Which of the following best describes "Digraphs"?

The concept of digraphs is accurately defined as pairs of letters that come together to represent a single distinct sound. For example, in the English language, the combination “sh” in the word “ship” produces a sound that is different from the individual sounds represented by the letters “s” and “h”. This characteristic makes digraphs crucial in understanding phonics and how certain letter combinations function in written language.

The other options do not correctly encapsulate the notion of digraphs. Pairs of vowels refer to vowel pairs rather than consonant combinations representing one sound, which would fall under a different category. Sounds combined to make a word implies a broader linguistic concept that is not limited to specific letter combinations. Single letters representing sounds describe individual phonemes rather than pairs, which is not applicable to the concept of digraphs.