diphthong

diphthong
—diphthongal /dif thawng"geuhl, -thong"-, dip-/, diphthongic, diphthongous, adj.
/dif"thawng, -thong, dip"-/, n.
1. Phonet. an unsegmentable, gliding speech sound varying continuously in phonetic quality but held to be a single sound or phoneme and identified by its apparent beginning and ending sound, as the oi-sound of toy or boil.
2. (not in technical use)
a. a digraph, as the ea of meat.
b. a ligature, as ae.
v.t., v.i.
3. to diphthongize.
[1425-75; late ME diptonge < LL diphthongus < Gk díphthongos lit., having two sounds (di- DI-1 + phthóngos voice, sound)]

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      in phonetics, a gliding vowel in the articulation of which there is a continuous transition from one position to another. Diphthongs are to be contrasted in this respect with so-called pure vowels—i.e., unchanging, or steady state, vowels. Though they are single speech sounds, diphthongs are usually represented, in a phonetic transcription of speech, by means of a pair of characters indicating the initial and final configurations of the vocal tract. Many of the vowel sounds in most dialects of English are diphthongs: e.g., the vowels of “out” and “ice,” represented as [au] and [ai], respectively.

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Universalium. 2010.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Diphthong — Diph thong (?; 115, 277), n. [L. diphthongus, Gr. ?; di = di s twice + ? voice, sound, fr. ? to utter a sound: cf. F. diphthongue.] (Ortho[ e]py) (a) A coalition or union of two vowel sounds pronounced in one syllable; as, ou in out, oi in noise; …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Diphthong — Diph thong, v. t. To form or pronounce as a diphthong; diphthongize. [R.] [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Diphthong — Sm Zwielaut erw. fach. (14. Jh.) Entlehnung. Entlehnt aus l. diphthongus f. (zu ergänzen: syllaba Silbe ), dieses aus gr. díphthongos zu gr. phthóngos Ton und gr. di , zu gr. phthéngesthai tönen .    Ebenso nndl. diftong, ne. diphthong, nfrz.… …   Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen sprache

  • Diphthong — (v. gr., Doppellaut), Laut, welcher aus zwei Vocalen zusammengesetzt ist u. als Ein Laut ausgesprochen wird, z.B. en, ai etc …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Diphthóng — (griech., »Doppellaut«), eine Lautgruppe, die aus zwei Vokalen, von denen der erste betont ist, besteht, wie in »Ei«, »Kaiser«, »Haus«. Sprachgeschichtlich betrachtet, verschmilzt sehr häufig ein D. zu einem einfachen Vokal, den man dann… …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Diphthóng — (grch.), Doppellaut, Lautverbindung zweier ungleichartiger Vokale in einer Silbe (z.B. au, ei, äu) …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

  • Diphthong — Diphthong, griech., Doppellauter, in der Grammatik ein aus 2 Selbstlauten entstandener Laut, z.B. ei …   Herders Conversations-Lexikon

  • diphthong — late 15c., from M.Fr. diphthongue, from L.L. diphthongus, from Gk. diphthongos having two sounds, from di double (see DI (Cf. di ) (1)) + phthongos sound, voice, related to phthengesthai utter, speak loudly …   Etymology dictionary

  • Diphthong — Diphthong: Der sprachwissenschaftliche Ausdruck für »Zwielaut« (Gebilde aus zwei verschiedenen Selbstlauten) wurde im 15./16. Jh. entlehnt aus lat. diphthongus, griech. díphthoggos, einem substantivierten Adjektiv (eigentlich »zweifach tönend«),… …   Das Herkunftswörterbuch

  • diphthong — meaning a speech sound in which the articulation changes from one vowel to another, as in coin, loud, pain, spoke, etc., is spelt with ph and should be pronounced dif , not dip . Diphthongs are a common feature of English pronunciation …   Modern English usage

  • diphthong — ► NOUN ▪ a sound formed by the combination of two vowels in a single syllable (as in coin). ORIGIN Greek diphthongos, from di twice + phthongos sound …   English terms dictionary

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