The words "chow," "whoosh," and "stalk" all exemplify which linguistic feature?

The words "chow," "whoosh," and "stalk" are examples of digraphs, which refer to pairs of letters that together create a single sound, or phoneme. In these words, the combination of letters contributes to a unique sound that cannot be separated into distinct sounds. For instance, in "chow," the "ch" produces a singular /ch/ sound; in "whoosh," the "wh" represents a unique sound that combines /w/ and /h/ into a single phonetic unit; and in "stalk," the "st" represents a combination of sounds that is distinct from each letter.

Understanding digraphs is essential for recognizing patterns in spelling and pronunciation in the English language, especially for young learners developing their reading and writing skills. This concept helps students decode words more effectively and supports phonemic awareness, which is a key component of literacy development. The other options do not apply because they refer to different linguistic features: homophones are words that sound the same but have different meanings; synonyms are words with similar meanings; and prefixes are affixes added to the beginning of words to modify their meanings.