach - feature - creature - sea - teacher - easy - feasible - lean - jeans -
appeal - appease - breathe - disease - release - cease - reason - treason -
c) ie: field - piece - niece - yielding - shield - chief - thief - siege - priest - achieve - relieve
- relief - grief - brief - besiege -

Exceptional spellings:
d) ei: ceiling - receive - deceive - concieve - caffein - protein - seize - seizure - Leigh
Neil - Sheila - sheik(h) - conceit -
e) e: secret - evening - metre - these - equal - email - museum - European - Chinese -
complete - even - eve - Steve - Peter - Eve - bases - analyses - theses - appendices - índices
- arena - demon - evil - vehicle - amnesia - amenity - premium - remarry - regent - renal -
Venus - venous - Venetian - cathedral - veto - accede - abbreviate - antecedent - anaesthesia
- species - legion - procedure - convenient - sequence - zebra - precinct
f) i: visa - expertise - ski - litre - kilo - pizza - machine - magazine - police - motif - unique
- physique - antique - prestige - fatigue - intrigue - casino - aperitif - chi chi - bikini -
cliché - chic - marine - automobile - applique - bidet - boutique - paprika - valise
g) ey: geyser - key -
h) eo: people
i) is: debris - precis
j) uay: quay
k) ae: anaemia - aesthetic - Caesar - aegis - anaesthesia -
l) oe: foetus - phoenix - amoeba -

2- /I/
Articulatory characteristics
Tongue position: Part of the tongue nearer to centre than to front raised just above the half-
close position; a bit further back than for /i:/.The sides of the tongue may just touch the
upper molars.
Lips position: The lips are loosely spread.

Complementary articulatory features: The tongue is lax with the side rims making a
light contact with the upper molars. Make your mouth a bit less wide than for /i:/; the jaw is
down a little. It is generally short and lax.

Sound and spelling

Usual spelling:
a) i: listen - if - dinner - fit - hill - miss - swim - will - tin - fist - mill - fit - sick - cliff -
this - dip - wick - village - sip - ship - mist - rid - fin - thing - minister - pimple - lips -
simmer - shrimp - silver - similitude - lipstick - terrific - cinnamom - cinema - cinder -
vitamin - figure - amiss - ridge - flickery - silly - chill - thrill - signature - discipline -
wrist- wig - wind - wing - pinnacle - whim - whimsy - whisper - whip - whisky - crippled -
vinegar - binge - gist - pinafore - pinpoint - minivan - willful - wizard - liquor - litter

Exceptional spellings
b) ie: mischief - mischievous - movies - sieve - hippie
c) u: busy - lettuce - business - minute - missus -
d) a: character -spinach - octave - orange -
e) ai: bargain - captain - fountain - mountain -
f) ei: forfeit - sovereign - surfeit - foreign -
g) a+ge: marriage - image - village - vicarage - cottage - breakage - heritage - mileage -
patronage -
h) a+ce: furnace - surface - preface - palace
i) a+te: (adjectives and nouns) private - senate - advocate - emirate - consulate - certificate
- graduate - candidate - associate - laureate - delegate - magistrate - accurate - delicate -
fortunate - illiterate - estimate - separate - licenciate
j) e: pretty - England - English
k) ui: building - circuit - biscuit
l) y: myth - gypsy - synagogue - syrup - symptom - symbol sympathy - syndrome -synergy
- synonym - system - syntax - crystal - rhythm - pyramid - gym -
Note: Variant /i/ in final position
a) ee: committee - coffee - Yankee - toffee -
b) y: city - messy - busy - nosy - rainy - lazy - crazy - lousy - happy - sixty - phony -
democracy - bankruptcy - beauty - lunacy -
c) ea: Chelsea - guinea

Exercise 1.1:
Practice the following pairs of words contrasting the vowel sounds / i:/ and /I/

/ i:/ /I/
bean bin
beat bit
cheap chip
deed did
deep dip
feel fill
feast fist
feet fit
heal / heel hill
kneel nil
lead lid
leak lick
least list
litre litter
meal mill
sheep ship
seek sick
steal / steel still
teen tin
weak / week wick

Exercise 1.2:
Read the following sentences paying special attention to the pronunciation of
vowels //i:/ and /I/
1- Nick and Will think this dish is delicious.
2. Neil and Freda like living in Leeds.
3. Theresa doesn’t want to live in a big city like this.
4. Peter Hilton picked some pickled pepper for Celia.
5. Linda and Bill are two imaginative British artists.
6. Phillip had the ceiling painted green.
7. My niece Sheila is in her teens.
8. A cheese sandwich, a glass of milk and some bicuits for me, please.
9. Edith believed she would be with Phil through thick and thin.
10. Mister Miller is away on business.

Exercise 1.3:
Read the following text paying special attention to the pronunciation of vowels /i:/ and
/I/
Even if English were universally adopted, this would not mean the end of diversity.
Languages are constantly adapting and English is not exactly the same the world over: you
only have to compare American and British English to realize that. The net, too, is an
instrument of change. Because net communication is mainly written, many people use
abbreviations to speed things up and this trend means the language is evolving with Internet
use. In ten to twenty years from now the English on the net may well be unrecognizable
compared with the English we know now.

