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Diphthong Sounds Pronunciation

Practice speaking English diphthong sounds aloud. Diphthongs are complex vowel sounds that glide from one vowel to another. Click on any sound below to start practicing with real-time feedback.

Closing Diphthongs

ā
eɪ
Example: say
Say: “say”
The vowel sound heard in words like "say", "make", "rain", and "eight". It's a diphthong, meaning it's a combination of two vowel sounds: it starts with a sound similar to the 'e' in "bet" (/ɛ/ or a slightly higher /e/) and glides towards the 'ee' sound in "see" (/i/ or /ɪ/).
ī
aɪ
Example: price
Say: “price”
The diphthong sound heard in words like "price", "high", "my", and "time". It's a combination of two vowel sounds: it starts with a sound similar to the "a" in "father" (/ɑ/ or /a/) and glides towards the "ee" sound in "see" (/i/ or /ɪ/).
ō
oʊ
Example: go
Say: “go”
The diphthong sound heard in words like "go", "home", "boat", and "know". It's a combination of two vowel sounds: it starts with a sound similar to the "o" in "go" (/o/) and glides towards the "oo" sound in "too" (/ʊ/).
ow
aʊ
Example: now
Say: “now”
The diphthong vowel sound heard in words like "now", "house", "out", and "down". Often called the MOUTH vowel. It starts with a low vowel, similar to /æ/ or /ɑ/, and glides towards a high back rounded vowel /ʊ/.
oy
ɔɪ
Example: boy
Say: “boy”
The diphthong vowel sound heard in words like "boy", "noise", "coin", and "toy". Often called the CHOICE vowel. It starts with a mid-back rounded vowel /ɔ/ (like in 'caught') and glides towards a high front unrounded vowel /ɪ/ (like in 'sit').

Centering Diphthongs

eə
eə
Example: care
Say: “care”
The centering diphthong vowel sound heard in words like "care", "fair", "there", and "hair". Often called the SQUARE vowel. It starts with a mid-front unrounded vowel /e/ (like in 'bed' but slightly higher) and glides towards the central vowel /ə/ (schwa).
ɪə
ɪə
Example: dear
Say: “dear”
The centering diphthong vowel sound heard in words like "dear", "fear", "clear", and "here". Often called the NEAR vowel. It starts with a high front unrounded vowel /ɪ/ (like in 'sit') and glides towards the central vowel /ə/ (schwa).
ʊə
ʊə
Example: cure
Say: “cure”
The centering diphthong vowel sound heard in words like "cure", "sure", "poor", and "tour". Often called the CURE vowel. It starts with a high back rounded vowel /ʊ/ (like in 'put') and glides towards the central vowel /ə/ (schwa). Note: This diphthong is becoming rare in many English dialects.

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How to practice individual English sounds

Speech recognition gives you a quick score, but the score is only useful if you know what to change. Treat each card as a short experiment: listen, adjust one thing about your mouth position, record again, and compare. Small, deliberate changes improve a sound faster than many fast repetitions.

1

Listen to the model three times

Focus first on length, then on mouth shape, then on whether the sound is voiced. Hearing the target clearly before you speak makes your first attempt far more accurate.

2

Change one thing at a time

If your score is low, adjust only the tongue, the lips, or the length on the next attempt. Changing everything at once makes it hard to learn which movement made the difference.

3

Lock it in with real words

When a sound scores well, say three new words that contain it, then use one of them in a sentence. This moves the sound from a drill into your everyday vocabulary.

A focused five-minute drill

  1. 1.Pick one sound card.
  2. 2.Listen to the model three times.
  3. 3.Record five attempts, changing one thing each time.
  4. 4.Use the sound in a short sentence.