contexts: `` How now brown cow '' ( / ˈhaʊ ˈnaʊ ˈbraʊn ˈkaʊ / ) is a phrase used in elocution teaching to demonstrate rounded vowel sounds . Each `` ow '' sound in the phrase represents the diphthong / aʊ / . Although orthographies for each of the four words in this utterance is represented by the English spelling `` ow '' , the articulation required to create this same diphthong represented by the International Phonetic Association 's phonetic alphabet as / aʊ / is also represented by the spelling `` ou '' . Some examples of these homophonic / aʊ / 's are the English words `` house '' , `` blouse '' , `` noun '' , and `` cloud '' . The use of the phrase `` how now brown cow '' in teaching elocution can be dated back to at least 1926 . Although not in use today , the phrase `` how now '' is a greeting , short for `` how say you now '' , and can be found in archaic literature , such as the plays of William Shakespeare .
name: How now brown cow
answers.input_text: short
answers.span_text: a phrase used in elocution teaching to demonstrate rounded vowel sounds
questions.input_text: where did the phrase how now brown cow come from