Pronunciation – Vowel 1 “a, æ, & ʌ”

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Vowel “a, æ & ʌ”

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STEP 1 How to pronounce a short “o” sound /a/ 

The vocal tract is very open for the production of theshort o sound. In fact, the jaw is held more open and the back of the tongue is held lower for this sound than any other American English vowel sound pronunciation. The tongue touches the inside of the bottom teeth so that the top of the tongue is nearly even with the top of the bottom teeth. The lips are held open and kept rounded, but relaxed.

(Source: http://www.pronuncian.com/Sounds)

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STEP 2 How to pronounce a short “a” sound /æ/

The front of the tongue is pushed further forward and is held lower in the mouth when forming the short asound than with any other vowel sound. The tip of the tongue will touch the inside of the bottom front teeth. The body of the tongue is rounded slightly upward. The jaw is lowered and the lips are held apart, allowing the entire oral cavity to remain open.

(Source: http://www.pronuncian.com/Sounds)

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STEP 3 How to pronounce a short “u” sound /ʌ/

The body of the tongue is relaxed and set low in the mouth. The sides of the tongue lightly touch the bottom teeth during the formation of the sound. The jaw is kept in a neutral position, and the lips are relaxed.

The overall relaxed nature of the formation of this sound is why it is commonly used for the pronunciation of the vowel sound of an unstressed syllable. The short i sound may also be used in an unstressed syllable, but the short u/schwa is more common.

(Source: http://www.pronuncian.com/Sounds)

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STEP 4 Practice

Short “o” sound words

1. Top

2. On

3. Box

4. Rock

5. Drop

6. Fox

7. Got

8. Not

9. Cop

10. Hop

Short “a” sound words

1. Cat

2. Rat

3. Flat

4. Can

5. Pan

6. Hat

7. Cap

8. Black

9. Track

10. Dad

Short “u” sound words

1. Fun

2. Gun

3. Cut

4. Stuff

5. Nut

6. But

7. Run

8. Tub

9. Puff

10. Hug

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STEP 5 Practice Materials for Vowel Contrast

/a/ – /ʌ/

1. Bomb – Bum

2. Rob – Rub

3. College – Color

4. Common – Come

5. Bother – Brother

/æ/ – /ʌ/

1. Fan – Fun

2. Ran – Run

3. Sang – Sung

4. Sam – Some

5. Cat – Cut

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STEP 6 Followup Practice

• Followup Practice 1

• Followup Practice 2

• Followup Practice 3

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