Phonemes are the smallest units of sound in a language that can distinguish meaning. For example, in the English word “bat,” the sounds /b/, /a/, and /t/ are individual phonemes. Changing one phoneme can create a different word, such as changing /b/ to /c/ to form “cat.” Each language has its own set of phonemes, which can vary significantly. The study of phonemes is essential in fields like linguistics and language education, as it helps in understanding how sounds function in communication and how they contribute to the pronunciation of words.