Phonetic > physical aspects of speech

Phonology > linguistic patterning of sounds

Co-articulation > articulations of one sound have an uncountable effect on neighboring

sounds.

The principle of contrast > acoustic difference of one sound from another

Phonemes > contrastively different sound

Allophones > phonologically conditioned variants of a phoneme.

Two names of one person or thing (allophones) mean

Phonetics

Phonetics is the study of the physical sounds of human speech. It focuses on how sounds are
produced, transmitted, and perceived.

Branches of Phonetics

1. Articulatory Phonetics

 Definition: Studies how speech sounds are produced by the movement of the
speech organs (lips, tongue, vocal cords, etc.).

 Example: The difference between the sounds /p/ (a voiceless bilabial plosive)
and /b/ (a voiced bilabial plosive) is in vocal cord vibration.

 Symbols: Uses the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) to represent sounds,

e.g., /p/, /b/, /t/, /d/.

2. Acoustic Phonetics

 Definition: Studies the physical properties of speech sounds as sound waves

(frequency, amplitude, duration).

 Example: Analyzing the waveform of the vowel /a/ to understand its pitch and
intensity.

 Symbols: Waveforms and spectrograms are used to visualize sounds; IPA

symbols represent the sounds analyzed.

3. Auditory Phonetics
  Definition: Studies how speech sounds are perceived and processed by the ear
and brain.

 Example: How listeners distinguish between /s/ and /ʃ/ sounds.

 Symbols: No specific symbols, but perception studies often relate to IPA

symbols.

Phonology

Phonology studies how sounds function within a particular language or languages, focusing
on the abstract, cognitive aspects of sounds and their patterns.

Branches of Phonology

1. Segmental Phonology

 Definition: Studies individual speech sounds (phonemes) and their

organization in a language.

 Example: The phonemes /p/ and /b/ in English distinguish words like "pat"
and "bat."

 Symbols: Phonemes are represented in slashes, e.g., /p/, /b/, /t/, /d/.

2. Suprasegmental Phonology (Prosody)

 Definition: Studies features that extend over more than one sound segment,
such as stress, intonation, tone, and rhythm.

 Example: The difference in meaning between a statement and a question in

English often depends on intonation patterns.

 Symbols:

 Stress: ˈ (primary stress), ˌ (secondary stress) before the stressed

syllable, e.g., /ˈkætəɡɔri/ (category).

 Intonation and tone are often marked with diacritics or special notation
in phonological transcription.
Summary Table

Branch Focus Example Symbols/Notation

Articulatory How sounds are /p/ vs /b/ (voiceless vs IPA symbols: /p/, /b/,
Phonetics produced voiced) /t/, /d/

Physical properties of Waveforms,

Acoustic Phonetics Waveform of vowel /a/
sounds spectrograms, IPA

How sounds are Distinguishing /s/ IPA symbols (for

Auditory Phonetics
perceived and /ʃ/ reference)

Segmental Phonemes and sound /p/ and /b/ distinguish /p/, /b/, /t/, /d/
Phonology patterns words (phonemes)

Suprasegmental
Stress, intonation, tone Stress in 'record
Phonology

Phonetics: Basic Definitions

Phonetics is the branch of linguistics that studies the sounds of human speech. It focuses on
how speech sounds are produced, transmitted, and perceived.

Phonetics is generally divided into three main branches:

1. Articulatory Phonetics: How speech sounds are produced by the movement of the
vocal organs (lips, tongue, vocal cords, etc.).

2. Acoustic Phonetics: The physical properties of speech sounds as sound waves.

3. Auditory Phonetics: How speech sounds are perceived by the ear and processed by
the brain.

Basic Terms and Examples

  Phoneme: The smallest unit of sound that can distinguish meaning in a language.
Example: /p/ and /b/ in "pat" vs. "bat" are different phonemes.

 Allophone: Variations of a phoneme that do not change meaning.

Example: The /p/ in "spin" (unaspirated) vs. "pin" (aspirated) are allophones of the
phoneme /p/.

 Consonants: Speech sounds produced with some obstruction of airflow.

Example: /t/, /k/, /m/

 Vowels: Speech sounds produced without significant obstruction of airflow.