UNIT 2: Vowels /e/ and /æ/

3 /e/
Articulatory characteristics
Tongue position: The front of the tongue is raised between the half-open and half-close
positions. Back of the tongue down a little.
Lips position: The lips are loosely spread and are slightly wider apart than for /I/. Open
your mouth quite wide.

Complementary articulatory features: The tongue may have more tension than in the
case of /I/, the side rims making a light contact with the upper molars. The jaw is down a
little. This vowel is usually short and lax.

Sound-spelling relation
Usual spelling
a) e: second - check - letter - correct - sentence - red - hell - bet - spell - smell - render -
senator - devil - gender - lapel - genetics - setting - melting - tenth – twenty - beckon
debtor - lender - welcome - expensive - reckon - dwelling - shelter - legend - belt -
skeleton - step - jet - yet - wreck - freckle - sheperd - dentistry - pressure - elementary-
engine - agenda - picturesque - burlesque - chemical - chemistry - chef - personnel -
duet - vestige - essay - guest - kettle - revenge - vengence - cleft - press - caress -

Exceptional spellings
b) ie: friend
c) a: any - many - ate
d) ai: again - said -
e) ea: bread - head - read (past) - health - wealth - heavy - ready - meadow - steady -
leather - feather - weather - weapon - dead - deadly - death - deaf - deaden - dealt -meant -
dreamt - jealous - breast - dread - dreadful - threat - threaten - breath - spread
instead - tread - measure - treasure - pleasure - steady - steadfast - stealth -
f) eo: leopard - jeopardize - Geoffrey - Leonard
g) ei, ey: leisure - heifer - Leicester - Reynolds
h) u+r: bury - burial
i) ay+s: says
j) other spellings: lieutenant -

4- /æ/
Articulatory characteristics
Tongue position: The front of the tongue is raised just below the half-open position, with
the side rims making a very slight contact with the back upper molars. Back of tongue
down.
Lips position: The lips are open and lightly spread.
Complementary articulatory features: Open your mouth wide. The jaw is down. This
sound is lax if short and rather tense if long.

Sound-spelling relation
Usual spelling
a) a not followed by ‘r’ in the same syllable: back - map - tack - rash - math - factory -
manager - clap - chat - wrap - sap - character - stamp - enamel - raffle - family - gather
flash - flap - latter - ambience - saccharin(e) - slash - dash - catholic - thanks - practice
phantom - random - glamourous - dagger - dandelion - chapel - factual - palace - panel -
have - atmosphere - anchor - ladder - racket - balcony - shadow - brand - wrath - adult -
academy - accident - active - actual - adjective - channel - canal - ant - tax - track –

package - sat - that - anarchy - anarchist - anxious - gas - capsule - captain - slap - crack
attitude - aptitude - aquatic - dandruff - scanty - didactics - avenue - barrier - balance -
battle - cabbage - flabby - faculty - clammy - valuable - vaccine - fanciful - fallacy

Note: followed by /n, m, b, d, g and ʤ/ this vowel is long, e.g. man - slam - cab - sad - bag
- badge - fan - ram - jam - land - hand - mad - tan - plan - lad - crab - clam - dam
van - ran - handbag - yam - rag - stand - lab - ample - lamb - advert - amnesty - lamp -
lampost - shag - scan - sand - bland - span - clam - stand - understand - sham - band

Exceptional spelling
b) ai: plait - plaid
c) i. impasse - meringue

Exercise 2.1
Practice the following pairs of words contrasting the vowel sounds /e/ and /æ/

/e/ /æ/
beck back
beg bag
bet bat
bend band
blend bland
dead dad
flesh flash
led lad
lend land
men man
sec sack
said sad
send sand
set sat
wreck rack

Exercise 2.2
Read the following sentences paying special attention to the pronunciation of vowels
/e/ and /æ/
1. Ted and Leonard gave their French friends a warm welcome.
2. Countries using chemical weapons can pose a major threat to the rest of the world.
3. Only ten sentences out of twenty were correct in your test.
4. This dreadful weather might jeopardize my agenda.
5. Twenty of their family members are catholic.
6. Pat is the manager of a battery factory in Alabama.
7. Can you can a can as a canner can can a can?
8. How can a clam cram in a clean cream can?
9. Jack practices badminton and handball.
10. Sam loves family get-togethers.

Exercise 2.3
Read the following text paying special attention to the pronunciation of vowels /e/
and /æ/.

In order to assess applications, managers can work from a personnel specification such as
Rodger’s Seven Point Plan. They do not choose applicants who do not have a good profile.
For this reason, it is important that the application form requests clear information about
such things as the applicant’s age, education, qualification and work experience. It must
also ask for references from other employers or people who know the applicant well. This
information helps management to make a final decision on the number of applicants they
can short-list for interview.

UNIT 3: Vowels /α:/ and /ʌ/

5- /α:/
Articulatory characteristics
Tongue position: A part of the tongue between the centre and the back down in the fully
open position; no contact being made between the rims of the tongue and the upper molars.
Lips position. The lips are neutrally open.

Complementary articulatory features: Jaw down a little. This sound is basically long and
tense.

