ENGLISH CONSONANTS

I> Structure of the larynx & 4 different position of the glottis II> Definition of & differences among consonants III> Consonant sounds III.1> Plosives (stops) III.2> Fricatives III.3> Affricates III.4> Nasals III.5> Lateral III.6> Approximants

I> Structure of the larynx & different position of the glottis

Larynx: in the neck; made of 2 large cartilages: thyroid & cricoid (page 27). Inside the larynx: 2 vocal folds/cords (page 28) The glottis: the opening between 2 vocal folds (page 28) 4 different positions of the glottis: (see diagrams, p. 30) -wide apart: normal breathing, voiceless consonants -narrow glottis: voiceless fricative /h/ -position for vocal fold vibration: voiced sounds -vocal fold tightly closed: glottal stop/plosive, coughing gently

II> Definition of & differences among consonants

II.1>Definition: Consonants are sounds produced by partially or completely blocking air in its passage through the vocal tract. [Finegan, 1994: 34] II.2> Differences among consonants i) place of articulation ii) manner of articulation iii) voicing [Roach, 2002: 139]

II> Definition of & differences among consonants i> Place of articulation

Bilabial: produced with the two lips: /p, b, m, w/ as in bill, pill, mill, will. Labio-dental: produced with the upper teeth and the inner lower lip: /f, v/ as in feel, veal. Dental: produced with the tongue tip on or near the inner surface of the upper teeth: /8, 5/ as in thirst, thus. For some speakers, /8 / and /5/ are interdental rather than dental. Alveolar: produced with tongue tip on or near the tooth ridge /t, d, s, z, n, l/ as in team, deem, seem, zero, new, lead. Alveo-palatal: produced with the tongue blade is just behind the tooth ridge at the front part of the hard palate: /~, 2, t~, d2/ as in shop, beige, chop, job. Palatal: produced with the front of the tongue blade near or on the hard palate: /r, j/ as in red, yell. Velar: produced with the tongue blade on or near the soft palate /9, k, 7/ as in guy, kite, singer. Glottal: produced with the air passing form the windpipe through the vocal cords: /h/ as in hello.

ii> Manner of articulation

the way in which the airstream is affected as it travels from the lungs up and out of the mouth and nose. [Fromkin & Rodman, 1993: 193]

Stop/Plosive: the airstream is blocked completely before its release, resulting in explosion of sound: /p,b,t,d,k,7/ Fricative: Air passage from the lungs is not always completely stopped. In many cases, the air moves through a narrow passageway created when the articulatory organs approach but do not touch each other. The air being forced through this passage causes friction. We call the resulting sound a fricative. [Celce-Murcia et al., 2002: 44]

Affricatives /t~, d2/: the air pressure is first built up, and then, rather than being released freely, released through a narrow passageway like a fricative . Nasals /m, n, 7/: the oral passage is completely closed (due to there is a complete closure of articulators e.g. two lips for /m/, the tip and the tooth ridge for /n/ and the tongue and the velum) and the air flow escapes through the nasal cavity .Nasals and fricatives are also called continuants because they can be held so long as there is the air in the lungs to release through nasal cavity and oral cavity, respectively.

Approximants: formed when the airstream moves around the tongue and out the mouth in a relatively unobstructed manner [Celce-Murcia et al., 2002: 45] with two sub categories: liquids /l, r/and glides (semi-vowel) /w, j/. Lateral (liquid) /l/: produced by channeling the air on each side of the tongue, for which /l/ is called the lateral sound.

iii> Voicing

Voice, or voicing, occurs when the vocal folds vibrate as a consequence of air passing between them. Speech sounds which are produced with vocal vibration are said to be voiced (e.g. [b], [v], [z]). When the vocal folds are wide apart so that air passes freely between them, there is no vocal vibration. Speech sounds produced when the folds are in this position are said to be voiceless (e.g. [p], [f], [s]) [Finch:2000: 71-72]

III> Consonant sounds III.1> Plosives (stops)

III.1.1> Definition the air stream is blocked completely before its release, resulting in explosion of sound: /p,b,t,d,k,7/ III.1.2> Classification Articulation of the plosives:

III> Consonant sounds III.1> Plosives (stops)

/p, b/: the air stream is stopped by two lips, causing pressure to build slightly before being released through mouth. /t, d/: the air stream is blocked by the tongue tip contacting the alveolar ridge, and then released, resulting in a plosive sounds.
/k, 9 /: the tongue back rises to meet the velum, temporarily blocking the air flow and resulting in the phonemes /k/ and / 9/.

Characteristics: -can occur in initial, middle & final positions in a word, e.g.: play, appear, top -aspiration (sounds articulated with strong puff of air): initial position in a syllable, followed by a stressed vowel, e.g.: pet, appear

-unaspirated characterisitcs: after initial /s/, before an unstressed vowel, e.g.: stop, happen -shortening effect of the preceding vowel (most noticeable: long vowels, diphthongs), e.g.: bit, beat

Fortis and lenis

Fortis (strong=voiceless): sounds produced with more force: /p,t,k/ Lenis (weak=voiced): /b,d,g/

SUMMARY
I> Structure of the larynx & 4 different position of the glottis II> Definition of & differences among consonants III> Consonant sounds III.1> Plosives (stops)