Complex Vowel Sounds

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Complex Vowel Sounds

The terms "long", "short" and "complex" are not describing the length of time a vowel sound is said. These archaic terms are still in popular use in American classrooms and online. They are used to simply give a name to a vowel sound so when the sound is discussed, the name and not the sound is used.

Besides long vowel sounds, short vowel sounds, and the schwa sound, there are some other special sounds in English that are represented by vowels. They are as follows:

1- Complex "oo" sound /ʊ/ as in put, pull, book, good, should
2- Complex "oo" sound /u:/ as in salute, toothbrush, goose, boot, costume
3- Complex "aw" sound /ɔ/ (*) as in awful, law
4- Complex "oi" sound /oɪ/as in boil, poison, toilet, annoy
5- Complex "ow" sound /aʊ/ as in lighthouse, cow, flower, fountain

Note that "oo" makes two different sounds in different words, having the /ʊ/ sound as in hook, or the /u:/ sound as in boot.

(*) It was decided not to indicate the contrast between the Complex "aw" sound /ɔ/ and the Short "o" (ŏ) sound /ɑ:/, since this contrast isn’t made by a large number of speakers, and isn’t necessary for non-native speakers to learn.

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