Page 160 - DENG504_LINGUISTICS

Linguistics

Notes What is a phoneme?
A class of speech sounds that are identified by a native speaker as the same sound is called a
phoneme. The different phonetic realizations of a phoneme are called allophones.
Thus [p ] and [p] are the allophones of the same phoneme in English; Whereas in Hindi, [p ]
h
h
and [p] are different phonemes.
[l] and [ ] are the allophones of the same phoneme in English; whereas in Turkish and Scots
Gaelic, they are different phonemes.
Phonemes are the psychological (abstract) representations or units of actual physical realizations
of phonetic segments.

If two sounds are separate phonemes, then they are contrastive (in terms of meaning).
• If the two phones are allophones of the same phoneme, then they are non-
contrastive.
• To determine whether a given pair of sounds is contrastive, linguists look for
minimal pairs.

III. Phonemes of English
CONSONANTS
When describing a consonant, use the following parameters:
VOICE: do your vocal cords vibrate?
PLACE: Which cavity is involved? Which articulators are used?
MANNER: how is the sound produced?
Voicing
Try putting a hand lightly on your throat and then say the following words, drawing out the
initial sounds.
If you feel vibration, this means that your vocal cords are open and the sound in question is a
voiceless sound. If, on the other hand, you feel some vibration or a buzzing feeling, this is due
to the vibration of your vocal cords which are closed together. This means that the sound you
are making is a voiced sound.
feel, veal
zip, sip
thigh, thy
gap, cap
cheap, jeep
Oral vs. Nasal Cavities

Nasal Oral
articulation articulation

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