1. Diphthongs
Not Dip Thongs
Fall 2012
Triphthongs

2. defined
 The word “diphthong” comes from Greek and
means “two sounds.” The term refers to the use of
two vowel sounds in a single syllable. The
characteristic of the diphthong that is different
from single vowels in consecutive syllables is the
movement from one vowel to another.
 When we form or hear a diphthong there are
three factors:
 PRIMARY VOWEL SOUND
 QUICK MOVEMENT
 SECONDARY VOWEL SOUND

3. In practice
 InEnglish the first vowel is stressed, and is
lengthened so that it is sung for most of
the duration of the note on which it
occurs. The second vowel is made less
precisely, it is unstressed and it is short.
 Note: this is different from Italian
consecutive vowels.

4. Diphthongs
 [bɑɪ]  [ɪ3]
 [ɛɪ] also [eɪ]  [ɛ3]
 [ɔɪ]  [a3]
 [ɑɔ]  [o3] [ɔ3]
 [oʊ]  [ʊ3]
 IN Wall Book [ju]

5. Diphthongs
 [bɑɪ] eye, like  [ɪ3]mere, fear
 [ɛɪ] also [eɪ] grace  [ɛ3] care, bear
 [ɔɪ] noise, joy  [a3] far
 [ɑɔ] sound, how  [o3] [ɔ3] war
 [oʊ] sew  [ʊ3] poor
 IN Wall Book [ju]

6. My Fair Lady -
Vowelshttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=
OFLlW0HQL_g
Rain in Spain:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uVmU3
iANbgk

7. [ɑɪ]
 Spellings: eye, like, by, buy, pie, light
 Potential problems:
 Practice phrases
 [sɑɪlənt nɑɪt] silent night
 Arise shine for thy light is come
 I attempt from love’s sickness to fly

8. [ɛɪ] also [eɪ]
 Spellings: Grace, wait, say, great, weight,
prey
 Potential problems:
 Practice phrases
 [θhɛ ɾɑɪŋ ɪŋ spɛɪn stɛɪz mɛɪnlɪ an θəplɛɪnz
] the rain in spain stays mainly on the plain
 Make straight in the desert a highway for
our God
 Praise the Lord, who reigns above

9. [ɔɪ]
 Spellings: noise, joy
 Potential problems:
 Practice phrases
 [mjuzɪk hwɛn sɔft vɔsəz dɑɪ] music when soft
voices die
 The voice of him that crieth in the
wilderness
 Joyful, joyful, we adore Thee

10. [ɑɔ]
 Spellings: sound, how
 Potential problems:
 Practice phrases
 [hɑɔ nɑɔ brɑɔn kɑɔ] how now brown cow
 And the glory of the Lord shone round
about them
 Crown Him with many crowns
 Sleep now, o sleep now, o you unquiet
heart

11. [oʊ]
 Spellings: sew, abode, coal, dough, show
 Potential problems:
 Practice phrasesˡ
 Snow had fallen snow on snow
 Behold and see if there be any sorrow like
unto his sorrow
 O my soul, bless God the Father

12. [ɪ ]
3
 Spellings: mere, fear, deer, pier
 Potential problems: ɡrind rʼsor delete
entirely
 Practice phrasesˡ
 who shall stand when he appeareth
Ə.pɪ3rɛθ

13. [ɛ3]
 Spellings:care, fair, prayer, there, wear,
theyʼre their
,
 Practice phrasesˡ
 [ɪf ðɛ3 w3 drimz tu sɛl]
 Prepare ye the way of the Lord.
 [prə.pɛ3

14. [a3]
 Spellings:far, heart
 Practice phrasesˡ
 [in ðə fild hwɛ3 ðə dɛɪzɪz a3]
 He shall gather the lambs with his arm
 Christian hearts, in love united

15. [o3] [ɔ3]
 The sounds are different acoustically but
not phonemically.
 Spellings: war, more, roar, door, for, four
 Practice phrasesˡ
 [in ðə fild hwɛ3 ðə dɛɪzɪz a3]
 He shall gather the lambs with his arm
 Christian hearts, in love united

16. [ʊ3]
 Spellings: poor, your, sure
 (The glide [j] proceeds [ʊ3] in certain
situations, as in “fury”, “endure” “purify)
 Practice phrases
 Sure on this shining night
 Comfort ye my people saith your God
 My master was so very poor

17. Poor and Pour
Poor [pʊ3]
Pour [pɔ3]

18. Triphthongs
[trɪf.θɔŋz]
A monosyllable that contains three
consecutive vowel sound:
1. Primary vowel sound
2. Quick movement
3. Secondary vowel sound
4. Quick movement
5. Tertiary vowel sound

19. [ɑɪƷ] and [aʊƷ]
 [ɑɪƷ]Hire, lyre, liar, choir
 [aʊƷ] hour, our, power
 Problems:
 omission of the secondary vowel sound.
 Puttinɡ [æɪƷ] instead of [ɑɪƷ]
 Addinɡ a [w] when we donʼtneed it[ɑɪƷ]
 Grinding the “r”
 For he is like a refiner’s fire
 Our father, which art in heaven