English words are spelled with twenty-six letters. Twenty-six English letters spell more than forty sounds. There are vowel and consonant sounds. Lesson Menu 4.
Vowels sound in the throat.
Put your hand against your throat as you say the names of the letters Aa, Ee, Ii, Oo, Uu. You will feel the vibration. Consonants almost always sound with vowels. The word consonant literally means with sound. The words we read are principally written in lower case letters.