Phonetics: The study of speech sounds

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Phonetics The study of speech sounds

• Linguistics 101

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Phonetics

• Objective
• To describe all the sounds used in human
  language (including clicks, which are speech
  sounds in African languages).

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International Phonetics Alphabet

• IPA
• System for writing down sounds
• IPA is universal system
• Unambiguous system not geared to any one
  language
• 1 sound 1 symbol
• Orthography
• Writing system of a particular language
• Often ambiguous

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Articulatory Apparatus

• Spaces
• Nasal Cavity
• Oral Cavity
• Fixed articulators
• Teeth
• Alveolar Ridge
• (Hard) Palate

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Articulatory Apparatus

• Movable articulators
• Lips
• Tongue
• Soft Palate (Velum)
• Uvula
• Other
• Pharynx
• Larynx
• Glottis/Vocal Cords
• Passage to Lungs

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How are speech sounds made?

• Air comes up from lungs.
• Goes out through oral and/or nasal cavity.
• Vocal cords either vibrate or do not vibrate as
  air comes out.
• As air goes out, various articulators assume
  different positions to make different vowel and
  consonant sounds.

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English Consonants

• Parameters for consonants
• Voicing voiced or voiceless
• Oral or Nasal
• Place of articulation bilabial, labiodental,
  interdental, alveolar, palatal, velar, glottal
• Manner of articulation stop, fricative,
  affricate, glide, liquid

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English Consonants

• Voicing depends on the vocal folds.

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English Consonants

• Voiceless consonants
• p pat
• t tip
• k back
• f fan
• ? bath
• s sip
• Vocal folds are pulled apart, so they dont
  vibrate.

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English Consonants

• Voiced consonants
• b bat
• d dip
• g bag
• v van
• ð bathe
• z zip
• Vocal folds are pressed together, so they
  vibrate

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English Consonants

• Nasal consonants
• m pam
• n pan
• ? pang
• The velum is open so air can go through the
  nose.

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English Consonants

• Oral consonants
• p dip
• d pad
• k pick
• The velum is closed, so air cant go through the
  nose.

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English Consonants

• Place of articulation refers to the place where
  the sound is made.
• The place of a sound is where the mouth is the
  narrowest.

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English Consonants

• Bilabial
• Lips together
• p Pad
• b Bad
• m Mad

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English Consonants

• Labiodental
• bottom lips towards upper teeth
• f Fast
• v Vast

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English Consonants

• Interdental
• tongue between teeth
• ? bath
• ð bathe

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English Consonants

• Alveolar
• tip of the tongue towards the alveolar ridge.
• t tip
• d dip
• n nip
• s sip
• z zip

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English Consonants

• Alveolar
• Lateral
• alveolar but sides of the tongue down
• l Lip
• Retroflex
• alveolar but tip of the tongue curled
• r Rip

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English Consonants

• Palatal
• Front of the tongue toward hard palate
• ? she
• ? treasure
• ? child
• ? joy
• j yes

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English Consonants

• Glottal
• Vocal folds together
• Open glottis
• h house
• Tightly closed vocal cords
• ? uh-oh
• Usually ? replaces a t
• e.g. cotton ka??n

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English Consonants

• Manner of articulation is a matter of how narrow
  the mouth is at the place of the sound.
• Stop complete closure
• p pit, b bit, m dim
• t tip, d dip, n chin
• k keep, g good, ? sing

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English Consonants

• Manner of articulation is a matter of how narrow
  the mouth is at the place of the sound.
• Fricative almost complete closure air hisses as
  it flows through narrow opening.
• f fine, v vine
• ? bath, ð bathe
• s sit, z zip
• ? she, ? treasure
• h hit

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English Consonants

• Manner of articulation is a matter of how narrow
  the mouth is at the place of the sound.
• Affricate a stop followed by a fricative.
• ? chop
• ? joy

