Ch. 3 Phonology Key Vocabulary

Question 1

Phonology

Answer 1

The study of the sound system of a language, how the particular sounds contrast in each language to form an integrated system for encoding information, and how such systems differ from one language to another.

Question 2

Phonetic inventories

Answer 2

The set of sounds that are produced as part of the grammar of a language.

Question 3

Phonotactic constraints

Answer 3

Restriction on possible combinations of sounds, often in particular environments.

Question 4

Sound substitution

Answer 4

A process whereby sounds that already exist in a language are used to replace sounds that do not exist in the language when borrowing or when a speaker is trying to pronounce a foreign word.

Question 5

Phoneme

Answer 5

A class of speech sounds identified by a native speaker as the same sound; a mental entity related to various allophones by phonological rules. Phonemes are written between slashes.

Question 6

Allophone

Answer 6

One of a set of nondistinctive ways of writing a particular morpheme that have the same function; an actual phonetic segment.

Question 7

Complementary distribution

Answer 7

The occurrence of sounds in a language such that they are never found in the same phonetic environment. Sounds that are in the complementary distribution are allophones of the same phoneme.

Question 8

Phonetic environments

Answer 8

The sounds that come before and after a particular sound in a word.

Question 9

Free variation

Answer 9

Term used to refer to two sounds that occur in overlapping environments but cause no distinction in the meaning of their respective words.

Question 10

Overlapping distribution

Answer 10

The occurrence of sounds in the same phonetic environments.

Question 11

Underlying form

Answer 11

The phonemic form of a word or morpheme before phonological rules are applied.

Question 12

Conditioning environment

Answer 12

Neighboring sounds of a given sound that cause it undergo a change.

Question 13

Nasal Place Assimilation

Answer 13

An alveolar and nasal assimilates of the place of articulation of a following consonant.

Question 14

Palatalization

Answer 14

A process wherein a sound takes on a palatal place of articulation, usually in assimilation to high or mid front vowels like [i] or [e].

Question 15

Vowel harmony

Answer 15

A back vowel becomes front when preceded by a front vowel in the same word.

Question 16

Implicational law

Answer 16

Observation about language universals that takes the form of an implication.

Question 17

basic allophone

Answer 17

The allophone of a phoneme that is used when none of the change-inducing conditions are fulfilled. Of a set of allophones, it is generally least limited in where it can occur; also termed the elsewhere allophone.

Question 18

Restricted allophone

Answer 18

An allophone of a phoneme that appears in a more limited set of phonetic environments.

Question 19

Obligatory

Answer 19

Phonological, morphological, or synaptic rule that applies in the speech of all speakers of a language or dialect, regardless of style or rate of speech.

Question 20

Flapping

Answer 20

An alveolar (oral) stop is realized as when it occurs after a stressed vowel and before an unstressed vowel.

Question 21

Dipthong-raising

Answer 21

the diphthong /ai/ is the pronounced as [əi] when it occurs before a voiceless sound.

Question 22

Metathesis

Answer 22

When three consecutive consonants occur, the first consonant trades places with the preceding vowel.

Question 23

Deletion

Answer 23

May be deleted in unstressed syllables.

Question 24

Voiceless stop insertion

Answer 24

Between a nasal consonant and a voiceless fricative, a voiceless stop with the same place of articulation as the nasal is inserted.

Question 25

Manner dissimilation

Answer 25

A stop becomes fricative when followed by another stop.