This video teaches you all about the diphthong /ʊə/, a combination of the vowel sound /ʊ/, a near-close back rounded vowel and /ə/, the mid central vowel sound, also called ‘schwa’. These two come together and as we glide in one smooth movement from /ʊ/ to /ə/ a new sound is created: the long diphthong /ʊə/.

This is not a very common sound in English and features more in British English than American English. Some phonemic charts do not even include it, so don’t be surprised if you do not see it. Other sound symbols could be used to show the pronunciation.

For example:

tourist – /ˈtʊə.rɪst/  OR /ˈtɔː.rɪst/

Remember, while single vowel sounds (= monophthongs) are separated into two groups – long and short vowel sounds, all diphthongs are classified as long vowel sounds. A diphthong is one sound – not two sounds. Another specific feature is also that there is movement of the articulators (tongue, lips, jaw …) when we form the sound. You will learn how to pronounce the sound and how it is typically spelt. At the end, there is also a short test so you can check how much you have understood.

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