The tongue is high, mid-high, mid-low, or low in the mouth.
When vowels are high, the mouth is only open a little. The lips are close together.
When the vowels are low, the mouth is wide open and the lips are far apart.
Try it yourself. Say "cheese," a high sound. Then say "wide," a low sound. Wide is really a mix of two vowels: /ai/. You say the /a/ first and then the /i/.
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This site was inspired by the work of Hilary Maguire and Vesna Radivojevic, ELSA instructors at Vancouver Community College. The site was developed while teaching new immigrants in the VCC ELSA program. View my profile and book reviews.