Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Language/2018 October 8

= October 8 =

New question about English sounds
How come the oi (as in oil) sound exists in English but (in general) the diphthong eh+oo doesn't?? Georgia guy (talk) 12:23, 8 October 2018 (UTC)


 * See Great Vowel Shift and Phonological history of English diphthongs. The /ɛu/ eh+oo shifted eventually into /juː/ yoo (which yod-dropping turns into /uː/ oo), while the /ɔɪ/ oi remained so. --Theurgist (talk) 14:04, 8 October 2018 (UTC)