CHAPTER 3

The Sounds of Language

PHONETICS

Known as the International Phonetic Alphabet, or IPA

1

The general study of the characteristics of speech sounds is called phonetics

2

Main interest in articulatory phonetics, which is the study of how speech sounds are made, or articulated

3

Acoustic phonetics, which deals with the physical properties of speech as sound waves in the air

4 Auditory phonetics (or perceptual phonetics), which deals with the perception, via the ear, of speech sounds.

Consonants

We are doing with our mouths to become capable of describing the individual sounds produced

THREE FEATURES

The voiced/voiceless distinction
The place of articulation
The manner of articulation

Voiced and Voiceless Sounds

To make a consonant sound, we start with the air pushed out by the lungs up through the trachea (or windpipe) to the larynx. Inside the larynx are your vocal folds (or vocal cords), which take two basic positions.

1 When the vocal folds are spread apart, the air from the lungs passes between them with no obstruction, producing voiceless sounds.

2 When the vocal folds are drawn together, the air from the lungs repeatedly pushes them apart as it passes through, with a vibration effect, producing voiced sounds

The distinction can be felt physically if you place a fingertip gently on the top of your Adam’s apple

Place of Articulation

The terms used to describe many sounds are those that denote the place of articulation of the sound: that is, the location inside the mouth at which the constriction takes place.

To describe the place of articulation of most consonant sounds, we can start at the front of the mouth and work back. We can also keep the voiced–voiceless distinction in mind and begin using the symbol of the IPA for the specific sounds. These symbols will be square brackets

Familiar Symbols

These are bilabial consonants, made with both lips. [b], [p], [m], [w].
The labiodentals, which are formed using the upper front teeth and the lower lip. [f], [v]
We raise the front of the tongue to this area when we make the alveolar sounds. [t], [d], [s], [z], [r], [l] and [n].
[t] and [s] are voiceless
[d], [z], [r], [l] and [n] are voiced

Unfamiliar Symbols

Other symbols may be much less familiar, as in the two ways of representing the “th” sounds in English
We use [θ], called “theta,” for the voiceless version, and at the beginning and end of the phrase three teeth
We use [ð], called “eth,” for the voiced version. Because the teeth are involved in creating these sounds, they are called dentals.
If these sounds are made with the tongue tip between (= inter) the teeth, they are described as interdentals
These sounds ([ʃ], [ʧ], [ʒ], [ʤ]) are sometimes described as “post-alveolar”, we will just refer to them as palatals. Because they are produced in an area where the alveolar ridge meets the palate
The sounds produced toward the back of the mouth, involving the velum, are represented by the velars [k] are voiceless and [ɡ] are (voiced). Another velar consonant is [ŋ]. There is no [ɡ] sound at the end of these words
There is one consonant sound produced without the active use of the tongue. It is the [h] sound. This sound is described as a voiceless glottal.

Manner of Articulation

The manner of Articulation will show the difference is in how the sounds are pronounced.

An analysis of the manner of articulation of English consonants

We should note that in some analyses, stops are described as “plosives” and what we call “glides” here may be described as “approximants” or “semi-vowels.”

A Consonant Chart

Having described the most common consonant sounds used by English speakers, we can summarize the information in the following chart

Along the top are the terms for place of articulation, as well as –V (voiceless) and +V (voiced). On the left-hand side are the terms for manner of articulation.

Glottal Stops

The glottal stop, represented by the symbol [ʔ], is produced when the space between the vocal folds (the glottis) is closed completely very briefly, and then released.

Flaps

It is represented by [ɾ]. This sound is produced by the tongue tip tapping the alveolar ridge briefly.

Vowels

Sounds are produced with a relatively free flow of air. They are all typically voiced

To describe vowel sounds, we consider the way in which the tongue influences the shape through which the airflow must pass.
To talk about a place of articulation, we think of the space inside the mouth as having a front versus a back and a high versus a low area.
We can use a vowel chart to help classify the most common vowel sounds in English.

Schwa: [ə]: unstressed vowel (underlined) in words such as afford, collapse, photograph, wanted and common words a and the in casual speech.

-The uvula (“little grape”) used with the back of the tongue to produce uvular sounds

Ex: the “r” sound in the French pronunciation of rouge and lettre

Diphthongs

In addition to single vowel sounds, we regularly create sounds that consist of a combination of two vowel sounds, known as diphthongs.

When pronouncing, the vocal organs will move from position [a] to position [ɪ] to produce the sound [aɪ] in Hi or Bye ->move from low toward high front

Moving from low toward high back -> between [a] and [ʊ] to produce the sound [aʊ]
Involving a glide, are representing as [aɪ] and [aʊ] -> sometimes be seen as [aj] or [aw]

American and British Diphthongs

The pronunciation of some diphthongs in Southern British English is quite different from North American EnglishEnglish.
Note that the final [r] sound, typically pronounced in American varieties, is often omitted in Southern British English

Subtle Individual Variation

Vowel sounds are notorious for varying between one variety of English and the next, often being a key element in what we recognize as different accents.

There are many other variations in the physical articulation of speech sounds. We didn’t even mention the uvula (“little grape”), hanging at the end of the velum. It is used with the back of the tongue to produce uvular sounds, such as the “r” sound, usually represented by [R], in the French pronunciation of rouge and lette.
The more we focus on the subtle differences in each sound, the more likely we are to find ourselves describing the pronunciation of a group or an individual speaker. Such differences help us to recognize a person’s voice as soon as he or she speaks
We are clearly able to disregard all the variation in the phonetic detail of voices and recognize each underlying sound type as part of a word with a particular meaning. To make sense of how we do that, we need to look at the more general sound patterns, or the phonology, of a language.

Schwa may be written using any of the following letters

Study Questions

Articulatory phonetics: It focuses on how the tongue, lips, teeth, and other articulators are used to create different sounds

Acoustic phonetics: It analyzes the frequency, intensity, and duration of sound waves to understand how sounds are transmitted and perceived

Auditory phonetics: It investigates how the ear and brain process sound waves to interpret and understand spoken language.

The space between the vocal folds is called the glottis
There is one fricative in the pronunciation of "mechanic" /f/ in "mechanic"
The vowel in "hot" is described as a short, low, back, unrounded vowel.
The most common vowel sound in casual speech is the schwa (/ə/). It is a reduced vowel that is often used in unstressed syllables.

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