Trap 14 of 22 · French speakers
Cat, cut, cot: three vowels, not one
Cat, cut, cot : trois voyelles, pas une
What French speakers do
You use the French a (as in chat) for all three, or the French eu / o for cut and cot.
The American rule
cat /æ/: jaw open, lips spread, tongue low and forward. cut /ʌ/: short, relaxed uh. cot /ɑ/: wide open and back, like ahh at the doctor.
Three different American vowels hide behind the letters A, U and O:
- /æ/ — cat, bag, happy. Drop the jaw and spread the lips, as if half-smiling. Wider and brighter than French a.
- /ʌ/ — cut, money, love. Short, central and relaxed: the uh of hesitation. Not eu, not o.
- /ɑ/ — cot, hot, job. Open wide and back. In American English, o in these words is never the French o.
Getting them wrong changes words: bad/bud/bod, cap/cup/cop, hat/hut/hot.
The words
cat
/kæt/
✗KAT (French a)
✓KAT
“Our cat sleeps all day.”
bag
/bæɡ/
✗BAHG
✓BAG
“Don't forget your bag.”
happy
/ˈhæpi/
✗a-PI
✓HAP-ee
Say the H too.
“I'm so happy for you.”
cut
/kʌt/
✗KEUT
✓KUT
“I cut my finger.”
money
/ˈmʌni/
✗mo-NI
✓MUN-ee
“I need to save money.”
love
/lʌv/
✗LOV
✓LUV
“I love this song.”
fun
/fʌn/
✗FEUN
✓FUN
“That was so much fun.”
hot
/hɑt/
✗OT
✓HAHT
“It's really hot today.”
job
/dʒɑb/
✗DJOB
✓JAHB
“She got a new job.”
coffee
/ˈkɑfi/
✗ko-FÉ
✓KAH-fee
“Let's grab a coffee.”
stop
/stɑp/
✗STOP
✓STAHP
“Stop here, please.”