Example: /i/ (as in "see"), /æ/ (as in "cat")

Common Phonetic Symbols (IPA)

The International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) is the most widely used system for phonetic
transcription. Here are some basic IPA symbols with examples:

IPA Example
Sound Type Description
Symbol Word

Voiceless bilabial Produced by closing both lips and releasing

/p/ "pat"
plosive air

Voiced bilabial plosive /b/ "bat" Like /p/ but with vocal cord vibration

Voiceless alveolar Tongue touches the alveolar ridge, and air is

/t/ "top"
plosive released

Voiced alveolar plosive /d/ "dog" Like /t/t/but voiced

The back of the tongue touches the soft

Voiceless velar plosive /k/ "cat"
palate

Voiced velar plosive /g/ "go" Like /k/ but voiced

Nasal bilabial /m/ "man" Air flows through the nose, lips closed

Nasal alveolar /n/ "no" Air flows through the nose, tongue, and
 IPA Example
Sound Type Description
Symbol Word

alveolar ridge

Vowel close front

/i/ "see" Tongue high and front, lips unrounded
unrounded

Vowel open front

/æ/ "cat" Tongue low and front, lips unrounded
unrounded

Example Transcription

The word "cat" can be transcribed phonetically as:

 /k/ = voiceless velar plosive

 /æ/ = open front unrounded vowel

 /t/ = voiceless alveolar plosive

If you want, I can provide more detailed information on any specific area of phonetics!

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BLACKBOXAI

Certainly! Here's a more detailed explanation of phonetics, including deeper insights into
articulatory phonetics, acoustic phonetics, auditory phonetics, phoneme classification, and a
more comprehensive overview of IPA symbols.
1. Articulatory Phonetics

Articulatory phonetics studies how speech sounds are produced by the movement and
configuration of the vocal organs. The main organs involved are:

 Lungs: Provide airflow.

 Vocal cords (vocal folds): Can vibrate to produce voiced sounds.

 Glottis: Space between vocal cords.

 Pharynx: Throat area.

 Oral cavity: Mouth.

 Nasal cavity: Nose.

 Tongue: Has different parts (tip, blade, front, back, root).

 Lips: Can be rounded or spread.

Key Parameters in Articulatory Phonetics

a) Place of Articulation

Where the airflow is obstructed in the vocal tract:

Place Description Example Sounds (IPA)

Bilabial Both lips /p/, /b/, /m/

Labiodental Lower lip and upper teeth /f/, /v/

Interdental Tongue tip or blade and teeth /θ/ (thin), /ð/ (this)

Alveolar Tongue tip or blade and alveolar ridge /t/, /d/, /s/, /z/, /n/, /l/

Postalveolar Just behind the alveolar ridge /ʃ/ (sh), /ʒ/ (measure)

Palatal Body of tongue and hard palate /j/ (yes)

Velar Back of tongue and soft palate /k/, /g/, /ŋ/ (sing)

Glottal Vocal cords (glottis) /h/, glottal stop [ʔ]

b) Manner of Articulation

How the airflow is obstructed:

Manner Description Example Sounds (IPA)

Plosive (stop) Complete closure, then release /p/, /b/, /t/, /d/, /k/, /g/

Nasal Air flows through the nose /m/, /n/, /ŋ/

Fricative Narrow constriction causing friction /f/, /v/, /s/, /z/, /ʃ/, /ʒ/, /θ/, /ð/, /h/

Affricate Stop + fricative sequence /tʃ/ (ch), /dʒ/ (j)

Approximant Slight constriction, no friction /j/ (y), /w/

Lateral approximant Air flows around the sides of the tongue /l/

c) Voicing

 Voiced sounds: Vocal cords vibrate (e.g., /b/, /d/, /g/, /v/, /z/).

 Voiceless sounds: Vocal cords do not vibrate (e.g., /p/, /t/, /k/, /f/, /s/).

2. Acoustic Phonetics

Acoustic phonetics studies the physical properties of speech sounds as sound waves.
Important properties include:

 Frequency (pitch): Number of vibrations per second (Hz).

 Amplitude (loudness): Intensity of the sound wave.

 Duration: Length of the sound.

 Formants: Resonant frequencies of the vocal tract are important for vowel quality.

For example, vowels are characterized by their first two formants, F1 and F2:

 High front vowel /i/ (as in "see") has low F1 and high F2.

