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Verbal Communication

VERBAL COMMUNICATION

Communication can be verbal or non-verbal. The

verbal technique uses words – language – in
transferring and receiving messages.

Verbal communication requires the use of words,

vocabulary, numbers and symbols and is organized in
sentences using language. Mastering linguistic skill is
not reserved for the selected few but is a skill that
each and every one should develop to improve
relationships and interactions.

Everyone's brain is forever having thoughts and they are primarily with words. Words spoken,
listened to or written affect your life as well as others. They have the power to create emotions
and move people to take action. When verbal communication is delivered accurately and clearly,
you activate the mind and encourage creativity.

Characteristics of Verbal Communication

1. Words are symbolic expression of thoughts.

2. The meanings of words are agreed upon.
3. Communication makes sense from the verbal context in which words are used.
4. Verbal communication is in large part under conscious control.

Definition of Language

The word language comes from the Latin word lingua, which means tongue. The tongue is used in
more sound combinations than any other organs of speech. A broader interpretation of language is
that it is any form of expression. This includes writing, sign language, dance, music, painting, and
mathematics. But the basic form of language is speech. No human group is without a form of
speech, while no animal group has ever succeeded in combining sound and meaning in complex
code that human use. Man’s speech becomes a particular language when two or more human
beings decide that a certain sound or set of sounds shall have the same meaning for them.

Language is the body of words and the system for their use in communicating that are common
to people of the same community, the same geographical area, or the same cultural tradition.

All human languages serve the following similar purposes:

1. We use language to designate, label, define or limit. It only captures a particular

characteristic of a person or thing though.
2. We use language to evaluate. Language is value-laden.
3. We use language to discuss things outside our immediate experience. We communicate to
talk about people and things that are not present.
4. We can use language to talk about language. We use language to discuss how we phrased
a sentence or a question.

Attributes of Effective Oral Language

1. Words are only symbols.

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2. Meanings are in people, not in words.

3. Language is dynamic.
4. Words have many types of meanings.

The most important tool of communication is the voice. Without it, it would be difficult to express
your thoughts and feelings, your desires, your problems in different ways. You can complain,
shout, laugh, exult, rant, wheedle, etc.

Nature of Speech Mechanism

We should first realize that those parts of the body involved in the speaking process have more
important biological functions. For example, the tongue is used for tasting; the teeth, for chewing;
etc. These parts of our body which primarily perform biological functions also participate in the
speech function. But the speech function is only secondary. Nature has made it so. We can live
even though we cannot speak. The reverse is of course, not true. This marks a significant
difference. While biological functions are made to be instinctively performed by sheer necessity ,
nature has willed that the speech function, being merely secondary, has to be learned. And the
learning stage does not end; it is life-long. From our first cry as a baby, we proceed to expand our
vocabulary and to train ourselves in pronunciation and enunciation. And the process goes on.

The conclusion we derive from this is that, it is imperative that while we do not need to concern
ourselves in trying to learn how to perform biological functions, we have to discipline ourselves in
proper speech habits.

Before we speak, we inhale air. When we speak, we exhale air. The exhaled air is the raw material
of which we make the finished product – the voice. The minimal amount of air we inhale for
breathing purposes is termed as tidal air. The additional air we inhale for speaking purposes is
called complementary air. Because not many people are aware of this, some of them do not take
in enough complementary air when they speak. To some extent, this accounts for their lack of
volume. Without complementary air, the last words or syllables of the speaker’s thought phrases
will always be disappearing. Without the raw material there can be no finished product.

Stages of Voice Production

1. Compression. Speaking starts with the

movement of the air out of the body
through the process of exhalation.
Exhalation during speech production is
controlled and the rhythm is irregular in
that there is a quick inhalation followed
by a sustained exhalation. This is done
for steadiness of vocalization and for
increase of loudness.

