Tự luận ngữ âm-âm vị học

What is the vocal tract?

Answer explanation

The vocal tract iss the passageway which the air passes from the larynx out into outside our bodies

How are the voiced sounds different from the voiceless sounds. Name the voiced sounds and the voiceless sounds in English.

Answer explanation

Voiced sounds are produced with vibration in the vocal cord whereas voiceless sounds are produced without vibration in the vocal cord.

Voiced sounds: 20 vowels + 9 consonant (p, k, t, f, s, th, ts, S, h)

Voiceless sounds: 15 consonants còn lại

How are pure vowels different from diphthongs?

Answer explanation

Pure vowels: remain constant and do not glide from one vowel to another.

• - voiced

• - more sonorous and louder than consonants

• - are syllabic

Diphthongs: consist of a movement and glide from one vowel to another.

• - Voiced and voiceless

• - less sonorous

• - are generally not syllabic

On what criteria are consonants classified?

Answer explanation

There are 3 factors classified consonants:

• - voicing: voiced or voiceless.

• - place of articulation: 8 - bilabial, labio-dental, dental, alveolar, palato-alveolar, palatal, velar, glottal.

• - manner of articulation: 6 - plosive/stop, nasal, fricative, affricative, lateral, approximant.

What are the major differences between English vowels and consonants, in terms of articulation and distribution?

Answer explanation

In terms of articulation, vowels are produced with relatively little obstruction in the vocal tract while consonants are produced with a narrow or complete closure in the vocal tract.

In terms of distribution, vowels are the centre of syllables whereas consonants are onset and coda of syllables.

According to what principles are the English diphthongs classified? Illustrate your answers with examples.

Answer explanation

There are 2 principles classified diphthongs including centering and closing:

Centering is ending in ơ: i ơ (here), e ơ (hair) , u ơ (tour)

Closing is ending in i and u:

With ending in i, we have ei (lake) , oi (loyal), ui ( tree )

With ending in u, we have au (flower) and ơu (local)

What is minimal pair? Give examples and illustrated them.

Answer explanation

Minimal pairs consist of two forms that are identical in everywhere except for one sound segment that occurs in the same place in the string.

For example: sheep /Si:p/ & ship /SIp/

-> two words above are identical in initial sound and final sound except for middle sound.

True /tru:/ and threw /thru:/

-> they are identical in initial and middle sound except for final sound.

What is the syllable? Present the nature of syllables?

Answer explanation

Syllable is a unit of linguistic structure which consists of syllable elements or any segments that associate with it.

For example: the word "important" has 3 syllables.

There are four cases nature of syllable:

• - Minimal syllable (a /ơ/, I /ai/)

• - have a onset but no coda ( the /đơ/, to /tu:/..)

• - have no onset but no coda (of /ov/, at /aet/)

• Have onset and coda (from /from/)

On what criteria are pure vowels classified?

Answer explanation

There are 4 principles that are classified pure vowels including tongue height, tongue part, vowel length and lip shape.

• - In terms of tongue height, pure vowels can be close, mid, and open.

• - In terms of tongue part, pure vowels can be front, central, and back.

• - in terms of vowel length, pure vowels can be long and short vowel.

• - In terms of lip shape, pure vowels can be rounded, unrounded/spread, and neutral.

List all vowels

Answer explanation

The pure vowels can be: i:-I, u:- U, o-o:, ơ, ơ:, ^, e, ae, a:.

• - tongue height:

• Close: i:, I, u:, U

Mid: e, ơ, ơ:, o:, ^

Open: ae, a:, o

• - Tongue part:

• Front: i:, I, ae, e

• Central: ơ, ơ:, ^

• Back: u:, U, o:, o, a:

• - lip shape:

• Rounded: u:, U, o:, o

• Spread: i:, I, ae, e

• Neutral: ơ, ơ:, ^, a: