American English sound
/aʊ/: how to pronounce “ow” in now, house and loud
/aʊ/ is the vowel in now, house and loud. It's a diphthong: it starts with an open “ah” and glides toward a rounded “oo”.
The spellings ou and ow also spell other sounds (you, know), so learners often say now like no and loud like load.
/aʊ/
the “ow” sound
How to make the sound
- 1Start with your jaw open and your tongue low, as for “father”.
- 2Glide toward “book”: raise the back of your tongue and round your lips.
- 3Let your jaw close as the lips round.
- 4Make it one syllable: now, not “na-oo”.
- Tongue
- low-central
- Lips
- open, then rounded
- Voice
- voiced
Hear it in words
Tap a word to hear it.
At the start
In the middle
At the end
How it's spelled
- ou: house, out, loud, mouth
- ow: now, how, down, town
Common mistakes
Saying /oʊ/: “no” for now
Starting with rounded lips turns now into no and town into tone. Open the jaw and start unrounded.
No glide: “nah” for now
Without the glide toward “oo”, the word loses its shape. Round the lips at the end.
Reading every ow and ou the same
ow is /aʊ/ in now and how but /oʊ/ in know and show; ou is /aʊ/ in house but /u/ in you. Learn the common ones by ear.
Minimal pairs
Each pair differs by one sound. If both words sound the same when you say them, practice this pair.
Try it
“Now the crowd shouts loudly around the house.”
Record a sentence and get a score for every sound, /aʊ/ included. Free, no account.
Questions
How do I know if “ow” is /aʊ/ or /oʊ/?
Only by learning the words. Now, how, cow, down and town have /aʊ/; know, show, slow, low and grow have /oʊ/. Bow and row are both, with different meanings.
Do Canadians say “aboot”?
Not quite: many Canadians start /aʊ/ higher before voiceless sounds, so about sounds closer to “a-boat”. General American keeps the open start: /əˈbaʊt/.