Diphthongs are vowel sounds that involve a glide from one vowel to another within the same syllable. In English, there are eight common diphthongs:
The 8 Diphthongs
- /eɪ/ (say): This diphthong starts with the sound of the vowel in "say" and glides towards the sound of the vowel in "bay."
- Examples: say, day, pay, weight, great
- /aɪ/ (buy): This diphthong starts with the sound of the vowel in "buy" and glides towards the sound of the vowel in "high."
- Examples: buy, my, sigh, tie, light
- /ɔɪ/ (boy): This diphthong starts with the sound of the vowel in "boy" and glides towards the sound of the vowel in "toy."
- Examples: boy, toy, noise, enjoy, coin
- /aʊ/ (how): This diphthong starts with the sound of the vowel in "how" and glides towards the sound of the vowel in "cow."
- Examples: how, now, cow, out, loud
- /əʊ/ (go): This diphthong starts with the sound of the vowel in "go" and glides towards the sound of the vowel in "toe."
- Examples: go, no, so, low, know
- /ɪə/ (here): This diphthong starts with the sound of the vowel in "here" and glides towards the sound of the vowel in "ear."
- Examples: here, near, fear, clear, beer
- /eə/ (air): This diphthong starts with the sound of the vowel in "air" and glides towards the sound of the vowel in "hair."
- Examples: air, hair, chair, fair, care
- /ʊə/ (tour): This diphthong starts with the sound of the vowel in "tour" and glides towards the sound of the vowel in "poor."
- Examples: tour, poor, sure, cure, pure
These eight diphthongs are essential for understanding and speaking English fluently.
