Vowel Phonemes - Placement

describes the position of each vowel

Front Vowels

/i/→ Lower-Case i

Example: key, fleet, we, wke, teacher, TV, eaves, creek, credence, Easter, yeast, reach, piece, seeks, edict, receipt, pilaf

Tongue Height: High

Tongue Advancement: Front

Tense/ Lax: Tense

Lip Rounding: Unrounded

Front Vowels

/ɪ/→ Small Capital ɪ

Example: win, flit, whittle, inside, dreary, business, king, sister, steer, listen, pistol, intend, prince, really, stink, choosy, kitty

Tongue Height: High (lower than /i/)

Tongue Advancement: Front

Tense/ Lax: Lax

Lip Rounding: Unrounded

R- Colored Vowels: /ɪr/→ear, cheer

Funny, Honey, Money: All ends in /ɪ/

If a word ends in "ing", it has to be an /ɪ/.

Front Vowels

/e/ and /eɪ/→ Lower-Case e

Example /e/: rebate, chaOtic, GYrate, PHOnate, MANdate, UNdulate, layETTE, DECade, ROtate

Example /eɪ/: aWAY, touPEE, creAte, TAble, conTAgious, STATed, BAby, BRAID

Tongue Height: High-Mid

Tongue Advancement: Front

Tense/ Lax: Tense

Lip Rounding: Unrounded

Stressed: /eɪ/→ single syllable word & open syllable at the end of a word

Unstressed: /e/

Front Vowels

/ε/→ Epsilon

Example: red, met, etch, bury, intend, steady, where, terror, tender pretend, repent, heather, elephant, relish, stencil, marry, pleasures

Tongue Height: Low-Mid

Tongue Advancement: Front

Tense/ Lax: Lax

Lip Rounding: Unrounded

R-Colored Vowels: /εr/→ air, bear

Front Vowels

/æ/→ Ash

Example: had, trash, jazz, smacked, language, thank, stand, asterisk, Capricorn, manage, batter, aster, blasphemy, Alabama, tamper, fantastic, trespass

Tongue Height: Low

Tongue Advancement: Front

Tense/ Lax: Lax

Lip Rounding: Unrounded

If it has the sound "ang", it has to be an /æ/

Back Vowels

/u/→ Lower-Case u

Example: moon, chew, ewe, uncouth, strewn, futile, truth, spew, loot, Truman, cruel, cucumber, tulip, clue, stupid, tuna, super

Tongue Height: High

Tongue Advancement: Back

Tense/ Lax: Tense

Lip Rounding: Rounded

You→ /ju/

Spew→ /spju/

Few→ /fju/

Back Vowels

/ʊ/→ Upsilon or Horseshoe

Example: wood, could, sugar, pushed, bull, should, would, cushion, lure, obscure, unsure, took, hood, wolf, full, stood, put

Tongue Height: High

Tongue Advancement: Back

Tense/ Lax: Lax

Lip Rounding: Rounded

R-Colored Word: /ʊr/→lure, tour

Back Vowels

/o/ and /oʊ/→Lower-Case o

Example /o/: boDAcious, CroAtian, broCADE, ptoMAINE, RIboflavin, floTILla, proHIBit, roTAtion

Example /oʊ/: cone, bowl, PRObate, STOic, BLOATed, beLOW, flow, whole, toad, SLOWer, reMOTE, BELLow

Tongue Height: High-Mid

Tongue Advancement: Back

Tense/ Lax: Tense

Lip Rounding: Rounded

Stressed: /oʊ/→ single syllable word & open syllable at the end of a word

Unstressed: /o/

Back Vowels

/ɔ/→ Open o

Example: law, prawn, thought, vault, wrong, awl, ought, autumn, haul, all, sought, off, gone, cord, frog, hoard, soar

Tongue Height: Low-Mid

Tongue Advancement: Back

Tense/ Lax: Tense

Lip Rounding: Rounded

Back Vowels

/ɑ/→ Script ɑ

Example: cod, rotten, ostrich, posse, cause, father, apart, latte, watch, bond, stop, car, problem, plod, bronze, Hans, smart

Tongue Height: Low

Tongue Advancement: Back

Tense/ Lax: Tense

Lip Rounding: Unrounded

Central Vowels

/ə/→ Schwa

Example: about, astound, paraded, plantation, command, rearrange, tangent, spumoni, relevant, roasted, salami, mountain, carousel, ransom, ketchup, tuna, undone

Tongue Height: Mid

Tongue Advancement: Central

Tense/ Lax: Lax

Lip Rounding: Unrounded

Central Vowels

/ʌ/→ Wedge or Hut

Example: bud, rub, button, Monday, mustard, trouble, luncheon, luckily, scrumptious, flood, undone, rushing, public, abundance, stumble, redundant, wonderful

Tongue Height: Low-Mid

Tongue Advancement: Back-Central

Tense/ Lax: Lax

Lip Rounding: Unrounded

Central Vowels

/ə˞/→ Right-Hook Schwa or "Schwar"

Example: butter, pertain, luxury, cursor, percussion, surround, treasure, flirtatious, mattered, runner, under, countered, Herbert, ergonomic, ferocious, Saturday, harbor

Tongue Height: Mid

Tongue Advancement: Central

Tense/ Lax: Lax

Lip Rounding: Rounded

Central Vowels

/ɜ˞/→ Right-Hook Reversed Epsilon

Example: bird, curse, third, Thursday, murder, deter, surgeon, worry, reverse, rehearse, purple, thirsty, nursery, furnace, service, percolate, aversion

Tongue Height: Mid

Tongue Advancement: Central

Tense/ Lax: Tense

Lip Rounding: Rounded