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Practice: California Vowels
Let's practice the key vowel differences between General American and Californian English. Focus on the vowel quality in each word.
Key practice words:
- "cat" /kæt/ — listen for the raised /æ/
- "hot" /hɑt/ — listen for the fronted /ɑ/
- "bought" /bɔt/ vs /bɑt/ — merged in California
- "but" /bʌt/ — listen for the backed /ʌ/
Listen Across Accents
Tap an accent to hear each example. Audio is generated on demand and cached.
hot
bought
I bought a hot dog but the cat got it.
Your Turn — 3 exercises
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