Tongue position in articulating vowel sounds?

When articulating vowel sounds, the position of the tongue plays a crucial role in shaping the sound. The tongue can be positioned in different ways to produce different vowel sounds. Here are some common tongue positions for articulating vowel sounds:

1. Front vowels: The tongue is positioned towards the front of the mouth when articulating front vowels such as /i/ as in "beet" or /e/ as in "bet".

2. Central vowels: The tongue is positioned in the middle of the mouth when articulating central vowels such as /ə/ as in "sofa" or /ʌ/ as in "cup".

3. Back vowels: The tongue is positioned towards the back of the mouth when articulating back vowels such as /u/ as in "boot" or /ɑ/ as in "father".

4. Rounded vowels: For rounded vowels such as /o/ as in "boat" or /ʊ/ as in "book", the lips are rounded while the tongue is positioned accordingly.

5. Diphthongs: Diphthongs are complex vowel sounds that involve a change in tongue position during articulation. For example, the diphthong /aɪ/ in "ride" starts with the tongue in a low front position and moves towards a high front position.

Overall, the position of the tongue in the mouth is a key factor in producing the different vowel sounds in spoken language.

High Front Vowels

- [i] (as in "beet"): Front of tongue raised towards hard palate
- [ɪ] (as in "bit"): Tongue slightly lower than for [i]

High Central Vowels

- [u] (as in "boot"): Back of tongue raised towards soft palate
- [ʊ] (as in "put"): Tongue slightly lower than for [u]

High Back Vowels

- [ɑ] (as in "father"): Back of tongue raised towards uvula
- [ɔ] (as in "caught"): Tongue slightly lower than for [ɑ]

Mid Front Vowels

- [e] (as in "bet"): Front of tongue raised towards hard palate, but less than for [i]
- [ɛ] (as in "bed"): Tongue slightly lower than for [e]

Mid Central Vowels

- [ə] (as in "sofa"): Tongue in a neutral position, slightly raised towards soft palate
- [ɜ] (as in "error"): Tongue slightly lower and more retracted than for [ə]

Mid Back Vowels

- [ʌ] (as in "but"): Back of tongue raised towards soft palate, but less than for [u]
- [ɔ] (as in "cot"): Tongue slightly lower than for [ʌ]

Low Front Vowels

- [æ] (as in "cat"): Front of tongue low and spread out
- [a] (as in "father"): Tongue slightly lower and more retracted than for [æ]

Low Back Vowels

- [ɑ] (as in "father"): Back of tongue low and raised towards uvula
- [ɔ] (as in "caught"): Tongue slightly lower than for [ɑ]