Articulation of Vowel and Consonant Sounds in English

Summary

This lesson explores the articulation of vowel and consonant sounds in English, focusing on how they are produced and how they differ from those in other languages. It covers key distinctions between vowel sounds, such as short and long variations, and introduces consonant sounds based on their points and manners of articulation. The session emphasizes the differences between Indian and English pronunciations, specifically retroflex and alveolar sounds, and highlights the importance of practicing these differences to improve spoken English. Students are encouraged to engage with the material to enhance fluency and confidence.

Takeaways

• 🗣️ Articulation involves the production of vowel and consonant sounds, with vowels having minimal obstruction of air flow and consonants involving modifications at different points in the vocal tract.
• 🔤 English has 20 distinct vowel sounds, each represented with phonetic symbols, which are essential for fluent speech.
• 👄 Vowel sounds can be categorized by their position in the mouth (front, central, back) and tongue height (close, mid, open).
• 📊 A chart can visually represent the distribution of vowel sounds in the oral cavity, aiding in understanding their production.
• 🔊 Consonant sounds are produced at various points in the vocal tract, including the velum, alveolar, teeth, and lips, each producing different types of sounds.
• 🌐 Retroflex sounds, common in many Indian languages, are not present in English, which can affect the pronunciation of English by native speakers of these languages.
• 🌬️ Aspiration, the additional flow of air in certain sounds, and voicing, the vibration of the vocal cords, are key features that distinguish similar consonant sounds.
• 🎯 Regular practice can help non-native speakers of English to accurately produce sounds that are not present in their native languages.
• 🌏 The term 'Indian English' refers to the variety of English spoken in India, influenced by the native languages' sound patterns.
• 📚 Understanding the differences between English sounds and those of one's native language can lead to improved pronunciation and confidence in speaking English.

Q & A

What is the main difference between vowels and consonants in terms of articulation?

Vowels are produced with minimal obstruction of the exhaled airflow in the vocal tract, while consonants are produced with modifications at different points in the vocal tract.

How many vowel sounds are there in English, according to the script?

There are 20 vowel sounds in English, as presented in the script.

What is the difference between 'pit' and 'pet' in terms of vowel sounds?

The word 'pit' has a short 'i' sound, while 'pet' has a short 'e' sound.

What are the places of articulation mentioned for consonant sounds?

The places of articulation for consonants include the velum, palate, alveolar ridge, teeth, and lips, corresponding to velar, palatal, retroflex, dental, and bilabial sounds respectively.

What are velar sounds, and can you provide an example?

Velar sounds are produced at the velum (the soft part of the roof of the mouth). An example of a velar sound is 'k'.

How is 'aspiration' described in the script, and how can it be tested?

Aspiration is described as the additional flow of air during the production of certain sounds, which can be felt as a small blow when placing your palm in front of your mouth while saying aspirated sounds like 'kha'.

What is the key difference between 'ka' and 'ga' in terms of voicing?

'Ka' is an unvoiced sound (no vibration of the vocal cords), while 'ga' is a voiced sound (vocal cords vibrate).

What is a retroflex sound, and why is it significant in the context of Indian languages?

A retroflex sound is produced by curling the tongue back toward the alveolar ridge. Retroflex sounds are significant because they are common in many Indian languages but not found in English.

How does the script explain the concept of 'Indian English'?

Indian English is described as a variety of English influenced by the native languages of India, especially due to the presence of retroflex sounds in these languages, which affect how English is spoken.

What are labiodental sounds, and how do they differ from bilabial sounds?

Labiodental sounds are produced by the interaction of the upper teeth and lower lip, such as 'f' in 'father.' Bilabial sounds are made using both lips, such as 'p' in 'pal.'

Outlines

00:00

🎤 Introduction to Vowel and Consonant Articulation

This paragraph introduces the topic of articulation, focusing on the production of vowel and consonant sounds. Vowels are produced with minimal obstruction of airflow, while consonants are created with various modifications at different points in the vocal tract. The paragraph emphasizes understanding the distinct vowel and consonant sounds in English and how they differ from sounds in other languages. Attention to these differences can improve speaking fluency and clarity. It also mentions the six fundamental vowel sounds found in most languages and introduces 20 vowel sounds specific to English, illustrated with examples such as 'pit,' 'pet,' and 'pat.'

05:02

🗣️ Understanding Vowel Chart and Their Placement

This paragraph discusses a vowel chart that illustrates the positioning of vowel sounds within the vocal tract, categorized by tongue height and placement (front, central, back). The focus is on how vowels are articulated depending on where they originate in the mouth. The description also touches on consonants, explaining that different parts of the vocal tract (like the velum, alveolar ridge, teeth, and lips) are responsible for producing specific consonant sounds. Examples of consonant sounds and their places of articulation, such as velar, palatal, and dental sounds, are mentioned. The paragraph introduces the concept of retroflex sounds, which are absent in English but common in Indian languages.

