New York State Teacher Certification Examinations (NYSTCE) Early Childhood Practice Test

What term describes when one sound is represented by a combination of two letters?

1. Digraph

2. Diphthong

3. CVC

4. Consonant clusters

The correct answer is: Digraph

The term that describes a situation where one sound is represented by a combination of two letters is known as a digraph. In a digraph, two letters come together to produce a single phoneme, or sound. A common example is “sh” in the word “ship,” where the two letters combine to create that distinct sound. This concept is crucial in teaching early literacy as it helps children understand how letters can work in pairs to represent sounds, enhancing their reading and spelling skills. In contrast, a diphthong involves a complex vowel sound that begins with one vowel sound and glides into another within the same syllable, like the "oi" in "boil." CVC refers to the consonant-vowel-consonant pattern and does not pertain to the combination of two letters making one sound. Consonant clusters involve two or more consonants that appear next to each other in a word, such as "str" in "street," but they each represent their own individual sounds rather than combining to form one sound. Therefore, a digraph is the correct term describing the combination of two letters to create a single sound in the context of phonics.