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    ɜː

    The /ɜː/ sound: er as in bird

    • Vowel
    • Long
    • Medium priority

    Hear it

    in bird

    Lips
    Relaxed
    Tongue
    Relaxed, in the middle of the mouth
    Voice
    On
    Length
    Long: hold it

    The sound on its own: recording by No machine-readable author provided. Denelson83 assumed (based on copyright claims)., CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons. Credits

    How to make /ɜː/

    1. 1

      Keep your tongue flat in the centre of your mouth, not forward, not back.

    2. 2

      Relax your lips completely.

    3. 3

      Hold a long, steady 'errr' with no r sound at the end (British).

    Sounds like
    a long thinking sound, 'errr', with a relaxed mouth
    British and American
    American English uses an r-coloured vowel /ɝ/; the r is clearly pronounced throughout ('bird' = /bɝd/). Both are correct; pick one and be consistent.

    /ɔː/ vs /ɜː/: walk vs work

    Every pair

    /ɔː/ has firm lip rounding; /ɜː/ has NONE; lips completely relaxed, tongue flat in the centre. If your lips are round on 'work', it will come out as 'walk'.

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    Which word do you hear?

    How /ɜː/ is spelled

    • ir
    • er
    • ur
    • or
    • ear

    The usual mistake

    Adding a strong r or replacing it with /ɔː/ or /ɑː/ so 'work' sounds like 'walk' and 'heard' like 'hard'. In RP there is no r, just the long central vowel.

    Hardest for speakers of

    Words to practise

    Say it and get scored

    Read bird, work, learn, first, turn, word aloud. Free, no account.

    Check my /ɜː/

    Questions

    How do you pronounce the /ɜː/ sound?
    Keep your tongue flat in the centre of your mouth, not forward, not back. Relax your lips completely. Hold a long, steady 'errr' with no r sound at the end (British).
    What is the most common mistake with /ɜː/?
    Adding a strong r or replacing it with /ɔː/ or /ɑː/ so 'work' sounds like 'walk' and 'heard' like 'hard'. In RP there is no r, just the long central vowel.
    Which spellings make the /ɜː/ sound?
    Common spellings include “ir”, “er”, “ur”, “or”, “ear”, as in bird /bɜːd/, work /wɜːk/, learn /lɜːn/.
    Is /ɜː/ different in American English?
    American English uses an r-coloured vowel /ɝ/; the r is clearly pronounced throughout ('bird' = /bɝd/). Both are correct; pick one and be consistent. IELTS accepts both; pick one model and stay consistent.
    Does /ɜː/ matter for IELTS?
    It matters moderately. Errors are noticeable but only sometimes affect understanding. Fix the high-priority vowel contrasts and final consonants first, then polish this one.