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Descriptive Grammarof English

Part 1:Phonetics

and Phonology

dr Iwona Kokorniak

(with contribution from dr Jarosław Weckwerth)

14th December 2008

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The phonemeSounds that are used to distinguish contrasts between words...

Are called phonemes

rat – bat cat – bat rat – cat

These are minimal pairs

This is the domain of phonology

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The phoneme

The phoneme is the smallest unitof sound contrast

It may bring about a change of meaning

For ‘normal people’phoneme = speech sound

But really it’s an abstract groupingof sound variants

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The allophone

Variants of one phoneme are called allophones (domain of phonetics)

Allophones of one phoneme usually have many features in common

/t/[th] [t]

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AllophonesConsistent variants of the same phoneme occurring in different words or in different positions in a word or…

Contextual variants of the same phoneme or…

Different phonetic realizations of a phoneme

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Why is it good to know?

Consider Polish: sieć – keks

Consider French mes – mais

Consider Eastern Polish: ława – lawa

Consider English: let – tell

Consider Spanish: donde – entrada

Consider English: then – den

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Why is it good to know?

What’s a phoneme in one language

May be an allophone in another

‘Similar’ phonemes may havedifferent allophones

One of the sources of ‘foreign accent’

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Contrastive distributionTwo sounds are in contrastive distribution when they are capable of distinguishing meaning;

It means that they don’t belong to the same category i.e. phoneme.

They are two different phonemes.

To check it is to find a minimal pair, e.g.: pin – bin

Or compare them in terms of voicing, place and manner of articulation

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Complementary distribution

Only allophones of a phoneme can be in complementary distribution

they complement each other, they never contrast,

One has occurrences which the other one doesn’t, e.g. [pʰ] and [p]

If you replace one by the other they do not distinguish the meaning

It will only sound unnatural

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Transcription

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Voiceless plosives – Aspiration 1

Voiceless plosives are aspirated if before vowel in a stressed syllable (not after /s/):

pat [phæt] tap [thæp] cap [khæp]

but notstack [stæk] span [spæn] today [tə'deɪ]

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Voiceless plosives – Aspiration 2

[phæt]aspiration

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Voiceless plosives – Aspiration 3

[rɪ'theɪn]aspiration

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Voiceless plosives – Aspiration 4

[tə'deɪ]no aspiration

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Voiceless plosives – Aspiration 5

[skeɪt]no aspiration

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Voiced plosives

English has voiced plosives /b d g/

At beginnings of words (like Polish)

But also (unlike Polish)

at ends of words, e.g. bad

next to voiceless sounds, e.g. bedtime

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Voiced plosives – Devoicing

Voiced plosives are devoiced if next to silenceor a voiceless sound

Devoicing on the left: initial devoicing

Devoicing on the right: final devoicing

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Voiced plosives – devoicing

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Voiced plosives: Devoicing

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All plosives: Lack of release

When another plosive follows

The first one is unreleased

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All plosives: Lack of release

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Plosives: Nasal release

Consider: brudny, setny

If a homorganic nasal follows

Release is by lowering the velum

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Nasal release: Zoom

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Homorganic sounds

Homorganic means

Articulated at the same place

/t d n/ are all alveolar= they’re homorganic

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Plosives: Lateral releaseConsider: wedle, butlaIf a homorganic lateral followsRelease is achieved by lowering the side(s) of the tongue

<<

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Lateral release: Zoom

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Plosives

Aspiration (voiceless)

Partial devoicing (voiced)

Lack of release

All of these different from Polish

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Plosives

Nasal release

Lateral release

The same as in Polish!

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Voiceless plosives: Glottalization 1

At the end of syllable

A ‘glottal stop’ may be inserted before the

plosive

Or it may replace it completely

Most often applies to /t/

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Voiceless plosives: Glottalization 2

[phæʔt] or [phæʔ]

glottal stop

glottal reinforcement

glottal replacement

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Voiceless plosives: Glottalization 3

Glottalization is optional

More widespread in British Eng.

But also used in American Eng.

NEVER applies to sounds other than

voiceless plosives

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Voiceless plosives: Glottalization 4

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T voicing

Before an unstressed vowel:Between vowelsOr before syllabic /l/Or after /n l r/ in AmEng

/t/ may be voiced

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T voicing: Zoom

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T voicing: Zoom

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T voicing

Almost obligatory in AmEngOptional in BrEngIPA symbol:

[ɾ]

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T voicing – Taps

Between vowels [ɾ] is a tap

Tongue tip goes up towards the alveolar ridge...

