I heard my friend saying the little jingle, "A, E, I, O, U, and sometimes Y or W" and i thought that was ridiculous. In what word would 'w' EVER be used as a vowel? If so, can you please give me an example?
2007-03-01 17:15:06 · 11 answers · asked by kendocosmo 2 in Education & Reference ➔ Words & Wordplay
It is probably part of a particular way of teaching reading. I wouldn't get too excited about it.
Strictly speaking, we can never see vowels, so that "W" sitting there on the page is not a vowel and neither is this "A". We can only hear vowels. Vowels are sounds. Loosely speaking, the vowel letters A, E, I, O, and U are often called vowels. "Y" and "W" may or may not be included among the vowels, depending on the teaching method.
The typical sound we make (in English) when we see the letter "W" is called either a semi-vowel, a semi-consonant, or a glide. The same terminology can be used to describe the sound of "Y" in the word "Yes". The sound of the "Y" is a front glide related to the sound "EE" (bee) and the sound of the "W" is a back glide related to the sound "OO" (boo).
A good reason to include Y and W as vowels (vowel letters, actually) is that they pair with other vowel letters to create digraphs which have characteristic sounds. "AY", "EY", "OY", "AW", "EW", "OW". But when not at the end of a word, these are "AI", "EI", "OI", "AU", "EU", "OU". (Of course there are exceptions. That's how English is!) Because Y and I form a pair that substitute for each other, and W and U also, it's not such a bad idea to include both when introducing the concept to children.
Yes, there are two words in the english language that use the letter "w" as a vowel.
The first is "cwm" pronounced "coom" which is the basin at the bottom of a mountain sometimes containing a lake and the other is "crwth" which is an ancient celtic musical instrument. Hope this answers your question.
2007-03-01 17:22:07 · answer #1 · answered by aaryan 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋
For the best answers, search on this site https://shorturl.im/avaDP
Q. Are there any words that use w as a vowel? A. Yes. Cwm (a steep-walled semicircular basin in a mountain, sometimes containing a lake; a cirque) and crwth (an ancient Celtic musical instrument), both from the Welsh, use w as a vowel — standing for the same sound that "oo" stands for in boom and booth. Crwth is also spelled "crowd."
2016-04-01 04:53:04 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
This Site Might Help You.
RE:
Can 'W' be used as a vowel?
I heard my friend saying the little jingle, "A, E, I, O, U, and sometimes Y or W" and i thought that was ridiculous. In what word would 'w' EVER be used as a vowel? If so, can you please give me an example?
2015-08-06 12:28:37 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
W As A Vowel
2016-10-07 07:30:00 · answer #4 · answered by blea 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It is....
the sound at the beginning of words like 'witch', 'wear' and 'walk',
Why - oo-ie
When - oo-eh-n
well- oo-e-ll
but it is hard to think of other examples
2007-03-01 17:20:15 · answer #5 · answered by freshbliss 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No, not 'w'.
'Y' can sometimes be used as a vowel, as in 'myth, nymph, crypt, rhythm'.
.
2007-03-01 17:20:03 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
None of which I am aware! Obviously, I can't answer your second question!
2007-03-01 17:22:18 · answer #7 · answered by popcorn 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Plow
2007-03-01 17:36:37 · answer #8 · answered by HalJor 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
no. I think he cheats at scrabble. Watch out
2007-03-01 17:24:01 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
NO! Snot W, its Z.
Aaryan - GIMME A BRAKE HERE! This is YAHOO!
2007-03-01 17:36:30 · answer #10 · answered by ravin_lunatic 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