Phonetics & Phonology

the physical characteristics of speech

sounds:

• articulatory phonetics: sound production (anatomy, physiology)

• acoustic phonetics: sound transmission (physics)

• auditory phonetics: sound perception and processing (physiology, psychology)

the sound system of a particular language:

• segmental phonology: concerned with individual speech sounds

• suprasegmental phonology: concerned with features that extend over longer stretches of speech, e.g. stress and intonation

• Actual speech sounds (e.g. from recordings)

• Transcription of person-specific realizations; includes tone, length etc.

• Notation: []

• Abstract speech sounds

• Transcription of sounds that have a

meaning-distinguishing function in a

language/variety (not-person specific)

• Notation: //

• Also called “BBC English” or “Queen’s English”

• Upper-class accent

• Spoken by ca. 2% of the British population

• “Standard” or “mainstream” American pronunciation

• Spoken by ca. 60% of the American population

/ɒ/ in RP:

hot = RP /hɒt/, GA /hɑːt/

Rhoticity:

car = RP /kɑː/, GA /kɑːr/

R-coloured vowels in GA:

letter = RP /ˈletə/, GA /ˈletɚ/

nurse = RP /nɜːs/, GA /nɝːs/

• Vowels:

• are produced without blocking of the airflow

• Vocal cords vibrate, i.e. vowels are voiced

• form the centre of syllables

• Consonants:

• are produced by (partial) blocking of the airflow

• Voiced or voiceless

• usually occur at syllable margins

• Semivowels:

• are produced with little obstruction of the airflow like vowels

• only occur at syllable margins like consonants

• In English, semi-vowels are /j, w/

• Number of targets: monophthong vs. diphthong (vs. triphthong)

• Vowel height (tongue height): highest position of the tongue arch in relation to the roof of the mouth (high - mid - low) OR extent to which the mouth is open (close - half-close - half-open - open)

• Vowel location (tongue position): section of the tongue that is raised (front - central - back)

• Vowel length: long vs. short

• (Vowel roundedness: presence or absence of lip rounding)

Examples:

/i:/ long, high front monophthong

/aɪ/ closing diphthong

strong or even complete obstruction of the airstream

• Plosives: complete blockage at some point in the vocal tract and then sudden release of built-up air

• Fricatives: partial blockage at some point in the vocal tract. The air continues to flow through the narrow opening causing audible friction

• Affricates: combinations of a plosive followed by a fricative

little obstruction of the airstream

• Nasals: the velum is lowered, so that the air flows through the nasal cavity

• Lateral approximants: the airstream is diverted from the centre of the oral cavity and escapes along the sides of the tongue

• Approximants (frictionless continuants): the airstream passes through the oral cavity relatively unhindered

• Semivowels: a subcategory of approximants – two articulators approach but do not touch each other and the air escapes relatively

unhindered

• Place of articulation: place in the vocal tract where the obstruction occurs

• Manner of articulation: type and degree of obstruction

• Voicing: absence/presence of vibration of vocal cords

• voiced: vocal cords vibrate

• voiceless: vocal cords do not vibrate

Examples:

/f/ voiceless labio-dental fricative

/d/ voiced alveolar plosive

the smallest meaning-distinguishing units of a language (part of langue)

bet /bet/

pet /pet/

-> /b/ and /p/ are necessary to distinguish meaning

word pairs that:

• have the same number of sounds in an identical sequence

• differ in exactly one sound in the same position

sing /sɪŋ/ vs. thing /θɪŋ/

fourth /fɔːθ/ vs. force /fɔːs/

• The minimal pair test helps us determine which sounds are phonemes in a language or variety of a language

• Learners struggle with phonemes that are not part of their L1, e.g. /θ,ð/ for German speakers learning English (default to /f/, /t,d/, /s/)

are different realizations of a phoneme that are not context-dependent and not meaning distinguishing

investigates the language-specific restrictions on the

distribution and combination of phonemes within the syllable, e.g. in

English:

• /ŋ/ never occurs in the onset of syllables

• /j, w, h/ never occur in the coda of English syllables

• /ə/ always occurs in unstressed syllables

• /ps/ does not occur word-initially

• CCCVCCCC is the biggest syllable possible in English, e.g. strengths

/ˈstreŋkθs/

• Stressed syllables are longer and are produced using more pressure/ emphasis

• In English, there is no general rule for stress placement

• Words can have a primary stress (transcribed with ˈ ) and a secondary stress (transcribed with ˌ ): e.g. impossibility / ɪmˌpɒsɪˈbɪlɪti/

• Word stress can be distinctive in English: e.g. conduct (n.) /ˈkɒndʌkt/ vs. conduct (v.) /kənˈdʌkt/

• Grammatical words may have both stressed (“strong” form) and unstressed (“weak” form) pronunciations: e.g. the /ðiː/, /ðə/

• Elision is the omission of sounds, especially in consonant clusters: e.g. next /nekst/ -> /neks/

• Vowel reduction is the omission of vowels: e.g. secretary /ˈsekrəteri/ -> / ˈsekrətri/ -> / ˈsektri/

• Epenthesis is the addition of sound(s): e.g. prince /prɪns/ -> /prɪnts/

• linking-r: in non-rhotic accents linking-r is used to avoid consecutive vowels: e.g. the car is here /ðə ˈkɑːr ɪz ˈhɪə/

• intrusive-r: /r/ is inserted between two vowels without historical or orthographical justification: e.g. Lisa is coming /ˈliːsər ɪz ˈkʌmɪŋ/

Assimilation: a feature of a sound is influenced by a neighbouring

sound:

• regressive (anticipatory) assimilation: a following sound influence the preceding sound: e.g. ink /ɪnk/ -> /ɪŋk/

• progressive (perseverative) assimilation: a preceding sound influences the following sound: e.g. happen /ˈhæpən/ -> /ˈhæpm/

• reciprocal assimilation: two sounds merge: e.g. education /edjʊˈkeɪʃən/ -> /edʒʊˈkeɪʃən/

• Indicate primary stress in words that have two or more syllables

• Epenthesis can be transcribed

• Vowel reduction can be transcribed

• In RP, linking-r is transcribed as superscript for transcriptions of isolated words (e.g. car /kɑːr/)

• Intrusive-r is not transcribed

• Elision is normally not transcribed (the accepted form is the full form)

• Assimilation is transcribed when it is inevitable (e.g. ink), otherwise it is optional (e.g. education)