The Letter U

In British English

In this lesson, we will learn about all the sounds of the letter U. It is the twenty-first letter of the English alphabet.

U is the twenty-first letter and the fifth vowel letter of the English alphabet.

Vowels are sounds that are pronounced without any restriction in the vocal tract. It means we can produce it with the unrestricted flow of air.

Uppercase Form	U
Lowercase	u
Name	u (pronounced /ˈjuː/)
Common Sounds	/ʌ/, /uː/, /ə/, /ʊ/, /ju:/

The Letter U: Sounds

Vowels in the English language can have many many sounds. Here we will look at some of its common ones.

Common Sounds

Sound 1: /ʌ/

The letter 'u' mainly sounds /ʌ/:

bus /bʌs/

under /ˈʌndə(r)/

drum /drʌm/

Sound 2: /uː/

'u' also sounds /u:/ in some words:

absolute /ˈæbsəluːt/

druid /ˈdruːɪd/

June /dʒuːn/

Sound 3: /ə/

'u' can sound /ə/ if it comes before 's' in the last syllable of a word:

walrus /ˈwɔːlrəs/

circus /ˈsɜːkəs/

virus /ˈvaɪrəs/

Sound 4: /ʊ/

'u' also sounds /ʊ/:

push /pʊʃ/

pull /pʊl/

bush /bʊʃ/

Sound 5: /ju/

'u' sometimes sounds /ju/:

use /juːz/

computer /kəmˈpjuːtə(r)/

united /juˈnaɪtɪd/

Other Sounds

Sound 6: /ʊə/

'u' also sounds /ʊə/:

insurance /ɪnˈʃʊərəns/

luxurious /lʌɡˈʒʊəriəs/

Sound 7: /w/

'u' sometimes sounds /w/ if it is placed after g' or 'q' and before a vowel:

penguin /ˈpeŋɡwɪn/

quack /kwæk/

harlequin /ˈhɑːləkwɪn/

Sound 8: /ɪ/

'u' also sounds /ɪ/ in some cases:

busy /ˈbɪzi/

business /ˈbɪznəs/

Sound 9: /jʊə/

'u' sounds /jʊə/:

purify /ˈpjʊərɪfaɪ/

security /sɪˈkjʊərəti/

fury /ˈfjʊəri/

Sound 10: /ɜː/

'u' also sounds /ɜː/ mainly when followed by the letter 'r':

burn /bɜːn/

nurse /nɜːs/

burst /bɜːst/

Tip!

The letter 'u' also has the /e/ sound in a few words:

bury /ˈberi/

The Letter U: Multigraphs

'U' can also appear in combination with other letters (mainly vowels and sometimes consonants). They can create distinct vowels:

ue

'ue' at the end or in the middle of words sounds /u:/

blue /bluː/

glue /ɡluː/

clue /kluː/

ui

'ui' commonly has two sounds:

/uː/
/ɪ/

1. 'ui' together sounds /uː/:

fruit /fruːt/

juice /dʒuːs/

suit /suːt/

2. However, 'ui' sometimes sounds /ɪ/:

biscuit /ˈbɪskɪt/

building /ˈbɪldɪŋ/

circuit /ˈsɜːkɪt/

ou

'ou' commonly has five sounds:

/aʊ/
/ʌ/
/uː/
/əʊ/
/ə/

1. 'ou' in the middle of words has four sounds; the first one is /aʊ/:

house /haʊs/

cloud /klaʊd/

mountain /ˈmaʊn.tɪn/

2. 'ou' also sounds /ʌ/:

touch /tʌtʃ/

tough /tʌf/

cousin /ˈkʌz.ən/

3. 'ou' also sounds /uː/:

group /ɡruːp/

soup /suːp/

you /juː/

4. 'ou' also sounds /əʊ/:

shoulder /ˈʃəʊldə(r)/

boulder /ˈbəʊldə(r)/

soul /səʊl/

5. 'ou' at the end of words sounds /ə/:

enormous /ɪˈnɔː.məs/

famous /ˈfeɪ.məs/

outrageous /ˌaʊtˈreɪ.dʒəs/

Tip!

In the word 'cough', the letters 'ou' sounds /ɒ/:

cough /kɒf/

Another exception is the word 'tourist'. 'ou' in this word sounds either /ʊə/ or /ɔː/. Take a look:

tourist /ˈtʊə.rɪst/ /ˈtɔː.rɪst/

our

'our' commonly has three sounds:

/ɔː/
/ə/
/ʊə/ or /ɔː/

1. 'our' mainly sounds /ɔː/:

four /fɔː(r)/

court /kɔːt/

2. 'our' also sounds /ə/ at the end of words:

harbour /ˈhɑːbə(r)/

vapour /ˈveɪpə(r)/

labour /ˈleɪbə(r)/

3. 'our' also sounds /ʊə/ or /ɔː/ in British English pronunciation:

contour /ˈkɒntʊə(r)/, /ˈkɒntɔː(ɹ)/

tour /tʊə(r)/, /tɔː(r)/

tourist /ˈtʊərɪst/, /ˈtɔːrɪst/

ough

'ough' commonly has four sounds:

/aʊ/
/əʊ/
/ɔː/
/ə/

1. 'ough' sounds /aʊ/:

drought /draʊt/

bough/baʊ/

2. 'ough' sounds /əʊ/ in some words:

although /ɔːlˈðəʊ/

doughnut /ˈdəʊnʌt/

3. 'ough' also sounds /ɔː/:

thought /θɔːt/

brought /brɔːt/

sought /sɔːt/

4. 'ough' also sounds /ə/:

thorough /ˈθʌrə/

borough /ˈbʌrə/

au

'au' commonly has three sounds:

/ɔː/
/ɒ/
/ɑː/

1. 'au' sounds /ɔː/:

sauce /sɔːs/

August /ɔːˈɡʌst/

laundry /ˈlɔːn.dri/

2. 'au' also sounds /ɒ/ in some words:

because /bɪˈkɒz/

sausage /ˈsɒs.ɪdʒ/

3. 'au' also sounds /ɑː/:

aunt /ɑːnt/

laugh /lɑːf/

Tip!

'au' in French loanwords sounds /əʊ/:

aubergine /ˈəʊ.bə.ʒiːn/

mauve /məʊv/

aur

'aur' sounds /ɔː(r)/:

centaur /ˈsentɔː(r)/

tyrannosaurus /tɪˌrænəˈsɔːrəs/

augh

'augh' sounds /ɔː/:

caught /kɔːt/

daughter /ˈdɔːtə(r)/

naughty /ˈnɔːti/

eau

'eau' mainly in French loanwords sounds /əʊ/:

gateau /ˈɡætəʊ/

plateau /ˈplætəʊ/

chateau /ˈʃætəʊ/

Orthography

One thing to note is that certain varieties of the English language (i.e. British English, Canadian English, etc.) use the letter U in words such as colour, labour, valour, etc.; however, in American English the letter is not used and said words mentioned are spelled as color and so on.

The Letter U: Uses

The letter ⟨u⟩ is used in
text messaging and internet and other written slang to denote 'you', by virtue of both being pronounced /juː/.

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