10:03

💨 Aspiration and Voicing in Sound Distinction

This paragraph dives into the technical aspects of distinguishing consonant sounds based on aspiration and voicing. It explains how sounds like 'ka' and 'kha' can be differentiated by the additional airflow (aspiration), which can be felt by placing a hand in front of the mouth while pronouncing these sounds. Aspiration is defined as the presence of an extra burst of air. Voicing is described as the vibration of the vocal cords, with examples of how sounds like 'ka' and 'ga' differ due to the presence or absence of this vibration. The paragraph encourages self-experimentation to observe these differences.

15:05

🔊 Distinguishing Velar Sounds Based on Aspiration and Voicing

This paragraph continues exploring the distinctions between sounds using aspiration and voicing. It further examines the four velar sounds ('ka,' 'kha,' 'ga,' 'gha'), explaining how they differ based on the combination of these two features. Each sound's unique identity is described by whether it has aspiration and/or voicing, giving a clear example of how such features define sounds from specific places of articulation, like the velum. The importance of nasal and oral sounds is briefly touched upon, with the promise of discussing nasal sounds later.

20:05

🧠 Retroflex Sounds and Their Role in Indian English

This paragraph delves into the role of retroflex sounds in Indian languages and how they affect the way English is spoken by native Indian language speakers. It explains the absence of retroflex sounds in English and the presence of alveolar sounds instead. The difference between these two is illustrated through the position of the tongue when producing the sounds. The paragraph also highlights how retroflex sounds from languages like Tamil, Hindi, or Punjabi influence the distinct accent known as 'Indian English.' It reassures readers that Indian English is a recognized and valid variety of English, much like British or American English.

25:06

🌍 Understanding Indian English and Sound Variation

This paragraph provides an in-depth look at 'Indian English,' explaining how the presence of retroflex sounds in Indian languages contributes to the unique characteristics of Indian English. It discusses the concept of 'Indian-ness' in English speech patterns, and why it is scientifically rooted in the way individuals learn languages before the age of 12, shaping their vocal tract. While it emphasizes that this is a natural phenomenon, it also points out that with practice, one can modify their speech to better align with English pronunciation standards, particularly by focusing on alveolar sounds and labiodental sounds like 'f' and 'v.'

🔍 Practicing Consonant and Vowel Sounds for Better English Pronunciation

This concluding paragraph encourages practice in recognizing and distinguishing the 24 consonant and 20 vowel sounds of English. It underscores the importance of understanding how these sounds differ from those in native languages, which can improve pronunciation. The paragraph highlights the shared and unique sounds between languages and the value of focusing on a small subset of sounds to make significant progress in English speaking fluency. It concludes by inviting readers to practice these sounds and bring any arising questions for further discussion.

Keywords

💡Vowels

Vowels are sounds produced with minimal obstruction of airflow in the vocal tract. In the video, vowels are discussed in terms of their role in English pronunciation, specifically the 20 vowel sounds that vary between short and long forms. Examples include words like 'pit,' 'pet,' and 'book.' The speaker emphasizes understanding these sounds to improve fluency in English.

💡Consonants

Consonants are sounds produced with modifications or obstructions in the vocal tract. The video explains that consonants can be classified based on where in the vocal tract they are produced, such as velar, palatal, or labial sounds. The goal is to recognize differences between English consonants and those in other languages to enhance pronunciation.

💡Aspiration

Aspiration refers to the additional airflow that accompanies the pronunciation of certain consonants, like the difference between 'ka' and 'kha.' The speaker in the video encourages listeners to perform a simple test to feel this airflow, as it is an important distinction in English sounds that is not always present in other languages.

💡Voicing

Voicing occurs when the vocal cords vibrate during the production of certain sounds. The distinction between voiced and unvoiced sounds is crucial in English; for example, 'ka' is unvoiced, while 'ga' is voiced. The video illustrates how this vibration can be felt physically, helping learners differentiate sounds more effectively.

💡Retroflex sounds

Retroflex sounds involve the curling of the tongue to touch the roof of the mouth, and are common in many Indian languages. The speaker highlights that these sounds do not exist in English, which can lead to an 'Indian English' accent. Adjusting the tongue position to produce English sounds, such as alveolar consonants, is key to mastering English pronunciation.

💡Alveolar sounds

Alveolar sounds are produced when the tongue touches the alveolar ridge, just behind the upper front teeth. The video explains that in English, sounds like 't' and 'd' are alveolar, as opposed to retroflex sounds in Indian languages. Correct placement of the tongue can help non-native speakers improve their English pronunciation.

