long u

Cube's vowel sound

The long u is the vowel sound heard in words like *flute*, *tune*, and *blue*—the sound of the letter's name.

In some words, particularly after certain consonants, it includes a slight y-glide: *cute*, *music*, *fuel*.

The distinction between long and short vowels is a teaching tool for early reading, though actual English pronunciation is more complex.

Related

flute · truth · phoneme · pronunciation · magic e · silent e · vowel · mule · duke · school · cute · mood · huge · blue · bright blue · cube · ice cube · music

Categories
Opposites
vowel length

long ushort vowel

Brief vocalic phoneme

schwa

vowel height

long ulong a

Vowel saying its name

vowel backness

long ulong e

Stretched vowel sound

long i

Phrases
Family

long, longs, longer, longest, longish, elongate, elongates, elongated, elongating

Familiarity
Top 500,000
Profile
Known to kids · Used worldwide · Timeless · Rated G