BS ENGLISH (PU) PAST PAPERS SOLVED. (Phonetic and Phonology) Added Topics in BOOK Linguistics-III, Sem-III BY PROF FAIZ-UR-REHMAN GILL

BS ENGLISH BOOK LINGUISTICS –III (PHONETCIS AND PHONOLOGY) SEMESTER-III , ENG CODE-203.
BY PROF. FAIZ-UR-REHMAN GILL (GCG)

ADDENNDUM: SOLVED PREVIOUS PAPERS AND INTRODUCTION OF NEW TOPICS
(PUNJAB UNIVERSITY)
INTRODUCTION TO LITERATURE –III
PHONETICS AND PHONOLOGY

FOR BS ENGLISH (HON)
CODE ENG - 203
ANSWERS TO ALL QUESTIONS ASKED IN PU PREVIOUS PAPERS
BY
PROF. FAIZ-UR-REHMAN GILL
(The rest of the questions have already been printed/given in the Book Linguistics –iii)
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TOPIC 1: Multiple Articulation and Coarticulation

1. Introduction
The description of speech in the course so far has focused on the position of one part of the
tongue; for vowels, the location of its highest point; with consonants, the place and manner of
the stricture at the point where the constriction is greatest. But in fact it is the configuration of
the entire vocal tract which is important.
2. Primary vs. secondary articulations
Multiple articulations involve two (or more) simultaneous strictures. In cases where both
strictures are of equal degree, these are referred to as double articulations. More commonly,
one stricture is more open than the other. In these cases the one with the greater constriction is
said to be the primary articulation and the one with the more open constriction is referred to as
a secondary articulation. Note that "secondary" in degree of stricture does not mean
"secondary" in importance or linguistic significance. Secondary articulations are often lexically
distinctive, just as much as primary articulations.
3. Double Articulations
N. B. In the IPA, double articulations are shown by connecting two symbols with a tie-bar symbol
written over them, e.g. [kp͡ ].
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i) Stops: double stops occur as distinctive phonemes primarily in languages of West Africa, though
they also occur in the phonetics of more familiar languages, e.g. Katharevousa Greek ptina;
Russian ptitsa, English outpost (in fluent speech). Most common of these are labial-velar stops,
e.g.:
͡
Idoma [àɡbà] "jaw" vs. [àbà] "palmnut" vs. [àɡa] "axe"
Ibibio [èk͡pà] "bag" vs. [èkà] "mother"
Igbo [àk͡pà] "bag" vs. [àɡ͡bà] "fame"

Double nasal stops [ŋ͡m] also exist, but in most cases these occur only as homorganic to the oral
stops.
Labial-alveolar stops are also said to occur, again in W. Africa (e.g. in Bura, Nzema) and in some
of the North West Caucasian languages.
͡ (for which the IPA has a single symbol, [ɧ])

ii) Fricatives: a voiceless alveolar-velar fricative [ʃx]
exists in some varieties of Swedish. For example, sjok [ɧuk] "chunk". And Shona (spoken in
Zimbabwe) has labial-alveolar fricatives [ɸ͡s] - sometimes referred to as "whistling fricatives".
iii) Approximants: two types should be noted in particular, the labial-velar approximant [w] and
the labial-palatal approximant [ɥ] which occur in many languages, e.g. French soin [swɛ̃]
"care" vs. suint [sɥɛ̃] "grease on sheep's wool".
4. Secondary articulation
Definition: an articulation with a lesser degree of closure occurring at the same time as another
(primary) articulation.
The secondary articulation is normally the addition of an approximant or vowel-like articulation

to the primary one. In many cases these may be ignored, i.e., if they are not phonologically
contrastive (and unless an exhaustive description is required), but in other cases, they may be
important for the language in question.
Four major types of secondary articulation are recognized as:
i- Labialization,
ii- Palatalization,
iii- Velarization, And
iv- Pharyngealization,

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As well as other combinations (e.g. labiovelarization) and other minor types (e.g. rhotacization,
faucalization) are included in secondary articulation.
4.1. Labialization (labialized): the addition of lip rounding to an articulation: e.g. "sh" = [ʃw], as
in "she" and "r" [ɹ ] are often labialized by many English speakers, even before unrounded
w
vowels e.g. in "sheet" or "reek".
In some languages, labialization is contrastive:

Twi ([tɕʸɥi]; W. Africa) [àkʷá] "round about way" vs. [àkà] "has bitten"
Tashlhit Berber (S. Morocco) [ik ti] "to recall" vs. [ikti] "hot"
w
4.2. Palatalization: raising of the front of the tongue (addition of an [i]-like tongue posture). This,
too, may be distinctive or non-distinctive in different languages. In English, /l/ in initial position
may be slightly palatalized (e.g. leaf [l if], and in some accents/dialects may be so in all positions
j
(e.g. Irish English). In Russian, palatalization is distinctive:

[brat] "brother" vs. [brat ] "to take"
j
[stal] "he has become" vs. [stal ] "steel".

j
4.3. Velarization: raising of the back of the tongue (addition of [ɯ]- or [ɤ]-like articulation,
without labialization). In English, again, it is non distinctive, but a c/ommon addition to /l/ in final
position in many accents (e.g. feel [filɤ] and for many Scots speakers it is the only variety. In
Russian velarized stops contrast with palatalized ones, and velarization is also contrastive in Irish.
4.4. Pharyngealization: (adding an [ɑ]-like articulation - symbol: [ˁ]) is less common in languages,
but it does occur in Afroasiatic languages, with what Arabic scholars refer to as the emphatic
consonants. E.g. Tashlhit Berber [ɑɡdˁidˁ] "bird" vs. [ɑɡdur] "jar". Arabic [sˁɑrf] "exchange" vs.
[saara] "walked".
No language has yet been found that uses both velarization and pharyngealization contrastively.
Impressionistically, consonants having these latter two secondary articulations are called "dark"
while palatalized consonants are called "clear". The IPA also provides [ɫ] etc, i.e. a tilde through a
letter, for "dark" (velarized and/or pharyngealized) consonants. As this is phonetically vague, it's
probably best avoided, except in phonology.
4.5. Terminology
i) The terms "palatalized", and to a lesser extent "labialized", have been used to refer to different
things. Often they refer to a (putative) process, e.g.
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(1) [k̟] in /kip/ is fronted relative to [k] in /kul/, and is sometimes referred to as "palatalized".
(2) /z/ in the phrase /ɪzʃi/ "is she" is retracted towards the palate, resulting in a postalveolar
assimilated form [ɪʒʃi].
Diachronically, a process of palatalization is also common: e.g., Vulgar Latin "caballus" > French
"cheval" ([k] > [ʃ], cf. Spanish "caballo").
The preceding examples all involve changes or differences in primary place of articulation.
Opposed to this, when talking about secondary articulations, the term refers to a state.
ii) Regardless of relative degrees of stricture, nasalization is always considered secondary, by

convention. The term nasalization is also often used with a process connotation "becomes nasal",
but this is not always an appropriate way to look at it. For example, the nasal vowels of Yoruba
are just that, inherently nasal vowels.
5. Coarticulation
5.1. Secondary articulations are one kind of coarticulation. Coarticulation may be more generally
defined as "the overlapping of adjacent articulations" (Ladefoged 1993: 55) or as two articulators
"moving at the same time for different phonemes" (Borden and Harris 1984:130). Common
examples from English are:
eight [eɪtʰ] vs. eighth [eɪt̪θ]
keep [k̟̟̟̟ʲip] vs. cool [k ul]

w
where the /t/ in "eighth" is dental (here transcribed [t̪]) when followed by the dental fricative [θ],
and the /k/ of "keep" has a front-of-velar (transcribed [k̘]), palatalized articulation when followed
by the high front vowel [i]. The /k/ of "cool" is not so advanced, and is labialized.
5.2. All languages exhibit coarticulatory phenomena, though in varying ways. One of the ways in
which they differ is in directionality. Compare English /k/ in "peak" /pik/ and "keep" /kip/, "caw"
/kɔ/ and "hawk" /hɔk/, then in "peak" and "hawk".
You should find that /k/ undergoes greater influence (alteration of place of articulation) from
the following vowel than from a preceding vowel. This direction of influence is
called anticipatory or regressive coarticulation. In other languages, such as French and Italian, a
preceding vowel will exert greater influence - perseverative or progressive coarticulation.
5.3. Coarticulation occurs because the different speech production processes, and the different
articulators involved, combine with one another with different timing patterns. For example,
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vowels become nasalized when followed (or preceded) by a nasal consonant (compare English
"pit" and "pin") because the timing of the lowering of the velum is not perfectly synchronized
with the tongue movement for the alveolar consonant.
5.4. Coarticulation and secondary articulation are not synonymous: though consonant-vowel
coarticulation is manifest as secondary articulation differences on the consonant, consonant-
consonant coarticulation may involve adjustments of the primary place of articulation. The [s ] in w
/sun/ "soon" has a secondary articulation of labialization, but it is also a case of coarticulation,
with anticipation of the lip rounding for the following vowel. Labialization of [ʃ ] or [ɹ ] as in
w w
"sheet" or "reek" is not coarticulatory, however: the initial consonant is labialized despite the
fact that the following vowel is unrounded, and the final consonant is not labial either. In this
case, the secondary articulation cannot be attributed to coarticulation. The fact that some English
speakers have [ʋ] for [ɹ ] suggests that for them, the secondary labiality is a more important
w
aspect of this approximant than primary postalveolar place of articulation, demonstrating that
secondary articulations are not secondary in importance or linguistic salience.
Note the continuous rounding of the lips in the phrase "Who'd choose prune juice?"
[h ud tʃ uz p r un dʒ us ].
w w w w w w w w w
Topic 2: CO-ARTICULATION AND ITS KINDS

