A collection of free resources designed to help you speak English better. 

What is the /ʊ/ Sound?

First, let's look at a few examples of words with the English /ʊ/ sound:

• put
• full
• pull
• push
• bush

According to Baruch College's Tools for Clear Speech, the /ʊ/ sound is made by doing the following:

"/ʊ/ is a high, back, lax vowel. To make it, your tongue should be lifted...

What is the /eə (ɛr)/ Sound?

First, let's look at a few examples of words with the English /ɛr/ sound:

• air
• dairy
• fairly
• hair
• where
• pair
• affair

According to Sounds American, the /ɛr/ sound is made by doing the following:

"To pronounce the /ɛr/ sound correctly, blend the /ɛ/ and /r/...

What is the /a:/ Sound?

First, let's look at a few examples of words with the English /ɑr/ sound:

• army
• argue
• father
• market
• car
• star

According to Sounds American, the /ɑr/ sound is made by doing the following:

"To pronounce the /ɑr/ sound correctly, blend the /ɑ/ and /r/ sounds.

Mouth: First,...

What is the /ɔr/ Sound?

First, let's look at a few examples of words with the English /ɔr/ sound:

• orchard
• order
• dorm
• report
• door
• four

According to Sounds American, the /ɔr/ sound is made by doing the following:

"To pronounce the /ɔr/ sound correctly, blend the /ɔ/ and /r/ sounds.

Mouth: First,...

What is the /ɜ/ Sound?

First, let's look at a few examples of words with the English /ɜ/ sound:

• urgent
• earth
• verb
• girl
• fur
• per

According to Rachael’s English, the /ɜ/ sound is made by doing the following:

"the corners of the lips come in, pushing the lips away from the face. The middle...

What is the Schwa /ə/ Sound?

First, let's look at a few examples of words with the English /ə/ sound:

• about
• among
• different
• moment
• never
• boxer

According to Rachel’s English, the Schwa /ə/ sound is made by doing the following:

"This vowel is always unstressed. The mouth position is a lot...

What is the /ɪr/ Sound?

First, let's look at a few examples of words with the English /ɪr/ sound:

• ear
• earring
• weird
• theory
• near
• dear

According to Sounds American, the /ɪr/ sound is made by doing the following:

"To pronounce the /ɪr/ sound correctly, blend the /ɪ/ and /r/ sounds together.

Mouth:...

What is the /ɔɪ/ Sound?

First, let's look at a few examples of words with the English /ɔɪ/ sound:

• oil
• oiled
• coin
• voice
• enjoy
• boy

According to Baruch College's Tools for Clear Speech, the /ɔɪ/ sound is made by doing the following:

"/ɔɪ/ is a diphthong, which is like a combination of two...

What is the /aʊ/ Sound?

First, let's look at a few examples of words with the English /aʊ/ sound:

• out
• owl
• tower
• about
• now
• brow

According to Baruch College's Tools for Clear Speech, the /aʊ/ sound is made by doing the following:

"/ɑʊ/ is a diphthong, which is like a combination of two different...

What is the /u: (u)/ Sound?

First, let's look at a few examples of words with the English /u/ sound:

• roof
• soon
• goose
• too
• true
• taboo

According to Baruch College's Tools for Clear Speech, the /u/ sound is made by doing the following:

"/u/ is a high, back, rounded vowel. To make it, your...

What is the /ʌ/ Sound?

First, let's look at a few examples of words with the English /ʌ/ sound:

• up
• under
• other
• sun
• bus
• duck

According to Baruch College's Tools for Clear Speech, the /ʌ/ sound is made by doing the following:

"The /ʌ/ vowel is a mid-central sound. This means it is made with the...

What is the /oʊ/ Sound?

First, let's look at a few examples of words with the English /oʊ/ sound:

• open
• ocean
• goat
• close
• so
• slow

According to Sounds American, the /oʊ/ sound is made by doing the following:

"To pronounce the /oʊ/ sound correctly, open your mouth partially, round your lips, and...