END-OF-TERM TEST ON ENGLISH PHONETICS & PHONOLOGY

Please read the questions provided with four choices, marked A, B, C, and D in this
reading paper. Then, on your answer sheet, tick the correct box for the letter that
corresponds to the answer you have chosen.
*Please do not write anything in this reading paper.

1. Which of the following groups contains a segment that differs in place of articulation from
the other segments?
A. [ k, w, n, g ] B. [ t, d, n, s ] C. [ p, m, w, b ] D. [ t, d, z, n ]

2. Which of the following segments corresponds to the following phonetic description? long low
back vowel
A. [ a: ] B. [ i: ] C. [ u: ] D. [ɜː ]
3. Which of the following phonetic variations may happen to the alveolar [ v ] in this context:
‘Give me back that book’?
A. [ v ] is nasalised before the nasal [m]
B. [ v ] is devoiced word finally
C. [ v ] is labialized before the bilabial [ m ]
D. [ v ] is aspirated word finally.
4. Which of the following statements is incorrect?
A. A minimal pair consists of two forms with distinct meanings that differ only by one
segment in the same position of each form.
B. Minimal pair test is a basic test for deciding which sounds are the allophones of the
phoneme
C. Minimal pair test is a basic test for deciding which sounds are different phonemes
D. Minimal pairs help us establish which sounds contrast in a language

5. Which of the following is the phonetic transcription of this form “tank”?

A. [ ' tænk] B. [ ' tænŋk] C. [ ' tæŋk] D. [tæŋ]

6. Which of the following assimilatory processes may happen to the alveolar [ d ] in this
context: Would you like some tea?
A. regressive assimilation B. progressive assimilation
C. mutual assimilation D. None of the above

7. Which of the following symbols corresponds to the following phonetic

description: voiced alveolar fricative?
 A. [ z ] B. [ s ] C. [ t ] D. [ d ]

8. Which of the following symbols corresponds to the following phonetic

description: voiced interdental fricative
A. [ f ] B. [ w ] C. [ð] D. [ v ]

9. Which of the following statements is correct?

Alveolar is the sound made
A. as a very rapidly articulated non-syllabic segment
B. just behind the alveolar ridge
C. with the identical articulation to that of the long vowel [ i: ]
D. with the tongue at the alveolar ridge

10. Which of the following statements is correct?

All the consonants are produced with
A. an extra puff of the air strongly expelled
B. an obstruction of the airstream (complete or partial)
C. no vibration of the vocal cords
D. vibration of the vocal cords

11. Which of the following is a minimal pair?

A. cat – hit B. fat - vet

C. cat – gat D. fat – bit

12. Which of the following symbols corresponds to the following phonetic

description: voiced palato-alveolar fricative?
A. [ʃ ] B. [ʒ] C. [tʃ ] D. [dʒ]

13. Which of the following phonetic transcriptions corresponds to the following

phonetic description: voiceless palato-alveolar affricate?
A. [ʃ ] B. [ʒ] C. [tʃ ] D. [dʒ]

14. Which of the following phonetic transcriptions corresponds to the following

phonetic description: voiced velar nasal ?
A. [ m ] B. [ n ] C. [ŋ ] D. [ w ]
15. Which of the following assimilatory processes occurs to the voiceless alveolar [ t ] in this
context [ðæt jɪə ] that year
A. [ t ] is aspirated before palatal [ j ]
B. [ t ] is palatalized before palatal [ j ]
C. [ t ] is deleted before palatal [ j ]
D. [ t ] is velarized before palatal [ j ]

16. Which of the following assimilatory processes may happen to the voiced alveolar stop [ g ]
in this context: My grandfather has a dog [maɪ ˈɡrænfɑːðə hæz ə dɒɡ]?

A. [ g ] may be devoiced after the vowel [ɒ ]

B. [ g ] may be devoiced at the end of the word [dɒɡ]

C. [ g ] may be labialised after the vowel [ɒ]

D. [ g ] may be voiced at the end of the word [dɒɡ]

17. How many segments are there in the sound sequence [ˈdʒækɪt] jacket?
A. 7 B. 6 C. 5 D. 4

18. Which of the following statements is correct?

The affricates [tʃ] and [dʒ] are
A. consonants produced with a continuous airflow through the mouth
B. consonants produced with the complete stoppage of the air in the mouth which
causes explosion
C. consonants produced with the lowering of the soft palate
D. produced with an initial stop then with a slow separation of the tongue to make
friction

19. Which of the following words contains an open syllable?

A. caught B. think C. through D jacket

20. Which of the following statements is correct?

Palatal is made
A. at the hard palate
B. at the soft area toward the rear of the roof of the mouth
C. at the teeth ridge
D. with the tongue placed against the teeth
21. Which of the following symbols corresponds to the following phonetic
description: lax low front vowel?
A. [ i: ] B. [ e ] C. [ I ] D. [æ]

