A monophthong (Greek μονόφθογγος, "monophthongos" = single note)'s a "pure" vowel sound, one whose articulation at both beginning and end's relatively fixed, and which doesn't glide up or down towards a new position of articulation; compare diphthong. In the English language, there're in practice relatively few monophthongs. The position, beginnings, and endings of vowel articulation are perhaps the chief distinguishing feature among the v… (More on Monophthong)