Exercise: Identifying English vowels
(a) State whether the vowel sounds of the words in each
pair are the same (S) or different (D).
(b) Consulting the list of English vowels in your text,
give the phonetic symbol for the vowel in each word/pair of words.
1) say, bake
11) they, weigh
S or D? _____
S or D? _____
Symbol(s): ____
Symbol(s): __
2) show, shoe
12) mother, stop
S or D? _____
S or D? _____
Symbol(s): ____
Symbol(s): ____
3) meat, great
13) cow, slow
S or D? _____
S or D? _____
Symbol(s): ____
Symbol(s): ____
4) plaid, sad
14) bother, nod
S or D? _____
S or D? _____ Click
here for KEY
Symbol(s): ____
Symbol(s): ___
5) some, nun
15) head, bet
S or D? _____
S or D? _____
Symbol(s): ____
Symbol(s): ____
6) receive, believe
16) laugh, caught
S or D? _____
S or D? _____
Symbol(s): ____
Symbol(s): ____
7) height, site
17) buy, time
S or D? _____
S or D? _____
Symbol(s): ____
Symbol(s): ____
8) blood, food
18) read (pres.), read (past)
S or D? _____
S or D? _____
Symbol(s): ____
Symbol(s): ____
9) sigh, fly
19) low, plow
S or D? _____
S or D? _____
Symbol(s): ____
Symbol(s): ____
10) new, do
20) grain, gauge*
S or D? _____
S or D? _____
Symbol(s): ____
Symbol(s): ____ they
*As in "gas gauge", the device that tells you how much gas is left in your car.