Language of the Day: Diphthongs
Today’s vocabulary lesson will be about diphthongs which are also known as gliding vowel sounds.
A diphthong is defined as “a sound formed by the combination of two vowels in a single syllable, in which the sound begins as one vowel and moves toward another vowel sound.”
“Diphthongs contrast with monophthongs, where the tongue or other speech organs do not move and the syllable contains only a single vowel sound.”
Even simple everyday words like “Hi” and “no” contain diphthongs. For example, the ‘i’ in “hi” is pronounced ‘aa-ih’ and the ‘o’ in “no” is pronounced ‘oh-oo.’
This type of pronunciation can be difficult for English-learners because vowels sounds are spoken differently is different languages.
One of the best ways to practice pronouncing diphthongs is by saying them slowly out loud and feeling how your tongue and mouth are moving.
This is a great practice for improving your pronunciation in general!
Use the chart as a guide to practice saying words containing diphthongs, and also pay attention to how diphthongs are pronounced when native English speakers are talking.
