2.3 Independent Vowels

In Khmer, independent vowels are referred to as ស្រះពេញតួ, which translates to “complete vowels”^[1] due to their ability to exist on their own, without being connected to a consonant symbol.

The independent vowels are employed in a limited set of words, primarily derived from Indic languages, resulting in certain irregularities in their usage and pronunciations. Nevertheless, there are several words that are commonly used, such as: ឥវ៉ាន់^[2] “things”, ឪពុក “father”, ឬ “or”, ឮ “hear”, ឯង “oneself, you”, and ឯណា “where”.

The Pronunciation of Independent Vowels

Listen and match the independent vowels (column 1) with the equal sounds (column 2). 

Test Yourself

Listen and write what you hear.

Reading and Writing Words with Independent Vowels

Practice reading the following words with independent vowels. Record yourself reading the words and then share with your classmates/teacher.

Test yourself

Listen and write what you hear.