 Low back vowel /ɑ/ (as in "father") has high F1 and low F2.
3. Auditory Phonetics

Auditory phonetics studies how speech sounds are perceived by the ear and processed by the
brain. It involves:

 The outer ear captures sound waves.

 The middle ear transmits vibrations.

 The inner ear converts vibrations into neural signals.

 The brain interprets these signals as speech sounds.

4. Phonemes and Allophones

 Phoneme: Abstract mental representation of a sound that can distinguish meaning.

Example: /p/ and /b/ in "pat" vs. "bat".

 Allophone: Variants of a phoneme that do not change meaning.

Example: The aspirated [pʰ] in "pin" vs. the unaspirated [p] in "spin" are allophones
of /p/ in English.

5. The International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)

The IPA is a standardized system to represent speech sounds from all languages. Here are
more detailed IPA symbols with examples:

Consonants

Symbol Description Example Word Notes

/p/ Voiceless bilabial plosive pin Lips closed, no voicing

/b/ Voiced bilabial plosive bin Lips closed, voiced

/t/ Voiceless alveolar plosive top Tongue at the alveolar ridge

/d/ Voiced alveolar plosive dog Tongue at the alveolar ridge

/k/ Voiceless velar plosive cat Back of tongue at velum

Symbol Description Example Word Notes

/g/ Voiced velar plosive go Back of tongue at velum

/m/ Bilabial nasal man Air through the nose

/n/ Alveolar nasal no Air through the nose

/ŋ/ Velar nasal sing Air through the nose

/f/ Voiceless labiodental fricative fan Lower lip and upper teeth

/v/ Voiced labiodental fricative van Lower lip and upper teeth

/θ/ Voiceless dental fricative thin Tongue between teeth

/ð/ Voiced dental fricative this Tongue between teeth

/s/ Voiceless alveolar fricative see Tongue near the alveolar ridge

/z/ Voiced alveolar fricative zoo Tongue near the alveolar ridge

/ʃ/ Voiceless postalveolar fricative she Tongue near the postalveolar

/ʒ/ Voiced postalveolar fricative measure Tongue near the postalveolar

/h/ Voiceless glottal fricative hat Vocal cords open

/tʃ/ Voiceless postalveolar affricate chin Stop + fricative

/dʒ/ Voiced postalveolar affricate jam Stop + fricative

/l/ Alveolar lateral approximant lip Air flows around the tongue

/r/ Alveolar approximant red Tongue near the alveolar ridge

/j/ Palatal approximant yes Like English "y"

/w/ Labio-velar approximant we Rounded lips + back tongue

Vowels

Vowels are classified by tongue height, tongue position (front/back), and lip rounding.
Symbol Description Example Word Notes

/i/ Close front unrounded vowel see High tongue, f

/ɪ/ Near-close near-front unrounded vowel sit Slightly lower

/e/ or /eɪ/ Close-mid front unrounded vowel or diphthong say Tongue mid-hi

/ɛ/ Open-mid front unrounded vowel bed Tongue mid-lo

/æ/ Near-open front unrounded vowel cat Tongue low, fr

/ɑ/ Open back unrounded vowel father Tongue low, ba

/ɔ/ Open-mid back rounded vowel caught Tongue mid-lo

/ʊ/ Near-close near-back rounded vowel put Slightly lower

/u/ Close back-rounded vowel food High tone, bac

/ʌ/ Open-mid back unrounded vowel cup Tongue mid-lo

/ə/ Mid-central vowel (schwa) about Neutral tongue

6. Example: Detailed Phonetic Transcription

Let's transcribe the sentence:

"The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog."

A possible IPA transcription (General American English) is:

Math input error

 /ð/ = voiced dental fricative (th in "the")

 /ə/ = schwa (unstressed vowel)

 /kw/ = /k/ + /w/ cluster

 /ɪ/ = near-close front unrounded vowel (i in "quick")

 /aʊ/ = diphthong (ow in "brown")

 /dʒ/ = voiced postalveolar affricate (j in "jumps")

 /ʌ/ = open-mid back unrounded vowel (u in "jumps")

 /oʊ/ = diphthong (o in "over")

 /ɚ/ = rhotacized schwa (er sound in "over")

 /eɪ/ = diphthong (ay in "lazy")

 /ɔ/ = open-mid back rounded vowel (o in "dog")

(VOWEL)

- Sound produced with a relatively open vocal tract

- They are always voiced
- The most sonorant, the most intense, or the most audible sounds in the speech.
 - They function as syllable nuclei: consonants do not have the sound of their own, but
vowels give sounds to the syllable.

