nha1 - vowels

8/3/2019 NHA1 - Vowels

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CHAPTER 2: THE PRODUCTION OF SPEECHSOUNDS

Articulators above the larynxVowel and consonant:-definitions-differences between vowels & consonantsVowels:

-differences among vowels-short vowels-long vowels-diphthongs

-triphthongs


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I. Articulators above the larynxI.1 Process of producing speechsounds

Air: lungslarynx throughvocal tract ending at themouth and nostrilsatmosphere.

set of muscles producingchanges in the shape of the

vocal tract = articulators


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I.2. Main articulators

Pharynx: a tube which begins justabove the larynx; 7 cm long in women& 8cm in men; at its top end divided

into 2: 1 part being the back of themouth and the other being thebeginning of the way through the nasalcavity.

Velum (soft palate) :allows air topass through the nose and through themouth

Hard palate (roof of the mouth). We

can feel its smooth curved surface withour tongue.


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The alveolar ridge: between the topfront teeth and the hard palate. Its

surface is really much rougher than itsfeels, and is covered with little ridges.

The tongue: a very importantarticulator and can be moved intomany different places and differentshapes. It is usual to divide thetongue into different parts, though

there is no clear dividing lines withinthe tongue: tip, blade, front,middle, back, root.


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tip

blade

front back

rootFig.2 Sub-divisions of the

tongue


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The teeth: includes upperand lower teeth, is in contactwith the upper side teeth formany speech sounds.

The lips: important in speech;can be pressed together,brought into contact with the

teeth, or rounded to producethe lip-shape for vowels likeu:.


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II> Differences between vowels &

consonants

Vowels and consonants are different notonly in the way that they are produced, ormanner of articulation, but their

distribution, or the different contextsand positions in which particular soundscan occur.

E.g.: The sound /p/ is produced by

stopping the air stream from the lungstotally and then releasing it sharply with asmall plosion.

After the sound /h/ we often find vowels,

for example, in the words hen, hat, how,

PHONETIC SYMBOLS


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PHONETIC SYMBOLSPhonetic symbols of Englishconsonant and vowel sounds

Consonants-/p/:pen, copy, happen-/b/: back, baby, job- /t/: tea, tight, button

-/d/: day, ladder, odd-/k/: key, clock, school-/g/get, giggle, ghost-/t~/: church, match,

natured

-/d2/:judge, age, soldier-/f/: fat, coffee, rough,

photo-/v/: view, heavy, move-/8/: thing, author, path

-/5/: this, other, smooth

-/s/:soon, cease, sister-/z/: zero, music, roses,

buzz-/~/:ship, sure, national-/2/pleasure, vision

-/h/: hot, whole, ahead-/m/: more, hammer,

sum-/n/: nice, know, funny,

sun

-/7/:ring, anger, thank-/s/: sung-/l/: light, valley-lr/: right, wrong, sorry,

arrange

-/j/: yet, use, beauty-/w/: wet, when, queen


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Vowels

/1/kit, bid, hymn, minute/e/dress, bed, head, many

//trap, bad

/4/lot, odd, wash

/ /strut, mud, love/$/foot, good, put

/i:/fleece, sea, machine

/e1/face, day, break

/a1/price, high, try/41/choice, boy

/u:/goose, two, blue

/6$/goat, show, no

/a$/mouth, now

/16/near, here, weary

/e6/square. fair, various/@:/start, father

/0:/thought, law, north, war

/$6/poor, jury, cure

/3:/nurse, stir, learn, refer

/6/about, common, standard/ju/thank you, influence,

situation

/n/suddenly, cottonlmiddle,metal(stress mark)


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ENGLISH VOWELS

I> Definition: Vowels are differentiated fromconsonants by the relatively wide opening inthe mouth as air passes from the lungs out ofthe body. This means that there is relativelylittle obstruction of the air stream in

comparison to consonants. [Avery & Ehrlich,1995: 28]

II> Differences among vowels (vowelclassification criteria)


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quality or in quantity.

Quality: features other than lengthwhich distinguish one vowel fromanother [Richard et al., 1993: 404].

characteristics:

-Tongue height: how far the tongue is

raisedclose, half close, half open,and open vowels (four-way division),or high, mid, low vowels (three waydivision).

-Tongue part: which part of the tongue(the front, the middle, or the back) israised

front, central and back vowels.


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Lip shape: whether the lips arerounded, spread, or neither

rounded nor spread.+rounded for rounded vowels

+spreadfor unrounded vowels,

+neither rounded nor spread forneutral vowels.

Tenseness/laxness: whether the

muscles are tense or lax muscles: tense for long vowels,

lax for short vowels.


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Quantity /Lengththe physicalduration of a sound:

+different in length long vowels are long

short vowels are short


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III> Classification of vowels

English vowels : monophthongs (purevowels), diphthongs, and triphthongs.[Finch, 2000: 76-77]

Monophthongs: single vowels/purevowels, vowels with a single perceivedauditory quality produced by a movement

of the articulators toward one position inthe vocal tract. [Crystal, 1999:221]

E.g.: 1/kit, bid, hymn, minute

/e/dress, bed, head


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frontcentral back

spread neutral

rounded

i:

1

e

`^

U:

$

6

3:0:

a:

4

high/

close

mid

low/open

Half close

Half open


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English pure vowels

/i:/: long, tense, high, front, spread

/1/: short, lax, high, front, slightly spread

/e/: short, lax, mid, front, slightly spread

/`/: short, low, front, slightly spread, tenser

than /e/

/u:/: long, tense, high, back, rounded, slightlyprotruded

/$/: short, lax, high, back, rounded, slightly

protruded


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/0:/: long, tense, mid, back, rounded, but

not protruded

/4/: short, lax, low, back, slightly rounded,

but not protruded

/@:/: long, tense, low, back, neutral

/3:/: long, tense, a bit lower than mid,

central, neutral

/6/: short, lax, mid, central, neutral

/^/: short, lax, fairly low, central, neutral


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Diphthongs

(glides): vowels sounds which involve amovement from one vowel to another.

centring Closing

ending in 6 ending in $ ending in 1

16 e6 $6 6$ a$ e1 a1 41


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Triphthongs

glide from one vowel to another,and then to another [Finch,2000: 76]

5 closing diphthongs + 6

e16, a16, 416, 6$6, a46


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SUMMARY

Definitions of vowels & consonants

Differences between vowels &consonants: manner of articulation (way

of sound production), distribution Vowels: definition, differences among

vowels : tongue height, tongues part, lip

shape, tenseness/backness, length Monophthongs: short and long vowels,

diphthtongs, triphthongs: definitions,sound description


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Game: Pairs of written vowels

nha1 - vowels

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