Co-Articulation
Definition 1: The articulation of two or more sounds together so that one influences the other.
Definition 2: Coarticulation is to articulate two things (sounds) simultaneously.
Dfinition 3: Coarticulation is to assimilate the place of articulation of one speech sound to that of
adjacent speech sound.
Explanation:
A speaker can produce about 15 phonemes per second. To do this our articulators must do things
simultaneously. When we speak we also anticipate what sounds are coming next. In this way, we will say
phoneme ‘b’ in the word ‘bat’ in slightly a different way than we say ‘b’ in ‘bet’.
Coarticulatory effects commonly are described a being of two types:
i- Forward (Right to Left) or Anticipatory Coarticulation
ii- Backward (Left to Right) or Retentive or Perseverative Coarticulation
Anticipatory or Progressive Coarticulation:
Anticipatory coarticulation is said to occur when a feature or characteristics of speech sound is

anticipated (assumed) during the production of a preceding speech sound. The coarticulatory
effects can be anticipatory when the production of segment is affected by an upcoming segment.
In other words it can be said that Forward Coarticulation occurs when an articulatory adjustment
for one phonetic segment is anticipated during an earlier segment in the phonetic string.
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Examples:
The Word Play: the ‘p’ is affected by ‘l’ as ‘l’ becomes voiceless due to previous voiceless stop ‘p’,
Similarly words Books and Please show same phenomenon.
The Word Tulip: Lips are rounded before we use “U”. This is anticipatory coarticulation.
The Word School: Lips are rounded before we speak ch (k-sound). It’s called pre-rounding.
The words CAR Vs KEY:
CAR / kar/: Here anticipation of the vowel ‘’a’’ moves the body of the tongue low and back and so the
velar closure occur further in the back.
KEY /KI/: Here anticipation of the vowel ‘I’ moved body of the tongue high and front, so the velar closure
occur further forward in the mouth.
The contextual variation of the two ‘’Ks’’ (in car and key) sounds is caused by the joint articulation of
the plosive and the vowel.
Other Examples of Anticipatory Coarticulation:
1-Nasalization: When a vowel sound is followed by a nasal consonant (such as /m/, /n/, or /ŋ/), the
vowel may become nasalized. For instance:
The word “sing” (/sɪŋ/) involves forward articulation because the tongue anticipates the nasal quality of
the /ŋ/ sound during the production of the /ɪ/ vowel.
2-Coarticulation in Consonant Clusters: In consonant clusters, the articulatory features of one

consonant can influence the adjacent one. For example:
In the word “splash,” the /s/ sound is produced with the tongue tip close to the alveolar ridge, and the
tongue anticipates this position even before the /p/ sound is fully articulated.
3-Vowel-to-Vowel Coarticulation: When two vowels occur in sequence, there is often anticipatory
adjustment. For instance:
In the word “coin,” the tongue anticipates the position for the /ɔɪ/ diphthong while still producing the
/ɔ/ vowel.
Perseverative or Regressive Coarticulation

It is also called ‘Carry Over’ or ‘Backward’ (Left to Right) coarticulation. When the effects of the sound
re seen during production of sound (s) that follows. Coarticulationg effects are perseverative when the
production of the segment is affected by the production of a preceding segment.
Perseverative coarticulation, also known as regressive coarticulation, refers to the influence of one
speech sound on a subsequent sound. Let’s explore this concept further:
1. Definition:

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Perseverative coarticulation occurs when the articulatory features of a preceding sound persist into the
following sound. It can affect various aspects of speech, such as voicing, place of articulation, and
manner of articulation.
2. Examples:
Voicelessness Carry-Over
▪ An example of perseverative coarticulation is the carrying over of voicelessness from a plosive

consonant to a lateral consonant.
▪ The word “please” [pli̥ ːz]:
▪ The voicelessness from the initial /p/ sound carries over to the lateral /l/, resulting in a voiceless lateral.
▪ In this case, the /p/ sound influences the articulation of the /l/ sound that follows1.
The Word Stop:
Another example is the word “stop” [st̪ɒp], where the voicelessness from the initial /s/ affects the
following /t̪/, resulting in a voiceless dental stop.
Other Examples of Perseverative Coarticulation
1. Dentalization: Consider the English word “tenth.” The normal place of articulation for the sound /n/ is
alveolar (produced with the tongue against the alveolar ridge). However, in the word “tenth,” the /n/
sound is pronounced with a dental place of articulation (where the tongue touches the upper front teeth)
because it follows the dental sound /θ/ (as in “thin”). The influence of the /θ/ sound leads to perseverative
coarticulation, resulting in the dentalized /n/ sound.
2. Labial-Velar Plosive: Some West African languages feature a voiceless labial-velar plosive sound
represented as /k͡p/. This sound involves simultaneous articulation at both the labial (involving the lips)
and velar (involving the back of the tongue against the soft palate) places. The coarticulation of these two
places of articulation results in the unique /k͡p/ sound.
Topic 3: Minimal Pairs

In phonology and phonetics, the term minimal pair refers to two words that differ in only one sound, such
as hit and hid. The words in a minimal pair have completely different, often unrelated definitions. Minimal
pairs are useful to linguists because they provide insight into how sound and meaning coexist in language.
Definition of a Minimal Pair
James McGilvray provides a clear definition of a minimal pair in The Cambridge Companion to Chomsky:
"A minimal pair is a pair of words that differ in a single phoneme. Minimal pairs are often used to show
that two sounds contrast in a language.

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For example, we can demonstrate that [s] and [z] contrast in English by adducing minimal pairs such
as sip and zip, or bus and buzz. Since the only difference in these words is the [s] vs. [z], we conclude that
they belong to distinct phonemes. However, a similar test would show that [a:j] and [Aj] are distinct
phonemes in English, since writer and rider appear to be minimal pairs distinguished in their second
elements, not their fourth," (McGilvray 2005).
In short, minimal pairs serve as tools to establish that two or more sounds are contrastive. A difference in
sound means a difference in meaning, notes Harriet Joseph Ottenheimer, and thus a minimal pair is "the
clearest and easiest way to identify phonemes in a language," (Ottenheimer 2012).
Minimal pairs are two words (a pair) that are identical in all sounds but one. We use them to show
which phonemes are distinct, or contrastive in a language. Distinct phonemes are those of which a
speaker is aware. We know that two sounds are distinct from each other if, when the sounds are
exchanged, meaning changes. This applies to both consonants and vowels.
Example (1)
Meet /mit/
Neat /nit/
Example (2)
Seat /sit/
Sit /sɪt/
In (1), when/n/ is exchanged for /m/, the speaker perceives the change in the place of articulation
(bilabial to alveolar). The speaker knows that the alternation in the place of articulation alters the
phoneme, which alters meaning. The same is true for (2), when /i/ is exchanged for /ɪ/. The speaker
perceives the change in the height of the vowel (tense vs. lax), thus perceives an alteration in the
phoneme, and in meaning.
This is not the case when two allophonic variants are exchanged one for another. For example, in (3),
when the aspirated /th/ is exchanged for an unaspirated /t/, the speaker may perceive an accent, but
the meaning is not altered due to the fact that /th/ is not a distinct phoneme, but an allophone of /t/.
Example (3)
/thuθ/ ‘tooth’
/tuθ/ ‘tooth’

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Spelling doesn’t matter
When studying the sound system of a language, it is crucial to make the distinction between the
orthographic and phonetic representations of words. For example, two sounds may have the same
orthographic representation.
Example (4) English
Dove /dov/ the past tense of ‘dive’

Dove /dajv/ or /dayv/ the bird
On the other hand, one sound may be represented by two orthographies.
Example (5) French

Peau skin /po/
Pot pot /po/
Example (6)
Tuff /tʌf/ ‘porous volcanic rock’
Tough /tʌf/
(4) is a minimal pair, since we see in the transcription that the change in the vowel sound alters meaning.
(5) and (6) are not minimal pairs since the vowel sound is identical in (5) as well as the final consonant in
(6). Since there is an alteration in meaning, but not in sounds, we refer to these as homophones (words
that sound the same but have different meanings).
So when studying the concept of minimal pairs, keep in mind that orthography plays no role.
As an example for English vowels, the pair "let" + "lit" can also be used to demonstrate that the
phones [ɛ] (in let) and [ɪ] (in lit) actually represent distinct phonemes /ɛ/ and /ɪ/. An example for
English consonants is the minimal pair of "pat" + "bat". The following table shows other pairs
demonstrating the existence of various distinct phonemes in English. All of the possible minimal pairs for
any language may be set out in the same way.
word 1 word 2 IPA 1 IPA 2 Note
Pin Bin /pɪn/ /bɪn/
Rot Lot /rɒt/ /lɒt/ initial consonant
thigh Thy /θaɪ/ /ðaɪ/

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seal Zeal /siːl/ /ziːl/
bin Bean /bɪn/ /biːn/
pen Pan /pɛn/ /pæn/ Vowel
cook Kook /kʊk/ /kuːk/
hat Had /hæt/ /hæd/

final consonant
mean meme /miːn/ /miːm/
Phonemic differentiation may vary between different dialects of a language so a particular minimal pair
in one accent may be a pair of homophones in another. That means not that one of the phonemes is
absent in the homonym accent but only that it is not contrastive in the same range of contexts.
Topic 4 : Contrastive Distribution and Minimal Pairs
In addition to the individual distribution of a single phone, we are also often interested in the relative
distribution of two phones. If they have overlapping distributions, such that there are at least some
environments where they both can occur, the two phones are said to contrast with each other, and thus,
they have contrastive distribution.
This relates to the concept of minimal pair from Section 3.8. Recall that for signed languages, a minimal
pair is two signs that have the same articulation except for one parameter. These two signs can be said to
contrast with each for that parameter. We can adapt this concept to words in spoken languages.
For example, in English, the phones [p] and [k] occur in many of the same environments, creating pairs
such as [pɪl] pill and [kɪl] kill, [lɪp] lip and [lɪk] lick, and [spɪl] spill and [skɪl] skill. Each of these pairs is a
minimal pair that have all the same phones in the same order, except for one position. So [pɪl] pill and
[kɪl] kill both have the form [▁ɪl], with [p] in one word and [k] in the other.

