Phonetics and phonology

Question 1

what is phonology

Answer 1

a branch of linguistics which studies the sound systems of language

Question 2

phonetics

Answer 2

speech sounds as physical phenomena in their own right, independent of language

Question 3

phonology

Answer 3

functions of speech sounds within a particular language; focus on the subset of sounds that are meaning-distinguishing in a specific language

Question 4

phonemes

Answer 4

smallest meaning-distinguishing units of a language (abstractions)

Question 5

minimal pair words

Answer 5

1. have distinct meanings
2. consist of the same number of phonetic segments
3. these segments are identical except for a single one
4. the differing segment occupies the same position

Question 6

phonemes

Answer 6

bundles of distinctive features
smallest unit of speech distinguishing one word (or word element)

Question 7

branches of phonology

Answer 7

1. segmental - examines the function of individual sounds in a language, the so-called segments
2. suprasegmental - examines the features of pronunciation on that extend over more than one segment

Question 8

phonotactics

Answer 8

restrictions concerning the combination of phonemes in a specific language, e.g. consonant clusters

Question 9

sonority

Answer 9

=loudness

Question 10

sonority hiearchy

Answer 10

rules influencing possible sound combinations
1. onset - rising in sonority
2. coda - falling in sonority

Question 11

prosody

Answer 11

phonetic features that extend over more than one phoneme
1. stress
2. rhytm
3. tone
4. intonation

Question 12

placement of word stress

Answer 12

not predictable in English, because of “mixed vocabulary” (inherited words from different languages)

Question 13

phonological processes in speech

Answer 13

1. assimilation
2. elision
3. epenthesis
4. metathesis
5. liaison/intrusion
6. reduction

Question 14

assimilation

Answer 14

sounds are influenced in their quality by neighbouring sounds and become more alike with regard to one or more articulatory features

Question 15

elision

Answer 15

omission of one or more sounds

Question 16

epenthesis

Answer 16

insertion of a sound into a word

Question 17

metathesis

Answer 17

transposition of sound in a word

Question 18

liaison/intrusion

Answer 18

transition between sounds or words

Question 19

reduction

Answer 19

reduction in vowel length, usually with a change in it’s quality
weak forms vs strong forms

Question 20

recieved pronunciation

Answer 20

=RP
“British English”

Question 21

general american

Answer 21

=GA
“American English”