Chapters 1, 2 and 3

Question 1

What is linguistics?

Answer 1

It is the scientific study of language and its structure.

Question 2

What is language?

Answer 2

Is a system of conventional signals used for communication by a whole community. This pattern of conventions covers a system of significant sound units (the phonemes), the inflexion and arrangement of words, and the association of meaning with
words.

Question 3

What is phonetics?

Answer 3

Is one of the aspects of language studied by Linguistics. It is the study of speech sounds as they are made by a speaker and heard by a listener. It is the science that studies the features of all human sounds whichever the language they occur in. It describes how a spoken word sound, and teaches people how to differenciate those sounds and how to make them.

Question 4

What is phonology?

Answer 4

It is the study of sound systems. It studies the function of sounds.

Question 5

Unit of phonetic description

Answer 5

Phone

Question 6

Unit of phonological description

Answer 6

Phoneme

Question 7

Differences between language and speech

Answer 7

Language: abstract-general-limited-made in our minds.
Speech: concrete-individual-limitless-measurable.

Question 8

Differences between accent and dialect

Answer 8

Accent: the only difference is in pronounciation. English (RP and Estuary Enligsh.)
Dialect: differences in vocabulary, grammar, spelling or pronounciation, word order. English (Britissh E, American E, etc)

Question 9

Speech production mechanism (speaker)

Answer 9

Psychological stage: the concept is formulated on the brain.
Physiological: the brain sends the information to the speech organs.
Physical: the speech organs produce movement and create ir disturbances.

Question 10

Speech production mechanism (listener)

Answer 10

Physical stage: the message is received by the hearing apparatus.
Physiological: the message travels to the brain.
Psychological: the message is decodified by the brain and it creates a new concept.

Question 11

Resonators

Answer 11

the mouth, nasal cavity and larynx.

Question 12

Articulators

Answer 12

teeth, lips, tongue, hard palate, soft palate and uvula.

Question 13

Vowels

Answer 13

are sounds with no obstructions of the air flow as it passes from the larynx to the lips.

Question 14

Consonants

Answer 14

are sounds in which it is difficult or impossible for the air to pass through the mouth so there’s obstruction.

Question 15

Shape and position of the tongue.

Answer 15

Positions: open: the tongue is distant to the paladar, open vowels.
close: the tongue is close to the paladar, close vowels.
Shapes: front: the front of the tongue is elevated, creating front vowels.
back: the back of the tongue is elevated, creating back vowels.

Question 16

Lip shape

Answer 16

Rounded: the corners of the lips are drawn together and pushed forward, as in /ʊ/.
Spread: the corners of the lips are moved away from each other, like a smile, as in /ɪ/.
Neutral: the lips are not visibly spread or rounded, as in /ə/.

Question 17

Cardinal vowels

Answer 17

are a standard reference system. They don’t guarantee that you’re going to know how to make the English sounds and they’re not exclusive from one language.

Question 18

Which are the five main parameters according to which vowels may be differentiated?

Answer 18

Openness of the mouth, lip shape, tongue elevation, position of the tongue elevation and length variation.

Question 19

Differences between pure vowels and diphthongs

Answer 19

Diphthongs consist of a movement or glide form one vowel to another. Pure vowels do not glide and remain constant.

Question 20

Parts of the tongue

Answer 20

tip, blade, front, back and root.

Question 21

Palate

Answer 21

hard palate, soft palate and alveolar ridge.

Question 22

Speech chain

Answer 22

1) a concept is formulated on the brain.
2) the nervous system transmits the message to the speech organs.
3) an air stream is expelled from the lungs.
4) the contraction of muscles in the chest makes air flow.
5) the air passing through the vocal tract may end at either the mouth (oral cavity) or nostrils (nasal cavity)
6) the pressure of the outgoing air sets the vocal cords vibrating, thus producing sound.
7) the pharynx is above the larynx and the air goes through the vocal tract.
8)the air passes through the trachea and between the vocal cords (situated on the larynx)
9) the air/sound is shaped, obstructed and reinforced by the articulators and resonators of speech.