Today we are going to learn about:Speech soundsAnomotical production

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Anatomical production

Speech sounds

Every language has a unique set of sounds, its phonemes, that are used to build its words. These sounds are contrastive. That is, they differentiate between words. Compare these English word pairs which differ in only one of their phonemes:

sat/set    sin/sit   mop/top

Languages vary in terms of the number of distinct phonemes they use. English, for example, has approximately 44 phonemes (depending on the accent), while Italian has approximately 25.

Classifying speech sounds Speech sounds are of two major types -  vowels and consonants.

What are vowels? Vowels are speech sounds produced

with no obstruction to the air flow coming from the lungs.

'Pure' vowels vs diphthongs. A diphthong is a long, complex vowel which starts with the sound quality of one vowel and ends with the sound quality of another one.

Although they are classified as single phonemes, diphthongs are given a double symbol to show both the quality they start with and the quality they end with. The English diphthongs in the chart above are illustrated in the words bite, bait, boy, toe, house, poor, ear, and air. Languages vary in their use of diphthongs. For example, English has several, while Italian has none.

What are consonants? Consonants are speech sounds that

involve a momentary interruption or obstruction of the air flow

Consonants can be described and differentiated from each other by using three main classifications: voice, place, and manner of articulation..

1. Voice: Are the vocal cords vibrating when

they are produced? Both /p/ and /b/ are made by closing the lips briefly to stop the flow of air and then releasing it. The only difference between them is that /b/ is voiced while /p/ is not. But what a key difference this voicing contrast makes linguistically! Would you rather receive a bat on the head or a pat on the head?

2. Place of articulation: Where in the vocal tract is the air

flow obstructed? The vocal tract extends from the lips all the way back to the glottis. (See Figure 2 above) The main places of articulation that are used to contrast phonemes in English, starting from the front of the vocal tract, are:

labial (lips) - as in the first and last consonants of pip

  labio-dental (teeth and lips) - as in first consonant of fish

  dental (sometimes called linguo-dental since in English these consonants are formed by placing the

  tongue between the teeth) - as in the first consonant of this (Note that even though in the written form of

  this, that sound is spelled with two letters, t and h, it is a single phoneme)

3. Manner of articulation: To what degree is the air flow

obstructed? Consonants can involve a complete obstruction of the airflow as in /p/ or /k/ all the way down a very minimal obstruction as in /w/ or /j/.  The main manners of articulation that are used to contrast phonemes in English, starting with those requiring the most obstruction, are:

plosive (complete obstruction followed by release) - as in the first consonant of ten

  fricative (very close but not complete obstruction involving friction) - as in the first consonant of set

  affricate (very close obstruction where the consonant begins as a plosive and ends as a fricative - the

  double symbol indicates both the quality it starts with the quality it ends with) -  as in the first and last

  consonants of church  (Again, note that although in the written form of church, that sound is spelled

  with two letters, c and h, this is a single phoneme)

nasal (complete obstruction of the air flow in the mouth but with the velum open so that air can escape  

  from the nose producing a humming sound) - as in first and last consonants of man

     glides (a very slight closure, almost like a vowel) -  as in the /w/ of wet and the /j/ of yet. Glide

     consonants are sometimes called semi-vowels.

Have a go! If your eyes have started to glaze over from reading, try some action instead.

Close your eyes while you're doing this so you can concentrate on the sensations in your vocal tract.

A Beginner's Guide to Phonetics By Jean Peccei

This page is adapted from my lectures on introductory phonetics at Roehampton University, where I teach on the English Language & Linguistics Programme.