Vowels

Chapter 3

Describing Vowels
What

is a vowel?
What is your mouth doing when you say
a vowel?
Where is your tongue when you say
vowels?
What are your lips doing when you say
vowels?

Tongue Position
High

tongue is close to roof of mouth

Mid tongue position is midway
between high and low
Low open jaw and so tongue is on
bottom of mouth

Tongue Position Contd

Front front part of the tongue is pushed

forward

Back the highest point of the tongue is back

You can see tongue in the mirror

The whole tongue moves back in the mouth.

Central neither back nor front.

Your tongue needs to be in the middle, between

high and low and between front and back.

Lip position
Rounded

as if you were kissing

someone
Unrounded (spread) as if you are
smiling
Neutral position lips are relaxed,
similar to when you are not talking

Excellent Chart
See

vowel summary on page 23

http://www.uiowa.edu/~acadtech/phonet
ics
/# for the APP
http://
soundsofspeech.uiowa.edu/english/engli
sh.html
for the website

Characteristics of all vowels

Voicing

All vowels are voiced

Vocal folds
Larynx
http://
www.entusa.com/normal_larynx.htm

Kinds of Vowels
Pure

vowels
Diphthongs start out as one vowel and
end up sounding like another vowel

Vowel Length
vowel length is determined by the sound
environment
The sound following the vowel changes its length

o
o

short vowel long vowel long vowel

voiceless voiced
open syllable
suit
sued sue
ice eyes
eye
note
known no
beat
bead be
bit bid
late
laid
lay
let led

Vowel Length
Syllable

Stress changes vowel length

short vowel
longvowel

percent
all of it
visit

person
I love it
to sit

Vowel Quality
Vowels

are naturally long or short

bit /I/
red //
cup //
look //

beat/i/
raid /eI/
cop//
Luke/u/

Position of the Vowel

Consider

the following:

My new shirt is dirty.

My shirt is new.
Your bag is on the floor.
Thats your bag.