The aw sound //

(not, off, socks)

The short O sound (IPA symbol: ) can be found in American English words such
as: dog, log, socks, off, on, top, and pot.

The entire tongue is pushed back and kept low during the pronunciation of the aw
sound. The bottom side teeth can be felt alongside the front of the tongue during the
sound. The back of the tongue has only a slight rounding upward at the very rear of
the mouth. The lips are made into an oval shape, and may stick slightly outward.
The North American aw sound is one of the sounds with the greatest variation in
pronunciation even within the continent. Some regions of the United States do not
consider this to be a different sound from the short o. However, in many regions of
the country it is a unique sound; therefore it is described separately.
Common aw sound spellings

Spelling

Example

Other Pronunciations for

Spelling

aw

law, awful, drawn

none

o (consonant-vowelconsonant) *

dog, lost, soft

short o (top)
long o (most)

au

caution, haunt, author

none

augh

caught, taught, daughter

none

ough (+t) **

brought, thought, fought

none

w (+a) ***

want, wash, watch

none

* o spelling followed by the letter r

When the consonant following the letter o is the letter r (as in the words for and
order), the sound is usually pronounced as the or sound. If the or spelling occurs on
an unstressed syllable (as in the words honor and factor), a schwa+r pronunciation is
also possible.
** ough(+t) spelling
The ough spelling is pronounced with the aw sound when it is followed by the letter t.
There are no pronunciation patterns when ough occurs at the end of a word. For
example, the words enough, through, and though each have different pronunciations
for the ough spelling.
*** (w+)a spelling

The aw sound //
(not, off, socks)
The letter a is often pronounced as the aw sound when it occurs between the letter w
and a consonant. Exceptions to this pattern include the words wax, waste, and
wagon.
Now say these sentences out loud (the short O sounds are bold):
1) Stop! Drop a lot on top!
2) The robin flew off.
3) The moth landed on the hot bulb.
4) The dolphin swam away in October.
5) He has a job as a cop.
7) Tom got a lot of socks.
8) The frog hopped on the top.
9) The octopus stopped over there.
10) I like olives a lot!
11) Bob got onto the bicycle.
12) The dogs and otters were playing.
13) Stop! Look both ways before you cross the street!
14) I will crop the picture on top.
15) She made hair for the doll from a mop.
17) Turn the lights on and off.
18) The mop was a prop for the movie.
19) I got a dog!
20) He got off the bus on my street.