Chapter 1: THE PRODUCTION OF SPEECH SOUNDS

1. Arti
Articu
cula
lato
torrs
 “The study of how sounds are produced and how the position of the mouth
=> arti
articu
cula
lato
tors
rs ca
cann be chan
change
gedd to prod
produc
ucee di
diff
ffer
eren
entt so
soun
unds
ds is call
called
ed

phonetics.”
phonetics.”
 Making sounds
o Muscle contracting
o Muscles in the chest -> flow of air -> muscles in the larynx ->
different modifications in the flow of air
o Larynx -> vocal tract -> air escapes into the atmosphere
o The shape of the vocal tract is a very important factor in the
productionn of speech
productio
o
Articulators:: different parts of the vocal tract that can be used to
Articulators
form sounds (the tongue, the lips, the pharynx, the teeth…)
o Articulatory phonetics
 The larynx:
o The larynx, commonly called the voice box
o 2-inch long tube connecting the back of the nose and the windpipe
with each other.
 The vocal tract:
o The vocal tract can be divided into:
 the oral cavity (the mouth and pharynx),
 and the nasal cavity (within the nose).
1) The
The ph
phary
arynx
nx:
o A tube above the larynx
o At its top end, it is divided into two:
 one part being the back of the mouth

 and the other being the beginning of the way through the
nasal cavity.
2) The velum
velum or soft palat
palatee:
o
Allow the air to pass through the nose and through the mouth.
 o The sounds /k/ and /g/: the tongue in contact with the lower side of
the soft palate -> velar sounds.
sounds.
3) The hard pala
palate
te:
o Roof of the mouth
o The sound /j/: the tongue close to the hard palate -> palatal sound.
4) The alve
alveolar
olar ridge
ridge:
o Between the top front teeth and the hard palate.
palate.
o Its surface is covered with little ridges.
o Sounds /t/, /n/, /d/: the tongue touching it -> alveolar sounds.
5) The
The to
tong
ngueue:
o Moved into different places and different shapes.
o Parts of the tongue: tip, blade, front, back, root.
root.
6) The
The tteet
eethh:
o upper and lower teeth
o At the front of the mouth, immediately
immediately behind the lips.
lips.
o Sounds /θ/ and /ð/: tongue in contact with the teeth -> dental sounds
7) The
The li
lips
ps:

2. Vowe
Vowell and
and Con
Conso
sona
nant
nt
 Vowels:: sounds in which there is no obstru
Vowels ction to the flow of air when it
obstruction
passes from
from the larynx
larynx to the llips.
ips.


Consonants
constriction) iniinnthe e some
some kind
volvvocal kind
tract.
of cons
constr
tric
icti
tion
on (or more th
than
an one
  For both vowels and consonants, phonetic description involves assigning a
phonetic symbol to each sound.
sound.
 IPA: International
Internationa l Phonetic Alphabet (the standard, internationally accepted
phonetic symbol set)
set)
 Different vowels:
o (1) The shape of the tongue = tongue shape / tongue part
 The part of the tongue,
tongue , betwe
between
en fron
frontt and back,
back, which is
raised highest.
 /iː/, /æ/: the front part of the tongue is raised high -> front

vowels
 /ɑː/ in “calm” and /uː/ in “too”: the back of the tongue is the

highest point -> back vowels

o (2) The position of the tongue = tongue height
 Vertical distance between the surface of the tongue and the

hard palate (tongue height)

 /iː/ in “see”: tongue close to the roof of the mouth -> close /
high vowel
 /æ/ in “cat”: greater distance between the surface of the tongue

and the roof of the mouth -> open / low vowel

o (3) The lip-rounding
 The lip-rounding: 3 possibilities

 Rounded: [u] [u],, [o], [ɔ], /u:/…

 Spread [i],
[i], [e], /i:/ …
 Neutral /ɑː/
/ɑː/ [a] /ɜː/
/ɜː/

3. Engl
Englis
ishh shor
shortt vo
vowe
wels
ls
 Symbols of 7 short vowels: ɪ, e, æ, ʌ, ɒ, ʊ, ə
 ɪ in the clo
close-fr
se-front
ont area, more open than cardinal vowel, nearer to the
center, and the lips are slightly spread.
o kit
o Hit
o Bid
o Fish
o Minute

 e front vowel between open-mid and close-mid in tongue height, the lips
are slightly spread.
o Men
o Head
o Bed
o Many
o Yes

