INTRODUCTION TO THE SOUNDS OF ENGLISH

PHONETICS

INTRODUCTION
It is well-known that in English oneto-one corresponndence between
letters and sounds does not exist. These two must Never get
confused if you want to learn good English. So, it is necessary to
study English spelling and English
Pronunciation separately.
THE SCIENCE THAT DEALS WITH THE SOUNDS OF THE
LANGUAGE IS KNOWN AS

PHONETICS.

FEATURES OF PRONUNCIATION

Phonemes

consonants
voiced

unvoiced

Suprasegmental features

vowels
Single vowels
short

Long

Intonation

Diphthongs

stress

Word stress

Sentence
stress

We Indians follow standard British English and

recognise Received pronunciation as our model.
Before you learn the sounds, let us look at the
organs involved in the prOduCtion of the sounds.

Organs of Speech

Air from the lungs is pushed through these speech organs which articulate the
sound.
We draw air from the lungs, air passes through the wind pipe, then through the
larynx, where the vocal cords are situated.
Vocal cords are two small bands of elastic tissue almost like two flat strips of
rubber.
The space between the vocal cords is known as glottis.
The air then passes through the cavity of the mouth/nose. Organs in the mouth
also play an important role in shaping the sounds.
The tongue, teeth, teeth ridge, lips and soft palate are the speech organs in the
mouth that convert the air into a definite sound.
When concerned speech organs activate in a set pattern, the sounds are
produced depending on the articulation .

Sounds in the English language are divided on the basis

of the manner and mechanism of their production.

Different kinds of sounds

Consonants are divided into three

types according to their

1. manner of articulation

2. place of articulation, and

3. Voice

Sounds in English are divided into consonants and vowels based on the mechanism
of their production.

Consonants are 24 in number and the production of them involves some friction.

Consonant sounds

Manner of Articulation

Manner of articulation refers to how

the sound is produced and the way in
which the air stream is modified as it
passes through the vocal folds.

Consonant sounds are six types

depending on their manner of
articulation

Plosives
It is a consonant characterized
by complete obstruction of the
outgoing air stream by one of
the articulators; a build of intraoral air pressure and a release.
eg. /p/ /b/ /t / /d/ /k/ /g/

Fricatives
It is a consonant produced by
forcing the breath stream through
a constriction formed by
articulators in vocal folds.
eg. /f / / v/ / / / / / / / / /
/h /

Affricates
It is a consonant characterized
by having both fricative and
stop manner of production.
eg. /

/ /

Nasals
It refers to a consonant produced with
complete closure in the oral
cavity along with a lowered velum to
allow air flow through the nasal cavity
eg: /m/ /n/ n/

Lateral

It is a generic label used to classify two

approximate consonants /r/ and /l/

Semi-vowels
It is a consonant characterized
by a continuous gliding motion
of articulators into the following
vowel, also referred to as
semi-level /j/ and /w/.

Place of articulation
Place of articulation refers to which
articulators are involved in the
production of a particular sound.
These are divided into seven types.

Place of Articulation

Bilabial:

It refers to a speech sound produced by the contact of upper and lower lips.

Labio-dental:

It is one that is produced by the lower lip contacting upper front teeth.

Dental:

It is produced with the tongue contacting the teeth.

Alveolar:

It refers to a consonant produced with the tongue contacting the upper

Alveolar ridge.

Palato-alveolar:

It is produced with the tongue contacting the hard palate.

Velar:

It refers to a consonant produced with the tongue contacting contacting the

velum.

Glottal:

It is a place of articulation referring to a consonant that is produced by

completely or partially contacting the glottis.

Voice of Articulation
Voicing pertains to whether or not the vocal
folds vibrate during the production of a
consonant. It is of two types.
Voiced:

Voiceless:

A voiced sound is produced with

vibration of the abducted vocal
folds in the larynx.
Voiceless sounds are produced
without the vibration of the vocal
folds.

VOWEL SOUNDS

A vowel sound is unobstructed in articulation as it is produced without friction.There are twelve

(12) pure vowels land eight (8) diphthongs. In total twenty (20) vowel sounds. Vowels are divided
into two categories based on sound production.

Vowels are divided into monophthongs (pure vowels) and diphthongs

Monophthongs

Based on the part of the tongue raised and the extent to which the
tongue is raised towards the palate, monophthongs are of three
types:
a) Front: A front vowel is produced with forward shifting of
the tongue from its neutral or rest position.

(b) Central: A central vowel is produced with the tongue

in its neutral position.
(c) Back: A back vowel is produced with the backward shift
of the tongue from its neutral position.

Monophthongs consist of sounds such as:

Sounds

Tongue positions

Examples

front, close, unrounded

peach, tea

front,unrounded vowel between close

and half close

ink, pill

front, unrounded vowel just between

half close and half open

end, trend

front, unrounded vowel just below the

half open position

ant, man

back, open, unrounded

ask, flask

back, open, rounded

off, lot

back, rounded vowel between half-close and

half-open

all, tall

back, rounded vowel between close and half-close

put, could

back, close, rounded vowel

fool, stoop

central unrounded vowel between open and half-open

upm gun

central, unrounded vowel between half-close and

half-open

earth, yearn

central, unrounded vowel between half-close and

half-open

sofa, alike

Diphthongs
Diphthongs are two different vowels produced
consecutively in the same syllable, moving articulations
from the positions of one after the other.
Diphthongs consist of sounds such as:

A glide from a front unrounded vowel just below half-close to a

centralized front unrounded vowel just above half-close.

ale, make

A glide from a front, open, unrounded vowel to a centralized

front unrounded vowel just above half-close.

ice, mike

A glide from a back, rounded vowel between open and halfopen to a centralized front unrounded vowel just above the
half close position.

oil, boy

A glide from the back, open, unrounded position and moves in

the direction of RP(u).

about, mouth

A glide from a central unrounded vowel between half-close

and half-open to a centralized back rounded vowel just above
the half-close position.

no, old

A glide from a centralized front unrounded vowel just above

half-close ti a centraljunrounded vowel between half-close and
half-open.

serious, period

A glide from the centralized back, rounded vowel just above

half-close to a central unrounded vowel between half-close
and half-open.

poor, cure

A glide from a front half-open, unrounded vowel to a central

unrounded vowel between half-close and half-open.

air, hair

Monophthongs

Based on the part of the tongue raised and the extent to which the tongue is raised towards
the palare, monophthongs are of three types:

Front
Close

Central

Back
Close

:
u
Half-close

Half- close
e

Half- Open

Open

Half-open

Op[en

Its Fun Remembering This Way

1. A Dip in Deep Sea:

and

2. Many Mad Men:

and

3. A Cot Caught in a Cart:

4. Look For Good Food:

5. Bad Luck, Early Worm:

6. Again and Again:

8. Holy Cow:

9. Here, There, Everywhere:

7. A China Clay Toy: