Monophthong

Pronunciation

• US IPA: /ˈmÉ‘nÉ™fθɔŋ/, /ˈmÉ‘nÉ™pθɔŋ/

Origin

From Ancient Greek μονόφθογγος (monophthongos), from μόνος (monos, "single") + φθόγγος (phthongos, "sound").

Full definition of monophthong

Noun

1. A vowel (in the sense of a sound rather than a letter of the alphabet) that has the same sound throughout its pronunciation, such as the short vowels in "pap", "pep", "pip", "pop" and "pup", as opposed to a diphthong (eg, /aɪ/, the vowel in "pipe") or a triphthong (eg, /aɪə/, the sound in the non-rhotic pronunciation of "pyre").

Derived terms

• monophthongal
• monophthongization