PHONETICS

How do we perceive sounds in our native language?

• We tend to hear allophones rather than phonemes themselves.

• We hear only the mental representations of speech sounds.

• We can easily distinguish contrastive distribution of allophones.

• We perceive all sounds as meaningful phonemes.

Answer explanation

The information provided suggests that in our native language, we tend to hear the phonemes that the allophones belong to, rather than the allophones themselves. This means that we recognize the underlying phonemic representation of the sounds, which helps us understand and produce meaningful words.

What is phoneme segmentation?

• Breaking apart a word to recognize its meaning.

• Combining individual phonemes to form a word.

• Identifying the number of syllables in a word.

• Breaking apart a word to recognize its component sounds.

Answer explanation

Phoneme segmentation is the process of breaking apart a word to recognize its individual component sounds or phonemes.

Which of the following is a minimal pair test?

• Comparing two words with different sounds and meanings.

• Comparing two words with the same meaning but different sounds.

• Comparing two words with the same sounds but different meanings.

• Comparing two words that differ from each other in only one sound and they have different meanings.

What word is represented by the phoneme segmentation / ˈwiːkli/?

• Weekly

• Weakly

• Weeckly

• Weekle

What term is used to describe a phonetic variant of a phoneme occurring in specific contexts?

•  Syllable

• Phoneme

• Allophone

• Minimal pair

Answer explanation

An allophone is a phonetic variant of a phoneme, and different allophones occur in specific linguistic contexts, representing variations of the same underlying sound.

In some English dialects, the "t" sound can be pronounced as a flap /ɾ/ in certain contexts. Which word contains an allophone of "t" pronounced as /ɾ/?

• "tap"

• "stop"

• "later"

• "table"

Which phoneme can change the meaning of the word "pat" to "bat"?

• /b/

• /t/

• /p/

• /a/

Answer explanation

The phoneme /p/ in "pat" can change the word's meaning to "bat" when replaced by the phoneme /b/.

A Spanish speaker learning English tends to pronounce the English word "think" as /tink/, which is influenced by the Spanish pronunciation of "think." What type of transfer is this most likely an example of?

• Negative transfer

• Positive transfer

• Cross-linguistic transfer

• Zero transfer

Answer explanation

The Spanish speaker's tendency to mispronounce "think" as /tink/ due to the influence of the Spanish pronunciation demonstrates negative transfer, as elements of the native language (Spanish) hinder the correct production of the target language (English).

The /p/, /t/, and /k/ sounds in English can be aspirated in certain contexts, such as at the beginning of a stressed syllable, characterized by a short burst of air released after the stop closure. This phonetic variation is an example of:

• Allophonic assimilation

• Aspiration in English

• Vowel lengthening

• Allophonic variation

Answer explanation

The pronunciation of the voiceless stops /p/, /t/, and /k/ as aspirated [pʰ], [tʰ], and [kʰ] in certain contexts represents aspiration in English. It is a phonetic variation of these consonant phonemes based on their position in a word.

Juan, a native Spanish speaker learning English, struggles with the English past tense. He often says sentences like "Yesterday, I go to the store" instead of "Yesterday, I went to the store." What type of language transfer is evident in Juan's language use?

• Negative language transfer

• Positive language transfer

• Interference

•  Overgeneralization

Answer explanation

Juan's incorrect use of the past tense is an example of negative language transfer, where features of his native language (Spanish) interfere with his learning of the correct past tense form in English.