English has more vowel sounds than the letters a, e, i, o, u, so the spelling cannot tell you the sound. The simple vowels, the ones that do not glide, are 11 in British English (a twelfth, the weak schwa /ə/, has its own page). What matters is how long the vowel is and where your mouth is when you say it.
The six short vowels
Short vowels are quick and relaxed. Click a sound to practise it.
| Sound | Examples | Mouth tip | |
|---|---|---|---|
| /ɪ/ | sit, ship, big, gift | Keep it quick: it lasts about half as long as /iː/. | Practise → |
| /ʊ/ | full, book, good, foot | Round your lips only a little. | Practise → |
| /e/ | bed, men, ten, head | Open your mouth a little more than for /ɪ/. | Practise → |
| /æ/ | bad, man, cat, black | Drop your jaw: you should see a gap between your teeth. | Practise → |
| /ʌ/ | cup, bus, love, sun | Relax your whole mouth: this is a lazy sound. | Practise → |
| /ɒ/ | hot, dog, lot, stop | Round your lips and open your jaw. | Practise → |
The five long vowels
Long vowels are held longer and are clearer. The colon ː in the IPA means “long”.
| Sound | Examples | Mouth tip | |
|---|---|---|---|
| /iː/ | sheep, seat, green, key | Smile while you say it. | Practise → |
| /uː/ | fool, pool, food, blue | Make a small, tight circle with your lips. | Practise → |
| /ɑː/ | car, father, start, calm | Open your mouth as if the dentist asked you to. | Practise → |
| /ɔː/ | door, more, sport, law | Round your lips and hold the sound. | Practise → |
| /ɜː/ | bird, girl, her, work | Keep your lips relaxed and still. | Practise → |
Pairs that sound alike
These pairs are where most learners get confused. Each one is practised on the vowel pages.
| Short | Long or different | How to feel the difference |
|---|---|---|
| /ɪ/ ship, sit | /iː/ sheep, seat | For /iː/ spread your lips and hold the sound. |
| /ʊ/ full, pull | /uː/ fool, pool | For /uː/ push your lips forward into a small circle. |
| /e/ bed, men | /æ/ bad, man | Open your mouth wider for /æ/: your jaw drops. |
| /ʌ/ cut | /ɑː/ cart | Open your mouth wider and hold /ɑː/. |
| /ɒ/ cot | /ɔː/ caught | Round your lips more and hold /ɔː/. |
A long vowel is not only longer, it is also clearer. Do not just stretch the short vowel.
The 11 vowel pages
/ɪ/ as in ship
Short vowel. Spellings: i, y, ui…
Sort + quiz 2/iː/ as in sheep
Long vowel. Spellings: ee, ea, e…
Sort + quiz 3/ʊ/ as in book
Short vowel. Spellings: oo, u, ou…
Sort + quiz 4/uː/ as in food
Long vowel. Spellings: oo, ue, ew…
Sort + quiz 5/e/ as in bed
Short vowel. Spellings: e, ea, ai…
Sort + quiz 6/æ/ as in cat
Short vowel. Spellings: a, a (in longer words)…
Sort + quiz 7/ʌ/ as in cup
Short vowel. Spellings: u, o, ou…
Sort + quiz 8/ɒ/ as in hot
Short vowel. Spellings: o, a (after w), other…
Sort + quiz 9/ɑː/ as in car
Long vowel. Spellings: ar, a, al…
Sort + quiz 10/ɔː/ as in door
Long vowel. Spellings: or, oor / our, aw / au…
Sort + quiz 11/ɜː/ as in bird
Long vowel. Spellings: ir, er, ur…
Sort + quiz