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The existence of just one such minimal pair is all it takes to prove that two phones have contrastive
distribution, so minimal pairs play an important role in figuring out the distribution of phones in a language
and how they may be grouped into the same or different phonemes.
Topic 5: Complementary Distribution
Two phones may instead have complementary distribution, with environments that never overlap. This
means there is one set of environments for one phone and a completely different set of environments for
the other.
Examples
In English [p] and [ph] are in complementary distribution, since [ph] occurs syllable-initially when it is
directly followed by a stressed vowel (cf. pin [phin]), whereas in all other positions [p] is found.
In Hindi, however, [p] and [ph] can occur in the same position and are distinctive.
Similarly, the phones [h] and [ŋ] are in complementary distribution in English for many speakers. For these
speakers, [h] can only appear at the beginning of a word, as in [həˈræs] harass, or at the beginning of a
stressed syllable, as in [ˌkɒmprəˈhɛnd] comprehend and [ˈt͡ʃaɪldˌhʊd] childhood. We can even see [h]
appear and disappear in related words that have different stress patterns: there is an [h] in the stressed
syllable of [vəˈhɪkjulr̩] vehicular, but there is no [h] in the corresponding unstressed syllable in
[ˈviəkl ̩] vehicle.
Conversely, for the same speakers, [ŋ] can never appear in those positions. It can only appear exactly
where [h] cannot, such as in a coda, as in [lɒŋ] long and [fɪŋ.ɡr̩] finger, or at the beginning of an unstressed
syllable, as in [ˈsɪ.ŋr̩] singer.
Further, if we try to replace [h] or [ŋ] with each other in any word, the resulting nonce words would be
judged ungrammatical: *[ŋəræs], *[kɒmprəŋɛnd], *[lɒh], *[fɪhɡr̩], etc. Thus, we can never find or create
minimal pairs for [h] and [ŋ], so they appear not to contrast with each other.
And yet, [h] and [ŋ] still seem to function as fundamentally different consonants in English, because they
seem to belong to different phonemes, despite being in complementary distribution. No one would
confuse one for the other, and in a broad transcription, we would notate them with different symbols.
Thus, while contrastive distribution is enough to determine that two phones are allophones of separate
phonemes, it is not a requirement.
Now consider the vowels in most North American pronunciations of English [bid] bead and [bit] beat. In
broad transcription, we would normally use the same symbol [i] for both vowels, but in a more narrow
transcription, we might want to indicate that the vowel of bead is longer, with [biːd] versus [bit]. Long [iː]
and short [i] are different phones in English, with [iː] consistently being about 1.2–1.5 times as long as [i],
and if we swap them, pronouncing bead as [bid] and beat as [biːt], it sounds very odd.

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Like [h] and [ŋ], [iː] and [i] are in complementary distribution. Long [iː] must be followed by a coda with
only voiced consonants, as in [biːd] bead, [fliːz] fleas, and [biːrd] beard. Compare these to words where
one or more of the following consonants in the following coda is voiceless, where we instead find short
[i]: [bit] beat, [flis] fleece, and [pirs] pierce.
So we have two pairs of phones, [h] and [ŋ] versus [iː] and [i]. In each pair, the two phones have
complementary distribution, but the pairs behave differently. Despite the complementary distribution,
we conceive of [h] and [ŋ] as somehow completely different consonants, needing to be represented
differently even in broad transcription, just like any pair of contrasting phones: [p] and [b], [i] and [ɪ], etc.
However, [iː] and [i] just seem to be variants of the same fundamental vowel phoneme.
That is, we want to treat [h] as belonging to a phoneme distinct from [ŋ], while treating [iː] and [i] as two
allophones of the same phoneme. So, the phoneme corresponding to [h] would be notated as /h/, the
phoneme corresponding to [ŋ] would be notated as /ŋ/, and the single phoneme corresponding to both
[iː] and [i] would be notated as /i/.
Topic 6 : Phonemes, Distribution and Classification in Phonology:
Phonology is where you put into practice all you’ve learned in phonetics. It is the study of how sounds are
strung together (phonotactics), how they interact with each other,and the rules that account for these
processes.
The focus of phonology at an introductory level course can be categorized into the following areas.
1. The Distribution of Phonemes

Phonemes are individual sounds described as a bundle of phonetic features that differ from each other in
at least one feature. For example, we know that /p/ and /b/ are both bilabial plosives and yet they are
not identical. In order to understand how they are distinguished from each other, we can create a simple
feature chart, marking features with binary values as ‘+’ or ‘-‘. In doing so, we discover that the
distinguishing feature is voicing. This is referred to as a minimal distinction or a distinctive feature.
(1)
/p/ /b/

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Plosive + +
Bilabial + +
Voiced – +
Distinctive features enable us to classify phonemes into categories, distinguish classes of phonemes
from one another, formulate predictions as to how classes of phonemes will behave, and display
language-specific constraints. They also provide articulatory, perceptive (auditory), and acoustic
information that help us distinguish between closely related phonemes and allophones, provide
categories for showing contrast between sets of sounds, and are the basis for creating natural classes.
Non-distinctive features are those that are predictable for any sound. For example, in Standard
English, voiceless stops are aspirated when they are the first sound of a word (word initial) or when they
are in the onset position of a stressed syllable. The distribution of the feature [aspiration] is predictable
or non-distinctive since there is a rule that determines where it will surface. Thus we can predict that /k/
in the word /ki/ ‘key’ will be aspirated, [khi]. Aspiration is not a distinctive feature since, when aspiration
is added to /k/, it does not create a different phoneme as in the case of (1) with voicing.
Phonemes can be expressed in phonemic form or phonetic form. Phonemic form (also referred to as the
underlying representation) is that which exists in the mind of the speaker, while phonetic form (also
referred to as the surface form) is that which is actually articulated by the speaker.
Levels of Representation
Every language has its own rules that permit or prohibit various interactions. This knowledge is intuitive
to native speakers; to such an extent that most people are not aware of what is really coming out of
their mouths! A speaker of any language has an idea, an abstract concept of the sounds s/he articulates.
However, more often than not, there is a disparity between the form of the sound that is in the mind
of the speaker (underlying representation or UR), and the form that is actually articulated (surface form
or SF).
In other words, phonemes are stored in the mind as a bundle of features.
This abstract notion of a sound, referred to as the underlying representation, is surrounded by back-
slashes / /. The surface form that is realized as articulatory gestures, and articulated according to
phonological environment, is surrounded by brackets [ ].
Allophones are variants of a phoneme that surface under specific phonological conditions. Here is an
example from Standard English.
/t/ is a voiceless alveolar stop. We use this sound in words such as ‘top’, ‘train’, ‘stop’, ‘butter’, and
‘button’. But do we really? As discussed earlier, when /t/, as a voiceless stop, is the initial sound in a
word, it bears the feature [+aspiration], as in the word ‘top’. Thus a speaker believes s/he is articulating
the word as /tap/ when the surface form is actually [tʰap].
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Consider the word ‘train’. This word initial /t/ is affected by the following /ɹ/. It thus surfaces as [tʃ] and
will be transcribed as [tʃɹejn].
When a /t/ is found in the middle of a word (word medial) as in ‘butter’, it has yet another
pronunciation. It will surface as an alveolar flap or [ɾ], as in [bʌɾəɹ], or as a glottal stop in words such as
‘button’ [bʌʔən].
Interestingly, the only phonological environment in which /t/ actually surfaces as [t] is in a consonant
cluster such as in the word ‘stop’ [stap].
These various surface forms (SF) of /t/ are called allophones. Allophones are all (allo) the sounds (phones)
that may represent one sound in differing phonological environments.
You will see these allophones represented like this:
(2) /t/ (the sound in the mind of the speaker)
/ | | | \ (surfaces as)
[t] [tʰ] [ʔ] [ɾ] [tʃ] (allophones of [t])
In other languages, such as Hindi, [-aspirated] stops and [+aspirated] stops are not allophones of one
sound but are contrastive, meaning that when [p] and [pʰ] surface in the same environment, the meaning
of the word will actually change.
For example, the [p] in [pəl] ‘moment’ and the [pʰ ] in [pʰəl] ’fruit’ are two distinct phonemes.
You will see these phonemes represented like this:
(3) /p/ /pʰ/
| |
[p] [pʰ]
So in this language, aspiration is distinctive.