... and back down very quickly

Quite like a short /d/ or Polish /r/ in

para ['paɾa]

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T voicing – Flaps

After /r/ in AmEng [ɾ] is a flap

Tongue tip touches the alveolar ridge very quickly...

... ‘in passing’, when going down from the alveolar ridge

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English fricative allophones

Voiced fricatives can be partially devoiced, the same as plosives

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English affricate allophones

Voiced affricates can be partially devoiced, the same as plosives and fricatives

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Partial devoicing

[muuuvvvfff]

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English nasal allophones

Slightly devoiced after /s/

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Syllabicity of nasals

nasals, together with [r, l], can be syllabic when they occur at the ends of words when immediately after an obstruent

the diacritic [ ׀ ] under a consonant indicates that it is syllabic

e.g. leaden, chasm

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Syllabicity of nasals: Zoom

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English approximant allophones

They all undergo complete devoicing

After a voiceless plosive

At the beginning of a stressed syllable

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Approximants – Complete devoicing

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Approximants – Complete devoicing

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Approximants – Partial devoicing

an approximant is partially devoiced when preceded by a voiceless fricative

E.g. swim, free, fly, flee, etc.

The diacritic is used below the approximant to indicate its partial devoicing

It is used above [j], though.

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Approximants - Devoicing

No devoicing at the beginnings and ends of words!

Very different from Polish

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Velarization of /l/

a lateral is velarized

the back of the tongue raised towards the velum, as in [u:])

after a vowel or before another consonant or in the final position

the symbol is

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Clear and dark /l/

(The difference is less noticeable in AmEng)

Before vowels or /j/: normal, clear /l/Like in Polish

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Clear /l/

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Clear and dark /l/

Elsewhere, dark velarised /l/Like ‘gładkie ł’ in Polish

[ɫ]

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Clear and dark /l/

[l] [ɫ]

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Dark /l/

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Syllabicity of laterals

The lateral /l/ is syllabic at the end of a word when immediately after a consonant

E.g. paddle, whistle, channel

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Syllabicity of /r/

In AmE, /r/ becomes syllabic when it occurs at the end of a word and after a consonant

E.g. razor, hammer, tailor

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Coarticulation

coarticulation takes place when sounds influence each other

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Coarticulation

Consider Polish:

susy vs. siuśki

Is the /u/ the same?

sień vs. sen

Is the /e/ the same?

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Coarticulation

In both cases, the palatal consonants pull the vowel

Towards the front

Upwards

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Coarticulation

all utterances involve coarticulation

i.e. the overlapping of adjacent (neighbouring) articulations

English consonants vary their place of articulation so that they often become more like the next sound

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Coarticulation

English is an anticipatory languagethe articulation of the sounds yet to come are anticipated to some extent Other languages, e.g. Italian or French, are perseverative the articulation of one sound tends to persevere, or continue, into the following sound

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Palatalisation

a consonant is palatalised when followed by /i:/ or /j/

the front of the tongue is raised towards the hard palate

the diacritic is [J]

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Palatalisation: Zoom

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More coarticulation

Consider:

kura vs. kij

Lip rounding during /k/

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More coarticulation

All consonants are lip-rounded before a rounded vowel

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Labialisation

a consonant is labialised when followed by /w/ or a rounded vowel /u:/ /o:/

lips are rounded during the articulation of the consonant

the symbol is [W]

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Labialisation: Zoom

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Good news

Some of it is the same in Polish and English

E.g. consonant lip-rounding

Or influence of /j/ on /u/

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Bad news

Some of it is different

E.g. retraction of /t, d/ before /r/

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Retracted /t, d/ before /r/

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More bad news

Alveolar consonants become dental

Before /θ δ/As in weight, width, tenth

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Dentalisation

alveolar sounds [ t d n s z l ] become dental before a dental consonant

More examples: wealth, health,

at this, add them

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Vowel allophones – pre-fortis clipping

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Vowel allophones – pre-fortis clipping

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Vowel allophones – pre-fortis clipping

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Vowel allophones - nasalisation

the vowel nasalised

Always if a nasal follows

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Examples to consider:

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Examples to consider:

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Examples to consider:

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Examples to consider:

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Examples to consider:

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Examples to consider:

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Examples to consider: