British English has five long sounds: as in see, as in car, as in saw, as in too and as in her. Each one is held longer than a short vowel and has its own mouth shape, so length is not the only difference.
The five long vowels
A long is a pure vowel sound that you hold for longer than a short vowel. The tongue stays in one position, without gliding to another sound. The symbol ː after the vowel means long.
Learn each sound with one key word, and keep a few other words with it.
- as in see: sheep, team, key, people
- as in car: father, start, last, heart
- as in saw: door, talk, four, water
- as in too: food, blue, group, true
- as in her: bird, work, learn, first
How each one feels in the mouth
is made high and at the front. Spread your lips a little, as in a small smile, and raise the front of your tongue near the roof of the mouth. Keep it steady and do not let it end in a glide.
is low and at the back. Open your mouth wide and let your tongue lie low. Think of the sound you make at the dentist: ahh.
is made with rounded lips and a tongue half-high at the back. Round your lips as if you were going to say 'or' without the r.
is high and at the back, with the lips tightly rounded and pushed forward. Make a small round hole with your lips.
is a central , with the lips relaxed and the tongue in the middle. It is a long 'er' sound, and there is no r sound in British English.
Length and quality work together
Learners often think that a long is the same as a short vowel, only stretched. That is not enough. In British English the long vowels also have a different quality, a different mouth shape. The vowel in sheep is higher and tighter than in ship. The vowel in fool is rounder than in full.
So if you just stretch a short vowel, the word may still sound wrong. Make the shape change as well as the length. Stretching alone, without the correct shape, may leave a listener unsure between sheep and ship, or between pool and pull.
Length changes with the next sound
A is longer before a than before a one. The vowel in seed is longer than in seat. The vowel in bag is longer than in back. Listeners use this difference to tell the words apart, especially at the end of a word.
The long vowels in this article are heard best in . In an , a vowel becomes short and weak, even if the spelling looks long. Compare work /wɜːk/, which is stressed and long, with teacher /ˈtiːtʃə/, where the last syllable is short and weak even though it is spelled er.
Pairs to practise
Say each pair slowly, then say the long word in a short sentence.
- and : ship and sheep, sit and seat, live and leave.
- and : full and fool, pull and pool, look and Luke.
- and : cot and caught, shot and short, pot and port.
- and : cut and cart, luck and lark, hut and heart.
- A quality contrast worth practising too: and (bed and bird, ten and turn).
Common mistakes
One mistake is making every long the same length and every short vowel the same length. A better way to think is in two groups: quick and held. A second mistake is replacing with a vowel from your first language, such as a rounded 'o' or a clear 'e'. A third mistake is saying the r that is written, as in car or bird. In British English the r is silent unless a vowel follows.
To check yourself, record a word list and listen with your eyes closed. Can you hear which words are held and which are quick?
How to make the sound
- For , spread your lips and raise the front of your tongue. Hold it steady for two counts.
- For , open your mouth wide and keep the tongue low.
- For and , round your lips: a medium circle for and a small circle for .
- For , relax your lips and say a long, steady 'er' with no r sound.
Who finds this hard?
- Spanish speakers: Spanish does not use length, so sheep and ship, or pool and pull, often sound the same. The central vowel in bird and work is also new.
- Korean speakers: In everyday Korean, vowel length no longer separates words for many speakers, so the length contrast in English is unfamiliar. Pairs such as full and fool need extra ear training.
IELTS tip
In the Speaking test, mixing up a long and a short can make a different word, such as sheep for ship or pool for pull. Choose the two pairs that you personally confuse, and use them when you record a short answer. In the Listening test, hearing the long vowels clearly helps you separate words in names and numbers, such as fourteen and forty, where the vowel and both matter.
Frequently asked questions
What are the long vowel sounds in English?
In British English they are , , , and . Each is a single steady sound that is held longer than a short .
Are long vowels the same as the letters a, e, i, o, u said as their names?
No. Those letter names are mostly , such as and . The long vowels here are pure sounds, like the one in see.
Do I need to hold a long vowel for a fixed time?
No. Length is relative. A long vowel is longer than a short one in the same position, and it also changes with the next sound.
Why do I hear the long vowels differently in American English?
American English often pronounces the r after a vowel, as in car and bird, which changes the vowel quality. This course uses British English, where the r is silent unless a vowel follows.
Sources
- Roach, P. (2009). English Phonetics and Phonology: A Practical Course (4th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
- Cruttenden, A. (2014). Gimson's Pronunciation of English (8th ed.). Routledge.