introduction

WELCOM
WELCOM
Articulation

consonants
Three term

PHONEMES OF ENGLISH

E
E
tabel

DR. R. SOUNDARARAJAN
 Generally English Language has ONE Alphabet
which has 26 letters

introduction
As far as the production of sounds of
consonants
Articulation

Three term

English concerned – it has 44 sounds

table

These sounds are divided as:

•Consonants (24)
•Vowels (12) and
•Diphthongs (08)
 Consonants have some constriction in the vocal tract that obstructs the
airflow, either partially or completely.

The variations of sounds are modified by the contact of Active

Articulators with Passive Articulators

consonants
Three term

All Consonants of English are either in voiced or in voiceless

table

Consonants are also known as

“CONTOIDS”

All Consonants are frictional sounds and there is a THREE term label to
find out the variation of each consonant sound in English
 We classify consonants according to three pieces of
information:

3 term table
Articulation
 PLACE OF ARTICULATION

Articulation
Alveolar

Place of
Labial &
dental

• Bilabial • Labio-Dental • Dental

• Alveolar • Palatal • Velar • Glottal
Palatal &
Alveolar

• Labio-Dental

Labial &
• Bilabial
• Dental
 velar & glottal

• Alveolar

• Palato-Alveolar

Palatal &
Alveolar
 Approximant ,
velar & glottal
Palato-Alveolar Palatal
Approximant Glottal
Approximant

Velar
 MANNER OF ARTICULATION

NASAL
LIQUID
STOP (PLOSIVE)FRICATIVE AFFRICATE
GLIDE
 Page
01
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02
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MANNER OF
03
ARTICULATION
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04
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05
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06
Dr. R.
Soundararajan
 Plosives are made by
making a complete
closure between some
point in the vocal tract
Plosives
and pressure builds up Page
behind the closure and
air is released to create
01
• Produced
audible bysound. Page
completely stopping
theArticulators
air flow – complete 02

closure, airstream Page
cannot escape through 03
the mouth.
 Can be oral (velum Page
raised) or nasal (velum
lowered)
04
• 3 stages in the
production:
Closing The two articulators Page
move towards each other
stage 05
Closure
stage
The two articulators are
in contact with each
Page
other 06
Release The two articulators
stage move away from each
other
voiceless
Plosives Fricatives are made by
voiced forming nearly complete
Bilabial [p] [b] obstruction in the vocal
Alveolar [t] [d] tract. The opening
through which the air
Velar [k] [g] escapes and as a result a
turbulent noise is Fricative
When they are produced,
Bilabial Plosives
produced. s
Page
a closure with both lips/stoppage air escapes through a
of the airflow & air released with small passage and make a 02
explosion
hissing sound Page
Alveolar Plosives Fricatives 03
by raising the tongue to touch the
Labio- [f] [v]
front of the alveolar ridge just Page
behind the teeth the air is stopped Dental
and released suddenly 04
velar Plosives Dental [θ] [ð]
Page
made by raising the tongue at Alveolar [s] [z]
the back of the mouth to make 05
a complete closure. Palatal [ʃ] [ʒ] Page
Alveolar
06
Glottal [h]
Labio-dental Fricatives
Lower lip is contact with the upper An affricate is a single
teeth. Fricative is never very sound composed of stop
strong and is scarcely audible
portion and a fricative.
Dental Fricatives
The constriction is
The tongue is placed between the
teeth, normally tongue is placed immediately made
•behind
Fully the alveolar
behind the teeth with the tip
touching the inside of the upper stopping the air
teeth. The air escapes through the ridge.
from leaving the vocal
gaps between the tongue and the tract, then releasing it Affricates
teeth. The fricative noise is week.
through a constricted Page
Alveolar Fricatives
opening.
Same place of articulation as 03
/t/,/n/, /d/ - the air escapes Affricates
through a narrow passage along Page
the center of the tongue and the Palatal [tʃ] [dʒ]
sound produced is comparatively 04
intense.
Alveolar
Palatal alveolar Fricatives Palatal Alveolar Affricates Page
Because of the tongue touching While producing these sounds by 05
the back of the roof, the air blocking of the breath-stream
escapes via the center of the between the tongue and gum Page
tongue ridge, for a stop and a fricative
06
Glottal Fricative
Air escapes through the vocal
folds, producing frictional noise
NB:- Vowel Lengthening
 The ‘tʃ’ is an unvoiced sound
and ‘dʒ’ is a voiced sound.
 The vowel sound before an
unvoiced consonant has a
shorter duration than the voiced
consonant
 This change in vowel duration
subtly helps the listeners of
English to determine which
sound is spoken.
 While writing transcription, we
use � (stacked triangle symbol)
to note a vowel with increased
duration.
Examples:
Unvoiced Affricate:
etch / tʃ /, rich /rI tʃ /
Nasal sounds are similar to
plosives in that there is a
complete obstruction of the
airflow in the mouth but, in
contrast, the air pressure is
not allowed to build up
behind the obstruction.
Rather, it is allowed to
escape through the nasal
cavity by lowering the soft
palate. 
• There are only three
English nasal consonants and
they are all voiced. Nasal
 Bilabial, alveolar and Page
s
velar nasals. 04
Nasals Page

Voiced Affricate: Bilabial [m] 05

edge /� dʒ /, ridge /rI� dʒ / Page
Alveolar [n]
Velar [ŋ]
06
 A liquid is a consonant
produced when the
tongue approaches a point
of articulation within the
mouth but does not come
close enough to obstruct
or constrict the flow of air
enough to create
turbulence. Liquid
consonants are /l/ and /r/
• Tongue tip is touching the
alveolar ridge (or perhaps
your upper teeth), but this
doesn't make a stop.
Lateral
Page
• Air is still flowing during
the production of a sound 05
because the side of your Page
tongue has dropped
down and left an 06
opening.
 NB:- for /w/ and /j/

The articulators approximate a

In an approximant, the frictional closeness, but no actual
articulators involved in the friction occurs. Therefore, /w/ and
/j/ sounds are called semi vowels
constriction are further apart
still than they are for a
fricative. The articulators
are still closer to each other
when the vocal tract is in its
neutral position, but they are
not even close enough to
cause the air passing
between them to become
turbulent.
Consonants /w/, /r/ and /j/
are approximants
/w/ - bilabial approximant
/j/ - palatal approximant
/r/ - alveolar approximant Page
06
 PLACE OF ARTICULATION

Bilabial

Alveolar

Alveolar
Dental

Alveolar
Labio-
MANNER

Dental

Palatal

Glottal
Palato
Post-

Velar
OF
ARTICULATION

PLOSIVE p b t d k g
AFFRICATE ʧ ʤ
FRICATIVE f v θ ð s z ʃ ʒ h

NASAL m n Ŋ

LATERAL l
APPROX/ SW w r j