/oʊ/

The /oʊ/ is a diphthong - your mouth smoothly glides from one vowel position to another within a single sound.

1. Start position: Begin with your lips gently rounded and your jaw moderately open. Your tongue sits in the mid-back area of your mouth, with the back portion raised slightly toward the soft palate. Think of saying a relaxed "oh" sound.

2. Glide movement: As you voice the sound, your jaw rises slightly while your lips round more tightly. The back of your tongue lifts higher toward the roof of your mouth.

3. End position: Finish with your lips pushed forward into a smaller, rounder shape - similar to the vowel in "put" or "book." Your tongue should be higher and further back than where you started.

The movement should feel like a smooth journey, not two choppy sounds. Your lips do most of the visible work, going from a relaxed oval to a tighter circle.

This sound appears in several spelling patterns:

• o + consonant + e: "home," "hope," "note," "close"
• oa: "boat," "coat," "road," "toast"
• ow: "know," "show," "grow," "slow"
• o (open syllable): "go," "no," "so," "hello"

Practice in front of a mirror and watch your lips. They should start in a gentle oval shape and then push forward into a tighter pucker - like you're about to blow out a candle. If your lips stay still, you're likely making a pure vowel rather than the full diphthong. Exaggerate the rounding at first to feel the complete glide.