Long vowels are vowel sounds that say their own name. Each vowel (a, e, i, o, u) has a long sound that matches the letter’s name. These sounds are often found in words with silent e at the end or in vowel teams (like ai or oa).
Many long vowel words follow the “silent e” pattern (CVCe words). For example: c-a-k-e → cake.
The long a makes the sound /ā/ like in the word cake. It says its own name and is often spelled with a_e or vowel teams such as ai and ay.
The long a sound is the same sound we hear in the word “make.”
The long e makes the sound /ē/ like in the word tree. It is often spelled with ee, ea, or e_e.
The long e sound is the same sound we hear in the word “see.”
The long i makes the sound /ī/ like in the word kite. It is often spelled with i_e or vowel teams like igh.
The long i sound is the same sound we hear in the word “five.”
The long o makes the sound /ō/ like in the word home. It is often spelled with o_e, oa, or ow.
The long o sound is the same sound we hear in the word “go.”
The long u makes the sound /ū/ like in the word cube. It can sound like “you” or “oo” depending on the word. It is often spelled with u_e or vowel teams like ue and ui.
The long u sound is the same sound we hear in the word “use.”
Reading long vowel words in sentences helps us build fluency and understand how vowels change word meaning.
Read each sentence slowly the first time. Then read again smoothly, listening for each long vowel sound.