Introducing English LinguisticsCharles F. MeyerChapter 7: the sounds of EnglishSounds

Consonants in English

Place of Articulation

Plosives (Stops)

bilabial labio-dental inter-dental alveolar alveo-palatal palatal velar

p (pat) t (tack) k (kick)

b (back) d (dark)g (get)

Fricatives

bilabial labio-dental inter-dental alveolar alveo-palatal palatal velar

f (five) (thin) s (sip) ʃ or š (ship) v (vice) ð (this) z (zip) ʒ or ž (measure)

Affricatesbilabial labio-dental inter-dental alveolar alveo-palatal palatal velar

ʧ or č (church) dʒ or ǰ (judge)

Nasalsbilabial labio-dental inter-dental alveolar alveo-palatal palatal velar

m (more) n (none) ŋ (hang)

Approximants

bilabial labio-dental inter-dental alveolar alveo-palatal palatal velar

w (wet) r (ripe) y (yet) l (like)

Vowels in English

Vowel Chart

Diphthongs in English

/aɪ/ fight

/aʊ/ house

/ɔɪ/ boy

Definition of Diphthongs

“In each of the diphthongs above, the tongue changes position as each part of the diphthong is articulated. In the case of /ɔɪ/, for instance, the tongue is initially positioned in the lower back part of the mouth and then ‘glides’ to the upper front of the mouth. This feature of diphthongs explains why in the American tradition of transcription, the three diphthongs above are transcribed, respectively, as /ay/, /aw/, and /ɔy/. The sounds /y/ and /w/, sometimes referred to as glides (or semi-vowels), are used to reflect the gradual transition between vowels inherent in diphthongs.” (Meyer 2009)

Sound Systems of Some Select Languages

• Portuguese• Spanish• French• Russian• Farsi• Arabic• Mandarin• Vietnamese