Allophones can also be distinct phonemes in a language, surfacing in specific, rule-driven
environments. For instance, we know that /s/ and /z/ are two separate, distinct phonemes in
English. However, when marking a noun for plurality, there is a rule that determines whether the SF will
be /s/ or /z/. (4) shows that the plural morpheme will be the voiced alveolar fricative /z/, when a word
ends in a voiced sound, and the voiceless alveolar fricative /s/, following a voiceless sound.
(4)
[bægz] ‘bags’ [bæks] ‘backs’
[sidz] ‘seeds’ [sits] ‘seats’
[flajz] ‘flies’ [flajts] ‘flights’
Since /s/ and /z/ are variants of a morpheme, they are called allomorphs.

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Allophones are generally found in complementary distribution meaning that one form of a phoneme will
never appear in the environment of another. In other words, the sounds alternate with each other,
depending on where they are found in a word or phrase, just like [t] and [tʰ] in English.
2. Classes of Sounds
Phonemes can be categorized by shared features, creating classes that give insight as to how sounds
interact in specific phonological environments.
Major classes are distinguished from one another based on degree of sonority. This corresponds with
where sounds are located in a syllable.
syllabic [+/-syll] sounds are those that constitute syllable peaks and may fill the nucleus of a syllable. They
are typically more prominent in perception than contiguous non-syllabic sounds.
[+syll]: vowels and syllabic consonants
[-syll]: stops, fricatives, affricates, approximants, and [-syll] liquids and nasals
consonantal [+/-cons] sounds are produced with a sustained vocal tract constriction at least equal to that
required in the production of fricatives; non-consonantal sounds are produced without such constriction.
[+cons]: obstruent sounds, nasals, liquids
[-cons]: vowels, glides and approximants
sonorant: [+/- son] sounds are produced with a vocal tract configuration sufficiently open that the air
pressure inside and outside the mouth is approximately equal. These include vowels, glides, liquids,
approximants, and nasals. [-son] sounds are produced with vocal tract constriction sufficient to increase
the air pressure inside the oral cavity significantly over that of the ambient air. These include stops,
affricates and fricatives.
[+ son]: liquids, nasals, glides, approximants, and vowels
[-son]: stops, fricatives, affricates
obstruents [+/-obs] basically correspond inversely to [+/- son] such that [+obs] includes stops, affricates
and fricatives and [-obs] vowels, glides, liquids, approximants, and nasals.
Manner classes are based on obstruction of airflow.
continuants [+/-cont] are formed with a vocal tract configuration allowing the airstream to flow through
the mid-saggital region of the oral tract; plosives are produced with a sustained occlusion in this region.
[+cont] consists of vowels, glides, approximants, and fricatives, whereas [-cont] includes plosives, affricates, and
nasals.
strident [+/-stri] sounds are produced with complex constriction forcing the airstream to strike two
surfaces, producing high-intensity fricative noise
[+stri] encompasses fricatives and affricates; sibilants, labiodentals, and uvulars. In Standard English

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/f, v, s, z, ʃ, tʃ, ʒ, dʒ/ are marked [+stri].

sibilant [+/-sib] sounds are fricatives and affricates that are [+stri, +cor] and are produced with the front
of the tongue raised towards the teeth or the alveolar ridge. As strident, they generate a high amount of
turbulence or white noise. English has 6 sibilant sounds: [s, z, ʃ, tʃ, ʒ, dʒ].
Place classes are based on the location of constriction of airflow. Those with which you should become
familiar at the introductory level include:
labial: [+/-lab]
These sounds involve a constriction of the lips, while non-labial sounds do not. Labials include all
consonants that involve one or both lips as an articulator, as well as those that bear the secondary feature
[w] such as [kw].
coronal [+/-cor]
Coronal sounds are produced by raising the tongue blade toward the teeth or the hard palate and consist
of dental, alveolar, palato-alveolar/post-alveolar, and retroflex consonants.
anterior [+/-ant]
Anterior consonants are articulated with the front of the tongue anywhere between the alveolar ridge to
the back of the upper teeth. They include post-alveolar, alveolar, dental, (interdental), labio-dental, and
bilabial sounds.
dorsal [+/-dor]
Dorsal sounds are articulated with the back of the tongue (dorsum) raised towards or in contact with the
velum or the uvula, encompassing palatal, velar, and uvular sounds.
*there is sometimes overlap with post-alveolars (palato-alveolars). This is language specific.
radicals [+/-rad]
Radical sounds are produced with constriction between the tongue root and the pharyngeal wall and
include pharyngeal and epiglottal consonants.
laryngeal [+/-lar]
Laryngeal sounds are those in which the airflow is occluded or unobstructed by the vocal folds and include
glottal consonants.
Natural Classes
Natural classes are groups of sounds that share at least one or more features that distinguish them from
all other sounds. The minimal number of features is used to describe these sets of phonemes to the
exclusion of all others. Feature values are specified by + and – and only those that are relevant to the
sounds are used. See our tutorial on Redundancy for more on this topic.

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Members of a natural class will generally behave similarly in the same phonological environment. For
example, the natural class [+syll, -cons, +high] (high vowels) in English tends to cause palatalization of
preceding consonants.
(5)
/t/ /tʃ/ /d/ /ʤ/
/stejtli/ /stætʃəɹ/ /gɹejd/ /græʤuəl
‘stately’ ‘stature’ ‘grade’ ‘gradual’
/z/ /ʒ/ /s/ /ʃ/

/siz/ /siʒəɹ/ /fejs/ /fejʃiəl/
‘seize’ ‘seizure’ ‘face’ ‘facial’
Interestingly, natural classes seem to surface in identical environments across languages. For example,
Japanese [+syll, -cons, +high] (high vowels) have the same effect.
(6)
/t/ /tʃ/ /s/ /ʃ/
/kat-itai/ [katʃitai] ‘win’ /kas-itai/ [kaʃitai] ‘lend
For more information on these classes, refer to our tutorial on Features and Classes.
3. Analyzing Data
In general terms, the goal of phonological analysis is to identify sound patterns of a language in order to
identify distinct phonemes and account for allophonic variation. When conducting phonological analyses,
make sure you follow the steps listed below. The more systematic your approach, the more likely you are
to come up with a strong analysis.
3.1. Minimal Pairs

The first step is to look for minimal pairs. These are words that differ by a single phoneme. If you are
looking at the distribution of /p, b/, find pairs of words whose meaning changes when these sounds are
interchanged. An example would be:
bat/pat
These two words are identical except for the first sound of each word, yet they have entirely different
meanings.
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3.2. Near Minimal Pairs

When we suspect that two phonemes are distinct, but cannot find them in identical phonological
environments, we may look for near minimal pairs: two words that share identical sounds in immediately
surrounding environments.
For example, /mɪʃən/ ‘mission’ and /vɪʒən/ ‘vision’ show that /ʃ/ and /ʒ/ are distinct phonemes since,
although the initial sound in each word is different, the phonemes of interest are found in immediately
surrounding environments that are identical, i.e., preceded by /ɪ/ and followed by /ən/.
Another type of near minimal pair exists in which the addition of one sound changes meaning. For
instance, in the comparison of /lip/ ‘leap’ and /slip/ ‘sleep’, when /s/ is added, word meaning is
altered. In this example, the environment of /s/, word initial, is exchanged with /ø/ which is also in word
initial position.
3.3 Free Variation

Some phonemes surface in identical phonological environments and yet meaning is not
changed. Sometimes a speaker will use one allophone, and sometimes another, simply based on social
context. For example, an English speaker may pronounce the word ‘speaking’ as [spikIn] in certain
situations and as [spikIŋ] in others. [n] and [ŋ] are allophones but are freely alternated in word final
position. It’s important to note that free variation refers to how one individual speaker may vary
pronunciation based on social context, not to language/dialectal-specific rules.
If you find minimal pairs then go no further. They indicate that the phonemes of interest are distinct
sounds.
3.4 Complementary Distribution

If you do not find minimal pairs, it is likely the phonemes of interest are allophones found in
complementary distribution. Allophones are members of one underlying representation (UR), the abstract
sound in the mind of the speaker, that are never found in overlapping phonological environments.
Distinct phonemes may be found in allophonic variation. Consider (7).
(7)
/t/ UR
/ \
[t] [tʃ] SF
[stap] [tʃɹejn]
‘stop’ vs ‘train’
In this example, the SF /t/ is found as the second consonant in the word initial cluster; however, when
followed by /ɹ/, /t/ becomes /tʃ/. See (2).

