ThuongMai University

Falcuty of English
Linguistic Division
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FINAL – TERM TEST

Student’s name : Ta Thanh Lan

Student number : 17D170078
Test number : 07
Lecturer : Duong Thi Hong Tham, M.A.
Course : Phonetics and Phonology
Group : 2001ENTH2811

Hà Nội, June 2020

Test number: 07 Class code: 2001ENTH2811

1. How can all the vowels be identified and described?

 Describing vowels
Vowels are sonorous, syllabic sounds made with the vocal tract more open than it
is for consonant and glide articulation.
Different vowel sounds (also called vowel qualities) are produced by varying the
placement of the body of the tongue and shaping the lips.
Vowel articulations are not as easy to feel as consonant articulations at first, since
the vocal tract is not narrowed as much.
Vowels will be described under the following orders
The length of sounds (long/short) + the tongue height (high/mid/ low) + part
of the tongue which is raised (front/central/back) + degree of lip rounding
(rounded/unrounded/ neutral) + vowels
 The length of sounds: It can be short or long vowels.
 The tongue height of sounds: We distinguish three major degrees of height:
high, mid, and low. Particularly:
+ High vowels: are those in the production of which the tongue is high in the
mouth. It is raised above its rest position. Eg: /i:/, /u:/
+ Low vowels: are those made with the tongue below its rest position. Eg: /a/
+ Mid vowels: are those made with the tongue neither high or not low in the
mouth. Eg: /e/
 Part of the tongue which is raised :
+ Front vowels: are those in the production of which the front of the tongue is
the highest point. Eg: /i:/
+ Back vowels: are those in the production of which the back of the tongue is
the highest point. Eg: /u:/
+ Central vowels: are those made with neither the front nor the back of the
tongue. The tongue is neither high nor low in the mouth. Eg: /ə/
 Degree of lip rounding
+ Rounded vowels: are those made with rounded lips. The corners of the lips
are brought towards each other and the lips are pushed forwards.

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Test number: 07 Class code: 2001ENTH2811

+ Unrounded vowels: are those made with the lips spread. The corners of the
lips are moved away from each other as for a smile.
+ Neutral vowels: are those made with the lips neither rounded nor spread.
We have the primary cardinal vowels below:

For example: / i: /: long high front unrounded vowels

Diphthongs will also be described under the same way with monophthong, but
we need to describe each sound and start from the preceding vowel. After finishing
describing the first vowel, we use "to" and continue to describe the back one. We don’t
need to describe the length of the vowels. We have the recipe:
The tongue height + part of the tongue which is raised + degree of lip
rounding + to + the ttongue height + part of the tongue which is raised
(front/central/back) + degree of lip rounding + (closing/centering) + diphthong
For example: / aɪ/: low central unrounded to high front unrounded (closing) diphthong
It is completely similar to tripthongs
 Identifying English vowels:
There is a description given and you have to identify which sound is being
described. You have to base on the information of description, including:
For example: Short mid front unrounded vowel: /e/

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Test number: 07 Class code: 2001ENTH2811

Short high back rounded vowel: /ʊ/

Short mid central unrounded vowel: /ə/
2. What are diphthongs? Give at least 3 examples to clarify your answer
 Definition
English has 8 diphthongs, which are vowels that change character during their
pronunciation, that is, they begin at one place and move towards another place. In
other words, a diphthong is a glide from one vowel to another, and the whole glide acts
like one of the long simple vowels.
 Examples
We can compare for example the monophthong in “car” with the diphthong in
“cow”, or monophthong in “girl” with the diphthong in “goal”. The vowels of “cow”
and “goal” both begin at a given place and glide towards another one. In “goal” the
vowel begins as if it was /ə/, but then it moves towards /ʊ/. Therefore, it is written /əʊ/,
as in /gəʊl/ goal, with two symbols, one for how it starts and one for how it ends.
Similarly, in “cow” the vowel begins as if it was /a/, but then it moves
towards /ʊ/. Therefore, it is written /aʊ/, as in /kaʊ/ cow.
Another example is monophthong in “lot” with the diphthong in “lie”. In “lie”,
the vowel begins as if it was /a/, but then it moves towards /ɪ/, so it is written /aɪ/, as
in /laɪ/ lie.
In terms of length, diphthongs are like long vowels. The most important thing
to remember about all the diphthongs is that the first part is much longer and stronger
than the second part. As a result, the second part is shorter and quieter. E.g. /ai/, /ei/…
 Diphthongs have two main types: Centering and Closing.
The centering diphthongs glide towards the (schwa) vowel, with symbol
ending in “ə”: /eə/ /iə/ /ʊə/.

