Lesson 6 ɔ (aw) vs ʌ vs o

In this lesson, we’ll explore two tricky vowel sounds: ɔ vs ʌ vs ɔ:. Let’s dive into each one with clear examples and practice sentences.

Sound ɔ (aw) Explanation & Examples

• In General American (GA), the vowel /ɔ/ is often merged with /ɑ/ in many words.
• Examples: caught vs. cot, dawn vs. don – in some accents, these sound the same.
• It is shorter and less rounded than /ɔː/.

It sounds like awww sound.  Not O or A, it should be something in the middle in American English. The chin goes down, drop the jaw but the lip stays up. The tongue goes back. The tip of the tongue doesn’t touch anything. Don’t round the lips too much. (In British English that would be O sound.)

Examples:

law, along, across, audio, cloth, cost, dog, gone, long, dawn, off, pause, often, all, song

Patterns:

O: along, often, off, gone

OA: broad, abroad (BUT boat UK /bəʊt/ US /boʊt/, road UK /rəʊd/ US /roʊd/)

OUGH: thought, bought

OU: cough

A: water

AL: almost, also, walk

ALL: all, small

AW: draw law

AU: author, fault, caught, audio

Sentences:

1. We decided to pause the song.
2. He is in the hall.
3. We talked until dawn.
4. I want to walk the dog.
5. Let’s buy some water.
6. Will you mow the lawn?
7. The audio has awful quality.
8. She has a small daughter.
9. Where did you buy this awesome sauce?
10. I’ll have coffee and chocolate.
11. I saw his daughter on board.
12. She has gone abroad.
13. I prefer strong coffee.

Practice the difference ʌ vs ɔ

ʌ –  relax your face and open your mouth.

ɔ – the chin goes down, drop the jaw but the lip stays up.

Examples:

lung – long

gun – gone

lust – lost

but – bought

cut – caught

done – dawn

dug – dog

flood – flawed

*flawed (not perfect, or containing mistakes)

fun – fawn 

*fawn (a young deer)

sung – song

cuff – cough

*cuff (the thicker material at the end of a sleeve closest to the hand:)

hull – hall

*hull (to remove the covering or the stem and leaves from some fruits, vegetables, and seeds)

Sentences:

1. His lung  /lʌŋ/ condition is serious, but  /bʌt/the doctor  /ˈdɑk·tər/ says it’s not too long /lɔŋ/ before he recovers  /rɪˈkʌv·ərz/.
2. He aimed his gun  /ɡʌn/ at the target /ˈtɑr·ɡɪt/, but  /bʌt/the opportunity was *already  /ɔlˈred·i/ gone  /ɡɔn/.
3. His lust /lʌst/ for adventure was strong  /strɔŋ/, but  /bʌt/ the treasure was lost  /lɔst/ forever.
4. I wanted  /wɑntɪd/ to buy it, but  /bʌt/ someone else had *already  /ɔlˈred·i/ bought /bɔt/ the last one.
5. She cut /kʌt/ her finger while cooking, but /bʌt/ luckily /ˈlʌk.ə.li/, it wasn’t a caught  /kɔt/ infection.
6. I thought  /θɔt/ I was done  /dʌn/ with work, but  /bʌt/ the meeting was moved to dawn  /dɔn/.
7. He dug a hole in the garden, but  /bʌt/ his dog kept filling it back up.
8. The house was flooded  /flʌdɪd/, so the floors remained flawed /flɔd/ from water  /ˈwɔ·t̬ər/ damage.
9. We had so much fun at the park, we even saw a fawn near the trees.
10. She sung  /sʌŋ/ beautifully at the concert  /ˈkɑn·sɜrt/, and the last song /sɔŋ/ brought  /brɔt/ tears to my eyes.

    *When emphasizing “already” for contrast or surprise (e.g., I’ve already done it!), you can stress the first syllable:

    ✔ “I’ve AL-ready done it!”** (with emphasis on AL) → Shows surprise, impatience, or contrast (You don’t need to remind me—I’ve ALready done it!).

    ✔ “I’ve al-READ-y done it.” (neutral stress on the second syllable) → Normal, matter-of-fact statement.

Sound O – ɔ

The actual O sound happens  before R in a stressed syllable (the transcription symbol is also ɔ). Round the lips more and don’t drop the jaw as much as for aw that we practised before. The tongue pulls back and up more.

Examples:

born, afford, important, wore, floor, course, reward, order, morning, board, quarter

Patterns:

OR: for, report

ORE: before, store

OOR: door, floor

OAR: board, roar

OUR: course, court, pour

AR: award, war, warm

EXCEPTIONS

Although we have or but some words are pronounced with ɑ: sound (Ah).

Examples:

sorry US /ˈsɑr·i/ UK /ˈsɒr.i/

tomorrow US /təˈmɑr·oʊ/ UK /təˈmɒr.əʊ/ 

borrow US /ˈbɑr·oʊ/ UK /ˈbɒr.əʊ/

Sentences:

1. She was born in a small village by the sea. (born – o, small -aw)
2. We can’t afford to go on vacation this year.
3. It’s important to stay hydrated in hot weather. (important – o, hot – a)
4. He wore his favorite jacket to the party. (wore – o, favorite – schwa)
5. She dropped her phone on the floor, but it didn’t break. (dropped – a, floor – o)
6. I signed up for an online course to improve my pronunciation. (online – a or aw, course – o)
7. Hard work always comes with a reward in the end. (always – aw, reward  – o)
8. Let’s order pizza for dinner tonight.
9. I prefer to exercise in the morning when it’s quiet.
10. He joined the company’s board of directors last year. (company’s – ʌ, board – o)
11. A quarter of the cake is already gone! (quarter – o, already – aw, gone – aw/a:)
12. I’m really sorry for being late.
13. We have a big meeting tomorrow morning. (tomorrow – a, morning – o)
14. Can I borrow your charger for a moment? (borrow – a)

Speaking Practice

1. Have you ever struggled to understand someone speaking English because of their accent? What happened? 
2. Do you think accents change the way people perceive you? Why or why not? 
3. If you could wake up tomorrow with a different English accent, which one would you choose and why? 
4. What are some funny or confusing words you’ve heard that mean different things in British, American, or Australian English? 
5. Do you think one accent is easier to understand than others? Which one and why? 
6. Have you ever accidentally picked up an accent from watching movies or TV shows? Which one? 
7. Why do you think people in different English-speaking countries have such different ways of saying the same words? 

Speaking & Listening Practice