- IPA and Words
- Mouth: Tense or Lax
- Tongue Position
- Jaw Position
- Lip Position
-
sea, pea, feat
/iy/ - Tense
- Highest front near top of mouth
- High closed
- Widely spread, smiling
-
bit, pin, fit /ɪ/ - Lax
- High front, but lower and more centered than /iy/
- Slightly lower than /iy/
- Relaxed, slightly parted and spread
-
paint, fate /ey/ - Tense
- Mid-front, gliding up toward /iy/
- Begins lower than /ɪ/ but rises during glide
- Spread more during glide to /iy/
-
pen, fed /ɛ/ - Lax
- Mid-front centered
- Open wider than /ey/
- Slightly spread
-
pan, fad /æ/ - Lax
- Lower front than /ɛ/, centered
- Slightly more open than /ɛ/; may drop a bit lower during articulation
- Spread
-
pa, fob /ɑ/ - Tense
- Lowest, central, lying flat on bottom
- Open widest
- Yawn
-
Paul, fought /ɔ/ - Tense
- Low back
- Closed slightly
- Oval
-
pole, foe /ow/ - Tense
- Mid-back, gliding up toward /uw/
- Begins hier than /ɔ/; rises more during glide
- Very rounded, closing like a camera shutter
-
put, foot (unrecorded) /ʊ/ - Lax
- High back and more centered than /ow/
- Slightly higher
- Relaxed, slightly parted and weakly rounded
-
pool, fool /uw/ - Tense
- Highest, back of tongue pushed up
- High, closed
- Closed and rounded, as for whistling
-
pun, fun /ʌ/ - Lax
- Relaxed mid-level
- Relaxed
- Relaxed, slightly parted
-
pine, fight /ay/ - Diphthong
- Moves low central to high front
- Rises with tongue, closes
- Moves from open to slightly parted and spread
-
pound, foul /aʊ/ - Diphthong
- Moves low central to high back
- Rises with tongue, closes
- Moves from open to slightly parted and round
-
poise, foil /ɔy/ - Diphthong
- Moves low back to high front
- Rises with tongue, closes
- Moves from oval to slightly parted and spread
Reference:
Celce-Murcia, M., Brinton, D. M., & Goodwin, J. M. (1996). Teaching pronunciation: A reference for teachers of English to speakers of other languages. Cambridge University Press.