Sound-spelling relation
Usual spelling
a) ar: star - scar- march - far - farther - darn - jar - dark - smart - bar - cardigan - card -
shark - dart - park - artist - garden - large - spark - darling - barking - pardon - scarf -
arson - harvest - marvellous - barley - march - farther - harsh - tart - tar- tartar -
b) as, ass: ask - gasp - grasp - cast - last - past - fast - blast -fasten - vast - master - castle
- aghast - nasty - disaster - broadcast - forecast - flask - basket - mask - class - mass -
glass - pass - grass - surpass -
c) a+nasal: dance - chance - demand - plant - answer - grant - branch - glance - France -
banana - sample - example - drama - advantage - can’t - shan’t - advance

Exceptional spellings
d) oi: (French borrowings): reservoir - repertoire - bourgeois - memoir - boudoir -
bourgeoise -
e) er: (British variant) sergeant - Derby - Berkeley
f) ah: ah - bah - aha - hurrah
g) au: aunt - laugh - draught
h) a+ge: collage - fuselage - mirage - garage - massage - camouflage - sabotage
i) a+de: facade - charade - promenade -
i) other spellings: heart - hearth - bazaar - after - draft - half - calf - staff - father -
bath - rather - giraffe - wrath - alms - guard - pyjamas - seismograph - draft - rafting

10- /ʌ/
Articulatory characteristics
Tongue position: The centre of the tongue, or part slightly in advance of centre, is raised
between the open and half-open position; no contact being made between the tongue and
the upper molars.
Lips position: The lips are neutrally open and relaxed.

Complementary articulatory features. Relaxed jaws. This sound generally lax.

Sound-spelling relation
Usual spellings
a) o: above - dove - love - glove - cover - oven - recover - shove - govern - another -brother
- other - mother - worry - colour - dozen - nothing - thorough - borough - tongue - monkey
- among - come - become - company - accompany - comfort - some - stomach - done - front
honey - London - Monday - money - month - none - one - once - onion - son - sponge -
wonder - ton - covenant - outcome -
b) u: lucky - number - uncle - under - study - run - much - Sunday - sunny - fun - funny –
rum - mud - hut - hunt - lull - cup - junk - cut - lust - stunning - stubborn - stuck - dull -
hurry - gun - shut - duck - slums - supper - nun - nunnery - lunch - brunch - bubble -
summary - jug - buster - cunning - crumb - crutch - vulture - culture - lung - chunk -
fuss - custom - bunion - bunker - shrub - rush - adult - adultery - abrupt - judge - just -
puzzle - punctual - public - puncture - punctuation - punishment - pub - result - dumb -
duct - ductile - Dutch - knuckle - buckle - thumb - lump - bungalow - hustle - bustle -
fluffy - lumber - blunder - rumble - thunder - ruddy - ruffian - ruffle - shuffle - husk -
c) ou: touch - double - trouble - courage - young - couple - flourish - nourish - country -
cousin - southern - rough - tough - enough - Douglas -

Exceptional spellings
d) other spellings: does - twopence - twopenny - blood - flood

Exercise 3.1
Practice the following pairs of words contrasting the vowel sounds /α:/ and /ʌ/
/α:/ /ʌ/
bark buck
calm come
card cud
dark duck
harsh hush
heart hut
lark luck
march much
mark muck
shark shuck

Exercise 3.2
Read the following sentences paying special attention to the pronunciation of
vowels /α:/ and /ʌ/
1. None of his younger brothers really worry about money.
2. Hurry up, honey! Lunch is ready.
3. Cousin Justin’s remarks are hard to understand.
4. Is one-hundred your lucky number?
5. Mark doesn’t like the hustle and bustle of the city.
6. Martha’s father loves sleeping under the stars.
7. I was far asleep in Margaret’s apartment when the hurricane hit.
8. The staff of the company asked for higher wages.
9. Barbara goes hiking once a month.
10. Uncle Martin says playing cards is fun.

Exercise 3.3
Read the following text paying special attention to the pronunciation of vowels /α:/
and /ʌ/
“There is nothing -absolutely nothing- half so much worthdoing as simply messing about in
boats,” one animal character famously tells another in the children’s book The Wind in the
Willows. The millions of recreational boaters in the United States would undoubtely agree.
 But boating in America’s waters is not all fun and sport. With thousands of miles of
navigable rivers and ocean coastline, as well as five of the largest freshwater lakes in the
world. The United States is a country built on water transportation -from riverboats that
once plied the mighty Mississipi to the freighters and barges that move millions of tons of
cargo today.

UNIT 4: Vowels /ɒ/ and /ɔ:/

6- /ɒ/
Articulatory characteristics
Tongue position: The back of the tongue is near the open position; no contact being made
between the tongue and the upper molars. The front of the tongue down
Lips position: The lips are forward and lightly rounded.

