Vowel Contrasts in Familiar Words — A2 English Pronunciation Practice Test
About this practice test
Practise A2 English pronunciation: separate similar vowels in familiar words using clear labelled recordings.
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
- A2. 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
- Matching
How to approach this practice
Read the instructions and work through the questions before opening the answers.
Recording 1
Read the transcript
A. ship. B. sheep. C. shape.
Recording 2
Read the transcript
A. pole. B. pool. C. pull.
Recording 3
Read the transcript
A. fat. B. fit. C. feet.
Recording 4
Read the transcript
A. but. B. boat. C. boot.
Recording 5
Read the transcript
A. cat. B. coat. C. cut.
Recording 6
Read the transcript
A. late. B. let. C. lit.
Recording 7
Read the transcript
A. game. B. food. C. good.
Recording 8
Read the transcript
A. beach. B. bridge. C. brush.
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Question 1 · Matching
Match each item to the correct choice.
Listen to words A, B and C. Match each recorded word to its vowel sound.
Return to the passage, recording or visualAnswer choices
- Vowel /ɪ/, as in fish
- Vowel /iː/, as in see
- Vowel /eɪ/, as in day
Items
- Recording A
- Recording B
- Recording C
Check answers and explanations
- 1. Recording A
- Vowel /ɪ/, as in fish
- 2. Recording B
- Vowel /iː/, as in see
- 3. Recording C
- Vowel /eɪ/, as in day
Recording A: “ship” has the stressed vowel /ɪ/. Recording B: “sheep” has the stressed vowel /iː/. Recording C: “shape” has the stressed vowel /eɪ/.
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Question 2 · Matching
Match each item to the correct choice.
Listen to words A, B and C. Match each recorded word to its vowel sound.
Return to the passage, recording or visualAnswer choices
- Vowel /ʊ/, as in book
- Vowel /oʊ/, as in go
- Vowel /uː/, as in blue
Items
- Recording A
- Recording B
- Recording C
Check answers and explanations
- 1. Recording A
- Vowel /oʊ/, as in go
- 2. Recording B
- Vowel /uː/, as in blue
- 3. Recording C
- Vowel /ʊ/, as in book
Recording A: “pole” has the stressed vowel /oʊ/. Recording B: “pool” has the stressed vowel /uː/. Recording C: “pull” has the stressed vowel /ʊ/.
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Question 3 · Matching
Match each item to the correct choice.
Listen to words A, B and C. Match each recorded word to its vowel sound.
Return to the passage, recording or visualAnswer choices
- Vowel /ɪ/, as in fish
- Vowel /iː/, as in see
- Vowel /æ/, as in cat
Items
- Recording A
- Recording B
- Recording C
Check answers and explanations
- 1. Recording A
- Vowel /æ/, as in cat
- 2. Recording B
- Vowel /ɪ/, as in fish
- 3. Recording C
- Vowel /iː/, as in see
Recording A: “fat” has the stressed vowel /æ/. Recording B: “fit” has the stressed vowel /ɪ/. Recording C: “feet” has the stressed vowel /iː/.
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Question 4 · Matching
Match each item to the correct choice.
Listen to words A, B and C. Match each recorded word to its vowel sound.
Return to the passage, recording or visualAnswer choices
- Vowel /oʊ/, as in go
- Vowel /uː/, as in blue
- Vowel /ʌ/, as in cup
Items
- Recording A
- Recording B
- Recording C
Check answers and explanations
- 1. Recording A
- Vowel /ʌ/, as in cup
- 2. Recording B
- Vowel /oʊ/, as in go
- 3. Recording C
- Vowel /uː/, as in blue
Recording A: “but” has the stressed vowel /ʌ/. Recording B: “boat” has the stressed vowel /oʊ/. Recording C: “boot” has the stressed vowel /uː/.
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Question 5 · Matching
Match each item to the correct choice.
Listen to words A, B and C. Match each recorded word to its vowel sound.
Return to the passage, recording or visualAnswer choices
- Vowel /ʌ/, as in cup
- Vowel /oʊ/, as in go
- Vowel /æ/, as in cat
Items
- Recording A
- Recording B
- Recording C
Check answers and explanations
- 1. Recording A
- Vowel /æ/, as in cat
- 2. Recording B
- Vowel /oʊ/, as in go
- 3. Recording C
- Vowel /ʌ/, as in cup
Recording A: “cat” has the stressed vowel /æ/. Recording B: “coat” has the stressed vowel /oʊ/. Recording C: “cut” has the stressed vowel /ʌ/.
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Question 6 · Matching
Match each item to the correct choice.
Listen to words A, B and C. Match each recorded word to its vowel sound.
Return to the passage, recording or visualAnswer choices
- Vowel /ɪ/, as in fish
- Vowel /eɪ/, as in day
- Vowel /ɛ/, as in pen
Items
- Recording A
- Recording B
- Recording C
Check answers and explanations
- 1. Recording A
- Vowel /eɪ/, as in day
- 2. Recording B
- Vowel /ɛ/, as in pen
- 3. Recording C
- Vowel /ɪ/, as in fish
Recording A: “late” has the stressed vowel /eɪ/. Recording B: “let” has the stressed vowel /ɛ/. Recording C: “lit” has the stressed vowel /ɪ/.
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Question 7 · Matching
Match each item to the correct choice.
Listen to words A, B and C. Match each recorded word to its vowel sound.
Return to the passage, recording or visualAnswer choices
- Vowel /ʊ/, as in book
- Vowel /uː/, as in blue
- Vowel /eɪ/, as in day
Items
- Recording A
- Recording B
- Recording C
Check answers and explanations
- 1. Recording A
- Vowel /eɪ/, as in day
- 2. Recording B
- Vowel /uː/, as in blue
- 3. Recording C
- Vowel /ʊ/, as in book
Recording A: “game” has the stressed vowel /eɪ/. Recording B: “food” has the stressed vowel /uː/. Recording C: “good” has the stressed vowel /ʊ/.
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Question 8 · Matching
Match each item to the correct choice.
Listen to words A, B and C. Match each recorded word to its vowel sound.
Return to the passage, recording or visualAnswer choices
- Vowel /ʌ/, as in cup
- Vowel /ɪ/, as in fish
- Vowel /iː/, as in see
Items
- Recording A
- Recording B
- Recording C
Check answers and explanations
- 1. Recording A
- Vowel /iː/, as in see
- 2. Recording B
- Vowel /ɪ/, as in fish
- 3. Recording C
- Vowel /ʌ/, as in cup
Recording A: “beach” has the stressed vowel /iː/. Recording B: “bridge” has the stressed vowel /ɪ/. Recording C: “brush” has the stressed vowel /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.