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Test number: 07 Class code: 2001ENTH2811

Fig: Centering diphthongs

Examples: beard (/ bɪəd /), share (/ʃeə(r)/), lure (/lʊə(r)/)
Some example words: “beard”, “werid”, “fierce” → the starting point is a little
closer than in the ɪ in “bit”, “bin”.
Example words: “aired”, “cairn”, “scarce” → this diphthong begins with a
vowel sound that is more open than the e of “get”, “men”.
Example words: “moored”, “tour”, “lure” →For speakers who have this
diphthongs, this has a starting point similar to ʊ in “put”, “pull”.
The closing diphthongs have the characteristic that they end with glide towards
a closer vowel because the second part of the diphthong is weak, thy often do not
reach a position that could be called close. The important thing is that glide from a
relatively more open towards a relatively closer vowel is produced. Five of the closing
diphthongs: /ai/ /ei/ /ɔi (ending with I) and /əʊ/, /aʊ/ (ending with ʊ)

Examples: paid (/peɪd/), my (/ maɪ /), soy (/sɔɪ/), so (/səʊ/), south (/saʊθ/)

Example words: “paid”, “pain”, “face” →The starting point is the same as the e
of “get”, “men”.

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Test number: 07 Class code: 2001ENTH2811

Example words: “tide”, “time”, “nice” →The diphthong begins with an open
vowel which is between front and back: it is quite similar to the ʌ of the words “cut”,
“bun”
Example words: “void”, “loin”, “voice” →The first part of this diphthong is
slightly more open than ɔː in “ought”, “born”
Two diphthongs glide towards U, so that as the tongue moves closer to the roof
of the mouth there is at the same time a rounding movement of the lips. This
movement is not a large one, again because the second part of diphthong is weak.
Example words: “load”, “home”, “most” →The vowel position for the
beginning of this is the same as for ə vowel, as found in the first syllable of the word
“about”. The lips may be slightly rounded in anticipation of the glide towards ʊ, for
which there is quite noticeable lip – rounding.
Example words: “loud”, “gown”, “house” →This diphthong begins with a
vowel similar to ai. Since this is an open vowel, a glide to ʊ would necessitate a large
movement, and the tongue often doesn’t reach the ʊ position. There is only slight lip –
rounding.
Question 2
Read aloud the given sentences and paragraphs, then video it.
a. Tongue twister: Read aloud the sentences

1. Susie’s sister sewed socks for soldiers.

2. The 33 thieves thought that they thrilled the throne throughout Thursday.

3. Lesser leather never weathered wetter weather better.

4. The sixth sick Sheik's sixth sheep's sick.

5. Pad kid poured curd pulled cold.

b. Describe a family member you would like to work with.

 Source paragraph:
Let me tell you about my brother that I’d like to work with in (wɪðɪn) my
business. He is (Hiːjɪz) very considerate and (kənsɪdərɪtaend) thoughtful person who
has always (haezɔːlweɪz) done his best to (bɛsttuː) help me make decisions in
(dɪsɪʒənzɪn) the face of day (feɪsədeɪ) - to - day difficulties.

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Test number: 07 Class code: 2001ENTH2811

