Audio Exercises

Unit 3

Vowels and Vowel Glides

Unit 3 – Exercise 1

Short and long vowels. Listen and repeat each word:

1. thin live rich pit bridge
2. queen leave peat dream leaf
3. rib wish will mist ink
4. teach feast eve eat three

Unit 3 – Exercise 2

Listen and repeat each minimal pair:

1. bin been
2. rid reed
3. ill eel
4. rich reach
5. pit peat
6. six seeks
7. live leave
8. lip leap
9. wick week
10. is ease

Unit 3 – Exercise 3

Production. After hearing the number, say the word (which appears in spelling and transcription). When you hear the word, repeat it carefully

1. mean /miːn/
2. spit /spɪt/
3. sleeves /sliːvz/
4. linked /lɪŋkt/
5. stripped /strɪpt/
6. meal /miːl/
7. sleeps /sliːps/
8. yeast /jiːst/
9. risk /rɪsk/
10. plinth /plɪnθ/

Unit 3 – Exercise 4

Identification. Identify the vowel sound in each of the following words

1. fin 2. seed 3. neat 4. shrimp 5. lean
6. hit 7. fish 8. bead 9. reel 10. thief

1. /ɪ/ 2. /iː/ 3. /iː/ 4. /ɪ/ 5. /iː/
6. /ɪ/ 7. /ɪ/ 8. /iː/ 9. /iː/ 10. /iː/

Unit 3 – Exercise 5

Short and long vowels. Listen and repeat each word:

1. bet send fresh elves went
2. a the was were actor
3. hers learn bird were shirt
4.burner absurd enter ascend

Unit 3 – Exercise 6

Listen and repeat each minimal pair:

1. end and
2. ate at
3. head had
4. then than
5. for fur
6. were were
7. an earn
8. had heard
9. turn ten
10. worst west

Unit 3 – Exercise 7

Production. After hearing the number, say the word (which appears in spelling and transcription). When you hear the word, repeat it carefully.

1. first /fɜːst/
2. occur /əˈkɜː/
3. measure /ˈmeʒə/
4. girl /ɡɜːl/
5. spread /spred/
6. cursor /ˈkɜːsə/
7. feather /ˈfeðə/
8. church /tʃɜːtʃ/
9. further /ˈfɜːðə/
10. better /ˈbetə/

Unit 3 – Exercise 8

Identification. Identify the vowel sound(s) in each of the following words

1. curtain 2. bend 3. shirt 4. nervous 5. urge
6. assert 7. ascend 8. world 9. object 10. westwards

1. /ɜː/ /ə/ 2. /e/ 3. /ɜː/ 4. /ɜː/ /ə/ 5. /ɜː/
6. /ə/ /ɜː/ 7. /ə/ /e / 8. /ɜː/ 9. /ə/ /e/ 10. /e/ /ə/

Unit 3 – Exercise 9

Short and long vowels. Listen and repeat each word:

1. bat bad rack rag ass
2. cart yard grass dance large
3. hut bud much love rum
4. stuck plan plant

Unit 3 – Exercise 10

Listen and repeat each minimal pair:

1. stack stark
2. cat cart
3. bark buck
4. heart hut
5. much match
6. luck lack
7. pat part
8. mast must
9. mud mad
10. but bat

Unit 3 – Exercise 11

Production. After hearing the number, say the word (which appears in spelling and transcription). When you hear the word, repeat it carefully.

1. carved /kɑːvd/
2. scratch /skrætʃ/
3. barge /bɑːdʒ/
4. hunt /hʌnt/
5. class /klɑːs/
6. won /wʌn/
7. harm /hɑːm/
8. blood /blʌd/
9. lass /læs/
10. sad /sæd/

Unit 3 – Exercise 12

Identification. Identify the vowel sound(s) in each of the following words

1. none 2. thatch 3. wrapped 4. halve 5. front
6. scarred 7. bust 8. plans 9. last 10. rusty

1. /ʌ/ 2. /æ/ 3. /æ/ 4. /ɑː/ 5. /ʌ/
6. /ɑː/ 7. /ʌ/ 8. /æ/ 9. /ɑː/ 10. /ʌ/ /i/

Unit 3 – Exercise 13

Short and long vowels. Listen and repeat each word:

1. ox frost clock cough stop
2. hawk raw horse ought short
3. hot spot moth shot bomb
4. score talk forced north torch

Unit 3 – Exercise 14

Listen and repeat each minimal pair:

1. spot sport
2. moss morse
3. rod roared
4. con corn
5. wok walk
6. cot court
7. what wart
8. pod poured
9. wand warned
10. cod cord

Unit 3 – Exercise 15

Production. After hearing the number, say the word (which appears in spelling and transcription). When you hear the word, repeat it carefully.

1. born /bɔːn/
2. warm /wɔːm/
3. shore /ʃɔː/
4. mob /mɒb/
5. straw /strɔː/
6. sold /səʊld/
7. sworn /swɔːn/
8. clawed /klɔːd/
9. shots /ʃɒts/
10. block /ˈblɒk/

Unit 3 – Exercise 16

Identification. Identify the vowel sound(s) in each of the following words

1. cork 2. pond 3. lock 4. course 5. dogs
6. wasp 7. force 8. scored 9. sauce 10. chalk

1. /ɔː/ 2. /ɒ/ 3. /ɒ/ 4. /ɔː/ 5. /ɒ/
6. /ɒ/ 7. /ɔː/ 8. /ɔː/ 9. /ɔː/ 10. /ɔː/

Unit 3 – Exercise 17

Short and long vowels. Listen and repeat each word:

1. put bush book full wood
2. root room lute rude wound
3. wool push took pulled butcher
4. lose food true loose roof

Unit 3 – Exercise 18

Listen and repeat each minimal pair:

1. could cooed
2. hood who´d
3. would wooed
4. look Luke
5. soot suit
6. full fool
7. pull pool

Unit 3 – Exercise 19

Production. After hearing the number, say the word (which appears in spelling and transcription). When you hear the word, repeat it carefully.