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Allophones can also be variants of an underlying phoneme, of which the speaker is often not aware. This
is true of [th] in word initial position. Speakers of Standard English are not aware that they are adding the
feature [aspiration] to this sound. What’s more, if a variant such as [th] is exchanged in the place of /t/,
meaning will not be altered. The pronunciation may sound a bit strange, but meaning is clear. Another
example is nasal vowels in English. All vowels that precede a nasal stop become nasal.
/flowt/ but /flõwn/
Speakers are not aware of this variation; however, this is the only form of the vowel that will ever surface
in this phonological environment. Furthermore, non-nasal vowels will never appear before a nasal.
/flowt/ but not * /flõwt/ and not */flown/
This is a rule-driven distribution of nasal vs. non-nasal vowels.
4. Phonological Environments
Definition
A phonological environment is the surrounding sounds of a particular phoneme. For example, the word
“boot” is transcribed as [bʊt]. The environment for /ʊ/ is b_t.
The _ symbol is used as a placeholder of the sound under investigation (in the English example above, the
_ represents the [ʊ].
Generally, the sound immediately preceding and immediately proceeding are included in the environment
description. Word boundaries (i.e., if the phoneme is the first or last phoneme in a sequence of sounds)
are marked using the # symbol. For example, the environment for /b/ in [bʊt] is #_ʊ.
In order to locate the distribution of sounds, you can create a chart that lists the phonological
environments in which the phonemes of interest appear. This way you can visualize whether or not the
sounds are found in complementary distribution or overlapping distribution. Consider (8).
(8)
[læf] ‘laugh’ [liv] ‘leave’
[kuɫ] ‘cool’ [stIɫ] ‘still’
In this example there is no overlap in the distribution of /l/ and /ɫ/ since /l/ will only surface in word initial
position and /ɫ/ word finally. When charting which sounds appear in which phonological environments,
we see that they are in complementary distribution.
(9)
Note the symbols for various environments.
word initial
#___ (at the beginning of a word)
word final

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___# (at the end of a word)

intervocalic
V__V (between vowels)
adjacent phones
C___ (after a consonant)
___C (before a consonant)
V___(after a vowel)
___V (before a vowel)
voicing
[+/-vce]___ (after a voiced sound)
___[+/-vce] (before a voiced sound)

# = word boundary
$ = syllable boundary
+ = morpheme boundary
5. Writing Rules
Once you find the phonological environments in which the phonemes of interest surface, you can write a
rule that accounts for their distribution.
In order to summarize the concept of writing rules we can say:
The phonemic form (UR)
↓
Undergoes phonological rules
↓
To obtain the phonetic form (SF)
Learn to write rules according to your professor’s expectations. Some simply require the phonemes
between brackets while others will want a description based on natural classes and distinctive
features. Whatever the case may be, here are the standard symbols used in writing rules:
/ / the UR
→ = becomes
[ ] the SF

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/ = in the environment of
___ = represents the phoneme which undergoes change
In other words, you first state the UR; then state how it changes; then show the circumstances under
which it changes (the environment). Here’s a short tutorial on the underlying representation.
6. Types of Rules
There are several types of rules with which you should become familiar.
-Assimilation Rules
Rules of assimilation cause a phoneme to take on certain features of an adjacent sound. For instance, all
vowels in English become [+nasal] when they precede a [+nasal] consonant. This assimilation of the
[+nasal] feature facilitates production of the vowel sound. The rule looks something like this:
V → Ṽ/ ____ C̃
-Dissimilation Rules
Dissimilation rules cause two adjacent phonemes to become different from each other to facilitate
pronunciation. An example of a dissimilation rule would be the omission of [θ] in the word final position
of words such as [sIksθ] ‘sixth’ or [fIfθ] ‘fifth’. The [-voice] fricatives [s] and [f] share similar features with
[θ] which is also a [-voice] fricative. The fricative [θ] is usually changed to the stop [t], so that the words
are actually pronounced [sIkst] and [fIft].
/θ/ → [t] / [fricative] ____
-Insertion Rules
Insertion rules cause a phoneme to be added to a syllable or word. This is illustrated in English
plurals. When [mℇs] becomes plural, a plural [z] or [s] cannot be added without first inserting [ə] since
two [sibilants] cannot be adjacent to each other. Thus [mℇs] becomes [mℇsəz]. This type of rule will look
like this:
∅ → [ə] / [+sibilant] ____ [+sibilant]
-Deletion Rules
Rules of deletion cause a phoneme to be removed from a syllable or word. These rules are applied to
facilitate pronunciation and are often seen in fast speech. Most English speakers will pronounce the word
[mℇmɔri] ‘memory’ as [mℇmri] ‘memry’, omitting the [ɔ]. This type of rule will look like this:
[ɔ] –>∅ /[+sonorant] ____ [+sonorant]
-Metathesis
Metathesis rules change the order of sounds. The most common example of metathesis in English can be
seen in the pronunciation of the word [æsk] ’ask’ as [æks] ‘aks’.

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Topic 7: What is the Difference between Liquids and Glides?

In phonetics, liquids and glides are specific types of sounds produced by the tongue in certain positions
within the mouth. Let’s break down each of these:
1. Liquids:
Liquids are consonants that allow airflow to continue relatively uninhibited through the vocal tract. In
English, the two primary liquids are:
▪ [l]: This sound is produced by allowing the tongue to create a partial closure in the mouth, resulting in a
resonant, vowel-like consonant. For example, the word “light” contains the liquid [l].
▪ [ɹ] (the “r” sound): This liquid is also produced with a partial closure, but it has a different tongue
position. It’s commonly found in words like “red” or “car.”
Liquids are neither fully stopped (like stops or affricates) nor turbulent (like fricatives and
affricates). Instead, they allow a continuous stream of airflow1.
Liquids are a specific type of consonant sound in phonetics. They are produced with a partial closure in
the mouth, resulting in a resonant, vowel-like quality. Let’s explore them further:
1. /l/ (Lateral Liquid):
The /l/ sound is a lateral liquid. It’s produced by allowing the tongue to create a partial closure against the alveolar
ridge (the bony ridge behind the upper front teeth).
o Examples:
▪ “Light”
▪ “Ladle”
▪ “Lily”
2. /r/ (Rhotic Liquid):
The /r/ sound is a rhotic liquid. It’s produced with a different tongue position, where the tongue doesn’t touch the
alveolar ridge but creates a partial closure elsewhere.
Examples:
▪ “Red”
▪ “Car”
▪ “Rattle”
2. Glides:
Glides, also known as semivowels, are segments produced similarly to tiny vowels. Unlike vowels, glides
cannot act as the nucleus of a syllable. They always occur before or after a vowel.

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In English, we have two glides:

▪ [j]: This sounds like a very short [i]. You can notice it in words like “yes.”
▪ [w]: This sounds like a very short [u]. It appears in words like “water” or “swim.”
When you pronounce a word with a glide, you’re essentially pronouncing a tiny vowel before the
following vowel.
Remember, liquids and glides play important roles in shaping the sounds of spoken language!
In summary, the primary difference lies in tongue placement:
• Liquids: Use the tongue tip (e.g., /l/ and /r/).
• Glides: Raise the body of the tongue (e.g., /w/, /y/, and /hw/) .
DETAILED DESCRITION OF LIQUIDS AND GLIDES
Liquids
Liquids – a liquid is a consonant produced when the tongue approaches a point of articulation within the
mouth but does not come close enough to obstruct or constrict the flow of air enough to create
turbulence (as with fricatives). Unlike nasals, the flow of air is not redirected into the nose. Instead,
with liquids the air is still allowed to escape via the mouth, but its direction of flow is altered by the
tongue sending it in different directions within the mouth before exiting the lips. The unique sound of
each liquid is affected by the position of the tongue and the way in which the exhaling air is directed
around it. There are two primary types of liquids — laterals in which the air is directed toward the sides
of the mouth, and non-laterals in which the flow of air is altered but still directed forward. The individual
sounds of each type derive their names from points of articulation toward which the tongue is
positioned. Like nasals, liquids occur in sets of very similar sounds — syllable initial, syllable-final, and
in the case of non-laterals a third form, the trill. For an interactive example of each sound (including
descriptive animation and video), click this link, then in the window that opens, click nasal, and select
the appropriate sound (only syllable-final sounds are represented).
/ l /, / ɫ / lateral liquids
A lateral (from Latin laterus to the side) liquid is a sound in which the flow of air out of the body is
redirected around the tongue and toward the sides of the mouth before exiting through the lips. English
has two lateral liquids. the alveolar lateral approximate /l/ in which the tongue is brought near
(approximate) the alveolar ridge, forcing the air around the tongue toward the sides (lateral) of the mouth
before being allowed to exit. /l/ occurs in syllable-initial position for example like, melon, and hello. The
syllable-final sound /ɫ/ is referred to as a velarized alveolar lateral approximate, meaning that in addition
to the tip of the tongue being brought near the alveolar ridge, the back of the tongue is raised toward
the velum as well. /ɫ/ occurs in syllable-final position for example full, little, and belfry. As with nasals,
the order of articulation is reversed between syllable-initial and syllable-final laterals.
/ ɹ / , / ɻ /, / r / non-lateral liquids

