Introduction to Theory of Phonetics

1. Introduction to Theory of Phonetics

Aspects of study:
production (articulation and phonation)
acoustics
perception
function
Purposes of study: descriptive / prescriptive;
theoretical / practical
Phonetics and Phonology

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9. The importance of phonetics

CAT /k æ t/
CATCH
/k æ t∫/
1. Put the words into correct columns
horse
through
judge
enough
sugar
caught island
daughter knowledge
cupboard
cow
business
singing
more
carrot chemist
treasure
thinking
laugh
heart
thorough door
know
singer
check
2 sounds 3 sounds 4 sounds 5 sounds 6 sounds

10. Connections to other branches of linguistics

Orthography
- the rules of reading are based on the relation of
sounds to orthography.
E.g. vowel sounds are pronounced not only as we
name the letter i as /ai/, the letter y as /wai/, u
as /(j)u:/, o as /ou/ . But a can be pronounced
as : /æ/ - can, /a:/ - car, /eƏ/ - care; e can be
pronounced as : /e/ - them, /Ə:/ - fern, /iƏ/ here, etc.

11. Connections to other branches of linguistics

Grammar
- system of rules of reading: singular and plural forms
of nouns, the past tense forms and past participles of
English regular verbs, e.g. /d/ is pronounced after
voiced consonants (beg-begged) and /t/ - after
voiceless consonants (wish-wished), /id/ -after /t/
(want-wanted);
- sound interchange: the interchange of /f-v/, /s-z/
helps to differentiate singular and plural forms of such
nouns as : calf-calves, house-houses;
- vowel interchange is connected with the tense form
of irregular verbs: sing-sang-sung; write-wrote-written

12. Connections to other branches of linguistics

Lexicology
- The presence of stress or accent distinguishes nouns from
verbs (formed by conversion), e.g :
‘abstract – to ab’stract / ‘object - to ob’ject
- Homographs can be differentiated only due to
pronunciation, because they are identical in spelling, e.g.:
bow /bou/ - bow /bau/ || lead / lid/ - lead /led/
row /rou/ -row /rau/
- Due to the position of word accent we can distinguish
between homonymous words and word groups, e.g.:
‘blackbird - ‘black ‘bird

13. The importance of phonetics

2. Find the phonetic symbol for the first sound in
each of the following words:
a. this
g. knee
b. usual
h. hear
c. church
i. phonetics
d. christian
j. giant
e. thousand
k. one
f. psychology

14. The importance of phonetics

3. Find the phonetic symbol for the last sound in
each of the following words:
a. tough
f. shapes
b. kicked
g. bones
c. loved
h. parking
d. health
i. wave
e. dog
j. large

15. Outline of the study course

1) Speech production mechanisms
2) System of vowels /system of consonants
3) Functional aspect of phonetics: phonemes and
allophones
4) Modifications of sounds in connected speech
5) Syllables and rules of syllabification
6) Suprasegmental features: stress and
intonation, accentual patterns
7) Varieties and styles of pronunciation
8) Comparison of Russian and English phonetics

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Aspects and units of phonetics
The sound phenomena have different aspects:
(a) the articulatory aspect (articulation);
(b) the acoustic aspect (transmission);
(c) the auditory (perception) aspect;
(d) the functional (linguistic) aspect.

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The speech organs can be divided into the
following four groups:
(1) the power mechanism;
(2) the vibration mechanism;
(3) the resonator mechanism;
(4) the obstruction mechanism.

18. Power mechanism of speech production

19.

Speech production

20. Articulation of sounds

Presence/absence of obstruction
Concentrated or diffused muscular tension
Force of exhalation
Consonants
Vowels
Sonorants

21. Place of articulation: passive and active articulators

22. Place of articulation chart

23. CONSONANTS

English consonants are classified according to the
following principles:
1. Work of the vocal cords and the force of
exhalation.
2. Active organ of speech and the place of
obstruction
3. Manner of the noise production and the type of
obstruction.
4. Position of the soft palate.

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1. According to the work of the vocal cords and
the force of exhalation English consonants are
subdivided into voiced and voiceless. Voiced
consonants are produced with the vocal cords
brought together and vibrating.
2. According to the position of the active organ of
speech against the place of obstruction English
consonants are classified into labial, lingual
and glottal.
Labial consonants are subdivided into bilabial
and labiodental. Bilabial consonants are
articulated with both lips.

25.

Lingual consonants are subdivided into
forelingual, mediolingual and backlingual.
Forelingual consonants are articulated with the tip
or the blade of the tongue: interdental [ð, θ],
alveolar [t, d, s, z, l, n], post-alveolar [r].and
palato-alveolar [∫, 3, d3, t∫].
Mediolingual consonants are articulated with the
front part of the tongue raised high to the hard palate
[j].
Backlingual consonants are articulated with the
back part of the tongue raised towards the soft palate
[k, g, ŋ].
Glottal (pharyngeal) consonants are articulated in
the glottis [h].

26.

3. According to the type of obstruction consonants
are divided into occlusive, constrictive and
occlusive-constrictive or affricates [t∫, d3].
Constrictive consonants are subdivided into
fricatives [s, f, z, ð, θ, ∫, v, 3, h] and sonorants
[w, r, j, l].
4. According to the position of the soft palate
consonants are subdivided into oral and nasal.
Nasal consonants are articulated with the
blocked passage for the flow of air through the
mouth cavity which is effected by lowering of the
soft palate [m, n, ŋ].

