æ
Vowel
/æ/ — Near-open front unrounded vowel
Example words
| Word | US English | UK English |
|---|---|---|
| cat | /ˈkæt/ | /kæt/ |
| man | /ˈmæn/ | /mæn/ |
| happy | /ˈhæpi/ | /hæpi/ |
| apple | /ˈæpəl/ | /æpəl/ |
| black | /ˈblæk/ | /blæk/ |
| hand | /ˈhænd/ | /ˈhand/ |
| bag | /ˈbæɡ/ | /bæɡ/ |
| map | /ˈmæp/ | /mæp/ |
| sad | /ˈsæd/ | /sæd/ |
| back | /ˈbæk/ | /bæk/ |
Transcriptions come from pronunciation lexicons IPAtics maintains, in US and UK English.
How to produce this sound
SoundNear-open front unrounded vowel.
TongueFront tongue stays low-mid without pressing forward too hard.
LipsRelaxed and unrounded with slight horizontal spread.
JawOpen more than for /e/ but avoid dropping too far.
VoiceVoiced, sustained cleanly without trailing glide.
Minimal pairs
Each pair differs only in /æ/, so hearing them side by side isolates the sound.
- bad/ˈbæd/bed/ˈbɛd/
- pan/ˈpæn/pen/ˈpɛn/
- man/ˈmæn/men/ˈmɛn/
- cat/ˈkæt/cut/ˈkʌt/
Spelling patterns
- a as in cat
Common mistakes for Turkish and German speakers
- German speakers: /æ/ and /e/ are easily confused, so "bad" can sound like "bed".Source: Swan & Smith (eds.), Learner English, 2nd ed. (Cambridge University Press, 2001), chapter "German speakers"
- Turkish speakers: /æ/ and /e/ are easily confused, so "bad" can sound like "bed".Source: Swan & Smith (eds.), Learner English, 2nd ed. (Cambridge University Press, 2001), chapter "Turkish speakers"
Practise this sound
- ConverterEnglish to IPA converter
- In Turkishİngilizce Telaffuz Rehberi — Türkler İçin IPA ile Başlangıç
- In GermanEnglische Aussprache für Deutsche: die fünf Fallen
- In Arabicالحروف المتحركة والصامتة في الإنجليزية وأصواتها
- In SpanishPronunciación en inglés para hispanohablantes
- In FrenchPrononciation anglaise : erreurs des francophones
- In PortuguesePronúncia em inglês para brasileiros: erros comuns
- In ItalianPronuncia inglese per italiani: gli errori tipici
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