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Phonetics I
Phonetics I
Phonetics I
(Consonants)
Semester I
Phonetics
Sounds
Consonants Vowels
1. Voicing
2. Place of articulation
3. Manner of articulation
Voiced and voiceless sounds
• Vocal cords are spread apart air from lungs
passes between them unimpeded (no vibration) (-v)
• Vocal cords are drawn together air from lungs
repeatedly pushes them apart as it passes through (vibration)
(+v)
• Try it!
• Z-Z-Z-Z-Z
• V-V-V-V
• S-S-S-S
• F-F-F-F
The State of the Glottis
• When we breath in and out, the glottis is open. That is, the
vocal cords are drawn wide apart producing voiceless
sounds.
• [t, d, n]: produced by the tip of the tongue touching the alveolar
ridge (or just in front of it)
• [s, z]: produced with the sides of the front of the tongue raised but
the tip lowered to allow air to escape
• [l]: the tongue tip is raised while the rest of the tongue remains down
so air can escape over the sides of the tongue (thus [l] is a lateral
sound)
• [r]: air escapes through the central part of the mouth; either the tip
of the tongue is curled back behind the alveolar ridge or the top of
the tongue is bunched up behind the alveolar ridge
Consonants: Place of Articulation
• Fricatives: [f] [v] [θ] [ð] [s] [z] [ʃ] [ʒ] [h]
– Produced by severely obstructing the airflow so as
to cause friction
Consonants: Manner of Articulation
• Affricates: [ʧ] [ʤ]
– Produced by a stop closure that is released with a lot of
friction
• Clicks:
– Produced by moving air in the mouth between various articulators
– The disapproving sound tsk in English is a consonant in Zulu and some
other southern African languages
– The lateral click used to encourage a horse in English is a consonant in
Xhosa
Consonants Chart
Exercise
Write definitions for the sounds: f, v, s, ŋ, ð
What are
Voiceless glottal fricative
Voiced velar stop
Voiced alveolar liquid
Exercise
Exercise
Exercise
References
Crystal, D (1995) The Cambridge Encyclopaedia of
The English Language: Cambridge, Cambridge
University Press
Crystal, D (1997) A Dictionary of Linguistics and
Phonetics: London, Blackwell
Fromkin, V& Rodman, R (1974) An Introduction to
Language: Orlando, Harcourt Brace.
Lass, R (1984)Phonology An Introduction to Basic
Concepts: Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.