LISTEN

/ɑ/…/ɑ/…/ɑ/…/ɑ/

stop….job….far…doctor

Pronunciation:
The sound /ɑ/ is a low, central, tense vowel.

• Lower your jaw and tongue.
• Your lips should be very open but not wide.
• Your tongue should be tightened, not relaxed
• Breathe out to pronounce the vowel.

Note: In many American dialects, /ɑ/ and /ɔ/ are treated as the same sound.

Spelling:

• “o” – stop, pot
• “a” – father, garage

Grammar Tip:
The sound /ɑ/ is present in the suffix –ology. This suffix indicates a field of study.

• Biology – the study of life
• Hydrology – the study of water
• Sociology – the study of human society
• Dermatology – the study of the skin and its diseases

The sound /ɑ/ is also present in the suffix –ography. This suffix indicates a field of study or something related to writing.

• Ethnography – the study of cultures
• Oceanography – the study of the ocean
• Orthography – rules of correct writing
• Biography – the written account of a person’s life

COMPARE

Compare /ɑ/ with /ow/:

/ɑ/…/ow/…/ɑ/…/ow/…/ɑ/…/ow/

The sound /ɑ/ is a low, central, lax vowel, but /ow/ is a mid, back, tense vowel. When you pronounce /ɑ/, your lips should not be rounded.

You can hear the difference between /ɑ/ and /ow/ in these words.

1. A. knot, B. note
2. A. sock, B. soak
3. A. tossed, B. toast
4. A. rob, B. robe
​5. A. honor, B. owner​
6. A. model, B. model

Practice recognizing words with /ɑ/ and /ow/ by taking the quiz here (external site).

​Now compare /ɑ/ and /æ/.

/ɑ/…/æ/…/ɑ/…/æ/…/ɑ/…/æ/

These are both low vowels. However, /æ/ is a front, tense vowel and /ɑ/ is a central, lax vowel. Your lips should be wider for /æ/ than for /a/.

You can hear the difference between /ɑ/ and /æ/ in these words.

1. A. pod, B. pad
2. A. hot, B. hat
3. A. block, B. black
4. A. adopt, B. adapt
5. A. bottle, B. battle​
​6. A. bond, B. band

Practice recognizing words with /ɑ/ and /æ/ by taking the quiz here (external site).

PRACTICE

Listen and repeat these words.

Now practice ​/ɑ/ in sentences. Say the words first, then the sentence.

1. party – starts – clock
The party starts at eight o’clock.
2. shopping – stop – latte
Before we go shopping, let’s stop for a latte.
3. large – pots – garden
I bought some large pots for my balcony garden.
4. forgot – lock – car
I think I forgot to lock my car.
5. common – problem – college
​Stress is a common problem among college students.
6. not – possible – opportunity
It’s not possible to say yes to every opportunity.

To practice with different varieties of English, choose another native English speaker by clicking one of the links below:

Male – US Midwest (St. Louis)

Male – US Midwest (Iowa)

Male – US Midwest

Female – US Northeast

Female – US Southeast

Prepare:
“Job satisfaction” is a measurement of how happy workers are in their job. In your opinion, how much job satisfaction do people have in the professions below? Look at the list, and decide who has the most job satisfaction and who has the least job satisfaction.

• College professors
• Doctors
• Pharmacists
• Politicians
• Police officers​
• Garbage collectors
• ​Stockbrokers
• Psychologists
• Shop assistants
• Carpenters
• Farmers
• Auto mechanics

​Record:
In your recording, explain which 2 professions have the most job satisfaction and which 2 professions have the least job satisfaction. Give reasons for your choices.

©2024, Christine Wingate

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.