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A non–lateral (from Latin non not and laterus to the side) liquid is a sound in which the flow of air out of
the body is altered by the shape of the tongue, usually flowing over the tongue resonating near the roof
of the mouth (but not toward the sides of the mouth) before exiting through the lips. English has three
non-lateral liquids, with most dialects having two (rhotic), some having a third (trill), and some having only
one (R-dropping). In syllable-initial / ɹ / as in rabbit, run, and borrow, referred to as a retroflex
approximate, the tongue is brought forward the curled backward toward the roof of the
mouth (retroflexion). It comes near (approximate) the roof of the mouth but does not touch it. The sound
is released by lowering the jaw and drawing the tongue back to neutral position. This is the most common
r-sound in English. Common in most dialects, syllable-final / ɻ / is similar to the syllable initial
form. Depending on the accent of the speaker, this sound may be either an alveolar approximate or a
retroflex approximate (some speakers place the tongue closer to the alveolar ridge, others put it in the
same position as syllable-initial / ɹ /. The primary difference between syllable-initial and syllable-final
forms is that the syllable-final sound begins and ends with the tongue and jaw in the approximate
position. This differs from syllable-initial position which ends with the jaw lowering and the tongue
returning resting position. Compare movement within the mouth between / ɹ / in red and Robert, and /
ɻ / in car, better, and urgent. Finally, some dialects possess a third non-lateral approximate /r/ known as
a trill (and in lesser form a flap). These sounds are often referred to as rolled-r. In producing this sound
the tongue is quickly and lightly (and in longer trills, repeatedly) brought into contact with the alveolar
ridge. Otherwise the /r/ is produced in the same manner as syllable-initial / ɹ / or syllable-final / ɻ
/ depending on position. The sound /r/ is a primary characteristic of many Scottish accents and is also
found in certain Spanish loanwords in North American English including burrito and perro.
Glides
Glides – a glide, like a liquid, is a consonant produced when the tongue approaches a point of articulation
within the mouth but does not come close enough to obstruct or constrict the flow of air enough to create
turbulence. Unlike nasals, the flow of air is not redirected into the nose. Instead, as with liquids, the air
is still allowed to escape via the mouth, but its direction of flow is altered by having it glide over the tongue
before exiting the lips. The unique sound of each glide is affected by the point at which the tongue is
brought closest to the point of articulation. The primary difference between liquids and glides is that with
a liquid, the tip of the tongue is used, whereas with glides, body of the tongue and not the tip is
raised. This provides a wide narrow space over which air passes before exiting the mouth. There are two
primary types of glide in English — labiovelar and palatal. Each type derives its name from points of
articulation toward which the tongue is positioned. Like nasals and liquids, glides occur in sets of very
similar sounds and in Old English there were a variety of these sounds, but Modern English possesses only
one of each type in most dialects. For an interactive example of each sound (including descriptive
animation and video), click this link, then in the window that opens, click glide, and select the
appropriate sound.
/w/, /?/ labiovelar glide :

A labiovelar (from Latin labia lip and velar the velum or soft palate) glide is a sound in which the flow of
air out of the body is altered by first the shape of the tongue, with the main body of the tongue (not the

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tip) being raised toward the velum — the soft part of the roof of the mouth farthest from the front teeth;
it’s about as far back in the mouth as can be reached with the tip of the tongue. This creates a wide but
shallow space with the air flowing over the tongue resonating near the roof of the mouth (but not toward
the sides of the mouth). The unique characteristic of labiovelar glides is that production of the sound
begins with the pursed together forming a narrow circular opening. The lips are then relaxed and the jaw
dropped, opening the mouth. This sound, as described is the syllable-initial (in this case more aptly
described as the pre-vocalic form because it also appears after other consonants, but always before the
vowel within a syllable) form /w/ as in will, why, and quick and flower. The symbol /?/ has been used to
reference the possibility of other related sounds. In Old English there existed at least two w-sounds with
words currently spelled wh- representing words which initially began with this other sound. We
unfortunately no longer have record of what this sound was or how it was pronounced, but it is likely
similar to /w/. In Modern English there exists a second version of /w/ which occurs after the vowel (post-
vocalic). This sound is not yet recognized by the IPA and thus does not have a symbol (represented
with strikethrough herein). As with syllable-initial and syllable-final pairs, the post-vocalic /w/ is
produced in reverse order of pre-vocalic /w/ with production of the sound beginning with the mouth
opened and the lips relaxed, and ending with the lips pursed together forming a narrow round
opening. Contrast the beginning and ending jaw and lip positions of /w/ as in weed or wow with those
of /w/ in chew and wow. There is a third w-sound in Modern English which is rare but still present in
modern phonology. That sound /ʍ/ known as a voiceless labiovelar is the version of /w/ in which the
vocal cords are not used; compare voiced /w/ in water with voiceless /ʍ/ in the interjection whew! It is
likely that the w-sound represented by wh- spellings was originally one of these two latter versions of
labiovelar glide.
/j/ palatal glide

A palatal (from palate the top of the mouth) glide is a sound in which the flow of air out of the body
is altered by the shape of the tongue, with the main body of the tongue (not the tip) being raised
toward the hard palate — the part of the roof of the mouth, just behind the alveolar ridge and
forward of the velum (for many speakers, the lateral edges of the midsection of the tongue can be
felt pressing up against the molar teeth). This creates a wide and fairly shallow space with the
air flowing over the tongue resonating near the roof of the mouth (but not toward the sides of the
mouth) and then passing between the alveolar ridge and the downward slope of the tongue and
finally out of the mouth. Modern English has only one palatal glide represented by the symbol /j/ as
in you, cube, and onion.
Topic 8: Key Properties of Language

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Selected key properties
Because language is multifaceted and complex, many attempts to define it are simplified to the
construction of lists of language characteristics. This approach is not without its difficulties, however. For
example, how many characteristics are minimally sufficient to describe language? Two? Four? Twenty?
Having said this, an outline of essential characteristics can still be helpful in gaining an overview of the so-
called key properties of language. I will discuss just eight of these, as follows.
1-Arbitrariness
Essentially, language is a symbol system. In broad terms, the symbols of language are words. By
constructing words and stringing them together according to a set of rules – the grammar of the language
– we are able to construct meaningful utterances.
The choice of symbols used by a language is, however, said to be arbitrary. This is because there is no
direct relationship between a particular word and its meaning. For example, in English we use the
word cup to represent a physical object capable of holding liquids, which usually has a handle, and which
humans use to drink from. Of course, there is no particular reason why we should use the word-
symbol cup. We could just as easily choose to use the word form zarg, or pinkt, or any other word form
we might think of. The point is that words are just an arbitrary set of symbols used to represent various
meanings. In summary, if we know the form of a word it is impossible to predict the meaning and if we
know the meaning it is impossible to predict the form.
Each particular language (English, French, Russian, Chinese, and so on) uses a different set of symbols. So,
for example, the word-symbol for cup in French is tasse but in Portuguese it is copo.
Arbitrariness is a useful property because it increases the flexibility of language. The flexibility arises
because language is not constrained by the need to match the form of a word and its meaning. Because
of this it is possible to construct an almost infinite number of words from a limited set of speech sounds.
Having made the point that linguistic symbols are arbitrary, there are some English words that appear to
be less arbitrary than others. These are onomatopoeic words: words that imitate the sound associated
with an object or an action. For example, in the utterance the bees were buzzing the word buzzing sounds
similar to the noise bees make. Other examples include hiss and rasp. The features of such words are
often exploited in the writing of poetry.
2-Duality
Language appears to be organized at least at two levels:
1. the primary level consisting of the units

2. the secondary level consisting of the elements

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The elements of the secondary level combine to form the units of the primary level. For our purposes, we
can consider the elements of verbal language to be speech sounds, i.e. consonants and vowels. These
speech sounds then combine to form units at the primary level, i.e. words.
Consider, for example, how the word cat is formed by the combination of three speech sounds: the
consonant ‘c’, the vowel ‘a’ and the consonant ‘t’. These speech sounds at the primary level are
meaningless if they are uttered in isolation. For example, if I just say the sound ‘c’ this has no meaning.
Similarly, ‘a’ and ‘t’ spoken on their own are meaningless. It is only when these secondary level elements
are combined in a systematic way that they have the possibility of conveying meaning.
Consequently, cat is meaningful, whereas ‘c’, ‘a’, and ‘t’ are not.
3-Systematicity
Language is an orderly method of communicating ideas, thoughts, emotions, and so on. If language were
random then there would be no way of ensuring that the intended meaning was conveyed. Regularity and
order (i.e. systematicity) are essential for language to work properly.
We have already seen an example of this above when considering duality. We noted that the combination
of the secondary level elements ‘c’, ‘a’, and ‘t’ may combine to form the primary level unit cat. These three
elements may also be recombined to form the word act. However, the combination ‘a’ + ‘t’ + ‘c’ to
form atc is meaningless (in English).
What this demonstrates is that language is governed by rules that define which combinations of elements
are acceptable and which are not. There are also rules that govern the combination of primary level units.
So, for example, we realize that the utterance the first snows of winter is appropriate, whereas the
combination snows winter first the of is not.
4-Structure-dependence
Language appears to have an underlying patterned structure and humans appear to intuitively recognize
these patterns. Consider the following utterance:
• The rich man from London….. married……. an educated woman.
We intuitively realize that this utterance patterns into coherent segments. This is demonstrated by the
fact that we are able to easily remove one segment and replace it with another, e.g.
• He ……………………married………………… an educated woman.
• The rich man…….married ………………..an educated woman.
• Graham…………… married………………… Margaret.
As well as recognizing that we can substitute one segment with another, further evidence that we
intuitively recognize patterns in language is demonstrated by our ability to readily rearrange segments.
Consider again our opening utterance:
• The rich man from London …………married ……………an educated woman.
This utterance could be rearranged as follows.
• The educated woman……….was married by……….the rich man from London.
Of course, the patterned structure of language allows us to both rearrange and substitute segments
simultaneously, e.g.
• She ………………………………..was married by ……………the rich man from London.
• An educated woman ……..was married by…………….him.
• Margaret………………………..was married by………….. Graham .
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5-Productivity
Many animals respond to stimuli in their environment in predictable ways. For example, the stimulus of
seeing a collection of shiny objects in front of a small grass covert will stimulate a female Bowerbird to
mate with the male bird who prepared the display. The sight of the objects stimulates the female to
perform a particular behavior, in this case pairing and mating.
Similarly, the stimulus of cold weather and reduced daylight hours stimulates the ground squirrel to
perform a certain behavior – hibernation.
These behaviors, and others like them, are said to be stimulus bound. In other words, if we know what
the stimulus is then we can predict the subsequent behavior. The behavior is invariant and always follows
a specific stimulus.
If language were stimulus bound we would expect that each time a human was presented with the same
stimulus he or she would utter exactly the same words. Clearly this is not so. If three people were all
shown the painting of the Mona Lisa there is no guarantee that each would utter the same words. A
variety of responses are available to these people. There is no sure way of predicting what they may say:
‘What a beautiful picture’, ‘That reminds me of my sister’, ‘Oh, I’ve forgotten to put the kettle on!’
The salient point is that it is not possible to predict that a particular stimulus will cause a human to use
one, and only one, particular language construction. In this sense, language is said to be stimulus free and
this explains why humans are able to use language creatively. Language is, therefore, flexible.
The fact that language is stimulus-free and that it is flexible leads to the notion of productivity, i.e. that
language can be used to construct an infinite set of new and meaningful utterances. These utterances are
novel in that they may never have been spoken before and yet they are meaningful and readily
interpretable by other people.
6-Displacement
Language also allows us to think of, and communicate about, something or someone that is not
immediately present. So, for example, we can refer to our new car even though it is not actually in front
of us. Similarly, we can discuss last night’s football game even though it has passed. This property of
language is known as displacement.
7-Specialization
This key property refers to the fact that language allows us to substitute an arbitrary word for a physical
action. An example might be a child who instructs their friend to ‘Stay away!’ This utterance means that
the child does not then have to act out his or her message: for example, by physically pushing the friend
away. Similarly, the police officer who instructs a crowd to ‘Move along!’ has used language to substitute
for the physical action of driving the crowd forwards. In both instances the language has substituted for a
physical action.
8-Cultural transmission

