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Unit-1 3 PDF
Unit-1 3 PDF
- -- - A
TO PHONETICS
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Structure
Objectives
Introduction
The Production of Speech
A Phonetic Description of Speech Sounds
1 $3.1 Vowels and Consonants
1.3.2 Description of Vowels
1.3.3 Description of Consonants
1.3.4 Broader Classification of Sounds
The Use of Phonetic Symbols
Let Us Sum Up
Key Words
Some Useful Books
Answers
1.0 OBJECTIVES
In this unit we shall introduce you to the terms 'phonetics' and 'phonology'
and show you how we can give a phonetic description of speech sounds.
Recording
An audio recording accompanies this unit and is available at the study centers
I of the university.
I 1.1 INTRODUCTION
// Natal Cavity
For the production of speech we need a source of energy: fbr thc sounds of'
English and most Indian languages, the air-stream coming out of the lungs
provides this energy.
Figure I shows the various organs of speech. The windpipe carrying the air-
stream from the lungs is known as the trachea. At the top of the trachea is llie
larynx, which contains the vocal cords. l'he vocal cords call be brought
together to close the air passage completely. This is what wc d o when uc
cough, for example; the air from the lungs is first held up and the11suddenl!
released by separating the vocal cords. When we breath out, the vocal cords
are wide apart, the opening between them being called the glottis. If the vocal
cords are held together rather loosely, they vibrate when the air from the lungs
passes between them. This vibration, that is, the closing and opening of the
glottis at a fast rate, produces a musical note called voice. Speech sounds can
be either voiced, when they are loosely held together and vibrate or voiceless.
when they are far apart and do not vibrate. You can fccl t h e differcncc b!
touching the neck near the larynx, while saying Is1 and li.1 alternatel!
/sssszzzzssss./ (We shall use phonetic symbols to represent sounds and pldcc
them between oblique bars.)
he shape o f the mouth cavity depends on the position o f the tongue and the An Introduction to
lips. Phonetics
The rool'of the mouth i s divided into three parts: the teeth ridge, just behind
the upper teeth, the hard palate. and the soft palate.
The soft palate i s normally raised, so that the passage through the nose i s
blocked and the air from the lungs comes out through the mouth (oral
sounds). The soft palate can be lowered so that the air from the lungs can
come out through the nose (nasal consonants). 'The soft palate can also be kept
in a neutral position so that the air from the lungs comes out through both the
oral and the nasal cavities (nasalized sounds).
/ The lips can assume various positions, from being rounded to neutral to
unrounded.
'I'he tongue can be said to have three sections - the part opposite the teeth
ridge i s called the blade and its end i s called the tip. The part opposite the hard
palate i s called the front and that opposite the soft palate is called the back.
'fhe part at the base o f the tongue i s called the root. Various parts o f the
tongue can be raised towards the roof o f the mouth to produce different
sounds.
i She quality o f vowel depends on the shape o f the mouth cavity, and that
depends on the positions o f the tongue, the lips and the lower jaw. Vowels can
, therefore be described on the basis o f tongue positions and lip positions.
' i) For most vowels either the front, or the back, or the center o f the
tongue i s raised to a certain height. Depending on which part o f the
tongue i s the highest, we can classify vowels as front vowels, back
vowels and central vowels.
Examples
Front vowels: the vowels in the English words sheep, ship,bed, bad.
Back vowels: the vowels in the English words calm, pot, caught, put, boot.
Central vowels: the vowels in the English words cut, bird and father (second
syllable).
ii) Depending on the height to which the tongue i s raised, we can classiq
vowels as close (that is, as near the roof o f the mouth as possible), or
open (that is, as low as possible), or as belonging to one o f the two
intermediate categories - half-close and half-open.
Phonetics and Example
Phonology- 1
Close voweb: the vowels in the English words sheep ur~dboor.
Open vowels: the vowels in the English words caltn undpot.
iii) The lips can assume various positions for the production ol'difTercnt
vowels. They can be spread as for the vowel in tlie English word keep,
neutral as for the vowel in bed, open as for the vnwd in calm. open
rounded ad for the vowel in pot, or close roundeci as for the vowcl in
boot.
i) whether the sound is voiced or voiceless, that is. whethcr thc vocal
cords vibrate or not.
