In this American English pronunciation video, we’re going to learn how to pronounce the AW as in LAW vowel. This vowel sound, when pure, is quite similar to the AH as in FATHER vowel. In some areas of the United States, we don’t even make this sound. We always use the AH as in FATHER sound instead. Also, when this vowel is followed by the R consonant, it changes. We’ll go over that. First let’s study the mouth position. To make this vowel, the jaw drops and the tongue shifts back. The tip of the tongue doesn’t touch anything. The lips flare a bit. AW. One technique that might help you make this sound is to think of the cheeks coming in and shifting forward just a little bit, aw. This is a way to make it different from the AH as in FATHER vowel, where the lips and cheeks are totally relaxed. AW, AH. Let’s watch up close and in slow motion. The jaw drops, the lips flare out a little bit, and the tongue pulls back. Let’s compare with the AH as in FATHER vowel, on top. In AH, the lips are relaxed. In AW, the lips flare. Also notice how the tongue pulls back in the AW vowel. In a stressed syllable, this vowel has the up-down shape of stress. AW. AW. For example, in the word ‘saw’. Jaw drops, lips flare, tongue shifts back. In an unstressed syllable, the voice will be lower in pitch, quieter, and flatter. Unstressed syllables won’t be as long, aw, aw. AW, aw. The voice is unstressed in the word ‘on’, a function word, on. Function words are unstressed, aw, aw. Note, this word can also be pronounce with the AH as in FATHER vowel. The vowel here is extremely quick since it’s in an unstressed syllable. The tongue tip isn’t quite forward. The tongue is in position just an instant before the tongue flips up to make the N. Let’s compare the stressed AW in SAW, on top, with the unstressed AW in ‘on’, on the bottom. You can see the jaw drops less, the lips are more relaxed, and the tongue doesn’t shift back as much. Unstressed syllables are shorter than stressed syllables, so often the unstressed version of a vowel or diphthong doesn’t take the full mouth position of the stressed version. This vowel can be affected by following consonants. When the AW vowel is followed by the R consonant, the sound does change. The lips flare more, and the tongue pulls back more, and up a little bit. This is because we blend the position for the R with the position for the AW when the R follows the AW. Instead of AW, the sound is aw, core, aw, aw, AW. Let’s look at another word. Sore, aw, aw, sore, aw, AW. Let’s compare the pure AW with the AW followed by R, in the word ‘quarter’, on the bottom. You can see for the AW followed by R, the lips round more and the jaw drops less. Because of the lips, it’s hard to see the tongue, but it pulls back and up more than in a pure AW vowel, above. Pure stressed AW: saw, AW Pure unstressed AW: on, aw AW, aw, AW, aw AW modified by R: core, aw, aw. Example words. Repeat with me. Boss, long, runoff, lifelong, login, wrong, daughter.
