Home > P Words > phoneme

phoneme

Definition of Phoneme

(noun) The smallest meaningful speech sound in a language.

Example of Phoneme

  • The /k/ sound in cat or key.

Phoneme Pronunciation

Pronunciation Usage Guide

Syllabification: pho·neme

Audio Pronunciation

– American English
– British English

Phonetic Spelling

  • American English – /fOH-neem/
  • British English – /fOH-neem/

International Phonetic Alphabet

  • American English – /ˈfoʊˌnim/
  • British English – /ˈfəʊniːm/

Usage Notes

  • Plural: phonemes
  • Phoneme is compared and contrasted to morpheme.
  • Linguists (adverb) phonemically study (adjective) phonemic or (adjective) phonematic parts of words.

Related Videos

Additional Information

Related Terms


Cite the Definition of Phoneme

ASA – American Sociological Association (5th edition)

Bell, Kenton, ed. 2014. “phoneme.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Retrieved March 29, 2024 (https://sociologydictionary.org/phoneme/).

APA – American Psychological Association (6th edition)

phoneme. (2014). In K. Bell (Ed.), Open education sociology dictionary. Retrieved from https://sociologydictionary.org/phoneme/

Chicago/Turabian: Author-Date – Chicago Manual of Style (16th edition)

Bell, Kenton, ed. 2014. “phoneme.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Accessed March 29, 2024. https://sociologydictionary.org/phoneme/.

MLA – Modern Language Association (7th edition)

“phoneme.” Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Ed. Kenton Bell. 2014. Web. 29 Mar. 2024. <https://sociologydictionary.org/phoneme/>.