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Diphthong

Diphthong AY / Price Vowel / Long I

The diphthong vowel sound heard in words like "my", "time", "like", and "buy". Often called the PRICE vowel. It starts with a low vowel, often /ɑ/ or a lower /a/, and glides towards a high front unrounded vowel /ɪ/ (like in 'sit').

ī
Phonetic System (Merriam-Webster):ī

Watch the Sound

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Example Words

Main Example

my
Phonetic: maɪ

Common Words

mymaɪ
timetaɪm
likelaɪk
buybaɪ
Iaɪ
whywaɪ
highhaɪ
trytraɪ
rightraɪt
findfaɪnd

Minimal Pairs

Listen and compare similar sounds

ī
buy
baɪ
Compare with
B
boy
bɔɪ
ī
tie
taɪ
Compare with
T
toy
tɔɪ
ī
ride
raɪd
Compare with
R
red
rɛd
ī
like
laɪk
Compare with
L
luck
lʌk

Tongue Twister

I like my bright white bike.

Try it yourself

Practice saying this tongue twister

Technical Details

  • CategoryDiphthong
  • VoicingVoiced
  • Place of ArticulationDiphthong: Starts low-central or low-back, glides to high-front
  • Manner of ArticulationDiphthong (Gliding Vowel)
  • Mouth PositionStart with the jaw wide open, tongue low (center or back /ɑ/). Then, glide the tongue high and forward while closing the jaw significantly for the /ɪ/ sound. Lips start neutral and may spread slightly at the end.