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Language is the means by which humans are able to teach the upcoming generation all that they have
learnt to date. If we did not have the ability to use language then it would be largely impossible to transmit
our knowledge and experiences to the next generation of humans and each successive generation would
have to start afresh. However, because we have language we are able to communicate necessary
knowledge and social norms of behaviour to the upcoming generation.
One of the most obvious examples of this is the formal teaching in our schools, the majority of which is
undertaken using spoken language. The child who sits on a parent’s lap and listens to stories of family
traditions and events is also learning through language. This property of language is referred to as cultural
transmission. The language of a particular society, therefore, forms part of the culture of that society.
9-Vocal and Verbal System

Languages are primarily vocal because speeches are primary and writing is secondary. Languages build on
vocal sounds only produced by physiological articulation mechanics. Many languages exist in spoken
form only.
They do not have any written scripture. Also, the total quantum of speech is much more than that of
writing. This is in contrast to other forms of communication that may not rely on sound or speech, such
as sign language or written language.
Vocal and verbal language is a fundamental aspect of human communication, and it is what allows us to
convey thoughts, ideas, and information to others through the use of words and speech sounds.
10-Reflexivity of Language
Reflexiveness means that humans can explain the concepts of what language is. We can talk about
the language structure. Besides, we can share the language with other humans using the ability of
language called reflexiveness.
People are capable of thinking about language and its use called reflexivity. The property of reflexivity
tells us that we can use language to think and speak the language itself.
So, we can make it one of the distinguishing features of human language. Indeed, without this common
sense, we would not be able to demonstrate or identify any distinct features of human language.
11-Prevarication of Language
While using language, we humans may tell a lie or hoodwink someone. We may make false or meaningless
statements too. It’s called prevarication.
It is a form of lying or deceit, where the speaker uses language in a way that is intended to conceal the
truth or mislead the listener.
Examples of prevarication can include telling half-truths, using euphemisms, or avoiding giving a direct
answer to a question.
This can be a form of manipulation and it can be used to avoid responsibility, to gain an advantage, or for
other dishonest or unethical purposes. While animals cannot make false kinds of statements or
predictions. They have limitations in the features of their language design.

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12-Learnability of Language
It is one of the wonderful attributes of language that it is both teachable and learnable. As we learn
our first language, we’re able to learn second or foreign languages. It is noteworthy that young children
can acquire language with competence and ease. But language acquisition becomes difficult
when children pass a certain age.
Learnability makes it easy for people to acquire and learn. These features can include things such
as regularity and consistency in the sound-meaning relationships, or the presence of clear and consistent
grammatical rules.
Other examples of learnability features can include the presence of a relatively small set of phonemes,
the absence of arbitrary or complex grammatical rules, or the presence of a clear and consistent mapping
between sound and meaning.
However, these features can vary across different languages and can have an impact on how easy or
difficult it is for people to learn a particular language
Topic 9: Pictograms And Ideograms

Cave drawings may serve to record some event (e.g. Humans , Buffaloes ), but they are not usually thought
of as any type of specifically linguistic message. They are usually treated as part of a tradition of pictorial
art. When some of the ‘pictures’ came to represent particular images in a consistent way, we can begin to
describe the product as a form of picture-writing, or pictograms. In this way, a form such as might
come to be used for the sun. An essential part of this use of a representative symbol is that everyone should
use a similar form to convey a roughly similar meaning. That is, a conventional relationship must exist
between the symbol and its interpretation.
o
In time, this picture might develop into a more fixed symbolic form, such as , and come to be used for
‘heat’ and ‘daytime’, as well as for ‘sun’. Note that as the symbol extends from ‘sun’ to ‘heat’, it is moving
from something visible to something conceptual (and no longer a picture). This type of symbol is then
considered to be part of a system of idea-writing, or ideograms. The distinction between pictograms and
ideograms is essentially a difference in the relationship between the symbol and the entity it represents. The
more ‘picture-like’ forms are pictograms and the more abstract derived forms are ideograms.
A key property of both pictograms and ideograms is that they do not represent words or sounds in a
particular language. Modern pictograms, such as those represented in the accompanying illustration, are
languageindependent and can be understood with much the same basic conventional meaning in a lot of
different places where a number of different languages are spoken.
It is generally thought that there were pictographic or ideographic origins for a large number of symbols
that turn up in later writing systems.
For example, in Egyptian hieroglyphics, the symbol was used to refer to a house and derived from the
diagrammatic representation of the floor-plan of a house. In Chinese writing, the character ||| was used for
a river, and had its origins in the pictorial representation of a stream flowing between two banks. However,
it is important to note that neither the Egyptian nor the Chinese written symbols are actually ‘pictures’ of a
house or a river. They are more abstract. When we create symbols in a writing system, there is always an
abstraction away from the physical world.

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When the relationship between the symbol and the entity or idea becomes sufficiently abstract, we can be
more confident that the symbol is probably being used to represent words in a language. In early Egyptian
writing, the ideogram for water was ~~~ (with three parallel lines). Much later, the derived symbol~~~
(single line) came to be used for the actual word meaning ‘water’. When symbols are used to represent
words in a language, they are described as examples of word-writing, or ‘logograms’. Here is a list of
Pictogrames.
What are Ideograms?
An ideogram is a symbol, often used within a written language, which utilizes a picture, rather than
letters, to represent a particular idea or concept. This type of image is usually conceptual or abstract in
nature, as the image frequently represents something greater than what can be expressed through a
direct representation. An ideogram that represents an action, for example, might depict something
associated with that action rather than a graphic representation of the action itself. These types of images
can also include pictograms, which are images that represent a particular thing through a direct depiction
of that thing, such as a man or an animal.
There are a number of languages that have used ideograms in depicting various ideas or concepts. Ancient
Egyptian hieroglyphics, for example, were often created as a series of ideograms and pictograms to
express various concepts and tell stories about different events. These types of pictographic languages
can often be difficult to understand and interpret, especially if ideograms are complex or unrelated to
modern ideas or beliefs. Since an ideogram typically represents an idea or concept, it is possible that the
passage of time and changes in thinking can make an older depiction obscure or utterly lost when viewed
today.

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An ideogram can also be used in a more modern context, often as a way of presenting an idea visually
that can cross language barriers. Airports and other locations in which people from different countries
and linguistic backgrounds come together often use ideograms to present information to people.
Bathrooms, telephones, and other public facilities are often marked by ideograms to help people find
them regardless of language familiarity. Even the use of Arabic numerals and mathematical symbols can
be considered an ideogram, as these numbers and symbols are understood in numerous languages
regardless of the names for those numbers in such languages.
While a pictogram is similar to an ideogram, some people consider them to be a subset of ideograms while
others view them as separate concepts. A pictogram is a visual representation of an idea through an
image, rather than through other language, that is a more direct representation. This means that while
an ideogram may represent something like “spirit” or “run,” a pictogram often represents “man” or “dog”
or “bird.” This type of pictogram then uses an image of a man to represent “man” and an image that is
easily re cognizable as a bird to represent “bird,” which makes such pictograms easier to translate and
understand, even when viewed after thousands of years. Here are some examples of ideograms:

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Topic 10 : Homographic Sounds

(Homophones, Homonyms)
(For details consult our book Linguistics –iii : Phonetics and Phonology)
What Is a Homograph?
Homographs are words that are spelled the same but have different meanings, origins, or pronunciation.
Homographs are words in the English language that have multiple definitions or multiple forms of the
same word. They are related to homonyms and homophones, which are words that sound the same but
have different meanings. Examples of homographs in English include words like “read” (to interpret
written material) and “read” (to look at something), or “lead” (a metal) and “lead” (to guide). Homographs
can cause ambiguity when used in a sentence, as the context must be taken into account to determine
which definition is being used.
To distinguish between homographs, one must consider the context of the sentence, the compound
words that may be involved, and the commonly confused words that have similar spellings. Additionally,
one must consider the grammatical differences between the two forms of the word, the morphological
changes in related words, and the role of punctuation when using homographs. To use homographs
effectively, one should use dictionaries to look up the multiple definitions of a word, and use mnemonics
to remember difficult pairs.
Examples of Homographs
bass: a kind of fish/ a deep voice or tone
content: happy/ the subject of a book or speech
fine: money paid in penalty/ very good
Homographs in Sentences
Content:
Matt was content with his life. (happy and satisfied)
The book has some interesting content. (the articles contained in it)
Fine:
Maya is perfectly fine now. (happy and healthy)
Dad paid a heavy fine for speeding. (money paid as a punishment for violating a rule)
Identifying Homographs
As there are two or three different meanings and pronunciations at play in a homographic
context, we need to use contextual clues to work out which pronunciation and meaning are
appropriate.
Examples:
John couldn't fly the kite, for there wasn't enough wind.
Mom asked me to wind a wire around the coil.
In the first sentence, "wind" is a noun meaning "a current of air". The contextual clue is "fly the
kite". This "wind" is pronounced like "mint".

