The Vowel Sound /u/

The /u/: long, rounded and held

The /u/ is a long, heavily rounded vowel. It's the tense version of /ʊ/, and the difference between them is length and tension, not position. In English, /u/ lasts considerably longer than a Spanish u.

How it's made

• 👄 Mouth: lips tightly rounded and pushed forward, as if to whistle.
• 👅 Tongue: back and very high, close to the soft palate.
• 🔊 Voice: voiced, long and steady — the sound doesn't move.

You hear it in: food · blue · school · move · two

⚠️ The typical Spanish-speaker mistake: clipping it like a Spanish u and landing on /ʊ/ instead: fool comes out as full, pool as pull.

By the end you'll be able to: hold the /u/ long enough that it never collapses into /ʊ/.