uncle vs. ankle

Hey everyone, today we have a really short lesson about the different between:

a

and

u

When we say a, as in ankle or anchor, it is with our mouth wide open and the sound made towards the nose. It is a high pitched sound.

When we say u, as in uncle or umbrella, it is with our mouth slightly open and the sound is made in the throat. It is a lower pitched sound.

I found this cool drawing that animators use when making cartoons which can give you an idea of how to pronounce the vowel sounds:


You can use this sentence to practice the difference between the a and u sounds:

My uncle hurt his ankle.

Have a nice week,

Phil

P.S. I got that picture from a post "How to use cartoons to practice English Pronunciation" from here: www.englishcafe.com/blog/How-use-cartoons-practice-English-pronunciation-8340