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law / low
"I bought a boat" or "I boat a bought"?! Read on to find out more :)
- /ɔː/ vs. /əʊ/
- Minimal Pairs
- Sentences
1. /ɔː/ vs. /əʊ/
In law we use the vowel sound /ɔː/. Make this sound with round lips and pull the tongue a little bit towards the back of your mouth.
In low we use the vowel diphthong sound /əʊ/. Start with a very relaxed mouth and then close the mouth into a u-type sound (it doesn't have to be exactly like /ʊ/).
I've also made a video guide to these two sounds:
2. Minimal Pairs
bore - bow (bow tie)
bought - boat
caught, court* - coat
cord - code
core - co (e.g. ".co.uk" or "Ellis & Co.")
corn - cone
dorm - dome
fork - folk
form - foam
gore - go
horn - hone
jaw - Joe
law - low
lawn - loan
lord - load
more - mow
morning - moaning
nor - no, know
or, awe - oh, owe
pork, poke
saw, sore - so, sow, sew
shore, sure** - show
snore - snow
store - stow
stork, stalk - stoke
tore - toe
torn - tone
wore - woe
* Most Americans will pronounce the letter r wherever it's written, meaning that for them, caught and court will not be the same.
** We can pronounce SURE as both /ʃɔː/ and /ʃʊə/