Phonetics Flashcards
an accent
a distinctive way of pronouncing a language, especially one associated with a particular country, area, or social class
a dialect
a particular form of a language which is peculiar to a specific region or social group.
The RP English Accent
Recieved Pronunciation
= regionally neutral middle class accent
= The Queen’s Eng, BBC Eng., Oxford Eng.
= no dialects
= clipped, precised tones
= shortening of vowels
fortis consonant definition
= “strong”
= pronounced with greater tension and airflow
= voiceless
lenis consonant definition
= “weak”
= produced with less muscular effort
= voiced
central mid lax vowel
/ə/
Open back vowel
/ɑ/ /ɒ/
Neutralized vowels
/i/ /u/
stress
relative strength of a syllable
phoneme
the smallest unit of sound in a language that can distinguish one word from another. Phonemes are abstract representations of sounds and are not the actual sounds themselves
= division of stream of sounds into segments
voiceless dental fricative consonant
/θ/
voiceless postalveolar fricative consonant
/ʃ/
plosive consonants
/p/ /t/ /k/ /b/ /d/ /ɡ/
Place of Articulation
Where in the vocal tract a speech sound is produced. It describes the physical location where airflow is constricted or modified to create a particular sound.
affricate definition
a consonant sound that begins as a plosive (complete blockage of airflow) and transitions into a fricative (partial constriction of airflow)
lenis counterpart
the voiced version of a consonant sound that has a voiceless (fortis) counterpart.
Voiced velar nasal
/ŋ/
postalveloar aproximant
/r/
Approximant definition
The articulators come close together but do not create a turbulent airstream (unlike fricatives).
Fricative definition
Airflow is constricted, creating turbulence.
Voiceless definition
Produced without vibrating the vocal cords
Voiced definition
Produced when the vocal cords vibrate during articulation. This vibration occurs as air passes through the glottis, causing the vocal folds to come together and oscillate.
Dental definition
Tongue touches the upper teeth or is very close to them.
Central definition
Tongue is positioned centrally in the mouth.
Mid definition
Tongue height is halfway between high and low.
Lax definition
Produced with less muscular tension compared to tense vowels.
Unrounded definition
The lips are not rounded or pursed. Instead, they remain relaxed and neutral, or in some cases, spread
Rounded vowels
[u], [ʊ], [o], [ɔ]
Postalveolar definition
Tongue is positioned just behind the alveolar ridge (the bony ridge behind the upper teeth).
Plosive definition
sound produced by completely blocking the airflow in the vocal tract and then releasing it suddenly, creating a burst of sound.
Rounded definiton
The lips are brought together and form a rounded, circular shape
Unrounded vowels
[i], [ɪ], [e], [ɛ], [æ], [ɑ], [ʌ], [ə]
Fricatives
/f/, /v/, /θ/, /ð/, /s/, /z/, /ʃ/, /ʒ/, /h/
fortis consonants
/p/, /t/, /k/, /f/, /θ/, /s/, /ʃ/, /h/, /tʃ/
lenis consonants
/b/, /d/, /g/, /v/, /ð/, /z/, /ʒ/, /dʒ/, /m/, /n/, /ŋ/, /l/, /r/, /j/, /w/
affricate consonants
/tʃ/ /dʒ/
Velar definition
sounds are produced by raising the back of the tongue (the dorsum) to the soft palate (the velum)
Nasal definition
produced when the airflow is completely blocked in the oral cavity (mouth) but allowed to pass freely through the nasal cavity (nose)
Velar consonants
/k/, /g/, /ŋ/
Nasal consonants
/m/, /n/, /ŋ/
Bilabial definition
Both lips come together.
Bilabial consonants
/p/, /b/, /m/, /w/
Labiodental definition
sounds are produced by using the lower lip and the upper teeth.
Labiodental consonants
/f/, /v/
Dental definition
The tongue touches the upper teeth.
Dental consonants
/θ//ð/
Alveolar definition
The tongue touches or approaches the alveolar ridge (just behind the upper teeth).
Postalveolar consonants
/ʃ/, /ʒ/, /tʃ/, /dʒ/
Alveolar consonants
/t/, /d/, /s/, /z/, /n/, /l/
Retroflex (rare in English accents):
The tongue tip curls backward toward the palate.
Retroflex (rare in English accents):
/ɹ/ (in some accents)
Palatal definition
The tongue touches or approaches the hard palate.
Palatal consonant
/j/
Glottal defition
The sound is produced at the glottis (the space between the vocal cords).
Glottal consonants
/h/
The glottal stop
/ʔ/
produced by briefly closing the vocal cords (glottis) to completely block airflow, followed by a sudden release
velum (soft palate) ADJ
velar
hard palate ADJ
palatal
alveolar ridge ADJ
alveolar
teeth ADJ
dental
lips ADJ
bilabial
lips + teeth ADJ
labiodental
vowels
no obstruction to the flow of the air
… deals with sound production, describes sounds in a language
phonetics
… deals with sound distribution, function in a language, abcstract side
phonology
consonants
some kind of obstruction to the flow of the air
cardinal vowels
[i], [e], [ɛ], [a], [ɑ], [ɔ], [o], [u]
cardinal back vowels
[ɑ], [ɔ], [o], [u]
cardinal front vowels
[i], [e], [ɛ], [a]
cardinal vowels definition
the extreme positions of the tongue during articulation, used for comparing and describing vowels in any language.
Manner of articulation
refers to how the airflow is modified as it passes through the vocal tract during the production of a consonant sound. It describes the interaction between the articulators (such as the tongue, lips, or teeth) and the airflow, determining whether the sound is a stop, fricative, nasal, etc.
English diphtongs definition
A single, complex vowel sound formed by gliding between two positions. Length similar to long vowels. The first part is much longer and stronger than the second part.
Centring diphtongs definition
Glide towards the ə vowel, 3
Centring diphtongs
[ɪə], [eə], [ʊə]
English diphtongs
[ɪə], [eə], [ʊə], [eɪ], [aɪ], [ɔɪ], [aʊ], [əʊ]
Closing diphtongs definition
Glide towards the ɪ vowel (3)
Glide towards the ʊ vowel (2)
Closing diphtongs
[eɪ], [aɪ], [ɔɪ], [aʊ], [əʊ]
English triphtongs definition
Closing diphthongs + ə (3+2)
English triphtongs
[eɪə] [aɪə] [ɔɪə] [aʊə] [əʊə]
voiced phonemes
b d g v ð z ʒ dʒ m n ŋ w j l + /ɪ/ /ʊ/ /ə/ /e/ /ɒ/ /ʌ/ /æ/ /i:/, /ɑ:/,/ɔ:/ /ɜ:/ /u:/
voiceless phonemes
p t k f θ s ʃ tʃ
phonemic system
the set of phonemes used in a particular language to distinguish meaning between words
allophones
variations of a phoneme that occur in different contexts but do not change the meaning of a word
e.g. [p] in “spin” and [pʰ] in “pin” are allophones of the phoneme /p/
Phonemic transcription
indicates the phonemes only
Allophonic (phonetic) transcription
indicates the qualities of allophones
What influences the pronunciation of a plosive consonant in a medial position?
the stress of the preceding / following syllables
