Vowels in English: Understanding the Basics

What is a Vowel?

A vowel is a letter that represents a vowel sound. In the English alphabet, there are five vowels: a, e, i, o, and u. According to the Oxford Learner’s Dictionary, a vowel is “a letter that represents a vowel sound.” Now, let's find out what a vowel sound is.

What is a Vowel Sound?

A vowel sound is made without blocking the air with your lips, tongue, teeth, or throat. The Oxford Learner’s Dictionary defines it as “a speech sound in which the mouth is open, and the tongue is not touching the top of the mouth, the teeth, etc., so that the flow of air is not limited.” In English, there are five vowels (A, E, I, O, U), but there are twenty different vowel sounds. Out of these twenty, eight are called diphthongs.

Types of Vowels:

Vowels are of two types

1. Pure Vowels

2. Diphthongs

Let’s understand what comes under Pure Vowels and Diphthongs

What are Pure Vowels?

Pure vowels, also known as monophthongs, are vowel sounds that remain constant throughout their pronunciation. They do not change or glide into another sound. These sounds are straightforward and do not vary in tone or quality. Examples of pure vowels include:

• a as in "cat"

• e as in "bed"

• i as in "tick"

• o as in "dot"

• u as in "sun"

• oo as in "food"

Pure vowels are essential for clear and consistent speech, forming the basic sounds in many words.

Again Pure Vowels are divided into two types:

1. Checked Vowels

2. Free Vowels

Checked Vowels:

Checked vowels are vowel sounds that are followed by a consonant in the same syllable, which "checks" or stops the vowel sound. These vowels are short and do not continue in a smooth, flowing manner.

Examples of checked vowels include:

• /ɪ/ as in "sit"

• /ʌ/ as in "cup"

• /e/ as in "bed"

• /æ/ as in "cat"

Free Vowels:

Free vowels are vowel sounds that occur in words without being limited or "checked" by a consonant sound at the end. They can be held longer and are usually found in open syllables. Examples of free vowels include:

• iː as in "see"

• uː as in "food"

• aː as in "car"

Here’s a table listing examples of pure vowels:

Diphthongs:

Diphthongs are vowel sounds made by blending two different vowel sounds together. They create a new sound that is different from either of the original vowels.

Diphthongs List with Examples

Here is a table showing the eight diphthongs in English. Check out the examples for each diphthong to understand how each sound is pronounced.

Types of Vowels and Their Sounds

Vowels or vowel sounds are classified into two categories based on their length and the number of distinct vowel sounds. They are:

1. Short Vowels and

2. Long Vowels

Now let’s know what are Short Vowels and Long Vowels

Short Vowels:

Short vowels are single vowel sounds found in words, typically followed by consonants. They do not appear at the end of the final syllable in a word.

Examples of short vowels include:

• a: cat, hat, bat

• e: bed, pen, red

• i: sit, pin, lid

• o: dog, log, hot

• u: cup, sun, bus

Long Vowels:

Long vowels refer to vowel sounds that are extended and can appear as single or multiple vowels in words. These words can start or end with vowels.

Examples of Long Vowels include:

• a: cake, name, gate

• e: see, seat, meet

• i: bike, time, nine

• o: home, boat, stone

• u: mule, tune, June

Vowel sounds are classified into long and short categories, and they are not the same. This classification also includes words with diphthongs. Let’s examine the following examples to understand the differences.

Examples of Short Vowels combined with diphthongs:

• /a/: fame, game, late

• /e/: bear, fear, gear

• /i/: fire, tire, hire

• /o/: coin, boil, soil

• /u/: pure, cure, sure

Examples of Long Vowels combined with diphthongs:

• /a/: cake, bait, day

• /e/: beet, meet, we

• /i/: ride, fine, time

• /o/: boat, show, go

• /u/: food, mood, blue

Consonants that combine with Vowels

Consonants typically produce sounds that are distinct from vowel sounds. However, some consonants blend with vowels to create vowel sounds where the consonant sound is not clearly heard. These consonants include w, r, l, y, s, m, n and f. Here are a few examples:

• w: window, wonder

• r: bird, start

• l: ball, milk

• y: yellow, yes

• s: sight, side, sun

• m: moon, man, home

• n: nice, name, nine

• f: fun, food, few

Is 'Y' Considered as a Vowel?

The letter 'y' is primarily a consonant, but it can also function as a vowel in certain cases. This is because 'y' produces a vowel sound in some words. Take a look at how 'y' is pronounced in different positions within these words:

In these examples, 'y' creates a vowel-like sound, illustrating its dual role in pronunciation.

Common Mistakes that everyone do with Vowels

From the examples you’ve seen, you can see that vowel sounds can be spelled in various ways. This is why the English language has homophones.

Here are few examples

How to Use Vowels in English

Check out the following lists to see examples of words with vowels and words without vowels.

Here’s a list of words that feature each vowel sound:

• Cat

• Bag

• Hat

• Map

• Star

• Bed

• Pen

• Red

• Leg

• Net

• Sit

• Pin

• Fit

• Hit

• List

• Dog

• Top

• Box

• Lot

• Pot

• Bus

• Sun

• Cup

• Duck

• Mud

Here are few words without Vowels

• By

• My

• Cry

• Fly

• Gym

• Try

• Dry

• Fry

• Rhythm

• Gyms

• Crypt

• Lynx

• Psyche

The following table helps to learn more about Vowels and Consonants to improve your vocabulary and English speaking skills.

Test Your Knowledge On Vowels in English

1. Vowel Identification

Underline or highlight all the vowels in the following sentence.

Sentence: The cat sat on the mat.

2. Vowel Sorting

Sort the following words into groups based on the vowel sound they contain.

Words: cat, bed, pig, dog, sun

3. Complete the Words

Fill in the missing vowels in the following incomplete words.

Incomplete Words: c_t, d_g, f__d

4. Vowel Matching

Match the words to their vowel sounds.

Words: play, beach, moon, see, book

Vowel Sounds: /æ/, /iː/, /uː/

Here you go—Check if your answers match the ones below!

1. The cat sat on the mat

2.

• A: cat

• E: bed

• I: pig

• O: dog

• U: sun

3. cat, dog, food

4. /æ/: play, /iː/: beach, see, /uː/: moon, book

Takeaways from this Page

• By learning Vowels in English students can easily recognise the vowels (a, e, i, o, u) and understand their role in words.

• Learn the different sounds vowels can make, including both short and long vowels.

• Understand pure vowels that have a single vowel sound, like in "cat" and "seat."

• Explore how some consonants blend with vowels to create vowel sounds, like "w" in "wonder."

• Learn where vowels typically appear in words and how they affect pronunciation.