The DAY Diphthong /eɪ/

One of the most common diphthongs in American English. Hear it in pay, day, make, play.

IPA /eɪ/ Respell ay Category Diphthong
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The /eɪ/ vowel, the day sound, is a diphthong, meaning it's actually two sounds blended into one smooth glide. You hear it in words like make, play, take, and late. Start with your jaw slightly open, then glide your jaw a little higher and raise your tongue into an ee-like shape. A common mistake for Spanish and Japanese speakers is stopping halfway, producing a flat, unchanging vowel instead of a glide. The whole word lives or dies on whether you finish that second movement.

How to make it

Three small adjustments.

Get them right and the sound takes care of itself.

Start with your jaw slightly open and the front of your tongue forward and slightly up. Glide upward, your jaw closes a little more and your tongue arches higher toward the roof of the mouth.

First position of /eɪ/ in pay
Second position of /eɪ/ in pay

Mouth shape

/eɪ/ as in pay

Jaw

Slightly open for the first position, then closes almost completely for the glide.

Tongue

Tip stays behind the bottom front teeth throughout. For the first position, the front of the tongue is positioned forward and slightly up. Then, as you glide, the front of the tongue arches even higher toward the roof of the mouth.

Lips

Relaxed throughout.

Hear it in words

16 everyday words.

Tap any word for its full breakdown — every reduction, every flap-T.

say
SAY
grey
GRAY
take
TAYK
late
LAYT
place
PLAYS
paid
PAYD
game
GAYM
raise
RAYZ
plate
PLAYT
state
STAYT
gained
GAYND
main
MAYN
trade
TRAYD
base
BAYS
page
PAYJ
bake
BAYK
Hear it in sentences

In real conversation.

5 short sentences where this sound shows up. Tap to play; click the title for the full breakdown.

They came late today.

dhay KAYM LAYT tuh·DAY.

They say the train was delayed by the rain today.

dhay SAY dhuh TRAYN wuhz duh·LAYD bahy dhuh RAYN tuh·DAY.

Eight grey plates were placed on the table.

AYT GRAY PLAYTS wer PLAYST ahn dhuh TAY·buhl.

The main aim of the game is to stay safe.

dhuh MAYN AYM uhv dhuh GAYM ihz tuh STAY SAYF.

Creating a great database takes brave behavior.

kree·AY·tuhng uh GRAYT DAY·duh·bays TAYKS BRAYV buh·HAY·vyer.
FAQ

Common questions about /eɪ/.

What is the biggest mistake people make with the /eɪ/ vowel?
The biggest mistake is treating it like a single, flat sound instead of a moving glide. In many languages, the letter E makes a pure, unchanging vowel. But in American English, the /eɪ/ in day or make requires movement. You have to start with your mouth slightly open and actively close your jaw and lift your tongue toward an ee sound. If you don't make that second movement, pay sounds flat and abrupt.
How do I physically move my mouth for the /eɪ/ sound?
Start with your jaw open just a bit and the tip of your tongue resting behind your bottom front teeth. Then, as you make the sound, smoothly close your jaw a little more while the front of your tongue arches up toward the roof of your mouth. Your lips stay completely relaxed. Think of it as starting with a steady vowel sound and sliding up into an ee, sped up into one fluid syllable.
Why does the /eɪ/ vowel sound longer in "play" than in "plate"?
Vowels in American English stretch when they sit at the end of a word or before a voiced consonant. Play ends on the vowel itself, so the /eɪ/ glide gets plenty of time. In plate, the voiceless /t/ cuts the vowel off early, making the glide faster and sharper. Played (with voiced /d/) sits between them in length. The vowel-length cue actually tells the listener what consonant is coming.

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