CUP
IM
®
dvd
Make the sound
Vowel grid reference: 9
This vowel is short.
1 Relax your tongue, and rest the tongue tip just behind your bottom front teeth.
2 Slightly lift the middle of your tongue.
103
104-106
B
When do I use this sound?
Spelling	Examples
U	fun, ugly
0	love, colour
00	blood, flooding
ou	tough, double
Now try it!
Say each of these words and sentences aloud. Then compare your pronunciation with the model on tracks 104-106.
cut       shut butter      hunter        must sg_mething
stuff      mo_ney      ho_ney      nothing       enough floo_d
1 There's just enough butter left for one more if you want another muffin.
2 I've had enough of your worrying - trust me. It'll be fun.
3 Nothing's as yummy as this Southern honey - you'll love it!
Section B: The sounds of English
Work on your Accent CUP
Monkevs
There are dozens of different kinds of monkey. Some are small, and others are much bigger. Monkeys are closely related to humans - you could say they're our distant cousins. Sometimes when watching monkeys, we can recognize human behaviours, and it can be very funny! For example, some monkeys use tools and construct ordered societies. Scientific studies have shown that monkeys understand language and can solve problems and communicate. In some countries monkeys can be seen as pests; they sometimes gather in such large numbers that they can become quite threatening. There are stories of monkeys becoming rough and violent with members of the public. They also sometimes cause damage by munching on crops being grown on farms.
Am I doing something wrong?
X   Making the same vowel sound in the words CUP and CAP. Both of these vowels are open and short so it is common for learners to confuse them.
To say CUP, rather than CAP, the lips are less spread, and the tongue is slightly higher in the middle.
Watch the DVD to see and hear the difference between the two sounds.
First, check your lip position for both vowels using the Vowel positioning diagram (page 53). The /a/ of CUP is open and long, but the /ae/ of CAP is open and wide.
II    1   Now, using a mirror, alternate between the two sounds:
uh-ah-uh-ah-uh-ah-uh-ah
a  ae a ae a as a ae
Make sure that you are doing a different lip position for each, and that your tongue moves slightly between the sounds.
2   Now try swapping between some words which have the sounds, like CUP and CAP or:
cut-pat cut-pat cut-pat
hut-cat hut-cat hut-cat
Don't let the sounds around the vowels change your lip shape too much.
X   Making a sound that is too similar to the schwa (see page 54) instead of an /a/. i/ Open the mouth more, which will make the tongue feel lower.
OTry the exercise below: 1   The following words contain both /a/ vowel sounds (in CAPITALS) and schwa vowel sounds (in italics). In each word the /a/ vowel is stressed. Say each one in front of a mirror and make sure the /a/ vowels are CLEAR AND BRIGHT, and the mouth is more open, and the schwas are small and quick
another shUdde/- nUmber obrUpt bUtter
cUstome/- hundred Utterance obstruct
Learning to hear the difference between the two sounds will help you to correct this problem.