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In the second sentence, "wind" is a verb meaning "to turn something around something". The
contextual clue is "wire around the coil". This "wind" is pronounced like "kind".
Use of Homographs
Homographs serve a wide range of creative usages. They are mostly used in riddles and puns;
they also come in handy while introducing ambiguity and revealing irony.
Homographic Puns
A pun is a humorous use of a word or phrase that has several meanings. Homographs make
great tools of pun.
Examples:
What is the difference between an engine driver and a teacher? The
conductor minds trains, and the teacher trains minds.
The writer creates pun by using the words "mind" and "train" as both nouns and verbs.
Homographs Used for Ambiguity
In literature, homographs have traditionally been used to introduce ambiguity to the text and
boost the literary effect.
Example:
Being heavy, I will bear the light. (Romeo and Juliet)
Romeo is using the homographs "heavy" and "light" to mean both emotional states (sad and
happy respectively) and weights (hefty and thin respectively). He is also talking about a literal
torch. So "light" here is a homograph with three meanings.
Homographs, Homophones, Homonyms

• Homographs
The word "graph" is connected to writing, so homographs mean words that are written alike but
different in meanings.
Example:
desert: to leave/a dry region
Example Sentences:
After the war, a lot of people deserted the city. ("Desert" is used as a verb meaning "to
leave".)
The explorers were lost in the desert for many days. ("Desert" is used as a noun meaning "a
dry region".)
• Homophones
The word "phone" is connected with sound or pronunciation. So homophones are words that
sound the same but differ in meanings.
Example:
tail: the tail of an animal, tale: a story
Example Sentences:
The dog wagged its tail. (the tail of animal)
Grandpa told us interesting tales about her childhood days. (a story)
• Homonyms
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Homonyms are the trickiest of all of these. The word "nym" means "name". There are three
categories of words that can be called homonyms.
Homonyms - 1, 2, and 3
• Homonyms-1
They may be identical in pronunciation but different in meanings or spellings.
Examples:
to (preposition), too (very), two (number)
I want to study, This is too expensive, We are two sisters.
• Homonyms-2
They may also be words that are identical in both spelling and pronunciation but different in
meanings.
Example:
bank (the institution where people store money), bank (the bank of a river)
Where is the Central Bank? They played on the banks of the Mississippi River.
• Homonyms-3
They may also be words spelled alike but different in meaning and pronunciation.
Example:
lead (to lead a team), lead (a grey heavy metal)
Garry will lead the team, The pipe was made of lead.
Homographs versus homonyms and homophones
Not only do the terms homograph, homophone, and homonym begin with the same prefix, their
meanings also overlap and are sometimes contested.
We’ve already seen that a homograph is a word that is spelled the same as another word but has
a different meaning and may have a different pronunciation. A homophone (meaning “same
sound”) is a word that is pronounced identically to another word but has a different meaning
and may have a different spelling.
The words bow (a bending of the body to show respect) and bow (the front of a boat) are both
homophones and homographs because they are spelled and pronounced identically. The
word bow (the weapon that shoots an arrow) is a homograph of the other two words but not a
homophone because it is pronounced differently.
In the broadest definition, homonym (“same name”) is an umbrella term for words with the same
spelling or sound but different meanings, which means homographs and homophones are types
of homonyms. In the common set of homonyms their/they’re/there, all three words are
homophones in addition to being homonyms; none of them are homographs.
Homograph examples
Common homographs that are also homophones
• band (group of people) / band (strap)
• bat (flying mammal) / bat (sports equipment)
• bear (large mammal) / bear (to carry)
• can (to be able) / can (metal food container)

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• class (instructional course) / class (sophistication)

• crane (wading bird) / crane (lifting machine)
• fair (equitable) / fair (carnival)
• fan (air-blowing appliance) / fan (admirer)
• kind (sympathetic, helpful) / kind (type)
• lean (having little fat) / lean (to rest against something)
• novel (new, unique) / novel (fictional book)
• park (outdoor recreational space) / park (to bring a vehicle to a stop)
• part (component) / part (to separate)
• pen (writing implement) / pen (small enclosure)
• watch (time-telling jewelry) / watch (to observe)
Common homographs with different pronunciations

• attribute (characteristic) / attribute (to give credit)
• close (nearby) / close (to shut)
• console (cabinet) / console (to comfort)
• content (satisfied) / content (material contained)
• entrance (way to enter) / entrance (to enchant)
• lead (soft, heavy metal) / lead (to head up)
• minute (sixty seconds) / minute (very small)
• object (item) / object (to protest)
• Polish (from Poland) / polish (to make smooth and shiny)
• present (gift) / present (to show)
• produce (fruit and vegetables) / produce (to bring into existence)
• subject (topic) / subject (to bring under control of something)
• tear (drop of fluid from the eye) / tear (to rip)
• wind (movement of air) / wind (to turn something around something else)
• wound (injury that breaks the skin) / wound (past tense of wind)
Differences
What is a homograph?
A homograph is one of two or more words that are spelled the same but differ in meaning and
may also differ in pronunciation or origin.

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How are homographs different from homonyms?

In the loosest definition of homonym, a homonym is a word with the same spelling or sound but
a different meaning from another word. A homograph is a type of homonym that has the same
spelling as the other word but a different meaning.
How are homographs different from homophones?

Homophones are a type of homonym that is pronounced the same as another word but has a
different meaning, whereas homographs are spelled the same as another word, have a different
meaning, and may have a different pronunciation. Some words are both homographs and
homophones.


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BS ENGLISH BOOK LINGUISTICS –III (PHONETCIS AND PHONOLOGY) SEMESTER-III , ENG CODE-203.

BY PROF. FAIZ-UR-REHMAN GILL (GCG)

INTRODUCTION TO LITERATURE –III

PHONETICS AND PHONOLOGY

CODE ENG - 203

ANSWERS TO ALL QUESTIONS ASKED IN PU PREVIOUS PAPERS

TOPIC 1: Multiple Articulation and Coarticulation

2. Primary vs. secondary articulations

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Ibibio [èk͡pà] "bag" vs. [èkà] "mother"

Igbo [àk͡pà] "bag" vs. [àɡ͡bà] "fame"

͡ (for which the IPA has a single symbol, [ɧ])

The secondary articulation is normally the addition of an approximant or vowel-like articulation

Four major types of secondary articulation are recognized as:

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vowels e.g. in "sheet" or "reek".

In some languages, labialization is contrastive:

(e.g. Irish English). In Russian, palatalization is distinctive:

[stal] "he has become" vs. [stal ] "steel".

ii) Regardless of relative degrees of stricture, nasalization is always considered secondary, by

eight [eɪtʰ] vs. eighth [eɪt̪θ]

keep [k̟̟̟̟ʲip] vs. cool [k ul]

Topic 2: CO-ARTICULATION AND ITS KINDS

Anticipatory or Progressive Coarticulation:

Anticipatory coarticulation is said to occur when a feature or characteristics of speech sound is

2-Coarticulation in Consonant Clusters: In consonant clusters, the articulatory features of one

Perseverative or Regressive Coarticulation

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▪ An example of perseverative coarticulation is the carrying over of voicelessness from a plosive

The Word Stop:

Other Examples of Perseverative Coarticulation

Topic 3: Minimal Pairs

Definition of a Minimal Pair

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Spelling doesn’t matter

Dove /dov/ the past tense of ‘dive’

Example (5) French

word 1 word 2 IPA 1 IPA 2 Note

Pin Bin /pɪn/ /bɪn/

Rot Lot /rɒt/ /lɒt/ initial consonant

thigh Thy /θaɪ/ /ðaɪ/

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seal Zeal /siːl/ /ziːl/

bin Bean /bɪn/ /biːn/

pen Pan /pɛn/ /pæn/ Vowel

cook Kook /kʊk/ /kuːk/

hat Had /hæt/ /hæd/

Topic 4 : Contrastive Distribution and Minimal Pairs

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Topic 5: Complementary Distribution

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Topic 6 : Phonemes, Distribution and Classification in Phonology:

1. The Distribution of Phonemes

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So in this language, aspiration is distinctive.

[sidz] ‘seeds’ [sits] ‘seats’

[flajz] ‘flies’ [flajts] ‘flights’

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