Complementary articulatory features: Jaw down; usually short and lax

Sound-spelling relation
Usual spelling
a) o not followed by ‘r’ in the same syllable: coffee - glossary - bonnet - rocky - choppy
copper - lottery - jogging - chopper - blond - modern - clock - bottle - boxing - doctor -
chocolate - wrong - cost - song - top - cops - shopping - possible - donkey - prompter -
cross - bother - hospital - rotten - dot - lost - knot - soccer - proper- jalopy - posh - moth -
politics - comparable - knock - common - jogging - toboggan - octopus - sponsor -
dolphin - contour - collagen - college - hostage - odd - rob - cloth - mockery - orange -
office - colleague - apostle - apology - apocalypse - solve - beyond - nonsense - boss -
gossip - proper - prophesy - prosecute - policy - lofty - logic - lobby - lobster - locker-
foster - jotting - solid - chronic - pocket - shock - frolic - pod - snobbery - flock - bomb

Exceptional spellings
b) au: cauliflower - because - sausage - laurel
c) e+n: entrée - encore - rendezvous - entrepreneur -
d) o+C+e: gone - shone - scone
e) a: what - squash - wasp - quality - quantity - wander - quarrel - yacht - wrath
e) ou: cough - trough - Glouster
f) other spellings: knowledge - acknowledge - bureaucracy - doll - warrant -
warrantee - warranty -

7- /ɔ:/
Articulatory characteristics
Tongue position: The back of the tongue is raised between the half-open and half-close
position; front of tongue down; no contact being made between the tongue and the upper
molars.
Lips position: This vowel is articulated with lips forward and loose medium lip-rounding
Complementary articulatory features: Jaw down. It is relatively long and tense.
Sound-spelling relation
Usual spellings
a) or: born - horse - forty - corner - sort - corn - dormant - Lord - shorter - border -
forward - scorpion - corn - gorgeous - format - fork - forfeit - forger - forgery -
b) aw: raw - saw - straw - claw - laws - jaw - yawn - dawn - awkward - paw -
flaw - brawl - shawl - gawky - pawn -
c) a+ll & a+l: wall - ball - call - tall - fall - hall - allspice - almighty - always - also - alter
- altar - altogether - already - almost - although - alteration - false - halt - salt - walrus -
d) au: vault - cause - autumn - saucer - pause - daughter - jaundice - audience - naughty
clause - haul - fault - applause - aplaud - automobile - sauce - gauze - assault - auction
auspices - auxiliary - cause - augment - author - authentic - naughts - saucy -
e) ore: store - boredom - before - more - gore - core - tore - shore - folklore - chore -
Exceptional spellings
f) a+ silent l: walk - talk - stalk - chalk -
g) au+silent gh: caught - daughter - taught - slaughter –
h) ou+ silent gh: ought - sought - fought - thought - wrought -
i) oor: door - floor - poor
j) oar: roar - boar - board - soar -
k) ar: war - warm - quarter - quartz - swarm - warning - award - warrant - wardrobe -
ward - wardroom - warrior -
l) oa: broad - abroad - roaring - soaring - board - coarse -
m) our: pour - four - course - court - contour - your - you’re - source - court
n) other spellings: water - awe - Sean - sure - wrath - water - walrus - walnut - waltz -

Exercise 4.1
Practice the following pairs of words contrasting the vowel sounds /ɒ/ and /ɔ:/
/ɒ/ /ɔ:/
cod cord
con corn
cot court / caught
fox forks
moss Morse
pot port
shot short
sot sort

Exercise 4.2
Read the following sentences paying special attention to the pronunciation of
vowels /ɒ/ and /ɔ:/
1. Claude bought four boxes of chocolate and some coffee at a corner shop.
2. Sean and Paul were born in New York.
3. John and Ron go jogging and play soccer Saturday mornings.
4. Flora’s daughter bought a Straw hat and a pinafore dress.
5. Jonathan stopped smoking when he was forty-four.
6. Audrey was on board a yatch when a heavy storm broke.
7. Jocelyn saw George playing golf with his friend Tom.
8. Gloria has lived abroad since before the.war broke out.
9. I thought Joshua would get lost in New York.
10. Lots of inmigrants have crossed the northern border of our country.

Exercise 4.3
Read the following text paying special attention to the pronunciation of vowels /ɒ/ and
/ɔ:/

According to the American sportfishing Association, fishing is a hobby pursued by some

forty million Americans, including more than eight million youngsters between the ages of
six and fifteen. More Americans fish than play golf and tennis combined.
Because recreational fishing is an economic boom in various regions of the country,
government plays a major role in regulating it and in managing fishery resources and
perpetuate the sport for future generations.

UNIT 5: Vowels / ʊ/ and /u:/

8- / ʊ/
Articulatory characteristics
Tongue position: Part of the tongue nearer to centre than to back raised just above the
half-close position; back of tongue up; no firm contact being made between the tongue
and the upper molars.
Lips position: The lips are forward and closely but loosely rounded.

Complementary articulatory features; This vowel is basically short and lax.

Sound-spelling relation
Usual spellings
a) u+l: full - bull - bullet - bulletin - bully - pull - fulfill - bullion -
b) oo+k: look - book - shook - brook - hook - nook - cook - rook - cookie -

Exceptional spellings
c) ou: would - could - should - courier - bouquet
d) o: woman - bosom - wolf - worsted - Worcester
d) other spellings: good - sugar - put - pudding - butcher - wood - wool - hood - stood -
soot - foot - bush - cushion - push - pussy - pulpit

9- /u:/
Articulatory characteristics
Tongue position: The back of the tongue is raised near to the close position; no firm
contact being made between the tongue and the upper molars.
Lips position: The lips are forward and tend to be closely rounded (tunnel-shaped).
Usually realized as a slight diphthong /ʊu/, especially in accented open syllables.
Complementary articulatory features. This sound is generally long and tense;
Sound-spelling relation

