English has its own fair share of odd vowels but there are many more out there. Speech is not possible without vowels. They can be long or short, open or closed, raised or lowered. The variation in how they are spoken adds to the richness of accents of a language. Just think of the English word "hot" spoken with Texan, Australian, South African and BBC British accents. All understandably the same word, but with recognizably different accents due to the different vowels used.
Schwa This sound is easy for English speakers to say as it is the er in brother. The symbol may not very familiar though. This schwa is the sound for the Hindi and Urdu letter a. Ash This sound is easy for English speakers to say as it is the a in cat. The symbol may not be as familiar. This symbol is also called ash. This is the sound for the Azerbaijani letter ə and the Finnish letter ä. |
Short vowels
These sounds are the short forms of the letters e, i, o and u.
ɛ is the e in pet
ɪ is the i in pit
ɔ is the o in pot
ʊ is the u in put
American a (o)
This sound is unrounded and as far back and low as your tongue can go. This is the sound for the short o in American English, the long a in British English, and the Arabic letter a after emphatic consonants. For example, American English hot is pronounced hɑt and British English bath is pronounced bɑ:θ.
New Zealand i
This sound lies in between an i and a ɯ. The lips are not rounded, and the tongue is not as far forward as an i or as far back as for ɯ, it is in the middle of the two. New Zealanders use this sound for i. They pronounce the word fish as fɨsh, which non New Zealanders may hear wrongly as "fush". This ɨ is the sound for the Romanian letters â and î, the Guaraní letter y and the Russian letter ы.
Australian u
This sound lies in between an IPA y and a u. The lips are rounded, and the tongue is not as far forward as an IPA y or as far back as for u, it is in the middle of the two. Australians use this sound for the u in rude. It sounds a little flatter than a normal u.
French u
Please note: y here is the International Phonetic notation for this sound. It does not refer to the y in yet (which is actually j in IPA).
This sound is a rounded i. When the lips are straight and compressed, this is a i sound, but when the lips are rounded this same sound becomes a y (IPA) sound. Start with an i sound, then while saying it purse your lips. This is also the sound for the German letter ü and the Finnish letter y.
Japanese u
This sound is an unrounded u. When the lips are rounded this is a u sound, but when the lips are compressed this same sound becomes a ɯ sound. Start with a u sound, then while saying it hold your lips in a straight line or a smile. This is also the sound for the Turkish letter ı and the Vietnamese letter ư.
Mandarin e
This sound is an unrounded o. When the lips are rounded this is a o sound, but when the lips are compressed this same sound becomes a ɤ sound. Start with a o sound, then while saying it hold your lips in a straight line or a smile. This is also the sound for the Mandarin letter e and the Thai letter oe. For example, Thai thoe (you) is pronounced tʰɤ.
