ENGLISH SEGMENTS AND SUPRASEGMENTS

English language consists of sounds (segments) and non-sounds (suprasegments). In every

utterance, a combination of sounds /p,t,a,f/ and voice pitch is observable. The alteration in
voice pitch to ask a question, command, or make a statement, are not considered sounds per
se., hence they are known as suprasegments (stress and intonation).

Organs of Speech

In the mouth, there are organs that aid the production of meaningful sounds that constitute a
language: they are called organs of speech or articulators. Such organs are: the lips, the
teeth, the tongue, the gum of the teeth (alveolar), the roof of the mouth (hard palate), soft
palate, uvular, nasal cavity, voice box, larynx and pharynx. These are grouped as either
active or passive. The active organs are organs that are able to move and meet other organs
such as: the tongue (most active) and the lips. The passive or static organs cannot move about
easily (teeth, hard palate, alveolar).

Speech Production

It involves three major processes: The air stream mechanism (respiratory system), the
phonation (phonatory system) or voicing and the articulation(articulatory system)

The Air Stream Mechanism

The source of speech production is the air. Some part of exhaled air (pulmonary air stream) is
essential to speech production. The pulmonary air stream is generated by the lungs in the
chest cavity and travels through the oral and nasal cavity. Such air is intercepted by organs
of speech to create a needed sound. Other types of air mechanism are glottalic air stream and
pharyngeal air stream.

The Phonation or Voicing

It has to do with the vibration or non-vibration of the vocal cord, controlled by the larynx
(voice box or glottis). The voice box has two folds that open or close when one talks.
Normally, they remain open when one breathes, and any sound produced when they are in
this state is called a voiceless sound. If a sound is produced when the vocal cords are
partially closed, it is a voiced sound. Voiceless sounds are produced when the vocal cords
do not vibrate, while voiced sounds are produced in the opposite case.

Articulation
Articulation is the production of sounds in the vocal tracts and organs that assist in the
production of these sounds. The air released for sound production is intercepted by one organ
or the other, which reshapes the air to produce various sounds. The first reshaping takes
place at the vocal cord; the second, in any organ of speech.

The Speech Sounds of English

There are 44 (forty-four) sounds in English language, twenty-four consonants and twenty
vowels. It is important to know that the sounds in English language do not always match
with the alphabets of the language. In addition, sounds are always enclosed in phonemic
slants (/k/)

The Consonant Sounds of English

The 24 consonant sounds of English are either voiced or voiceless.They are basically
defined in accordance with three criteria: the state of the glottis, the place of the
articulation, and the manner of articulation. The first criterium deals with the nature of
the voice box when sound is produced, whether there was a vibration or not. The place of
articulation (phonation) refers to the organs that partake in the production of sound. The
manner of articulation refers to the way in which air escaped.

Description and Distribution of Consonant Sounds in English

Stops

There are two groups of stops in English: the oral and nasal stops. Oral stops are so called
because of the sudden burst of air that follows their production. On the other hand, nasal
stops are not followed by such burst of air.

Oral Stops

There are six oral stops in English /p,b,t,d,k,g/. In producing these, the air released is
forceful. They occur in all phonological environments (beginning, middle, end).

Examples:

Initial Medial Final

Pin People Stump

Bug Ambush Rob

Terror Butter Beat

Dear Border Cod

King Scar Rank

Grill Afghanistan Sag

/b/ is not pronounced in the following words: bomb, tomb, debt, doubt, lamb, thumb, crumb,
subtle, comb, dumb.

/t/ is silent in: rapport, nestle, wrestle, whistle, ballet, fasten

/k/ is silent in: knock, knuckle, knot, knead,knowledge

/g/ is silent in: sign, align, foreign, campaign, reign, diaphragm.

Nasal Stops

The three nasal stops of English are /m, n,ŋ/. Apart from /ŋ/which occurs only medially and
finally, all of them occur in all phonological positions. Examples:

Initial Medial Final

Moon among Harm

New Annoy Fin

Length Long

Fricatives

There are nine fricatives in the English language: /f, v, θ, ð, s, z, ʃ, ʒ and h/. A fricative sound
involves the close approximation of two articulators, so that the airstream is partially
obstructed. The partial obstruction makes it difficult for air to escape freely, so that a
hissing sound is created. Among them, only /ʒ/ does not occur initially and /h/ does not occur
finally.

Initial Medial Final

Fun after laugh

Vary Advert of

Theory Authority Birth

There Heathen Breathe

Sold Also False

Zebra lazy Always

Show Ashamed Rash

Pressure Massage

Hole behind

The use of /ʃ/ and /ʒ/ should not be confused. /ʃ/ is used when “-sion” comes after a
consonant sound, while /ʒ/ is used when “-sion” occurs after a vowel sound. To illustrate:

/ʃ/: mission, compassion, hypertension, comprehension, expulsion etc.

/ʒ/: provision, corrosion, invasion, illusion, erosion etc.

/h/ is not pronounced in these words: ghost, hour, ghetto, heir, exhaust, vehicle, honest etc.

Affricatives

There are two affricatives in the English language:[tʃ] and [dʒ]. They are formed by
combining two sounds, a stop and a fricative. They are found in every phonological
position.

Initial Medial Final

Charm fracture scratch

Gentle soldier grudge

Approximants

The three approximants of English language are /w, l, j/. Only the /l/ sound is generally
distributed as shown below:

Initial Medial Final

Window award

Leaf allow Fall

Yellow buyer
Note that /w/ is not pronounced in the following words: wrestle, wreck, sword, answer,
flower etc.