WAEC 2018 English Language · Question 31

/ ɪə / — choose the word that contains the sound represented by the given phonetic symbol

Question

From the words lettered A to D, choose the word that contains the sound represented by the given phonetic symbol. / ɪə /

A.dear
B.chair
C.night
D.reign

Answer: A. dear

Explanation written with AI and checked against the answer key

Analyze the question You are asked to find the word that contains the diphthong /ɪə/, the sound in words like "here" and "beer".

Explain the concept /ɪə/ is a centring diphthong. It starts with the short "i" sound (as in "bit") and glides to a weak "uh" sound (schwa). Spellings that often give this sound include ear, eer, ere and ier.

Check each option

A. dear is /dɪə/. It contains /ɪə/. ✔
B. chair is /tʃeə/. It has the diphthong /eə/, not /ɪə/. ✘
C. night is /naɪt/. It has the diphthong /aɪ/. ✘
D. reign is /reɪn/. It has the diphthong /eɪ/. ✘

Answer Only "dear" has the /ɪə/ sound, so the answer is A.

Tip Don't be misled by spelling. "Ear" can be pronounced differently in other words (e.g. "bear" is /beə/, but "dear" is /dɪə/). Practise by pairing words that sound alike:

/ɪə/: dear, fear, here, cheer
/eə/: chair, care, there, bear

Say each word aloud and listen to the ending glide.

AI can make mistakes. Report anything that looks wrong.