27. VOICING (force of articulation: fortis/lenis)

Pulmonic egressive mechanism
State of the glottis: (do the vocal cords vibrate or not?)
* Voiceless
*Voiced
The difference between voiced and voiceless sounds is
functional in English:
A
B
pull
ten
cot
fast
sink
chew
bull
den
got
vast
zinc
Jew

28. Place of articulation (address)

Bilabial: voiceless stop [p], voiced stop [b], and
(voiced) nasal [m].
Labio-dental: voiceless fricative [f] and voiced
fricative [v].
Dental: voiceless fricative [θ] and voiced [ð].
Alveolar: stop [t],voiced alveolar stop [d],
voiceless and voiced alveolar fricatives [s] and
[z], voiced nasal [n], a voiced lateral
approximant [l], voiced central approximant [r].

29. Place of articulation (address)

Post-alveolar: voiceless fricative [∫], voiced fricative [ʒ],
voiceless affricate [t∫], voiced affricate [dʒ].
Retroflex: approximant [r].
Palatal: approximant [j].
Velar:voiceless stop [k], a voiced stop [g], and nasal
approximant [w].
[ŋ],
Uvular: further back than velar (nonexistent in English).
Pharyngeal: made by moving the tongue body down and
back
into the pharynx. Such sounds do not occur in
English.
Glottal: voiceless glottal fricative [h]

30. Manner of Articulation

STOP: pin || bin tin || din kilt || gilt
[ p b t d k g ] - plosives [m,n] – nasals
FRICATIVE: [f v Ө ð s z ∫ʒ] (spirants - s z ∫ʒ)
fan || van thin || then sink || zinc shrill || genre
AFFRICATE: chain || Jane [t∫] [dʒ ]
APPROXIMANT: [r l w j ] as in read lead weed and yield
(Liquids thus the sound [l] is grouped with “r” sounds and [j], [w]
are called glides)
NASAL: [m n ŋ]
LATERAL: [l] peddle || paddle || huddle || kettle || battle || cattle
TRILL: an articulator is made to vibrate
TAPS and FLAPS: lighter || rider

31. Manner of articulation

32. Summary consonants

a) THE AIRSTREAM MECHANISM
the way in which the moving body of air that provides the power for speech
production is generated and the direction in which it moves.
(b) THE STATE OF THE GLOTTIS
Voiceless sounds are produced when there is a wide open glottis, with a big
space between the vocal cords;
Voiced sounds are produced when the vocal cords are close together so that
the air has to force its way through them, making them vibrate in the
process.
(c) THE PLACE OF ARTICULATION
place in the vocal tract where the airstream is obstructed in the production of
a consonant.
(d) THE MANNER OF ARTICULATION
the way in which the airstream is interfered with in producing a consonant.

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34. Vowels

Three basic modifications to the shape of the
vocal tract: height, rounding and backness.
1) Height: Say the words below carefully. Observe the
position of the highest point of your tongue and your lower
jaw.
HIGH (close)
LOW (open)
MID
[i] seek [u:] pool
[æ] sat
[e] set
[ι] sick [ ‫ ]ט‬pull
[ ᾳ] part
[ ‫ ]ס‬pot
2) Rounding of the lips: rounded /spread
3) Backness front / central / back

35. Systematic correlation

36. Systematic correlation

37. Systematic correlation

38.

Cardinal Vowels

39. Vowels

Stability of articulation:
monophthongs || diphthongs
Classification of diphthongs on the
closing and the centring
Type
Constituent vowels
Closing eɪ, ɔʊ, ɑɪ, ɑʊ, ɔɪ
Centring ɪə, ɛə, ɔə, ʊə

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Diphthongs

41. Vowel classification for ESL purposes

1) stability of articulation;
2) tongue position:
close a) narrow: [i:] [u:];
b) broad: [i], [u], [i(ə)], [u(ə)];
mid
a) narrow: [e], [з:], [ə], [e(i)], [з(u)];
b) broad: [ə], [٨];
open a) narrow: [ε(ə)], [ɔ:], [ɒ (i)];
b) broad: [æ], [a(i, u)], [ɒ], [a:]

42. Vowel classification for ESL purposes

3) lip position (rounded || spread);
4) character of the vowel end (checked ||
unchecked);
5) length: 1. its own length; 2. the accent of the
syllable in which it occurs; 3. phonetic context;
4. the position in a rhythmic structure; 5. the
position in a tone group; 6. the position in an
utterance; 7. the tempo of the whole utterance;
8. the type of pronunciation.
6) tenseness (tense || lax)

43. Aspects of phonetics

articulatory
characteristics
acoustic
properties
Auditory
(perceptible)
qualities
linguistic
phenomena
vibration of the
vocal cords
fundamental
frequency
melody
pitch
different positions
and movements
of speech organs
formant
frequency
quality (timbre)
phoneme
the amplitude of
vibrations
intensity
loudness
stress
the quantity of
time during which
the sound is
pronounced
duration
length
tempo, rhythm,
pauses