Phonetics Flashcards
What are ‘Phonetics’?
It’s the study of sounds used in speech and the way the sounds are produced
What is a ‘Phoneme’?
It’s the smallest, meaningful unit of sound, such as a vowel or a consonant
What are the ‘Phonological Devices’?
They are:
- Assonance
- Consonance
- Sibilance
- Rhyme
- Onomatopoeia
- Alliteration
What is ‘Assonance’?
Occurs when words share the same vowel sound
What is ‘Consonance’?
Occurs when words share the same consonant sound
What is ‘Sibilance’?
Occurs when sounds share a / s / sound
What is ‘Rhyme’?
Occurs when words end with the same sound
What is ‘Onomatopoeia’?
Occurs when a word mimics a sound
What is ‘Alliteration’?
Occurs when words start with the same sound
What is ‘Prosody’?
The study of rhythm and intonation in speech
What does ‘Prosody’ allow us to do?
It allows us to:
- Deduce the attitude or the emotional state of the speaker
- Decode intentional implied meanings, (sarcasm) and infer unintentional meanings like sexuality
What are the aspects of ‘Prosody’?
Aspects Include:
- ‘Pitch’ refers to whether the voice is low or high
- ‘Stress’ refers to the emphasis of specific words or parts of words
- ‘Intonation’ refers to the rise and fall of pitch in speech
- ‘Tempo’ refers to the speed of which something is said
- ‘Volume’ refers to how loudly or quietly something is said
What are ‘Non-Fluency Features’ in Spontaneous Speech?
These Include:
- False Starts
- Fillers
- Pauses
- Voiced Pauses
- Interruption
- Overlap
What are ‘False Starts’?
A result of a mispronunciation or misspeak
What are ‘Fillers’?
Allows speakers to stall while thinking, e.g. “You know”
What are ‘Pauses’?
An absence of sound allowing interlocutors to think
What are ‘Voiced Pauses’?
Allow speakers to stall while thinking, e.g. “um”
What are ‘Interruptions’?
A speaker hijacks the previous speaker’s turn
What is ‘Overlap’?
Two speakers speak at the same time
What are ‘Connected Speech Processes’?
Refers to phonological change that occur during speech
What are the aspects of ‘Connected Speech Processes’?
- Assimilation
- Elision
- Epenthesis
- Coalescence
- Metathesis
- Consonant Cluster Reduction
- Nasalisation
What is ‘Assimilation’?
A sound is influenced by a nearby sound e.g. [hav to] > [haf to]
What is ‘Elision’?
A sound is deleted
What is ‘Epenthesis’?
A sound is introduced
What is ‘Coalescence’?
Two sounds are blended together
What is ‘Metathesis’?
Sounds change position
What is ‘Consonant Cluster Reduction’?
Groups of consonants are reduced
What is ‘Nasalisation’?
Vowels in proximity to nasals take on nasal qualities
What is a ‘Monophthong’?
A vowel sound that doesn’t change throughout it production. As in, the tongue doesn’t move its position
What is a ‘Dipthong’?
A vowel sound that does change throughout its production. As in the tongue moves its position
What is ‘Accent Levelling’?
Accents become more alike and lose distinctive features due to contact with other accents
What is ‘Accommodation’?
Speakers can change their accent, converging with or diverging from other speakers
