1.

Main Categories of English Sounds

Category Meaning Example

Single Vowels One simple, steady vowel sound. cat, sit, hot
(Monophthongs)

Diphthongs Two vowel sounds blended together. boy, time, loud

Consonant Sounds Sounds made by blocking air with lips, bat, dog, cat
teeth, tongue, etc.

Consonant Clusters Two or more consonants together with no street, plant, crisp
vowel between them.

Glides Quick sounds made while moving your win, yes

mouth slightly (often /w/ or /j/).

Schwa (/ə/) The most common sound in English, weak about, banana,
and unstressed "uh" sound. problem

R-Controlled Vowels Vowel sound followed and controlled by "r." car, bird, turn

Silent Letters Letters written but not pronounced. knife (k silent), doubt
(b silent)

2. Core Rules for Pronouncing Vowels

English vowels (a, e, i, o, u — and sometimes y) change sound depending on the situation.
Here are key patterns:

Pattern Example Sound Rule

Short vowel (VC or cat, bed, pin, hop, If a vowel is followed by one consonant, it’s
CVC pattern) cup usually short.

Long vowel (VCE cake, theme, If a vowel is followed by one consonant and a
pattern - Silent 'e') bike, hope, cute silent 'e', the vowel says its name.
Vowel Teams (two boat, beat, rain, "When two vowels go walking, the first one
vowels together) food, pie does the talking" — the first vowel is usually
long.

R-controlled vowels car, bird, form, The 'r' changes the vowel sound: car = /ɑr/, bird
(vowel + r) turn = /ɜr/.

Open syllable (vowel he, go, me, hi A vowel at the end of a syllable is usually long.
at end)

Schwa sound about, pencil, Unstressed vowels often become a soft /ə/
(unstressed vowels) supply sound (the "schwa").

3. 30-Day English Vowel Mastery Plan

Day Focus Task

1 Basics Learn short vs long vowels (a, e, i, o, u). Watch a YouTube video
explaining it.

2 Short A /æ/ Practice words like "cat", "map", "bad". Listen, repeat, record.

3 Short E /ɛ/ Practice words like "bed", "red", "pen". Minimal pairs with /æ/.

4 Short I /ɪ/ Practice words like "sit", "hit", "fit". Minimal pairs with /ɛ/.

5 Short O /ɒ/ Practice words like "cot", "pot", "lot". Compare with /ɑː/ if needed.

6 Short U /ʌ/ Practice "cup", "luck", "mud". Record yourself.

7 Review Review Days 2–6 with a self-quiz (record yourself saying 10

random words).

8 Long A /eɪ/ Practice "cake", "late", "make". Learn the silent 'e' rule.

9 Long E /iː/ Practice "me", "be", "see", "free". Minimal pairs with /ɪ/.

10 Long I /aɪ/ Practice "like", "time", "find". Shadow native speakers.

11 Long O /oʊ/ Practice "go", "home", "boat". Notice mouth rounding.

12 Long U /juː/ Practice "cute", "few", "music". Practice slow, clear speech.
13 Review Shadow 1 paragraph from a native speaker audiobook. Focus on
long vowels.

14 Schwa /ə/ Learn the schwa sound. Practice words like "banana", "problem",
"family".

15 Diphthongs 1 Practice /aɪ/ (my, light) and /ɔɪ/ (boy, coin).

16 Diphthongs 2 Practice /aʊ/ (now, house) and /eɪ/ (say, rain).

17 Diphthongs 3 Practice /oʊ/ (go, boat) and /ɪə/ (ear, beer).

18 Vowel Teams Study vowel combinations: ai, ea, oa, ee. Examples: "rain",
"bread", "road".

19 Minimal Pairs Day Practice ship/sheep, full/fool, sit/seat, bad/bed.

20 Rhythm Focus Pick a simple English song (slow) and sing along focusing on
vowel sounds.

21 Review Choose 10 sentences with difficult vowels, read them loudly, and
record.

22 R-controlled Learn "car", "bird", "corn", "fur". Practice strongly.

vowels

23 Linking Vowels Practice how words link in speech: "go on" sounds like "go-won".

24 Stress in Words Practice word stress: "record" (noun vs verb). Hear how vowel
sounds change.

25 IPA Basics Spend 20 minutes studying IPA vowel symbols for English.

26 Accent Focus Choose a specific accent (General American or British RP). Watch
a video analyzing it.

27 Mouth Position Watch yourself in a mirror pronouncing vowels. Exaggerate

movements.