1. route /ruːt/
2. cooks /kʊks/
3. flute /fluːt/
4. bull /bʊl/
5. should /ʃʊd/
6. soup /suːp/
7. rude /ruːd/
8. pulpit /ˈpʊlpɪt/
9. canoe /kəˈnuː/
10. tool /tuːl/

Unit 3 – Exercise 20

Identification. Identify the vowel sound(s) in each of the following words

1. food 2. book 3. moon 4. pulpit 5. zoo
6. pudding 7. blew 8. woman 9. butcher 10. brute

1. /uː/ 2. /ʊ/ 3. /uː/ 4. /ʊ/ /ɪ/ 5. /uː/
6. /ʊ/ /ɪ/ 7. /uː/ 8. /ʊ/ /ə/ 9. /ʊ/ /ə/ 10. /uː/

Unit 3 – Exercise 21

Centering diphthongs. Listen and repeat each word:

1. ear sneer here beard near
2. air fair flare hares spare
3. sure tour poor gourd plural
4.rural share clear aware bourgeois

Unit 3 – Exercise 22

Listen and repeat each minimal pair:

1. ware weir
2. snare sneer
3. hair hear
4. share sure
5. tear tour
6. pear poor
7. stairs steers
8. fair fear
9. chaired cheered
10. spare spear

Unit 3 – Exercise 23

Production. After hearing the number, say the word (which appears in spelling and transcription). When you hear the word, repeat it carefully.

1. glare /ɡleə/
2. beer /bɪə/
3. care /keə/
4. steer /stɪə/
5. poor /pʊə/
6. clear /klɪə/
7. tear (noun) /tɪə/
8. tear (verb) /teə/
9. touring /ˈtʊərɪŋ/
10. we´re /wɪə/

Unit 3 – Exercise 24

Identification. Identify the vowel sound(s) in each of the following words

1. pier 2. gear 3. blare 4. gourd 5. rare
6. cheer 7. scare 8. moor 9. dare 10. fear

1. /ɪə/ 2. /ɪə/ 3. /eə/ 4. /uː/ 5. /eə/
6. /ɪə/ 7. /eə/ 8. /ʊə/ 9. /eə/ 10. /ɪə/

Unit 3 – Exercise 25

Closing diphthongs. Listen and repeat each word:

1. stain clay quaint played
2. pine spy find thrive
3. toy spoil void join
4. nose bone own no
5. mouse now plough ounce

Unit 3 – Exercise 26

Listen and repeat each minimal pair:

1. stay sty
2. buy boy
3. toy toe
4. goat gout
5. bough bay
6. lane line
7. ply ploy
8. loin loan
9. no now
10. plough play

Unit 3 – Exercise 27

Production. After hearing the number, say the word (which appears in spelling and transcription). When you hear the word, repeat it carefully.

1. cloud /klaʊd/
2. choice /tʃɔɪs/
3. brave /breɪv/
4. prose /prəʊz/
5. prize /praɪz/
6. lounge /laʊndʒ/
7. globe /ɡləʊb/
8. strike /straɪk/
9. noise /nɔɪz/
10. faith /feɪθ/

Unit 3 – Exercise 28

Identification. Identify the vowel sound(s) in each of the following words

1. clay 2. south 3. nice 4. coin 5. proud
6. snow 7. sprays 8. boil 9. rain 10. count

1. /eɪ/ 2. /aʊ/ 3. /aɪ/ 4. /ɔɪ/ 5. /aʊ/
6. /əʊ/ 7. /eɪ/ 8. /ɔɪ/ 9. /eɪ/ 10. /aʊ/

Unit 3 – Exercise 29

Listen and repeat each word:

fire wireless spiral virus file
tower flower powerful hour hourly

Unit 3 – Exercise 30

Listen and repeat each word:

employer record-player lawn-mower

Unit 3 – Exercise 31

(vowel quantity) [contrastive]: Listen to the following pairs of words in Spanish and English, paying special attention to the extra quantity of long vowels in English. Repeat each pair after you hear it.

Tip! Remember that not only vowel quantity but also quality is a great difference between Spanish and English.

Spanish English
/a/ /ɑː/
mar mar
paz path
bar bar
/e/ /ɜː/
ten turn
en urn
es errs
/i/ /iː/
si sea
pi pea
mi me
/o/ /ɔː/
dos doors
don dawn
so saw
/u/ /uː/
tú too
mus moose
luz loose

Unit 3 – Exercise 32

(diphthongs) [contrastive]: Listen to the following Spanish and English words containing diphthongs. Pay attention to how the first element of the diphthong receives more emphasis in English. Repeat each word pair after you hear it.

Spanish English
/ei/ /eɪ/
deis dace
peine pain
/ai/ /aɪ/
dais dies
hay I
/oi/ /ɔɪ/
voy boy
estoy destroy
/au/ /aʊ/
aula owl
auto out

Unit 3 – Exercise 33

(English central vowels) [contrastive]: The following pairs of words illustrate the contrast between English central vowels /ʌ/, /ɜː/ and /ə/ and Spanish /a/, /e/ and /o/. For each pair of words, listen carefully and repeat, paying special attention to the difference in vowel quality.

Spanish English /ʌ/
blanda blunder
des does
don done
Spanish English /ɜː/
tan turn
me myrrh
nos nurse
Spanish English /ə/
bazar bazaar
hedor adore
tomate tomato