What are the two digraph consonants in te reo Maori that represent single phonetic sounds?
Answer and explanation
Correct answer: D. 'wh' (pronounced as a soft 'f' or aspirated 'wh') and 'ng' (pronounced as in 'singer')
- Step 1: The Maori alphabet contains 15 letters: five vowels (a, e, i, o, u) and ten consonants (h, k, m, n, p, r, t, w, wh, ng). Step 2. 'wh' and 'ng' are digraphs representing unique single phonemes. Answer: 'wh' (pronounced as a soft 'f' or aspirated 'wh') and 'ng' (pronounced as in 'singer'). Why not the others: Vowel length is distinguished by macrons (tohutohu) over long vowels (a, e, i, o, u).
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