Features
What is a natural class?
A set of sounds in some language that pattern together, and so share some set of distinctive/phonological features
What are the names of these cities (anglicized)?
1. [mɑntɹiɑl]~[mʌntɹiɑl]
2. [təɹɑntoʊ]~[tɹɑnoʊ]
3. [pɛɹɪs]~[pæɹɪs]
4. [bɑstn̩]
5. [wɛlɪŋtn̩]
1. Montreal, CA
2. Toronto, CA
3. Paris, FR
4. Boston, USA
5. Wellington, NZ
Describe how you would produce an [n].
- Drop the velum and pass air through the nasal tract
- Place apex or corona of the tongue at the alveolar ridge
- Vibrate the vocal folds
Name as many vowels in the vowel inventory of NAE as you can. Diphthongs included!
[æ]: unrounded low front
[ɑ]: unrounded low back
[ʌ]: stressed unrounded mid central
[ə]: unstressed unrounded mid central
[i]: unrounded high front tense
[ɪ]: unrounded high front lax
[u]: rounded high back tense
[ʊ]: rounded high back lax
[ɛ]: unrounded mid front (lax)
[eɪ]: unrounded mid front diphthong
[ɑɪ]: unrounded low central diphthong (ends high and front)
[ɑʊ]: unrounded low central diphthong (ends high and back)
[oʊ]: rounded mid back diphthong
Also acceptable:
[ɔ]: rounded mid back (lax)
What is a morpheme?
The smallest unit of sound AND meaning.
What is the difference between a distinctive feature and a phonetic description?
A distinctive feature is part of a formal system that describes the phonological properties of a set of sounds. A phonetic description captures the articulatory/acoustic/auditory characteristics of a sound.
Transcribe the words:
1. bankrupt
2. huge
3. morpheme
4. Coquitlam
5. rhythm
1. [bæ̃ŋkɹʌpt]
2. [hjudʒ]
3. [mɔɹfim]
4. [koʊkwɪʔlm̩]
5. [ɹɪðm̩]
Describe how to pronounce a [w]
- Round the lips
- Reach dorsum of the tongue toward the velum, (but do not make contact!)
- Vibrate the vocal folds or you'll end up with a [ẉ]
- Pass air through the oral tract without obstruction
- Ensure the velum is raised or you'll end up with a [w̃]
What are the 3 ways of determining a lax/tense distinction?
- Phonetic way: periphery = tense
- Phonological way: open syllable = tense
- Contrastive way: only note it if it matters
What are the morphemes in the following words? Discuss what they are. Which ones can stand alone?
cats
friendly
unsinkable
recycle
geese
cat-s <- noun + plural
friend-ly <- noun + adverbial
un-sink-able <- negation + verb + adjectival
re-cycle <- intensifier + verb (zero-derived from noun??)
geese <- ablaut! :) diachronic reasons
What are the benefits of using natural classes of distinctive features over phonetic descriptions?
You can find patterns where you otherwise might not find them because the phonetic characteristics are either too different, too ambiguous, or have shaky origins (e.g. historic accidents, misperceptions, speech errors, physiology, coarticulation, etc.)
When do we use <>?
When do we use []?
When do we use //?
<>: orthographic representation
[]: phonetic representation
//: phonological representation
Name as many parts of the vocal tract as you can! :)
Nasal cavity, oral cavity, lips, teeth, tongue, alveolar ridge, hard palate, soft palate, uvula, pharynx, epiglottis
What is a minimal pair (in the phonological sense)? Please provide an example and explain why it's important.
Words that differ by 1 sound
[tæp]~[tæb]
*[tæp]?~[pæt]
What about bath~bathe?
In the words inconceivable, impossible, intolerable, what is going on? (e.g. how many morphemes are there? what is the morpheme? what's going on???)
- There is 1 prefix morpheme with some sort of nasal: [ɪN-], plus the other morphemes in the stem
- The nasal assimilates to the same place of articulation as the subsequent stop [ɪŋkənsivəbl̩], [ɪmpɑsɪbl̩], [ɪntɑləɹəbl̩]
What sounds in NAE form the natural class of [+cons]? What are their sub-classes called?
the plosives: [t, d, p, b, k, g]
the fricatives: [θ, ð, s, z, f, v, ʃ, ʒ]
the affricates: [tʃ, dʒ]
the glottals: [h, ʔ]
the nasals: [m, n, ŋ]
the liquids: [l, ɹ]
(note: glides are [-cons])
[weɹ dɪd ɑɪ fɑɪnd ðæt wiɹd lɪɾəl bʌg wɪθ ðə bɪg spɑts]
Where did I find that weird little bug with the big spots?
Why do you think some people pronounce tree like [tʃɹi] and drink like [dʒɹɪŋk]?
Discuss!
How do we know that *[bnɪk] is not a possible English word, but [blɪk] is?
Discuss phonotactics!
- Existing data (e.g. words like 'black')
- Repair strategies (e.g. do you end up saying [bənɪk]?)
- Inherent rules???
What are the forms of the regular plural morpheme in English? How are they phonologically and phonetically motivated?
[s, z, əz]
- Phonological: after a [-voice], [+voice], and [+sibilant] segment (respectively)
- Phonetic: maintaining voicing or lack there of
What are the contrastive features of a diphthong?
Transcribe
I love phonology more than anything
[ɑɪ lʌv fənɑlədʒi mɔɹ ðən ɛniθɪŋ]
~[æniθɪŋ]
How do you produce an ejective?
Using velar airflow; you create 2 points of articulation in your oral tract, trapping an air bubble on your velum using your tongue. The "popping" of this bubble creates the beat-box sound associated with ejectives.
What are some phonetic characteristics of NA English that are NOT phonologically contrastive?
- Nasalization [hæ̃m]
- Aspiration [tʰɑp]
- Liquid devoicing [pʰḷeɪ]
..
Why is the word "unlockable" ambiguous?
un[lockable]: not able to be locked
unlock[able]: able to be unlocked
Discuss morpheme boundaries, etc.