 æ front
front,, not as open as cardinal vowel 4, the lips are slightly spread
spread..
Bat
Back
 Gas
Cap
Ankle /ˈæŋkəl/

 ʌ central
central,, more
more open
open than the
the open-mid tongue height, lip position is
neutral..
neutral
o

Mud
o Love
o Blood
o Cut
o Rush

 ɒ not fully back, between open-mid and open in tongue height, the lips
are slightly rounded
rounded..
o Pot
o Cross
o
Lot
o Odd
 ʊ in the close-back area, the lips are rounded
rounded..
o Foot
o Put
o Good
o Push
o Pull

 ə central vowel, schwa /ʃwɑː/

 the most important sound, the most frequent sound in English.
 Schwa is usually in unstressed syllable.
syllable. (âm phát ra ở các âm tiết không có
trọng lượng âm và trong các nguyên âm đôi trong tiếng Anh)
o A
o The
o About /əˈbaut/
o Perhaps /pəˈhæps/
o

Common /ˈkɔmən/
Chapter 2: VOWELS
1. Lo
Long
ng vo
vowe
wels
ls (5)
(5)
 longer than the short vowels in similar context.
 The symbols consist of one vowel symbol plus a length mark made of two
dots :

Differences in quality (tongue shape and position, lip position) and in
length.

 i: it
it’s
’s close
closerr and mo
more
re front than the short vowel /ɪ/, the lips are only
slightly spread
spread..

 ɜː a mid-central vowel (as a hesitation sound), the lip position is neutral

neutral..
o Nurse
o Learn
o Refer
o Bird
o
Stir
  ɑː an open vowel, not as back as cardinal 5, the lip position is neutral
neutral..
o Pass
o Father
o St
Star
artt
o Har
ardd
o Car
ardd

 ɔː nearly close-mid
close-mid,, almost fully back and has strong lip-rounding
lip-rounding..
o Board
o Law
o War
o Horse
o Chore
o Wall

 u: near to cardinal vowel 8 [u]

[u],, much less back and less close, the lips are
only moderately rounded
rounded..
o Two
o Bl
Blue
ue
o
Group
o Foo
oodd
o Shampoo
Shamp oo
2. Di
Dipt
ptho
hong
ngss ((8)
8)
 Sounds which consist of a movement or glide from one vowel to another.
 A diphthong always forms just one syllable.
syllable.
 The first part is much longer and stronger than the second part.
  The total number of diphthongs is 8.

The centring diphthongs glide towards the /ə/ (schwa) vowel.

 /ɪə/ (example words: 'beard', 'weird', 'fierce') The starting point is a

little closer than /ɪ/ in 'bit', 'bin‘

o Beer
o Tear
o Fier
ierce
ce
o Bear
eardd
o Fear
o Cheer
Cheerful
ful

 /eə/ (exa
(example
mple words: 'aired',
'aired', 'cairn',
'cairn', 'scarce'
'scarce')) Thi
Thiss diphthon
diphthongg begins
with a vowel sound that is more open than the /e/ of 'get', 'men'.
o Bear
o Scaredd
Scare
o Chair
Chair
o Hair
o Wear
o Their
Th eir
 /ʊə/ (example words: 'moored', 'tour', 'lure') For speakers who have
this diphthong, this has a starting point similar to /ʊ/ in 'put', 'pull'.
o Tour
o tournament /ˈtʊənəmənt/
o Poor
o jury /ˈdʒʊəri/
/ˈdʒʊəri/
o Sure
 Three of the diphthongs glide towards /ɪ/,
/ɪ/, as described below:
  /eɪ/ (example words: 'paid', 'pain', 'face') The starting point is the
same as the /e/ of 'get', 'men‘
o Pay
o Face
o Date
o Wait
o Eight