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English Consonants

• Manner of articulation is a matter of how narrow
  the mouth is at the place of the sound.
• Approximant the mouth is fairly open.
• Liquid
• l lip
• r rip
• Glide
• w wish
• j yes

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English Consonants

• All consonants are described using the above four
  parameters
• p voiceless, oral, bilabial, stop
• v voiced, oral, labiodental, fricative
• n voiced, nasal, alveolar, stop
• r voiced, oral, retroflex, liquid
• j voiced, oral, palatal, glide
• ? voiceless, oral, palatal, affricate
• ? voiceless, oral, interdental, fricative

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English Vowels Parameters

• i beet u boot
• ? bit ? put
• e bait ? Rosa o boat
• ? bet ? rut ? bore
• æ bat a bomb

• Parameters for Vowels
• Height high, mid, low
• Place front, central, back
• Lips rounded, unrounded
• Tongue tension tense, lax

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English Vowels Parameters

• i beet u boot
• ? bit ? put
• e bait ? Rosa o boat
• ? bet ? rut ? bore
• æ bat a bomb

• Parameters for Vowels
• Height where is the body of the tongue
  vertically?
• High body of the tongue is moved up.
• i, ?, u, ?
• Mid resting position for the tongue.
• e, ?, ?, ? ,o, ?
• Low body of the tongue is moved down.
• æ, a

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English Vowels Parameters

• i beet u boot
• ? bit ? put
• e bait ? Rosa o boat
• ? bet ? rut ? bore
• æ bat a bomb

• Parameters for Vowels
• Place where is the body of the tongue
  horizontally?
• Front body of the tongue is moved forward.
• i, ?, e, ?, æ
• Central resting position for the tongue.
• ?, ?
• Low body of the tongue is moved back
• u, ?, o, ?, a

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English Vowels Parameters

• Lips rounded or unrounded
• In English, only back high and mid vowels are
  rounded
• u boot
• ? put
• o boat
• ? bought, caught

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English Vowels Parameters

• Tension is the tongue tensed or not?
• Tense tongue is tensed by advancing the root of
  the tongue.
• i beet, u boot, e bait, o boat a cot
• Lax tongue is not tensed.
• ? bit ? put
• ? bet ? bought
• ? sofa ? butt
• æ bad

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English Vowels schwa ? vs. carrot ?

• ? mid, central, unrounded, lax
• ? mid, central, unrounded, lax
• The difference is ? is reducedit is only used
  for unstressed vowels
• attack ?tæk VS other ?ð?r
• parade p?red VS tough t?f
• candle kænd?l VS flood fl?d

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English Vowels Diphthongs

• Diphthongs
• Some vowels start in one place and then move to
  a glide
• aj buy baj
• aw about ?bawt
• ?j toy t?j

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More English Consonants

• Aspiration
• Diacritic symbol Ch
• In certain positions, voiceless consonants
  p,t,k are aspirated
• 1. At the beginning of a word
• pill ph?l vs spill sp?l
• till th?l vs still st?l
• kill kh?l vs skill sk?l

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More English Consonants

• Aspiration
• Diacritic symbol Ch
• In certain positions, voiceless consonants
  p,t,k are aspirated
• 2. At the beginning of a stressed syllable
• appeal ?phil vs happen hæp?n
• attend ?th?nd vs astound ?stawnd
• account ?khawnt vs bacon bek?n

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More English Consonants

• Consonant Classes
• Noncontinuants and continuants
• Stops Affricates noncontinuants
• Other sounds (including vowels) continuants
• Obstruents and sonorants
• SONORITY the degree to which a speech sound is
  like a vowel (resonator)
• Sonority Scale
• Sonorant Obstruent

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More English Consonants

• Consonant Classes
• Labials bilabials labiodentals
• Coronals alveolars palatals
• Anteriors labials interdentals
• alveolars
• Sibilants coronal fricatives coronal
  affricates (hissing sound)