My brother has a (hæzə) strong personality and he never lets others (lɛtsʌðəz)
tell him what to (wɒttuː) do. I learned how to be more responsible and also
(ændɔːlsəʊ) more determined in (dɪˈtɜːmɪndɪn) my daily life. Although we’ve never
worked together in (təgɛðərɪn) business before, he always reminds me that things are
(θɪŋzɑː) not as easy as they appear.
I’d like to work with my brother because it’s (bɪkɒzɪts) lucky enough to find a
(faɪndə) wonderful partner in him, both personally and professionally. We can be
honest with one another, and I trust him significantly more than I’ve trusted partners
in (pɑːtnəzɪn) the past. My brother is (brʌðərɪz) very loyal and I believe he will always
(wɪlɔːlweɪz) watch my back. Although, I will say it is very important to ( ɪmpɔːtənttuː)
define roles and (rəʊlzænd) boundaries with family immediately. He does tend to push
the limits of what (lɪmɪtsəwɒt) is acceptable (ɪzəksɛptəbl) if rules are (ruːlzɑː) not
clearly defined.It also just so (ʤʌssəʊ) happens that our (ðætaʊə) skill sets are
(sɛtsɑː) completely opposite and (ɒpəzɪtænd) complementary.

 Phonetic version
Lɛt miː tɛl juː əbaʊt maɪ brʌðə ðaet aɪd laɪk tuː wɜːk wɪð ɪn (wɪðɪn) maɪ bɪznɪs.Hiː
ɪz (Hiːjɪz) vɛri kənsɪdərɪt aend (kənsɪdərɪtaend) θɔːtfʊl pɜːsn huː haez ɔːlweɪz
(haezɔːlweɪz) dʌn hɪz bɛst tuː (bɛsttuː) hɛlp miː meɪk dɪsɪʒənz ɪn (dɪsɪʒənzɪn) ðə feɪs ə
v deɪ (feɪsədeɪ) - tuː - deɪ dɪfɪkəltiz
maɪ brʌðə hæz ə (hæzə) strɒŋ pɜːsənælɪti ænd hiː nɛvə lɛts ʌðəz (lɛtsʌðəz) tɛl hɪm
wɒt tuː (wɒttuː) duː.aɪ lɜːnt haʊ tuː biː mɔː rɪsˈpɒnsəbl ænd ɔːlsəʊ (ændɔːlsəʊ) mɔː dɪ
ˈtɜːmɪnd ɪn (dɪˈtɜːmɪndɪn) maɪ deɪli laɪf.ɔːlðəʊ wiːv nɛvə wɜːkt təgɛðər ɪn (təgɛðərɪn)
bɪznɪs bɪfɔː, hiː ɔːlweɪz rɪmaɪndz miː ðæt θɪŋz ɑː (θɪŋzɑː) nɒt æz iːzi æz ðeɪ əˈpɪə.
aɪd laɪk tuː wɜːk wɪð maɪ brʌðə bɪkɒz ɪts (bɪkɒzɪts) lʌki ɪnʌf tuː faɪnd ə (faɪndə)
wʌndəfʊl pɑːtnər ɪn hɪm, bəʊθ pɜːsnəli ænd prəfɛʃnəli. wiː kæn biː ɒnɪst wɪð wʌn ə
ˈnʌðə, ænd aɪ trʌst hɪm sɪgˈnɪfɪkəntli mɔː ðæn aɪv trʌstɪd pɑːtnəz ɪn (pɑːtnəzɪn) ðə
pɑːst. maɪ brʌðər ɪz (brʌðərɪz) vɛri lɔɪəl ænd aɪ bɪliːv hiː wɪl ɔːlweɪz (wɪlɔːlweɪz) wɒʧ
maɪ bæk.ɔːlðəʊ, aɪ wɪl seɪ ɪt ɪz vɛri ɪmpɔːtənt tuː (ɪmpɔːtənttuː) dɪˈfaɪn rəʊlz ænd
(rəʊlzænd) baʊndəriz wɪð fæmɪli ɪmiːdiətli.hiː dʌz tɛnd tuː pʊʃ ðə lɪmɪts əv wɒt
(lɪmɪtsəwɒt) ɪz əksɛptəbl (ɪzəksɛptəbl ) ɪf ruːlz ɑː (ruːlzɑː) nɒt ˈklɪəli dɪˈfaɪnd.ɪt ˈɔːlsəʊ

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Test number: 07 Class code: 2001ENTH2811

ʤʌst səʊ (ʤʌssəʊ) hæpənz ðæt aʊə (ðætaʊə) skɪl sɛts ɑː(sɛtsɑː) kəmpliːtli ɒpəzɪt ænd
(ɒpəzɪtænd) kɒmplɪˈmɛntəri.