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Trap-bath split words

Southern British English lengthened the A before certain consonant clusters, so bath rhymes with father. American English and northern England kept the short a. This is the single most audible marker between the two accents, and Australian English mostly follows the British pattern.


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The words

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Tomato, either, vase, herb: same spelling, different vowels across the Atlantic. Hear them both.
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Aluminium, speciality, oriented: the spelling differs, so the syllable count does too. Hear both.
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Day, mate, price, no: the vowels that make Australian English instantly recognisable. Hear them.
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Hot, dog, caught, thought: the O vowels split three ways across accents. Hear each version.
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Button, water, bottle: many speakers swap the T for a catch in the throat. Hear where it happens.
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In British English the R comes back when a vowel follows. Hear far versus far away.
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Keep practising

Browse every practice list or the word index, hear two accents back to back on Compare, or test your ear with the listening quiz.

To read the rules behind these words, see the pronunciation guides — including silent letters, word stress and American vs British. Or hear each accent on its own page: American, British, Australian.