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One word is "cwm", and another is "crwth".

Cwm is a basin at the bottom of a mountain.

Crwth is an ancient Celtic musical instrument.

W as a vowel in Welsh

The Welsh language uses "w" as a vowel with a sound somewhere between the "oo" in "book" and the "u" in "buck", so other words borrowed from Welsh may have obsolete spellings with "w" as a vowel.

***By the way, the aforementioned word "crwth" can also be spelled "cruth" or "crowd".

Other examples with "w" as a vowel appear in place-names. "Bwlch" means a pass or gap. "Pwll" means a pool or puddle or pit. The other two words are used in English and appear in dictionaries. These two primarily appear in specialized dictionaries, such as some geographical dictionaries. However, "bwlch" appears in the Oxford Rhyming Dictionary and, apparently, the game Balderdash.

As a clear example of using "w" as a vowel in Welsh, the Welsh language spells "Russia" and "Sudan" as "Rwsia" and "Swdan".

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In the English language the only letter that can be considered a consonant or a vowel is the letter Y. The letter W is a consonant.


Is c a vowel?

W is a vowel sometimes, as is Y. There are words in Welsh that use only a W. An example would be the word tow. Without the W the O would not be long. This illustrates that the W is forming a diphthong, which mirrors the use of the letter U from which it developed. After a vowel, W is considered as a vowel, with an "au, oo, or oh" sound. Before a vowel it is considered a consonant, with its "wh" sound.


Is 'y' classed as a vowel?

All words have to have a vowel in them. The five orthodox ones are a,e,i,o,u. However in words such as 'why' and 'sky', the 'y' can be taken to be the vowel. Y is considered a semi-vowel.


What word uses W as a vowel?

Many words have W for a vowel, such as awe, bow, cow, dew, ewe, few gew-gaw, hew, jaw, known, lawn, maw, now, owe, pew, raw, sew, tow, vow, wow and yawn. However, in these cases, the W is only technically a vowel, because it contributes a vowel sound, as would the letter U, from which it originates. Some words, especially Welsh, use the W as the primary vowel, much as Y is used in English. One example is the word "cwm" (valley). (see related question)

Related Questions

What word has w as the only vowel?

The Welsh word crwth, borrowed directly without Anglicised spelling, sometimes appears in English dictionaries. In proper English, w is a vowel only when combined with another vowel, as a diphthong such as how or in words like yawn.


In the word two is w a vowel?

'W' cannot be a vowel, the only interchangeable letter is 'y'. Here in the word 'two' 'w' is a silent consonant.


Is there a Noun with a w vowel sound not starting with w?

How about the word "vowel" itself? Or the word "vow"?


What is middle letter of vowel?

The middle letter of the word "vowel" is "w."


Is the letter w in the word withdrawal a vowel?

No a W is never a vowel. The only vowels are A,E,I,O,U and sometimes Y no, there are only five vowels in the English alphabet: A, E, I, O, U; once in a while though we use Y as a vowel as in the word FLY


Why is the w silent in the word write?

not a vowel


Is w a vowel in the word yawn?

No. Contrary to what some people say, "W" is never a vowel in the English language.


What is the short vowel in the word which?

The "i" is the only vowel in "which", and it has a short vowel sound.


How many consonants in sew?

"There are 2 consonants in sew, as 's' and 'w' are consonants and 'e' is a vowel. 'A' 'E' 'I' 'O' and 'U' are vowels, and every other letter in the English language is a consonant." Actually, the word "sew" has only one consonant: s. When the letter "w" ends a word after following a vowel (or in other places where it forms a "diphthong"), the "w" is technically a vowel.


What is the longest English word that has only 1 vowel?

Strengths. The longest word with one vowel repeated is strengthlessnesses.It Is The Word: Strengths :)


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There is one vowel in the word "fun". 'U' is a vowel.


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'Wife' has a long vowel sound: w-eye-f.