Which term describes the combination of two consonants that together represent one speech sound?

Which term describes the combination of two consonants that together represent one speech sound?

• A. Denotation
• B. Morpheme
• C. Consonant Digraph
• D. R-Controlled Vowels

Answer: (C)

Two consonants that come together to make a single sound are a consonant digraph. In phonics, a digraph represents one phoneme, so you hear one sound when you say the part of a word containing the pair, even though two letters are present. Examples include sh in shell, ch in chair, th in think, and ph in phone. This is different from a consonant blend, where each letter keeps its own sound and you hear two sounds together (like bl in blue or str in street). Recognizing digraphs helps kids decode words by treating the pair as one sound unit. The other terms—denotation, morpheme, and r-controlled vowels—refer to meaning, units of meaning, and a vowel whose sound is colored by an r, respectively, rather than a two-letter combination that makes one sound. So the two-letter combination that represents one speech sound is a consonant digraph.

Two consonants that come together to make a single sound are a consonant digraph. In phonics, a digraph represents one phoneme, so you hear one sound when you say the part of a word containing the pair, even though two letters are present. Examples include sh in shell, ch in chair, th in think, and ph in phone. This is different from a consonant blend, where each letter keeps its own sound and you hear two sounds together (like bl in blue or str in street). Recognizing digraphs helps kids decode words by treating the pair as one sound unit. The other terms—denotation, morpheme, and r-controlled vowels—refer to meaning, units of meaning, and a vowel whose sound is colored by an r, respectively, rather than a two-letter combination that makes one sound. So the two-letter combination that represents one speech sound is a consonant digraph.