English Pronunciation, Lesson 21 - W Sound (2024)

EnglishPronunciation, Lesson 21

The W sound(IPA symbol: w) can be found in American English words suchas woman,below,win,why,where,quick,andquiet,and one.

Click Here for Step-by-Step Rules, Stories and Exercises to Practice All English Tenses

How to Pronounce the W Sound

TheW sound is avoicedsound.Thatmeansthat thevocalcords vibratewhenyou make that sound. Inthe English language, we use many voiced sounds.

Tocorrectly pronounce the Wsound, form your lips into a small, tight circle.Itis important to hold your lips correctly. Imagine whistling or blowingout a candle. Use the same shape to form the letter W.

Your jaw should be mostly closed to make the sound, but your teethshould not touch.

In this video from Rachel's English, Rachel instructs her friend how tocorrectly pronounce the Wsound in American English. Pay attention as she points out commonmistakes learners might make when forming this sound.

Let's Practice

You should practice the W sound in front of a mirror to make sure youare holding your lips correctly. This is not a natural sound for manynon-native speakers to make.

There are three common ways to make the W sound: w, wh, and qu.

W = /w/:

The most common way to spell the W sound is with a W.The W can be at the beginning, middle, or end of a word.


1) wow

2) woman

3) wife

4) now

5) flower

6) know

7) sweet8) win

9) rewind

10) row11) flow

12) towel

13)winter
Wh= /w/:The Wsound is also sometimes spelled with the letters WH.

1) why

2) where

3) when4) while

5) what6) white

Important note: Notall WH words are pronounced as a Wsound. When theWH is followed by the OOsound or theLongO sound, it isusuallypronounced as an Honly (like in the words her and him).

Examples:(say these words with an H sound.)

Qu = /kw/:The quspelling is a Ksound followed by a Wsound.

1) quit

2) quick

3) quite

4) quiet

5) queen

Heretwo more words that have the Wsound that do not follow the spelling rules above. The W sound is in boldprint.1) one

2) choir


Listencarefully!

TheW sound isvery similar to the OOsound in English. They sound almost the same! Theonlydifference is that the lips are a little more closed when forming the W sound.
Let's practice the Wsound and OOsound side-by-side.

Now say these sentences out loud (the W sounds are bold):

1) Quick! Where is my wife?

2) I saw the queen in the winter.

3) We will win now.

4) Will the woman be quiet?

5) Now, what is that white flower?

7) William won the quick race.

8) I know he quit the choir.

9) Where is the wonderful queen?

10) Why doesn't this one taste sweet?

Have you finished them all! Great job! Continue to practicethe Wsound in front of a mirror to make sure you are doing itcorrectly.

Well done! You have completed this lesson.

Let's move on...

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