The movement begins from the lungs, the

place where the air eventually goes after
inhalation. The air then passes through a
pair of bronchial tubes, a pair of canals
which are connected to the lungs at one end
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and to the wind pipe or trachea at the other

end. The wind pipe is the canal inside our
neck.
Muscles contract and expand the space occupied by the lungs. This compression is done
with the aid of a membrane separating the lungs from the intestines. This membrane is
called the diaphragm. The ribs, bones, cartilages, and tissues provide leverage or force for
the application of vocal power.

The parts of the body above mentioned are parts of the motors of speech mechanism. The
motors are the structures of the body that work to compress air needed for speaking.
The first stage is essential in the process of voice production. This is because without the
movement of compressed air out of the body, no sound can ever be produced . People
should understand that the speaking process begins from the chest. Some believe that it
begins from the neck. Therefore, when these people want to increase the volume of their
voices, they tend to strain the muscles around their neck. This results to having a sore
throat, a hoarse voice, or total loss of voice.

2. Vibration. When the air hits the wind pipe or trachea, it passes through the larynx or the
vocal box, situated somewhere in the upper part of the wind pipe. The larynx is known as
the vibrator. But it is not the one that really vibrates. It is only the container or the housing
unit for the real vibrators.

Inside the larynx are the vocal folds, a pair of thin membranes which vibrate when air
passes through. The vocal folds are, therefore, called the vibrators proper. The vibration
results in the production of the initial sound of the voice. This is not the actual sound but
only the beginning of the sound.

Vocal folds/cords/bands have the ability to tighten or relax.

Relaxed – the stream of air expelled from lungs during exhalation passes between them
without creating any noticeable sound. The glottis is open as wide as possible.
Tightened – the breath stream strikes the vocal cords and sets them into vibration, thus
creating a sound wave.
Glottis – the opening between the vocal bands

3. Amplification. The initial sound is made loud and amplified into our true voice by air
chambers in our body called the resonators. When the sound enters an air chamber, the
sound reverberates and is consequently multiplied before leaving the air chamber.

The air chambers of our body that serves as resonators are: 1) the vestibule, the first air
chamber located above the larynx; 2) the pharynx or the throat, the second air chamber
located at the inner end of the mouth; 3) the nasal cavities, the air chambers of the nose;
and 4) the mouth itself, a very important resonator.
There are, of course, many other air chambers in our body, but they are not resonators
because initial sound of the voice does not pass through them.

4. Modification. The sound made loud by the resonators is carved out into intelligible
sounds - the vowels and consonants, by the modifiers or articulators, those parts of the
body that form speech sounds.
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They are the lips, the teeth, the tongue, the jaw, the hard palate and the soft palate.

The lips enunciate the bilabial sounds p, b, m, hw, w and cooperate with the teeth in f and
v sounds.

The teeth are used for s, z and together with the tongue, they articulate the soft and hard
ths.

The tongue is the key modifier. It can modify the size and shape of the oral cavity. We
know that without the tongue, we cannot speak. The tongue shapes out the vowels and
helps consonants. In fact, when reciting the alphabet, it will be observed that no consonant
is without at least one vowel.

The jaw does not produce specific sounds but it is an important modifier. If we do not use
our jaw, we tend to mumble or eat our words. The function of the jaw is to enable the
teeth and the lips to move more energetically, and gives room for tongue activity.

The hard palate, the ceiling of the mouth participates in the t, d, r, n, l, ch, and j sounds.

The soft palate, the cave-like extension of the hard palate utters the k (hard c, ch, and q)
g, and ng sounds.

