won't and want

[Boris Tatarenko]

Hello.

I guess it's a popular question is the any difference between them?

Honestly, I read several articles about it and as I understood the main difference is "won't" has an "o" sound while "want" an "a" sound.
After that I tried to pronounce them differently, but it sounds odd for me when I'm pronouncing "want".
I used to pronounce "want" as "won't".
I think a lot of people (native speakers and learners) pronounce them equally. I've never had any problems with distinction between these words. I mean if somebody is talking and he's saying one of those words I'll understand what he said exactly. (I'll get the meaning from the context I mean).
So my question is: is it a big problem if I pronounce them the same way?

I can record my pronunciation and show you if you're wonder what I mean.

Thanks in advance.
Boris, piece.

 

[Chicken Sandwich]

I guess it's a popular question is the any difference between them?

Yes, there is a difference. In fact, the difference isn't even subtle.

Honestly, I read several articles about it and as I understood the main difference is "won't" has an "o" sound while "want" an "a" sound.

You should listen to the pronunciation of want and won't. It's much more helpful than reading articles about it. If you listen attentively, you will hear a difference.

 

[Eman Hassan]

There is definitely an obvious difference between the two words.
The point is listen to both words (British pron.) and also (American pron.).
In British pron., "won't" has the diphthong in "both" and "home", whereas "want" has the short vowel in "dog" and "shot".
In American pron., "won't" has the American diphthong /ou/ which is different from the British diphthong in that it starts with more lip rounding, whereas "want" is pronounced with the long vowel /a:/ as in "car" and "star".