Examples
voiced /bd g v z m 1 r l
voiceless: Ip t k f s hl
ii) whether the soft palate is raised or lowered. that is, whcther the air-
stream passes through the mouth only (as for oral sounds like Ip b t d
k g f v s 21 or through the nose only (as for n~asalsounds like /m nl);
iii) the place of articulation, that is, where in the tnouth the closure or
narrowing takes place; and
iv) the manner of articulation, that is, the degree or kind of closure or
narrowing that is assumed in producing the solrnd.
Place of Articulation
1. What is phonetics?
Phonetics and What is phonology?
Phonology-l
9. How will you describe the consonants in the following English words?
spoken
In/ .................................................................................
aimed
/m/ .................................................................................
/dl .................................................................................
be/ief
/b/ .................................................................................
/I/ ..................................................................................
If/ .................................................................................
i) a lateral consonant
1.5 LETUSSUMLIP
In this unit we have introduced you to the terms 'phonetics' and 'phonology',
and shown you how we can give a phonetic description o f speech sounds -
vowels and consonants.
Phonetics and -- --- .--- - -- -- .. - . ..
Phonologv- I 1.6 KEY WORDS .
------.
1.7 SOME USEFUL BOOKS
Bansal R.K. and J.B. Harrison 1983: Spoken English .for India. Second
Edition, Chennai: Orient Longman.
Longman Dictionary of ContemporaryEnglish.
An Introduction to
Ladefoged Peter. 1 974. A Course in Phonetics. New York: '~arcourt,Brace
Phonetics
and Jovanovic.
Oxford Advanced Learner S Dictionary of Current English, Third Edition,
revised.
Sethi, J. and P.V.Dhamija 1999. A Course in Phonetics and Spoken English,
2ndedition, New Delhi, Prentice Hall o f India.
1.8 ANSWERS
Check Your Progress
1. Phonetics is the study o f the sounds o f human speech.
2. Phonology is the study o f the sound system o f a particular language.
We also know how the sounds are organized into distinctive units
called phonemes, how the phonemes are combined into syllables, and
how the features o f length, stress and pitch are organized into patterns.
3. Lungs, trachea, larynx vocal cords, teeth, teeth-ridge, hard palate, soft
palate, nasal cavity, tongue, lips.
4. The air-stream coming out o f the lungs.
5. Sounds in the production o f which the vocal cords vibrate and produce
a musical note are called voiced sounds. Examples: all vowels, the
consonants /b, d, g, v, z, m, n, I/. Sounds in the production o f which the
vocal cords are held apart are voiceless sounds. Examples: the
consonants /p t k f st.
6. In the production o f vowels sounds the air from the lungs comes out in
a continuous stream through the mouth, and the vocal cords vibrate to
produce voice. There i s no closure o f the air-passage in the mouth; nor
any narrowing that would cause audible friction. A l l other sounds are
consonants.
Example: the word sit has a vowel sound in the middle, and two
consonants, one in the beginning and one at the end.
7. (i) According to the part o f the tongue raised
front vowels
back vowels
central vowels
(ii) According to the height to which the tongue i s raised
close
half-close
ha1f-open
open
(iii) According to lip positions
lips spread
lips neutral
lips open
lips open rounded
lips close rounded.
8. Oral sounds are produced with the soft palate raised to shut o f f the
nasal passage.
Examples: / p b t d k g f v s z 11.
Soft palate to let the air pass though the nose. Examples: Im nl.
9. /s/ voiceless, alveolar, fricative
/p/ voiceless, bilabial, plosive
Phonetics and /kJ voiceless, velar, plosive
Phondogy- 1 In/voiced, alveolar, nasal
/mlvoiced, bilabial, nasal
/dl voiced, alveolar, plosive
/b/voiced, bilabial, plosive
111voiced, alveolar, lateral
/E/ voiced, labiodental, fricative
10. i) 111 in lamp, ii) /m/in map, iii) Id/ in day,iv) in cat?v) /v/in very.