Usual spelling
a) oo: food - cool - school - too - pool - shoot - foolish - moonlight - brood - broom - loose
boost - room - doom - tool - stool - stoop - root - choose - choosy - bloomer - boot - booth
proof - goose - google - goofy - woozy
b) ew: few - stew - news - chew - crew - steward - sewer - sewage - view - review - dew -
c) eu: neutrally - neutralise - pseudo - therapeutic - rheumatism - sleuth - eugenics -
euphemism - euphoria - eucaliptus - Eucharist - euthanasia -
d) ue: blue - clue - rue - due - sue - fuel - cue - hue - argue - pursue - accrue - true -
issue - venue - revenue - tissue -
e) u: student - fugitive - human - music - duce - rule - nucleus - cube - dunes - union -
punitive - duty - cute - acute - abuse - enthusiasm - assume - consume - presume - allusion
confusion - solution - pollution - devolution - lubricate - lucid - luminous - voluminous -
putrify - putrid - pursuance - supermarket - superficial - superstition - supervision - dilute -
fumes - recuperate - future - duke - truth - flu - refuse - aluminum - Peruvian - reunify -
reunion - produce - minutiae - punitive -
f) ui: fruit - juice - suit - pursuit - suitable - bruise - cruise - nuisance - suicide - suitcase

Exceptional spellings
g) ou: group - you - soup - route - coup - boudoir - boulevard - toupee - boutique
h) oe: shoe - canoe -
i) other spellings: two - lose - move - prove - approve - tomb - womb - who - whom -
whose - do - beauty - adieu - manoeuvre - queue -

Exercise 5.1
Practice the following pairs of words contrasting the vowel sounds / ʊ/ and /u:/
/ ʊ/ /u:/
full fool
pull pool
soot suit
to too / two

Exercise 5.2
Read the following sentences paying special attention to the pronunciation of vowels
/ ʊ/ and /u:/
1. Bruce’s house has a library full of good books.
2. Juliet was a very good university student.
3. Judith drinks fruit juice in the afternoon.
4. Governments should find a good solution to pollution soon.
5. Sue likes wearing blue shoes.
6. That’s Lucy’s gloomy view of the future.
7. Their school has a big swimming-pool too.
8. You can choose from a variety of seafood.
9. Ruth doesn’t add sugar to her fruit juice.
10. Rupert, who is a university student, doesn’t like wearing ties and suits.
Exercise 5.3
Read the following text paying special attention to the pronunciation of vowels / ʊ/ and
/u:/
I prefer a trip to a large out of town supermarket to shopping in the local corner shop
because there is so much more variety. You can choose between all the usual well-known
brands, or if you prefer, there are the store’s cheaper own-brand products. As well as tinned
and frozen convenience food, there’s a wide range of fruits and vegetables, meat, fish and
other foodstuffs. The household goods are particularly good value for money, compared to
other shops.

UNIT 6: Vowels /З:/ and /ә/

11- /З:/
Articulatory characteristics
Tongue position: The centre of the tongue between the half-close and half-open position;
no firm contact being made between the tongue and the upper molars.
Lips position: The lips are neutrally spread

Complementary articulatory features: Relaxed lips, tongue and jaw.

Sound-spelling relation

Usual spellings
a) ir: first - shirt - bird - birthday - dirty - sir - circle - stir - firm - girl - sirloin –
thirty- flirt - chirp - skirt - virgin - virtue - virtuous - virtual - stir - gird - girth -
b) er(r): mercy - term - dermatology - serve - service - prefer - dessert - verb - university
German - Germany - refer - Derby - Berkeley - merchant - verdict - verbal - lucerne -
superb - reverse - deserve - vermin - vermouth - verse - eternal - err
c) ur(r): turn - Thursday - burn - fur - church - purse - curb - turkey - turgid - turbine -
turmoil - burden - furnish - furniture - curd - curtain - cursory - surtax - Purgatory
burgle - absurd - purpose - purge - survey - surname - surfeit - surgeon - surgery -
surfing - spurt - burst - blur - curfew - murder - purr
d) or: attorney - work - word - world - worse - worst - worth - worthy - worm - worship

Exceptional spellings
e) ear: earth - early - heard - learn - pearl - earl - yearn -
f) our: courtesy - courteous - journey - journal -
g) other spellings: were - colonel - connoisseur - entrepreneur - milieu –

12- /ә/
Articulatory characteristics
Tongue position: The centre of the tongue can adopt three positions according to the
context, namely: a) between half-open and half-close position in non-final position in a
word, e.g. decorative, afterwards, vocabulary, interference, compulsory, tolerant,
successfully, communicative, butterfly, asparagus; b) in the vecinity of velar
consonants /k, g /, the tongue may be slightly more raised and retracted, e.g. long ago,
acute, accustomed ; c) in final position the vowel is articulated either in the half-open
central position or in the most open region of the central area, e.g. weather, vinegar, actor,
paprika, colour, dollar, treasure, dilemma, behaviour, cuppa.
Lips position: It is articulated with neutral lips position.
Complementary articulatory features: This vowel is short and obscure.
Sound-spelling relation: This vowel occurs only in unstressed syllables and may be spelt
with most vowel letter and their combinations, e.g. dangerous, communicative, suspicious,
debtor, ability, sentence.

