Week 1: Phonology and Phonetics

Question 1

What do we mean by grammar in Linguistics? (I-Language)?

Answer 1

the individual’s unconscious knowledge of their language (I think)

Question 2

What is I-Language also referred to as?

Answer 2

Speaker’s intuition

Question 3

What is an example of I-Language?

Answer 3

a native English speaker can tell that pfsunct isn’t an English word as it has some sound combinations that aren’t part of the system of English so one’s I-Language can immediately tell that it’s not English

Question 4

Define phonetics

Answer 4

the general study of the characteristics of speech sounds

Question 5

Define phonology

Answer 5

the study of the systems and patterns of speech sounds in a language

Question 6

what does phonetics include? (3)

Answer 6

• articulatory phonetics
• acoustic phonetics
• auditory phonetics

Question 7

what is articulatory phonetics?

Answer 7

the study of how speech sounds are made, or articulated

Question 8

what is acoustic phonetics?

Answer 8

the study of how sounds move through the air

Question 9

what is auditory phonetics?

Answer 9

the branch of phonetics concerned with the hearing of speech sounds and speech perception

Question 10

What are the 15 parts of the vocal tract?

Answer 10

• Lips
• Teeth
• Tongue
• Nostril
• Nasal Cavity
• Oral cavity
• Alveolar Ridge
• Hard Palate
• Velum (soft palate)
• Pharynx
• Uvula
• Epiglottis
• Larynx
• Vocal Folds
• Glottis

Question 11

What are the three aspects that define the production of a consonant sound?

Answer 11

• voicing
• place of articulation
• manner of articulation

Question 12

What are the two basic positions of the vocal folds? What happens? What are sounds described as that are produced in this way?

Answer 12

• Spread apart (open)
• the air from the lungs passes between them unimpeded
• voiceless
• Drawn together (closed)
• the air from the lungs repeatedly pushes them apart as it passes through, creating a vibration effect
• voiced

Question 13

The vocal folds form an essential part of what?

Answer 13

the larynx

Question 14

when the vocal folds come into contact with each other and vibrate, what does it produce? (2 answers)

Answer 14

phonation or voicing

Question 15

what are the seven different types of consonants produced by the vocal tract?

Answer 15

• bilabial
• labiodental
• interdental
• alveolar
• palatal
• velar
• glottal

Question 16

how is a bilabial consonant made?

Answer 16

by bringing both lips together (e.g b or p)

Question 17

how are labiodental consonants made?

Answer 17

the lower lip against the upper front teeth (e.g f or v)

Question 18

how are interdental consonants made?

Answer 18

the tip of the tongue between the front teeth (e.g th)

Question 19

how are alveolar consonants made?

Answer 19

with the tongue near the alveolar ridge (e.g t, d, zzz)

Question 20

what are palatal consonants made with?

Answer 20

tongue near the hard palate (e.g ch, j)

Question 21

where are velar consonants produced?

Answer 21

behind the hard palate (e.g k, guh)

Question 22

where are glottal consonants produced?

Answer 22

larynx (e.g how mum says the t in water)

Question 23

How may speech sounds vary in the way the airstream is affected as it flows from the lungs up and out of the mouth and nose? (2)

Answer 23

• it may be blocked or partially blocked

- the vocal folds may vibrate or not vibrate (voicing)

Question 24

what are plosives?

Answer 24

consonants in which the airflow is completely blocked in the oral cavity for a short period (tens of milliseconds) - e.g /b/ and /k/ sounds in ‘back’

Question 25

what are fricatives?

Answer 25

when the airflow is not completely stopped, but severely obstructed, thus causing friction - e.g /f/ and /s/ sounds in ‘face’

Question 26

what are nasal sounds? what is the opposite?

Answer 26

• sounds produced when the velum is not in its raised position (the air escapes from the nose and mouth) - e.g /n/ sound in ‘net’
• sounds produced with the velum up, blocking the air from escaping through the nose (oral sounds)

Question 27

what are affricates?

Answer 27

consonant sound that begins as a stop and concludes with a fricative - e.g the ch in chair or the j in jaw

Question 28

What are approximants?

Answer 28

• a consonant produced by bringing one articulator (the tongue or lips) close to another without actually touching, as in English r and w

Question 29

what are liquid consonants?

Answer 29

the English sounds [r] and [l]. There is some obstruction of the airflow in the mouth, but not enough to cause any real constiction or friction - e.g /r/ sound in red and /l/ sound in leaf

Question 30

What are glides/semi-vowels? What are they always followed by? Where do they not occur? Where did it get its name?

Answer 30

• Sounds [j] and [w], produced with little obstruction of the airflow - e.g /j/ in yes and /w/ sound in water
• Always followed by a vowel
• Do not occur at the end of words
• After articulating these sounds the tongue glides quickly into place for pronouncing the next vowel, hence the term

Question 31

Glides and liquid [r] are also called what? Why? What is [l] called?

Answer 31

• central approximants
• because the articulators approximate a frictional closeness
• a lateral approximant

Question 32

What are the three different ways /r/ is pronounced in American, Spanish, Italian and French

Answer 32

• In Spanish and Italian it is pronounced as an alveolar trill (perro)
• In French it is pronounced as a uvular trill (rouge)
• American pronounce it as a flap (a flick of the tongue agains the alveolar ridge, which sounds like a fast /d/) - e.g writer = wrider

Question 33

Do you know the International Phonetic Alphabet? If not then learn it you bastard

Answer 33

Alright bloody hell

Question 34

What are the 8 types of consonants according to where they are produced?

Answer 34

• Bilabials
• Labiodentals
• Interdentals
• Alveolars
• Palatals
• Velars
• Uvulars
• Glottals