Mississippi Foundations of Reading Practice Test

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What is the term for the smallest unit of speech that can distinguish one word from another?

Phoneme
Phonological awareness
Segmentation
Rime

The correct answer is: Phoneme

The term that refers to the smallest unit of speech capable of distinguishing one word from another is phoneme. Phonemes are individual sounds in a language that combine to form words. For example, the words "bat" and "pat" differ in their initial sounds; the phonemic difference between the /b/ sound and the /p/ sound is what sets these two words apart. Phonological awareness pertains to the broader skill set that includes the ability to recognize and manipulate sounds in spoken language, but it does not specifically define the smallest unit of sound. Segmentation refers to the process of breaking a word down into its phonemic components, which relates to the concept of phonemes, but is not the term for the smallest unit itself. Rime involves the vowel sound and any following consonants in a syllable, which is more complex than a single phoneme. Each of these terms contributes to our understanding of language and sounds, but only phoneme directly identifies the smallest distinguishable unit of speech.