Basic Vowel Sounds — A1 English Pronunciation Practice Test
About this practice test
Practise A1 English pronunciation by identifying basic vowel sounds in recordings, with sound choices and playable examples.
What you’ll practice
Hear the difference
Recognise vowel and consonant contrasts in clear recordings.
Stress and rhythm
Identify strong syllables and emphasized words.
Listen and review
Replay each recording and learn from answer explanations.
What to expect:
8 questions with explanations to review after submission.
Study the questions and tasks
Work through the material below, or start the interactive practice above to complete an attempt. Try the exercises before opening any answer or transcript sections, then use them to review your work.
- Practice level
- A1. Try this level if you can follow the instructions and understand most of the language; choose an earlier level if you need more support.
- Question formats
- Single choice
How to approach this practice
Read the instructions and work through the questions before opening the answers.
Recording 1
Read the transcript
cat
Recording 2
Read the transcript
red
Recording 3
Read the transcript
pig
Recording 4
Read the transcript
cup
Recording 5
Read the transcript
bag
Recording 6
Read the transcript
bed
Recording 7
Read the transcript
fish
Recording 8
Read the transcript
sun
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Question 1 · Single choice
Choose one answer.
Listen to the word. Which vowel sound do you hear?
Return to the passage, recording or visual- /æ/ — as in hat
- /ɛ/ — as in bed
Check answers and explanations
- Answer
- /æ/ — as in hat
The word is “cat”. Its vowel sound is /æ/.
/æ/ — as in hat: The word is “cat”. Its vowel sound is /æ/.
/ɛ/ — as in bed: Replay the recording and compare the target sound with the examples.
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Question 2 · Single choice
Choose one answer.
Listen to the word. Which vowel sound do you hear?
Return to the passage, recording or visual- /ɪ/ — as in fish
- /ɛ/ — as in bed
Check answers and explanations
- Answer
- /ɛ/ — as in bed
The word is “red”. Its vowel sound is /ɛ/.
/ɪ/ — as in fish: Replay the recording and compare the target sound with the examples.
/ɛ/ — as in bed: The word is “red”. Its vowel sound is /ɛ/.
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Question 3 · Single choice
Choose one answer.
Listen to the word. Which vowel sound do you hear?
Return to the passage, recording or visual- /ɪ/ — as in fish
- /ɛ/ — as in bed
Check answers and explanations
- Answer
- /ɪ/ — as in fish
The word is “pig”. Its vowel sound is /ɪ/.
/ɪ/ — as in fish: The word is “pig”. Its vowel sound is /ɪ/.
/ɛ/ — as in bed: Replay the recording and compare the target sound with the examples.
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Question 4 · Single choice
Choose one answer.
Listen to the word. Which vowel sound do you hear?
Return to the passage, recording or visual- /æ/ — as in cat
- /ʌ/ — as in bus
Check answers and explanations
- Answer
- /ʌ/ — as in bus
The word is “cup”. Its vowel sound is /ʌ/.
/æ/ — as in cat: Replay the recording and compare the target sound with the examples.
/ʌ/ — as in bus: The word is “cup”. Its vowel sound is /ʌ/.
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Question 5 · Single choice
Choose one answer.
Listen to the word. Which vowel sound do you hear?
Return to the passage, recording or visual- /æ/ — as in cat
- /ʌ/ — as in cup
Check answers and explanations
- Answer
- /æ/ — as in cat
The word is “bag”. Its vowel sound is /æ/.
/æ/ — as in cat: The word is “bag”. Its vowel sound is /æ/.
/ʌ/ — as in cup: Replay the recording and compare the target sound with the examples.
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Question 6 · Single choice
Choose one answer.
Listen to the word. Which vowel sound do you hear?
Return to the passage, recording or visual- /æ/ — as in cat
- /ɛ/ — as in pen
Check answers and explanations
- Answer
- /ɛ/ — as in pen
The word is “bed”. Its vowel sound is /ɛ/.
/æ/ — as in cat: Replay the recording and compare the target sound with the examples.
/ɛ/ — as in pen: The word is “bed”. Its vowel sound is /ɛ/.
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Question 7 · Single choice
Choose one answer.
Listen to the word. Which vowel sound do you hear?
Return to the passage, recording or visual- /ɪ/ — as in milk
- /ɛ/ — as in bed
Check answers and explanations
- Answer
- /ɪ/ — as in milk
The word is “fish”. Its vowel sound is /ɪ/.
/ɪ/ — as in milk: The word is “fish”. Its vowel sound is /ɪ/.
/ɛ/ — as in bed: Replay the recording and compare the target sound with the examples.
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Question 8 · Single choice
Choose one answer.
Listen to the word. Which vowel sound do you hear?
Return to the passage, recording or visual- /æ/ — as in cat
- /ʌ/ — as in cup
Check answers and explanations
- Answer
- /ʌ/ — as in cup
The word is “sun”. Its vowel sound is /ʌ/.
/æ/ — as in cat: Replay the recording and compare the target sound with the examples.
/ʌ/ — as in cup: The word is “sun”. Its vowel sound is /ʌ/.
What to review next
Review the feedback and revisit the topics you found difficult before trying again.
A focused practice result shows how you did on these tasks. Use several activities across skills to decide what to study next; one practice score does not certify an overall CEFR level.