Exercise 6.1
Practice the following pairs of words contrasting the vowel sounds /З:/ and /ә/
/З:/ /ә/
Bert but
curd could
word would

Exercise 6.2
Read the following sentences paying special attention to the pronunciation of vowels
/З:/ and /ә/
1. Pearl Curtis, who’s only thirty, is a superb attorney.
2. The early bird catches the worm.
3. Bert works at a shirt factory in Germany.
4. Mister Searle was a succesful Canadian.surgeon.
5. Berth wants to learn to speak Turkish.
6. Gertrude loves the furniture and curtains of this church.
7. Birds of a feather flock together.
8. Ursula is a prestigious dermatologist who works in a clinic in Berlin.
9. Doctor Herbert Turner has a surgery in Perth.
10. It’s only common courtesy to tell our neighbours that we’ll be having a party.

Exercise 6.3
Read the following text paying special attention to the pronunciation of vowels /З:/ and
/ә/
The birds burst from the marshes singly and in groups, the flights at the beginning
seemingly without pattern. But as they gain altitude, the straggling lines of geese begin to
straighten. At first, it looks like a single line of birds, with one flying faster, becoming the
leader. But that follow-the-leader group slowly shapes into a loose V outline, with the birds
churning closer together, as if obeying commands from a flight leader.
Diphthongs

Diphthongs are sequences of vocalic elements which form a glide within one syllable.The
first element is the starting point and the second element is the point in the direction of
which the glide is made.
Glide: gradual movement of an articulator.
There are eight diphthongs in the English language.

Main characteristics of the English diphthongs

a) Auditorily, the English diphthongs are classified as ‘falling’, i.e., the first element is
more prominent than the second (most of the length and stress associated with the glide
is concentrated on the first element).
b) They are equivalent in length to the long vowels and are subject to the same variations of
quantity (length reduction).
c) According to the distance the tongue travels, they can be articulatorily labelled ‘wide’,
when the glide is long, and ‘narrow’, when the glide is short.
d) Depending on the direction of the movement of the tongue in producing diphthongs,
they can be articulatorily labelled ‘centring’ (a glide towards a centring tongue position)
and ‘closing’ (a glide towards a closer tongue position).

13- /eI/
Articulatory features
Narrow, front- closing. The glide begins in the position for /e/, moving up slightly back
towards /I/. The lips are spread.

Sound spelling relation

Regular spellings
a) ai: main - rain - waist - aim - rail - fail - lain - claim - chain - pain - hail - jail - mosaic -
remain - straight - faith - stain - terrain - contain - prevail - acclaim - nail - snail - praise -
appraise - appraisal - retain - complain - complaint - brain - railway - drainage -
b) ay: may - say - way - ray stay - clay - day - away - pay - lay - pray - gray - relay -
replay - essay -
c) a+C+silent e: same - lame - flame - shame - plane - came - shake - rape - lake - ape -
late - base - make - fame - rate - framework - crane - fate - trade - lane - lemonade -
blockade - parade - barricade - decade - escapade - raven - scrape - age - escape - face
shape - ablaze - orangeade - ache - vane - ashame - behave - space - race - amaze -
d) ei/ey: veil - eight - weigh - weight - reign - apartheid - neighbour - sheik(h) - feign -
vein - freight - prey - obey - grey - abeyance - survey - convey -
Exceptional spellings
e) é(e): in French borrowings: attaché - café - debut - régime - matinée - soirée - née - fete -
f) et: in French borrowings: ballet - bouquet - chalet - gourmet - sachet -
g) ea: only in: great - steak - break - Yeats -
h) other spellings: waste - they - gauge - gaol - dossier - Gaelic - Israel - courageous -
flavour - favourite - renaissance - strange - fragrance - agent - agency - alias - alien -
adjacent - ancient - apparatus - apricot - April - apron - station - status - staple - bacon

Exercise 7.1
Read the following sentences paying special attention to the pronunciation of
diphthong /eI/
1. Shakespeare is one of the most famous playwrights in history.
2. Jacob’s teachers are full of praise for the progress he’s making.
3. James likes the way Daisy plays baseball and table tennis.
4. Graham Green, one of the greatest novelists of the twentieth century, wrote many
amazing short stories.
5. Grace and Raymond attended the same school in Stratford upon Avon.

14- /әʊ/
Articulatory features
Narrow, back-closing. The glide begins in the position for /ә/, moving up and back and
towards /ʊ/. The lips are neutral, but change to loosely rounded.

Sound spelling relation

Regular spellings
a) ow: row - low - know - show - bow - rainbow - crow - scarecrow - slow - growth –
shadow - tomorrow - borrow - sorrow - glow - glowworm - narrow - blow - pillow -
own - owe - widow - sow - bowl - hollow - hallow - shallow -
b) oa: oat - boat - coat - roam - loam - coach - road - foam - toad - coal - shoal - goal -
approach - roast - float - soak - bloated - load - oaktree - cloak - soap -
c) o+C+silent e: phone - stone - alone - drone - clone - prone - dome - tone - bone -
close - cone - tadpole - drove - home - scope - froze - stolen - hole - whole - role - pole -
explode - propose - cope -
d) o in final position: go - so - no - tobacco - domino - casino - banjo -

Exceptional spellings
e) oe: doe - foe - goes - toe - woe - Defoe - Joe - Poe - aloe -
f) au: in French borrowings: au pair - chauffeur - mauve -
g) other spellings: roe - brooch - pharaoh - sew - poll - roll - roller - dough - October -
over - dozer - post - most - host - mould - shoulder - scold - folder - both - diploma -
diplomacy - foliage - molar - soul - beau - bureau - chateau - plateau - rhotic -

Exercise 8.1
Read the following sentences paying special attention to the pronunciation of
diphthong /әʊ/
1. Joseph and Jerome show great skills in rowing and snowboarding
2. Fiona borrowed Joan’s drone.
3. Joe doesn’t know where to go.
4. Rose is an au pair girl in Pomona.
5. Traffic is slow in most roads.

