IPA vowels: the 12 English vowels and the length mark ː
British English has 12 single vowels, the monophthongs: seven short and five long. You met six of the short ones in lesson 1; this lesson teaches the five long ones and the mark that makes them long.
How many vowel sounds English has
The seventh short vowel, the schwa, gets lesson 5 to itself. Add the eight diphthongs of lesson 4 and you have the 20 vowel sounds of British English.
- 7
- short vowels
- 5
- long vowels
- 8
- diphthongs (lesson 4)
- 20
- vowel sounds in all
Where the vowels sit in the mouth
The vowel chart is the inside of your mouth seen from the side, facing left: front vowels at the left, back vowels at the right, close (tongue high) at the top, open (jaw low) at the bottom.
The 12 British English vowels by quality. Long vowels are plotted without the length mark, so iː sits at i.
The length mark ː
Two small triangles, ː, mean the sound before them is long. British dictionaries put it on five vowels: see is /siː/, car is /kɑː/.
Length is only half of it
The vowel of see is also higher and tenser than the vowel of sit, so /iː/ and /ɪ/ differ in symbol as well as length. That difference in quality, as much as length, keeps sheep and ship apart.
The symbols
See them on the IPA chartPress play to hear each real word; the highlighted letters make the sound.
iː
Long ee, as in see
On the chart: Close front unrounded vowelThe vowel of see, she and me. Compare /ɪ/: sit is short and relaxed, see is long and tense.
ɑː
Long ah, as in car
On the chart: Open back unrounded vowelThe open back vowel of car and father, with no r in British English.
ɔː
Long aw, as in door
On the chart: Open-mid back rounded vowelThe rounded vowel of door, talk and four: three spellings, one symbol.
uː
Long oo, as in food
On the chart: Close back rounded vowelThe vowel of food, too and zoo. Compare /ʊ/: good is short, food is long.
ɜː
The vowel of bird
On the chart: Open-mid central unrounded vowelA reversed epsilon: the vowel of bird, work and first, with no r in British English.
Where did the r go?
In British English the r of car, door and bird is silent, so it is not written: car is /kɑː/.
Accents that say the r are called rhotic, and their dictionaries write it. Hear it in six accents below, with the vowel of bath, which splits English accents in two.
Hear it in six accents
START. American, Scottish and Irish say the r (they are rhotic); the other three do not, and lengthen the vowel instead. Scottish r is often a tap.
- Southern British (RP)/kɑː/
- General American/kɑɹ/
- Australian/kaː/
- South African/kɑː/
- Scottish/kaɾ/
- Irish/kɑːɹ/
Every clip here is a synthetic voice imitating that accent, not a recording of a native speaker. Transcriptions are broad: what a typical speaker of the accent does, highlighted where the accents differ.
Key takeaways
- British English has 12 vowels: 7 short and 5 long.
- ː means long: see /siː/, car /kɑː/.
- iː and ɪ differ in quality as well as length: sheep /ʃiːp/, ship /ʃɪp/.
- A British r after a vowel is silent, so it is not written: car /kɑː/.
Drill
0/10
Part of Kilo Lingo Plus - the lesson above is free to read.
Which word is this?
/liːv/
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