28 Full Paragraph Read a paragraph slowly focusing only on vowel clarity.

Practice

29 Free Talk Talk about your day for 2 minutes recording yourself. Focus on
Challenge vowels.

🎉
30 Final Test Record reading a story (like "The Cat and the Hat"). Compare with
Day 1. Celebrate progress!
4. English Diphthong Cheat Sheet
📚 What are diphthongs?
●​ Two vowel sounds smoothly combined into one syllable.
●​ Your mouth moves from the first vowel to the second.
●​ They sound like a glide!

🎵 Main English Diphthongs:

Symbol Example Words How to Say It

/aɪ/ eye, time, find "a" ➔ "ee" (like 'time')

/eɪ/ say, day, rain "e" ➔ "ee" (like 'day')

/ɔɪ/ boy, coin, toy "aw" ➔ "ee" (like 'boy')

/aʊ/ now, house, out "a" ➔ "oo" (like 'out')

/oʊ/ go, home, snow "o" ➔ "oo" (like 'go')

/ɪə/ ear, idea, here "i" ➔ "uh" (like 'idea')

/eə/ air, care, fair "e" ➔ "uh" (like 'air')

/ʊə/ tour, sure "oo" ➔ "uh" (like 'tour')

🧠 Tips to Master Diphthongs:

🎤 Stretch and glide between sounds slowly.
🪞 Use a mirror to check your mouth moving.
●​

🎧 Listen carefully to native speakers.

●​

📢 Record yourself and compare to good examples.

●​

🔄 Repeat words and short sentences daily.

●​
●​

✏️ Quick Practice Sentences:

 ●​ /aɪ/: I like to ride my bike at night.
●​ /eɪ/: They play games every day.
●​ /ɔɪ/: The boy enjoys his new toy.
●​ /aʊ/: How now brown cow?
●​ /oʊ/: Go home before it snows.
●​ /ɪə/: Can you hear the clear idea?
●​ /eə/: Take care when you share.
●​ /ʊə/: We are sure to tour Europe.

📌 Final Note: Key Rules & Common Exceptions

🔤 Vowels
●​ CVC (consonant-vowel-consonant) → short vowel: cat, bed, sit
●​ CVCe (silent 'e') → long vowel: cake, ride, cute

❗
●​ Open syllable (ends in vowel) → usually long: he, go, me
○​ Exception: Some Latin-based words like rigid, rapid, vivid keep short
vowels, even though the first syllable is open.

🔀 Diphthongs
●​ Sound like vowel "glides" — two sounds in one: boy, time, loud

❗
●​ Pronunciation can vary slightly by accent (e.g., UK vs US)
○​ Be careful with regional differences: tour may sound like one vowel in some
accents.

🤐 Schwa (/ə/)
●​ Most common English vowel sound.
●​ Happens in unstressed syllables, no matter the spelling.

❗
○​ Examples: about, banana, pencil
○​ Never stressed — often overlooked by learners.

🗣️ Word Stress
●​ Nouns vs Verbs: REcord (noun) vs reCORD (verb)
●​ Words ending in:
○​ ic, -sion, -tion → stress the syllable before

❗
○​ al, -ty, -cy, -gy → usually stress third-from-last
●​ Some exceptions exist, especially in foreign/borrowed words.
🔇 Silent Letters
●​ Not all letters are pronounced — trust your ears, not just spelling!

❗
○​ Examples: knife (k), doubt (b), write (w)
○​ These must be memorized — no pronunciation rule fixes them.

✅ Tip: English has rules, but also many exceptions — especially in pronunciation.
Don’t try to memorize everything at once. Focus on patterns, listen a lot, and imitate real
speech.

📄✨
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