Which term describes a vowel sound formed by blending two adjacent vowels within one syllable?

Which term describes a vowel sound formed by blending two adjacent vowels within one syllable?

• A. diphthong
• B. monophthong
• C. consonant cluster
• D. vowel length

Answer: (A)

When a vowel sound changes quality as it is pronounced within the same syllable, blending two adjacent vowels into one sound, and you hear a glide from one vowel to another, that is a diphthong. In English, words like coin, rain, and boat show this—the mouth moves from the position of one vowel toward another during a single syllable, so the sound isn’t just a single pure vowel. A monophthong would be a single, steady vowel sound without a glide, like the vowel in cat. A consonant cluster is a group of consonants in a row, not vowels. Vowel length refers to how long you hold the vowel, not to a blending of two vowels.

When a vowel sound changes quality as it is pronounced within the same syllable, blending two adjacent vowels into one sound, and you hear a glide from one vowel to another, that is a diphthong. In English, words like coin, rain, and boat show this—the mouth moves from the position of one vowel toward another during a single syllable, so the sound isn’t just a single pure vowel.

A monophthong would be a single, steady vowel sound without a glide, like the vowel in cat. A consonant cluster is a group of consonants in a row, not vowels. Vowel length refers to how long you hold the vowel, not to a blending of two vowels.