15- /aI/
Articulatoryfeatures
Wide front-closing. The glide begins in an open position, between frontand centre, moving
up and slightly forward towards /I/. The lips move from neutral to loosely spread.

Sound spelling relation

Regular spellings
a) i+C+silent e: like - time - fine - line - shine - vine - spine - wine - lime - mine - pine -
write - crime - finite - white - ripe - shine - dine - five - prime - comprise - mile - shrine -
swine - chime - mobile - advettise - advise - advice - file - profile - wipe - mice - lice - rise -
while - quite - polite - lively - snipe - alive -
b) i+silent gh: high - sigh - light - night - right - fight - sight - knight - frighten - mighty
tight - skylight -
c) i+nd: kind - mind - find - blind - rind -
d) y in final position: shy - my - dry - July - why - sky - fry - sky- spy - sty - apply - by -
butterfly - supply - sly

Exceptional spellings
e) ei: eider - either - neither -height - seismic - sleight - kaleidoscope - Eileen - Fahrenheit -
Geiger -
f) other spellings: die - rye - dye - buy - guy - Mackay - climb - China - aisle - alibi -
sign - disciple - pylon - python - wild - bye - hydrogen - viper - vinyl - pyromania -

Exercise 9.1
Read the following sentences paying special attention to the pronunciation of
diphthong /aI/
1. Isaac is applying for a scholarship to study at University of Brighton.
2. Guy was suggested trying curry pie.
3. Ivan likes flying kites.
4. Ivy cried all night long.
5. Ivan had a wild look in his eyes.

16- /aʊ/
Articulatory features
Wide, back-closing. The glide begins in a position quite similar to /α:/, moving up
towards /ʊ/, the lips start neutral, with a movement to loosely rounded. The glide is not
always completed, as the movement involved is extensive.

Sound-spelling relation
Regular spelling
a) ow: now - how - cow - frown - brown - clown - down - crowd - sow - bow - owl -
browser - eyebrow - crown - vow -
b) ou: loud - sound - mouth - round - house - pound - shout - count - countdown - about
doubt - scout - astound - proud - found - shroud - ground - amount - account - cloud -
announce - outskirts - mouse - spout - bound - boundary - bounty - bounce - lounge - gout
south - doubt -

Exceptional spellings
c) ou+gh: bough - drought - plough -
d) other spellings: Macleod

Exercise 10.1
Read the following sentences paying special attention to the pronunciation of
diphthong /aʊ/
1. Mr Macleod is proud of being a clown.
2. Come down now.
3. Mister Brown announced he had sold his house.
4. Look at those clouds coming from the south.
5. They found a great amount of owls.

17- /ɔI/
Articulatory features
Wide. front-closing. The glide starts in the position for /ɔ:/, moving up and forward towards
/I/. The lips start open and rounded, and change to neutral.
Sound-spelling relation
Regular spelling
a) oi: coin - point - voice - noise - spoil - coil - join - conjoined - moisture - toilet - toil -
invoice - cloister - appoint - exploit - poison - broil -
b) oy: toy - boy - soy - joy - enjoy - oyster - annoy - boycott

Exceptional spellings
c) other spellings: buoy - buoyancy - voyage

Exercise 11.1
Read the following sentences paying special attention to the pronunciation of
diphthong /ɔI/
1. That noise is really annoying.
2. The boy spoilt some of his toys.
3. Those boys really enjoyed the oysters and the soy sauce
4. Roy was appointed chairman of a toy factory.
5. Chloe avoided talking about her voyage.

18- /Iә/
Articulatory features
Narrow, centring. The glide begins in the position for /I/, moving down and back
towards /ә/. The lips are neutral, but with a small movement from spread to open.

Sound-spelling relation
Regular spelling
a) ear: ear - near - nearly - clear - fear - tear - shear - rear - dear - hear - year - beard -
weary - dreary - appear - arrears -
b) eer: cheers - cheery - beer - deer - steer - steeringwheel - veneer - cheerio - engineer
mountaineer - auctioneer - pioneer -
c) ere: here - mere - merely - we’re - adhere - adherent -
d) ier: fierce - piercing -

Exceptional spellings
d) other spellings: real - really - idea - era - venerial - souvenir - weir - weird - query -
cafetería - cereal - emir - emirate - superior -

Exercise 12.1
Read the following sentences paying special attention to the pronunciation of
diphthong /Iә/
1. Oh, dear. it’s clear that you fear your peers.
2. We’re adherent to that idea.
3. Those mountaineers live near here.
4. The auctioneer is drinking beer at the cafeteria.
5. Deirdre was a Pioneer as an engineer here.

