We begin the study of English sounds in this course by looking at vowels, and it is necessary to say something about vowels in general before turning to the vowels of English. We need to know in what ways vowels differ from each other. The first matter to consider is the shape and position of the tongue. It is usual to simplify the very complex possibilities by describing just two things : firstly, the vertical distance between the upper surface of the tongue and palate, and secondly the part of the tongue, between front and back, which is raised highest. Let us look at some example: