Pronuncian Lessons
Introduction to American English Vowel Sounds
What are vowel sounds?
Vowel sounds are characterized by being produced with a relatively open vocal tract. Consonant sounds, in contrast, are generally created by building up air in the vocal tract, then releasing it, or by pushing air through a small opening in the vocal tract.[1]
The categories of vowel sounds
Vowel sounds are divided into the categories of long vowels (vowels that sound like the letter name), short vowels (the most common sound for a single vowel spelling), and other vowels (the remaining vowel sounds).
The long vowel sounds are not pronounced for longer time than short vowel sounds!
It is important for ESL/ELL/EFL students to realize that the terms "long" and "short" are not describing the length of time a vowel sound is said. These archaic terms are still in popular use in American classrooms and online. They are used here to simply give a name to a vowel sound so when the sound is discussed, the name and not the sound (which many sudents cannot yet hear correctly) is used.
Key words
The vowel chart above shows the key word, or quick reference word, for each sound. Key words should be memorized to allow easy comparison between different vowel sounds. Vowel sounds are easier to hear within a word than they are alone, so an example key word is given for each sound. Also, the term voiced is shown with each vowel category. All vowel sounds are voiced, meaning that the vocal folds (also known as vocal cords) are vibrating while creating the sound. (See Introduction to Consonants for unvoiced sounds.)
Phonics: The way vowels are spelled
Phonics is the description of the spelling of sounds, and is the basic connection between written and spoken English. Since English has more sounds than letters, sometimes a combination of letters is necessary to represent a single sound. English has fifteen vowel sounds represented by the letters a, e, i, o, and u. The letters y, w and gh are also commonly used in vowel sound spellings.
At their simplest, short vowel sounds are usually spelled with a single letter, while long vowel and other vowel sounds are generally spelled with combinations of letters. This should not be taken as a rule, however, as there are a large number of exceptions. It is helpful instead to learn all the common spellings for each vowel sound as well as other possible pronunciations for each spelling. (See the individual sound lessons for each sound's spellings.)
Vowel sounds and syllable stress
Vowel sounds and syllables are closely related. Syllables are naturally occurring units of sound that create the rhythm of spoken English. Words with multiple syllables always have one syllable that is stressed (given extra emphasis), and that syllable must contain a vowel sound. The phonics of a vowel are usually easier to guess correctly in a stressed syllable than an unstressed syllable. Unstressed syllables may contain the schwa sound, and can have almost any spelling (See Schwa). Only three consonant sounds, the n sound, m sound, or l sound can create a syllable without an additional vowel sound (See Syllabic Consonants).
(See Introduction to Syllable Stress for more information on the nature of stressed and unstressed syllables, as well as secondarily stressed syllables.)
Practice:
long a sound practice word list
long e sound practice word list
long i sound practice word list
long o sound practice word list
long u sound practice word list
short a sound practice word list
short e sound practice word list
short i sound practice word list
short o sound practice word list
short u sound practice word list
u as in put sound practice word list
aw sound practice word list
oi sound practice word list
ow sound practice word list
oo sound practice word list
[1]For example, the word cat is comprised of a consonant sound (k sound), then a vowel sound (short a), then another consonant sound (t sound). The vocal tract is completely closed for a brief moment during the k sound and the t sound, while it remains open during the short a vowel sound. (Not all consonant sounds completely close the vocal tract, some close it only to the extent that it creates friction as air passes through it.)