The human speech organs are grouped into four:

Motors Vibrators Articulators Resonators

produce motion organs that movable organs organs that which
change in an resound
irregular
manner
Trachea Larynx Upper and lower lips Mouth
Lungs Vocal folds Upper and lower teeth Lower jaw
Diaphragm Tongue Pharynx
Abdominal muscles Lower jaw Nasal cavity
Rib cage Hard palate
Soft palate
Gum ridge

Physical Properties of Voice

1. Pitch. It is defined as the place of sound on the musical scale. A speaker is expected to
open his speech with the normal (medium) pitch.
2. Quality. It is described as the characteristic of a tone which distinguishes it from all other
tones of the same pitch and intensity. It is sometimes called the “timbre of a tone” or “tone
color.” A good speaking voice must be pleasant to the ears. Quality is perhaps more closely
associated with mood and feeling. Pitch and quality work together to bring out the
emotional content.
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3. Rate. Rate or duration refers to the basic relation between the length of the sound and the
pauses before and after that mark it as one unit of sound. Rate is not only the speed with
which sounds are uttered in sequence but also the length and frequency of pauses
separating the sequences of sound. The rate should not be uniform.
4. Volume. This refers to the degree of loudness or softness of the voice. A speaker must be
able to modulate his voice so as to be heard and understood.

Characteristics of a Good Speaking Voice

1. Audibility. Refers to the volume or loudness of the voice. The voice should be appropriate
to the listeners and to the occasion. You should consider then the size of the hall, the size
of the crowd, distance and noise (speak over and above noise present). Audibility is a
prerequisite to understandability.
2. Pleasantness. A pleasant voice is free from voice faults like nasality, hoarseness, etc.
Your voice should be agreeable to the ears of the listeners. Pleasantness of the voice is
achieved through right amount of resonance, proper voice placement, and effortless
phonation.
3. Correctness and Distinctness in Pronunciation. This concerns the proper formation of
speech sounds by the articulatory mechanism. Pronunciation faults (distorted or mumbled
speech) may distract your listener. Articulators therefore must be used energetically.

English is a distinct language, with distinct sounds that often do not follow spelling. But this
complexity of the sounds of English can be practiced using an internationally accepted way
of pronouncing English – the International Phonetic Alphabet.

IPA – is the pronunciation alphabet in which every speech sound is represented by a

symbol. It is a guide on how to articulate the English sounds accurately.

IPA has proven most effective in most speech improvement classes. Its use facilitates the
study of the oftentimes puzzling relationship between English spelling and pronunciation. In
English for example: a) one letter may have more than one pronunciation (e.g. the letter a
in the words bat, hate, cart, machine, orange, awe); and b) one sound may be represented
by different letters (e.g. the hard k in the words coke, choral, kick, critique, lick). The IPA
makes use of only one symbol to represent one sound, no matter how different it is spelled
(e.g. the sound t represents tte in the word banquette).

4. Fluency. This is the smooth, easy, and ready flow of language. It entails rhythmical flow
of speaking. Fluency is achieved through blending and free use of voice, pausing or using
silence aids in attaining emphasis.
5. Flexibility. A voice that has a variation in pitch, force, time, and quality tends to hold a
higher level of attention than does a monotonous voice.

Kinds of Monotony
a. Plateau Monotony – maintains one rate, pitch, loudness, and retains without
variation
b. Monotony of Variety – repeats one melodic pattern or a singsong regularity

Aspects of Voice Usage

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1. Volume – force, intensity, degree of loudness or softness

2. Pitch – highness or lowness
3. Rate – speed
4. Quality – the kind of voice we have
5. Pauses – oral punctuations
6. Emphasis – ways you can say a word, adds color in your speech
7. Variety – flexibility, the spice of public speaking

Some tips when communicating verbally

1. Strive to achieve clarity. One way to achieve this is to use specific words that convey
exactly what you want to say.
2. Respect individual differences. As a communicator, you have to be careful in using words
to describe people considering their age, gender and gender preferences, political
affiliations, physical limitations, religion, economic and social status, and culture.
3. Avoid stereotyping. Be sensitive to cultural peculiarities, but avoid overgeneralizing people’s
traits based on race or culture.
4. Aspire to use words that are comprehensible to your listener or target audience. Resorting
to highfalutin way of talking to impress is not necessary.

"Whenever we use language, namely with the words that we use, we always do or accomplish
something. Our words, sentences, syntax, etc. always accomplish
and achieve specific things". - L. Michael Hall