 /aɪ/ (example words: 'tide', 'time', 'nice') This diphthong begins with
an open vowel which is between front and back.
o Rice
o Ni
Nine
o Gui
uide
de
o

Fight
o Type
o Bye
o Tie
 /ɔɪ/ (ex
(examp
ample
le word
words:
s: 'v
'void
oid',', 'loin'
'loin',, 'voic
'voice')
e') The first part of this
diphthong is slightly more open than /ɔː/ in 'ought', 'born'.
o Voi
oice
ce
o Boy
o Noi
Noise
se
o
Enjoy
Enjoy
o Appoi
App ointment
ntment /ə'pɔɪntmənt/
 Two diphthongs glide towards /ʊ/
 /əu/ (example words: 'load', 'home', 'most') The vowel position for
the beginning of this is the same as for the "schwa" vowel /ə/
o The lips may be slightly rounded in
anticipation of the glide towards /ʊ/, for which there is
quite noticeable lip-rounding.
 /au/ This diphthong begins with a vowel similar to /aɪ/
/ aɪ/..
o Sin
ince
ce ththiis is an open
open vowel el,, a glide to /ʊ
/ʊ// woul
ould
necessitate a large movement, and the tongue often does
not reach the u position.
o There is only slight lip-rounding.
o How
o Hou
ouse
se
o Cow
o Outt
Ou
o Lou
oudd
o Mou
ountain
ntain
3. Tri
riph
phth
thon
ong
gs
 A triphthong is a glide from one vowel to another and then to a third,
third, all
produced rapidly
rapidly and without interruption.
interruption.
 Triphthong: 5 closing diphthongs with ‘ə’ added on the end.
end .
o eɪ + ə = eɪə (layer
(l ayer,, player
player,, mayor,
mayor, slslayer
ayer))
o aɪ + ə = aɪə (liar
(l iar,, fire
ire,, hire
hire,, mire
mire,, highe
higher)
r)
o
ɔɪ + ə = ɔɪə (loya
(l oyal,l, roya
oyal,l, soya
soya,, employer
employer))
o əʊ + ə = əuə (lower
(l ower,, slower
slower,, mower,
mower, rower
ower))
o aʊ + ə = auə (power
(p ower,, hour
hour,, tower
tower,, shower
shower,, flower
flower))
Chapter 3 + 4 + 5: CONSONANTS
1. The lary
larynx,
nx, res
respira
piration
tion and vvoic
oicing
ing
 The lar
larynx
ynx (the voice box)
o In the neck
o Made of cartilage
o
The front of the larynx: Adam’s Apple
o Inside are the vocal folds / vocal cords.
 Glottis: the opening between the vocal folds.
folds. (dây thanh)
 4 states of the vocal folds: wide apart, narrow glottis, position for vocal fold
vibration, vocal folds tightly closed

(a) Wide apart: the vocal folds are apart for normal breathing and for
o

voiceless consonants (p, f, s…)

o (b) Narrow glottis:
glottis: when the glottis is narrowed, the air is passed
through the glottis -> voiceless glottal fricative (h)
o (c) Position for vocal fold vibration:
vibration: the edges of the vocal folds are
touc
touchi
hing
ng eaeach
ch otothe
herr -> aiairr pass
passin
ingg th
thro
roug
ughh th
thee gl
glot
otti
tiss will
will caus
causee
vibration.
•Voiced sounds
o (d) Vocal folds tightly closed:
closed: vocal folds are pressed together so that
air can’t pass -> glottal stop / glottal plosive
 Respiration and voicing
o eg
egre
ress
ssiv
ivee pulm
pulmononic
ic aiairs
rstr
trea
eam
m -> th thee most
most comm
common only
ly fo
foun
undd air
air
movement in languages.
o The vocal folds vibrate -> voiced sounds
o 3 main differences in the pressure of the air below the vocal folds:
•Variatio
Vari ations
ns in intensit
intensity:
y: shouting -> high intensity / speaking
quietly -> low intensity
•Varia
Va riatio
tions
ns in freque
frequency
ncy:: vocal
vocal folds
folds vibrate rapidly -> high
frequency / vibrate slowly -> low frequency.
•Variations in quality
 A plosive: A stop made with a pulmonic airstream mechanism, such as

