Vowel teams vs Diphthongs
Vowel Teams
Diphthong
| Term |
Think of... |
Question it answers |
Example |
| Vowel team |
How the word is spelled |
"How many vowel letters work together?" |
ea in team, oa in boat, ee in see |
| Diphthong |
How the word sounds |
"Does the vowel glide from one sound to another?" |
/aɪ/ in time, /eɪ/ in day, /ɔɪ/ in boy |
Some vowel teams are not diphthongs, Some diphthongs are not written with vowel teams.
| Word |
Vowel Team |
Sound |
Diphthong? |
| see |
ee |
/iː/ |
❌ No |
| moon |
oo |
/uː/ |
❌ No |
| team |
ea |
/iː/ |
❌ No |
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| Word |
Spelling |
Diphthong |
|
| time |
i + silent e |
/aɪ/ |
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| home |
o + silent e |
/oʊ/ (AmE), /əʊ/ (BrE) |
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| name |
a + silent e |
/eɪ/ |
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