Within the classroom, the medial vowel sounds are categorized as 'a', 'e', 'i', 'o' and 'u'. They are the vowels that are found in the middle of a word. These medial vowel sounds can be either long or short depending on the word that they are found in. The differences between the vowel sounds can sometimes be quite difficult for children to spot and getting a grasp of them is something that comes with time due to their experience with the language. These vowel sounds will also vary across different languages but the examples below display their positions in English.
- 'a'
The short medial vowel sound can be found in words such as 'cat' and 'map'. The long medial vowel sound can be found in words such as 'car' and 'part'. - 'e'
Examples of the short medial vowel sound are 'bet' and 'hedge'. Examples of the long medial vowel sound include 'week' and 'feet'. - 'i'
The short medial vowel sound can be found in words such as 'fit' and 'kick'. The long medial vowel sound is the same as 'e' and found in words such as 'meet' and 'tweet'. - 'o'
Examples of the short medial vowel sound include 'hot' and 'rot', while the long medial vowel sounds include words such as 'hoot' and 'boot'. - 'u'
The short medial vowel sound can be found in words such as 'cut' and 'tut', while examples of the long medial vowel sound are similar to those of 'o' including 'root' and 'hoot'.