VOWEL PRODUCTION

₋ The vocal tract above the glottis acts as a resonator, affecting the sound made
by the vocal folds.
₋ The shape of this resonator determines the quality of the vowel: this is how (i) is
different from (u) or (a).
₋ The shape of the vocal tract can be changed by:
1. Raising or lowering the body of the tongue (high vowel, low vowel & mid
vowel)
2. Advancing or retracting the body of the tongue (maju mundur nya lidah
3. Rounding or not rounding the lips,
4. Making these movements with a tense or lax gesture.

Vowel Description
₋ [i] high front unrounded and tense
₋ [ᴐ] mid, back, rounded, and lax
₋ [a] low, back, unrounded, and tense
₋ Mid front lax unrounded vowel

1. Definition of Vowels

 In linguistics, a vowel is a speech sound produced without significant constriction

of airflow in the vocal tract.

 Vowels are the nucleus of syllables, meaning every syllable must contain at least one
vowel sound.

 In English writing, vowels are represented by the letters: A, E, I, O, U (and

sometimes Y).

🔹 2. Types of Vowels
A. Short Vowels

These are pronounced quickly, with short duration.

Symbol Example Word IPA Example

/æ/ cat cat

/ɛ/ bed bed

/ɪ/ sit sit

/ɒ/ (UK) /ɑ/ (US) hot hot

/ʌ/ cup cup

/ʊ/ put put

B. Long Vowels

These are held longer in duration, often written with a “magic e” or vowel digraphs.

Symbol Example Word IPA Example

/iː/ see see

/ɑː/ car car

/ɔː/ call call

/uː/ food food

/ɜː/ bird bird

C. Diphthongs (Gliding Vowels)

A diphthong is a vowel sound that starts as one vowel and glides into another within the
same syllable.

Symbol Example Word IPA Example

/aɪ/ time, my time

Symbol Example Word IPA Example

/eɪ/ day, say day

/ɔɪ/ boy, toy boy

/aʊ/ now, house now

/oʊ/ go, home go

/ɪə/ (UK) near near

/eə/ (UK) hair hair

/ʊə/ (UK) sure sure

D. Triphthongs

A triphthong is a glide from one vowel to another and then to a third within the same
syllable.

 Common in English: /aɪə/ (fire), /aʊə/ (power).

🔹 3. Vowel Classification by Tongue Position

Linguists classify vowels based on tongue height and tongue position:

1. Tongue Height

o High/Close: /iː/ (see), /uː/ (food)

o Mid: /e/ (bed), /ə/ (about), /ɔː/ (call)

o Low/Open: /æ/ (cat), /ɑː/ (car)

2. Tongue Position (Front–Back)

o Front vowels: /iː/, /e/, /æ/

o Central vowels: /ə/, /ɜː/, /ʌ/

o Back vowels: /uː/, /ɔː/, /ɑː/

 3. Rounded vs. Unrounded

o Rounded: lips rounded (e.g., /uː/, /ɔː/)

o Unrounded: lips spread/neutral (e.g., /iː/, /æ/)

🔹 4. Vowels in English Orthography

 A → can be /æ/ (cat), /eɪ/ (make), /ɑː/ (car)

 E → can be /ɛ/ (bed), /iː/ (see), /ə/ (problem)

 I → can be /ɪ/ (sit), /aɪ/ (time), /iː/ (machine)

 O → can be /ɒ/ (hot), /oʊ/ (go), /uː/ (move)

 U → can be /ʌ/ (cup), /juː/ (use), /uː/ (blue)

 Y → acts as vowel: /ɪ/ (gym), /aɪ/ (cry), /iː/ (happy).

🔹 5. Examples of Vowel Use in Words

 Short vowel words: cat, bed, sit, hot, cup

 Long vowel words: see, car, food, bird, home

 Diphthong words: my, day, boy, now, go, hair

 Triphthong words: fire, power

✅ Summary:

 A vowel is a sound produced without blocking airflow.

 In English: A, E, I, O, U (sometimes Y).

 Types: short, long, diphthongs, triphthongs.

 Classified by tongue height, position, and lip rounding.

 They are essential to form syllables and give shape to words.