22. Which of the following statements is correct?

Nasal sounds are produced with
A. the airstream released through the oral cavity
B. the continuous air flow through the mouth
C. with the velum being lowered
D. A & B

23. Which of the following assimilatory processes may occur to the sound sequence
[ˈfæktju:əl ] factual ?
A. regressive assimilation B. progressive assimilation
C. mutual assimilation D. None of the above
24. In English , a syllable is generally not formed by ………..
A. a vowel B. one consonant and one vowel
C. one vowel and one consonant D. two stops

25. Which of the following phonetic variations may happen to the lateral [ l ] in this
context: [ˈæŋkl] ankle?
A. [ l ] becomes devoiced after voiceless stop [ k ]
B. [ l ] becomes syllabic after voiceless stop [ k ]
C. [ l ] becomes unaspirated after voiced stop [ k ]
D. [ l] becomes aspirated after voiced stop [ k ]
26. Which of the following statements is incorrect?
A. The phonetic representation of utterances shows what the speakers know about the
pronunciation of utterances.
B. The phonemic representation of utterances shows what speakers know about the
abstract underlying phonology.
C. The phonemic representation of utterances shows the finer/concrete points of the
sounds or segments in pronunciation
D. The phonetic representation of utterances shows the non-distinctive features of the
sounds.
27. Which of the following groups contains a segment that differs in manner of articulation
 from the other segments?
A. [ , f, s, z ] B. [ w, r, j, l ]C. [ p, b, z, d ] D. [ t, d, g, p ]

28. Which of the following statements is correct?

Regressive assimilation is a process by which
A. the change of a segment is brought about by the preceding segment
B. a sound copies one or more phonetic features from the following sound
C. the sound becomes more like the preceding sound
D. a sound spreads one or more phonetic features to the following sound

29. Which of the following symbols corresponds to the following phonetic description: voiceless
dental fricative?
A. [ m ] B. [  ] C. [ t ] D. [f ]

30. Which of the following phonetic variations the voiceless alveolar [ t ] may have in this
context (in terms of American pronunciation) [ˈlɪtl] litle?

A. [ t ] becomes aspirated between stressed vowel [ I ] and unstressed vowel [ɪ]

B. [ t ] may be deleted between stressed vowel [ I ] and unstressed vowel [ɪ]

C. [ t ] may become glottal stop between stressed vowel [ I ] and unstressed vowel [ɪ]

D. [ t ] may become voiced flap between stressed vowel [ I ] and unstressed vowel [ɪ]

31. Which of the following symbols corresponds to the following phonetic

description: long high front vowel?
A. [ i: ] B. [æ ] C. [ e ] D. [ I ]

32. Which of the following is incorrect?

When a feature is predictable by the phonological rules, it is
A. a redundant feature B. a phonetic feature
C. a phonemic feature D. both A and B

33. Which of the following is the stress distribution for the compound word “greenhouse”?

A. [ˈɡriːnˈhaʊs] B. [ gri:n ˈhaʊs] C. [ˈɡriːn haʊs] D. [ˌɡriːn ˈhaʊs]

34. Which of the following phonetic transcriptions corresponds to the following
phonetic description: high back rounded tense vowel ?
A. [ɒ ] B. [ i: ] C. [ u: ] D. [ʊ ]
35. Which of the following statements is correct?
When a feature value is unpredictable by a general principle or rule, it is
A. a distinctive feature for that class of segments
B. a non-distinctive or non-phonemic feature for that class of segments
C. a phonetic feature for sounds that contrast
D. a redundant feature for that class of segment
36. Which of the following statements is incorrect?
A. An allophone is a predictable phonetic variant of a phoneme
B. An allophone is an abstract unit
C. An allophone is a phonetic realisation or variant of a phoneme
D. An allophone is uttered in speech
37. Which of the following statements is correct?
When two or more sounds never occur in the same phonemic context or environment they
are said to be
A. allophones of a phoneme B. different phonemes
C. identical segments D. in free variation
38. Which of the following statements is correct?
A. Phonology aims to provide the set of features, or properties that can describe all
sounds in human language.
B. Phonology deals with the articulatory and acoustic aspects of speech sounds.
C. Phonology provides the means for describing speech sounds.
D. Phonology studies the ways phonemes function in language

39. Which of the following symbols corresponds to the following phonetic

description: long mid back vowel
A. [ɔː ] B. [ɑː ] C. [ i: ] D. [ u: ]
40. Which of the following symbols corresponds to the following phonetic description:
voiced velar stop?
A. [ g ] B. [ k ] C. [ n ] D. [ŋ ]