/ʊ/

Position your tongue high in your mouth and pull it back toward your throat - but not all the way. Your tongue should be slightly lower and more forward than for /u/ (as in "pool"). Think of /ʊ/ as a relaxed, "lazy" version of /u/. Round your lips gently, pushing them slightly outward, but keep the rounding soft and loose rather than tight. The key is keeping everything relaxed: your jaw drops just a bit, and there's no tension in your lips or tongue.

This pair trips up many learners. Compare "pull" (/ʊ/) with "pool" (/u/), or "full" with "fool." The difference isn't just length - it's tension. For /u/, your lips push forward into a tight circle and your tongue is tense and pulled high. For /ʊ/, everything loosens up: your lips relax their rounding, your tongue drops slightly, and the sound is shorter and less "extreme."

Try this: say "cool" with tight, forward lips. Now say "cook" - your lips should feel much more relaxed and less pushed out.

The most frequent spellings are oo in words like "book," "good," "foot," and "wood." You'll also see u as in "put," "push," "full," and "bull." Less common is ou in words like "could," "would," and "should."

Watch out for spelling traps! Not all "oo" words use /ʊ/ - "food," "moon," and "pool" use /u/ instead. When in doubt, listen to a native speaker. If the word rhymes with "put" or "book," it's likely /ʊ/.