Cot and caught, one vowel or two

1. 1
   cot/kɑːt/

   noun

   A small bed that folds up so you can store it or carry it.
2. 2
   stock/stɑːk/

   noun

   The goods a shop keeps on hand to sell.
3. 3
   stalk/stɔːk/

   noun

   The stem that holds up a plant or one of its parts.
4. 4
   collar/ˈkɑːlər/

   noun

   The band of cloth around the neck of a shirt, usually folded over.
5. 5
   caller/ˈkɔːlər/

   noun

   A person who stops by to see you.
6. 6
   knock/nɑːk/

   verb

   To tap on a door with your knuckles.
7. 7
   gnaw/nɔː/

   verb

   To bite and chew at something over and over.
8. 8
   walk/wɔːk/iAlso said wɑːk.

   verb

   Move along on your feet, one step at a time.
9. 9
   odd/ɑːd/

   adjective

   Strange in a way that is hard to explain.
10. 10
    awed/ɔːd/

    adjective

    Filled with wonder at something huge or powerful.

The sentences

1. Can you set up the cot in the spare room?

2. Do you have any of these in stock?

3. Trim the stalk before you put them in water.

4. The collar on this shirt keeps folding the wrong way.

5. Tell the caller to knock again in the morning.

6. Knock twice and someone will let you in.

7. The dog will gnaw on that bone for hours.

8. Let's walk down to the corner and back.

9. It's odd that she hasn't called us back yet.

10. We were awed by how big the mountains looked.

Pronunciation

• stalk/stɔːk/

  No l sound in it at all.

• gnaw/nɔː/

  The g is silent, so it starts like 'no'.

• walk/wɔːk/

  The l is silent: /wɔːk/, so it rhymes with talk.

• awed/ɔːd/

  One syllable — the -ed only adds a d sound.

Questions

What's the difference between cot and caught?

Cot uses the short o sound /ɑː/, like in stock or odd, while caught uses the open o sound /ɔː/, like in stalk or awed.

How do you say stalk?

Stalk has no l sound at all, it's pronounced /stɔːk/.

What does awed mean?

Awed means filled with wonder at something huge or powerful, like being awed by how big the mountains looked.