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Vowel
Short OO / Book Vowel
The high-mid back rounded lax vowel sound heard in words like "book", "put", "could", and "foot". Often called the BOOK vowel.
Phonetic
ooVoicing
VoicedPlace of Articulation
Near-Back (Near-High)Manner of Articulation
Vowel (Near-Close)Mouth Position
Lips are loosely rounded (less than for Long OO /u/). Tongue is high and towards the back, but lower and more relaxed than for /u/. Jaw is relatively closed, but slightly more open than for /u/.
How to Make This Sound
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Example Words
bookMain Example
bʊkput
pʊtcould
kʊdfoot
fʊtgood
gʊdlook
lʊkpull
pʊlfull
fʊlshould
ʃʊdwoman
ˈwʊmənPronunciation Practice
11 words
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Minimal Pairs
Listen and compare similar sounds
oo
pull
pʊlCompare with
P
pool
puloo
look
lʊkCompare with
L
Luke
lukoo
full
fʊlCompare with
F
fool
fuloo
foot
fʊtCompare with
F
food
fudTongue Twister
Practice: Vowel
“Could the cook look at the good cookbook?”
Practice this tongue twister to improve your pronunciation