19- /eә/
Articulatory features
Narrow, centring. Then glide begins in the position for /e/, moving back towards /ә/. The
lips remain neutrally open.

Sound-spelling relation
Regular spellings
a) are: care - careful - fare - rare - stare - share - spare - square - mare - compare -scare
- bare - dare - welfare
b) air: air - fair - stair - stairway - hair - chair - chairman - affair - repair - prairie -
clairvoyance - clairvoyant -
Exceptional spellings
c) other spellings: Mary - where - bear - bearer - wear - aeroplane - scarce - scarcely -
vary - theirs - they’re - aerate - aerodrome - aerial - aeronautics - aerosol - aerospace -
mayor - prayer –

Exercise 13.1
Read the following sentences paying special attention to the pronunciation of
diphthong /eә/
1. That affair is not fair.
2. Mary’s got fair hair.
3. They’re scared of the predictions of the clairvoyant.
4. Where is the stairway?
5. Clare really cares about her children’s welfare.

20- /ʊә/
Articulatory features
Narrow, centring. The glide begins in the position for /ʊ/, moving towards and down
towards /ә/. The lips are loosely rounded, becoming neutrally spread.

Sound-spelling relation
Regular spellings
a) our: tour - amour -gourd - contour - gourmet
b) u: during - enduring - sure - pure - purify - purulent - purulency –
c) ua: estuary - February -
d) oor: poor - moor -

Exercise 14.1
Read the following sentences paying special attention to the pronunciation of
diphthong /ʊә/
1. We are sure to see thousands of tourists here in February.
2. During the low season, there are convenient tours for poor elderly people.
3. Estuary English is not pure.
4. I’m sure Howard doesn’t like gourd
5. Michelle is a French gourmet

Exercise 15
Read the following text paying special attention to the pronunciation of diphthongs.

Been to Benidorm, Bali and the Greek Isles? Tired of all the typical tourist resorts? Why
not treat youself to a holiday in space?
In just a few years from now, your local travel agent may well try to tempt you in this
way into taking a short break in a futuristic space hotel, with the chance to look down on all
the sights of our planet from over sixty miles up.
Not so long ago the idea of space travel for all was just a dream. Now, at the start of new
millenium, it is beginning to become a reality. With the first short commercial passenger
flights into space already fully booked, private companies are now turning their attention to
holidaymakers wanting to spend longer periods of time outside the Earth’s atmosphere.
Tourists will soon be preparing to stay for several days in an orbiting space hotel.

Triphthongs
A third vowel /ә/ can be added to the English closing diphthongs to form triphthongs. A
triphthong is a glide from one vowel to another and then to a third, all produced rapidly and
without interruption.

1- /eIә/
Regular spelling(s)
a) ayer: layer - payer - slayer -
b) ayor: mayor - conveyor - surveyor -

2- /aIә /
Regular spelling(s)
a) ire: fire - wire - inspire - require - tired - empire - retire - shire - tire -
b) yre: tyre -
c) appliance - defiance - quiet - diet - violent - violet - violin -
3- /әʊә/
Regular spellings
a) ower: lower - mower - slower -

4- /aʊә/
Regular spelling(s)
a) our: sour - ours - hour -
b) owar: coward -
c) ower: shower - power -

5- /ɔIә/
Regular spelling(s)
a) oyer: employer -
b) oya: royal - loyal
c) other spellings: lawyer -

The resulting sequence is pronounced fully only occasionally, as when using a slow, very
formal style of pronunciation or when the word containing the triphthong is given special
emphasis. Speakers of standard British accents tend to weaken or omit the second element
of the sequence. This vowel reduction is a form of compression technically known as
‘levelling’.

Exercise 16
Read the following sentences paying special attention to the pronunciation of
triphthongs.

1. The Empire State building was on fire.

2. Just in two hours, the showers flooded the lower lands.
3. The loyal armies were given a royal welcome.
4. After the riots, the Mayor decided to retire.
5. After retiring, Sophia went to visit the Tower of London.

Exercise 17
Miscellaneous
Read the following sentences paying special attention to the pronunciation of the
words in bold

When the English tongue we speak, why is break not rhymed with weak? Won’t you tell
me why it’s true we say sew, but also few? And the maker of a verse cannot rhyme his
horse with worse? Beard is not the same as heard. Cord is different from word. Cow is
cow but low is low. Shoe is never rhymed with foe. Think of hose and dose and lose. And
think of goose and yet of choose. Think of comb and tomb and bomb. Doll and roll and
home and some. And since pay is rhymed with say, why not paid with said I pray? Think
of blood and food and good; mould is not pronounced like could. Why is it done, but gone
and lone? – Is there any reason known? To sum up, it seems to me that sounds and letters
don’t agree.

REFERENCES

-Finch, D. & H. Ortiz.(1982). A Course of English Phonetics for Spanish Speakers.

Heinemann Educationak Books
- English Teaching Forum 2. (2011)
-English Teaching Forum 4. (2013)
-Marks, J. (2007). English Pronunciation in Use: Elementary Cambridge University Press.
-Jones, D. (2006). English Pronouncing Dictionary. Edited by Peter Roach, James Hartman
& Jane Setter. Cambridge University Press.
Soars, J.. & L. Soars. (1995). Headway: upper-intermediate. Oxford University Press.
- Wells, J.C. (2008). Pronunciation Dictionary. Longman.