in English [ p ] or [ b ]
 o 1 articulator is moved against another / 2 articulators are moved against
each other -> a stricture is formed (no air escapes from the vocal tract)
o Air has been compressed behind the stricture -> the air is released
o If the air behind the stricture is still under pressure -> the escape of the
air will produce loud noise -> plosion.
o There may be voicing during part or all of the plosive articulation.

 6 plosive consonants: p, t, k, b, d, g

Different places of articulation
o p, b: bilabial
bilabial plosive
plosive (lips are
are pressed ttogether)
ogether)
o t, d: alveolar plosi
plosive
ve (the tongu
tonguee blade
blade is pressed
pressed against the alveolar
alveolar
ridge)
o k, g: velar plosive (the back of the tongue is pressed against the velum)

 All plosives can occur

o At the beginning of a word: initial position
o Between other sounds: media position
o At the end of a word: final position
 Fricatives (âm sáp)
o consonants with the characteristic that air escapes through a narrow
passage and making a hissing sound.
sound.
o With the exception of glottal /h/
o Different places of articulation.
o Each place of articulation has 1 fortis and 1 lenis.
 o Fortis fricatives are articulated with greater force than lenis and their
friction noise is louder.

 Labiodental fricative:
fricative: f, v
o the lower lip is in contact with the upper teeth.
o The fricative noise is weak.
 Dental fricative: θ, ð
o the tongue is placed between the teeth
o Air escapes through the gap between the tongue and the teeth.
o The fricative noise is weak.

 Alveolar fricative: s, z
o the tongue blade is pressed against the alveolar ridge
o the air escapes through a narrow passage along the center of
the tongue
o the sound produced is intense.
 Post-alveolar
Post-alveolar fricative: ʃ, ʒ (sần, dần)
o the tongue is in contact with an area slightly further back than
the alveolar ridge
o the air escapes through a passage along the center of the

tongue.
o Lips are rounded.
 Voiceless Glottal fricative: h
o the air passes through the glottis when it is narrowed
o found before vowels
o has the quality of the vowel it precedes.
 Affricates (tách sáp)
o Affr
Af fric
icat
ates
es:: cons
conson
onan
ants
ts whic
whichh begin as plosives and end as
fricatives. (t
(tʃ, dʒ)
o
Same place of articulation: Post-alveolar, Rounded lips
 Nasals (âm mũi)
 o The air escapes through the nose.
nose.
o The soft palate is lowered -> complete closure in the mouth.
o 3 types of closure:
 Bilabial (lips) /m/

 Alveolar (tongue blade against alveolar ridge) /n/

 Velar (back of tongue against the soft palate) /ŋ/

 no English words can begin with /ŋ/

 can occur only within or at the end of a word.

 can be preceded only by the vowels /æ, e, ɪ, ʌ, ɒ /

- Ex: sing / fin

finger / hang
hanger
er / song
song
 A lateral consonant /l/
o There is complete closure between the center of the tongue and
alveolar ridge.
ridge.
o The only way for air to escape is along the sides of the tongue.
o 3 positions:
 Initial: love, lips
 Media: clock, click
 Final: little, bottle
 Approximant
o /r/:
post-alveolar approximant
 An ar
arti
ticu
cula
lati
tion
on in whic
whichh on
onee arti
articu
cula
lato
torr is clos
closee to
anoth
nother
er but it’s not so close to produce a complete
consonant such as a plosive, fricative or nasal.
 In some cases, there is no /r/ in the pronunciation
 Ex: car /kɑː/, ever /ˈevə/, here /hɪə/ , hard /hɑːd/
o /j, w/:
semi-vowels
 /w/ has strong lip rounding.
 /j/ voiced palatal approximant
 /w/ voiced bilabial approximant