Phonology Key Vocabulary

Question 1

Sonority Sequencing Principle

Answer 1

Claims that sounds preceding the nucleus must rise in sonority, and sounds following the nucleus must fall in sonority

Question 2

Maximal Onset Principle

Answer 2

Given a sequence of consonants and vowels, syllabification proceeds in such a way that as many consonants as possible end up in an onset, even if the language allows codas. Only if we do not have a choice, do we resort to syllabifying consonants in a coda

Question 3

Sonority

Answer 3

Technical term for the category that captures our acoustic impression of ‘clear audibility’

Question 4

Syllabification

Answer 4

How consonants are distributed among syllables. It is assigning syllable structure to words

Question 5

Vowel epenthesis

Answer 5

Technical term for the insertion of vowels into syllables

Question 6

Coda

Answer 6

The postvocalic slot (can be filled by one or more consonants; is not obligatory)

Question 7

Onset

Answer 7

The prevocalic slot (can be filled by one or more consonants; is not obligatory)

Question 8

Nucleus

Answer 8

“Slot for a vowel” of the syllable. In English the nucleus can be filled by a vowel, a diphthong, or a syllabic consonant

Question 9

Constituents

Answer 9

The elements that make up a syllable are termed constituents (e.g. ‘slots for vowels’; ‘slots for consonants’)

Question 10

Syllabic consonants

Answer 10

Consonants which occupy the central part of the syllable

Question 11

Non-rhotic

Answer 11

R-sounds that do not seem to occur in word-final position

Question 12

Rhotic

Answer 12

R-sounds that can occur in word-final position

Question 13

Flapping

Answer 13

A process in which /t/ and /d/ can be realized as [ſ] because the phonemic contrast is neutralized in intervocalic position

Question 14

Final devoicing

Answer 14

When a voiced phoneme has a voiceless allophone in the word-final position

Question 15

Neutralisation

Answer 15

When a contrast between different phonemes can be neutralized. Refers to the fact that in a particular context, a contrast between phonemes becomes invisible

Question 16

Free variation

Answer 16

The distribution of [p] and [p˺]. Speakers can choose which allophone they use.

Question 17

Minimal pairs

Answer 17

A pair of words which differ in only one sound, but differ in meaning (e.g. “wrap”, “map”)

Question 18

Complementary distribution

Answer 18

Two sounds which are distributed in such a way that one can only occur where the other cannot

Question 19

Phone

Answer 19

A physical realization of a speech sound like the voiceless or the voiced alveolar approximant

Question 20

Allophones

Answer 20

Phones which function as alternant realizations of the same phoneme

Question 21

Spectrogram

Answer 21

A graphic representation of the frequency distribution of the complex jumble or sound waves that give the hearing impression of speech sounds

Question 22

Phonology

Answer 22

The study of abstract categories that organize the sound system of a language. There abstract categories comprise individual speech sounds as well as the way in which speech sounds are grouped into larger phonological units, such as syllables and words

Question 23

Velarized realisation (dark 1)

Answer 23

The third realization of /l/ is what is called verlarised realization of /l/ (also termed dark 1)

Question 24

Clear 1

Answer 24

The non-velarized realization /l/

Question 25

Distribution

Answer 25

Refers to the different positions in which a speech sound can occur or cannot occur in the words of a language