Phonetics
Ling 203 - Languages of the World
9/03/2010
What is phonetics?
Definition: The study of speech sounds
Branches:
1. acoustic (the physics of sound)
2. auditory (how the ear processes sound)
3. articulatory (how we produce speech sounds)
Why do we need a phonetic
alphabet?
Why do we need a phonetic
alphabet?
English: Czech
<c> [k] <c> [ts]
cat co ‘what’
cord Václav (name)
cup třicet ‘thirty’
Why do we need a phonetic
alphabet?
In English:
<a> ball <t> tall
sand stop
make later
patience
train
Why do we need a phonetic
alphabet?
In English:
<ea> health each
wealth meal
<ck> back
bucket
Why do we need a phonetic
alphabet?
In English:
<e> late
<h> hour
<k> knee
Why do we need a phonetic
alphabet?
In English:
Vowel letters: <a, e, i, o, u>
Vowel sounds:
monophthongs: beat, bit, bate, bet, bat, boot, bull, boat,
bought, (ro)bot, but, bulemic, *bird
diphthongs: bow, bout, bide, bike, boy
International Phonetic Alphabet
(IPA)
• single alphabet with symbols to represent
sounds from all languages
• one-to-one correspondence between sounds
and symbols
• includes special symbols to indicate minor
variation and things like tone, stress, etc.
• most symbols from Latin and Greek alphabets
International Phonetic Alphabet
(IPA)
This is only part of the IPA. A full chart will be handed out later.
International Phonetic Alphabet
(IPA)
• IPA is not the only phonetic alphabet used,
though it is the most common
Describing English Consonants
We can distinguish all English consonants from
each other using three features:
1. place of articulation
2. manner of articulation
3. voicing
Places of Articulation
• refers to which parts of the vocal tract are
used to make consonant sounds
Source: Ladefoged & Maddieson (1996:13)
Places of Articulation
English uses the following places of articulation:
1. bilabial
2. labiodental
3. interdental
4. alveolar
5. postalveolar
6. palatal
7. velar
8. glottal
Manners of Articulation
• refers to how the air is manipulated when
makings sounds
Manners of Articulation
English uses the following manners of articulation
1. plosive (= stop)
2. fricative
3. affricate
4. nasal
5. approximant
6. lateral approximant
7. flap
Manners of Articulation
Rather than using the terms “approximant” and
“lateral approximant”, you will frequently see
the following:
• liquid = [l] and [ɹ]
• glide = [j] and [w]
Voicing
• refers to whether the vocal cords (=glottis) are
vibrating or not when making sounds
• lets us distinguish many plosives, affricates
and fricatives in English
• (technically, this could be considered a
‘manner’)
Voicing
Consonant sounds can be:
1. voiced (vibration)
2. voiceless/unvoiced (no vibration)
The Consonants of English
bilabial labiodental interdental alveolar post-alveolar palatal velar glottal
plosive p b t d k g ʔ
affricate tʃ dʒ
fricative f v θ ð s z ʃ ʒ h
flap ɾ
nasal m n ŋ
approximant w ɹ j
lateral
l
approximant
Notes:
The handout I gave you lists [w] as a velar sound. Actually, it is a co-articulated sound, in this case
using two places of articulation at the same time. In reality, it is labio-velar, so there is no perfect place
to put it.
Also note that I include a glottal plosive [ʔ] that was not on the handout. This is usually called a
‘glottal stop’.
When writing about English, people frequently use [r] in place of [ɹ]. Technically, this is not correct ([r]
is a different sound in the IPA), but be aware that you will see it.
Describing English Vowels
We can distinguish most English consonants from
each other using three features:
1. height
2. frontness/backness
3. tenseness
Additionally, we frequently talk about roundedness
of vowels, though this is less important in English
than other languages.
Height
• refers to the relative height of the relevant
part of the tongue when producing a sound
Height
• English vowels can be
1. high
2. mid
3. low
Frontness/Backness
• refers to the part of the mouth part of the
tongue move toward
Frontness/Backness
English vowels can be
1. front
2. central
3. back
Tenseness
• refers to whether the lip/tongue muscles are
relatively tensed or relaxed when producing a
vowel sound
Tenseness
English vowels can be
1. tense
2. lax
Roundedness
• refers to whether the lips are rounded or not
when producing a vowel sound
Roundedness
English vowels can be
1. round(ed)
2. unround(ed)
The Vowels of English
• The chart below shows the monophthongs of
English
Modified from Language Files 10.
*[e] and [o] are actually pronounced as diphthongs in English, but we will ignore this.
Other languages?
• The distinctions here are relevant for English.
• Other languages may have distinctions English
doesn’t have.
• Not all languages have all the distinctions that
English has.
References
Ladefoged, Peter & Ian Maddieson. (1996). The Sounds of the World’s
Languages. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishers Inc.
Bergmann, A., K. Hall, & S. Ross. (Eds.). Language Files 10: Materials for an
Introduction to Language and Linguistics. Columbus, OK: The Ohio State
University Press.