💡Phonetic symbols

Phonetic symbols represent the specific sounds of language, as used in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA). While the speaker in the video notes that learners do not need to focus heavily on these symbols, they are useful for visually distinguishing between different vowel and consonant sounds, such as in 'pit' versus 'pet.'

💡Indian English

Indian English refers to the unique variety of English spoken in India, characterized by influences from native languages like Hindi or Tamil. The video emphasizes that this is not a negative trait, but understanding the differences between Indian English and other varieties, such as British or American English, can help in mastering more global forms of English.

💡Labiodental sounds

Labiodental sounds are produced when the upper teeth touch the lower lip, as in the English 'f' sound in 'father.' The video contrasts these with bilabial sounds, like 'p' in 'pal,' which involve both lips. Recognizing these differences is essential for learners from languages that do not have labiodental sounds.

💡Articulation

Articulation refers to how speech sounds are formed by the movement of speech organs, such as the tongue, lips, and palate. The video focuses on articulating vowel and consonant sounds correctly in English by understanding how they are produced in different parts of the vocal tract, which is essential for clear and accurate speech.

Highlights

Vowels are produced with minimal obstruction of the exhaling airflow, while consonants involve different modifications at various points in the vocal tract.

English has 20 vowel sounds with both long and short alternations, such as 'pit' (short e) and 'bean' (long e).

The importance of practicing vowel sounds, not focusing on their written representation but their pronunciation.

A vowel chart helps visualize the distribution of sounds in the mouth, including front, central, and back vowels.

Velar sounds are produced at the velum, with examples like 'ka' and 'ga' distinguished by aspiration and voicing.

Aspiration involves an additional flow of air during sound production, which can be felt by placing your hand in front of your mouth.

Voicing refers to the vibration of vocal cords, creating a distinction between sounds like 'ka' (unvoiced) and 'ga' (voiced).

Retroflex sounds, common in Indian languages, are not present in English. This creates differences in pronunciation between languages.

Understanding the distinction between retroflex sounds in Indian languages and the non-retroflex alveolar sounds in English is key to improving pronunciation.

Indian English has unique characteristics due to retroflex sounds, similar to how American or British English differ.

The maturation of the vocal tract before the age of 12 makes it harder to learn new sounds later, leading to accents influenced by native languages.

Labiodental sounds, such as 'f' in 'father,' involve the upper teeth and lower lip, creating a distinct pronunciation from bilabial sounds like 'pa.'

The chart of 24 consonant sounds in English provides clarity on how to practice and distinguish various sounds to improve speaking.

The exercise of comparing English sounds with native language sounds reveals that only a small set of sounds need extra attention for clear pronunciation.

Regular practice of these 24 consonants and 20 vowels is crucial for improving fluency and clarity in English speech.

Transcripts

[Music]

welcome to the class

today we will talk about articulation

of vowels and consonant sounds

as you know vowels

are the sounds which are produced with

minimum obstruction of the

exhaling flow of air in the vocal tract

and consonants are the sounds that are

produced

with different kinds of modifications

at different points in

vocal tract

but with this working

understanding of consonants and vowel

sounds

we want to look at

a description of english vowel sounds

and consonant sounds at the same time we

look at

a comparative study comparative

understanding of how certain sounds are

different in our languages and

certain sounds are very specific

to english and

the way we understand that

in order to make our speaking better

in order to make changes in the way we

speak we need to pay attention to

certain sounds

to make it impressive and

fluent and that is what

we are going to look at today

so

these are we these are some of the

vowels some of the fundamental vowel

sounds

which has three pairs in them

and they have long and

short alternations like a

these are just six fundamental vowel

sounds

which are which are available

in almost all the languages of the world

and then you can look at

20 vowel sounds of english

in these words and and this is how they

are

represented uh with fanatic

symbol we don't need to pay much

attention to phonetic symbols

however it is just just good to

understand but

important point is looking at these

words and paying attention

to the vowel sounds in these

words and we have 20 examples

of different vowel sounds in english

in different with with example of

different words

on this screen with you so they are

pit pet pat

pot butt book

mother bean burn

and barn just some of them

at least 10 examples so where we need to

pay attention is in the word pit

we have short e pit

pit paid

pet the vowel sound is a

path the vowel sound is

thought the vowel vowel sound in this

word is o

but a short ah in

but book

shot o

mother a sound

in this word bean

long e burn

short o bar ah

born so if you

if you look at words like fat

born you'll you'll see the differences

in these

vowel sounds and these vowel sounds are

specific to

english language boon

has long o so

what what i am trying to tell you is

there are lot so we we don't need to

look at how these words are written

in with their spellings we are looking

at

how certain sounds work

in these words when we speak these words

so these are you you can do this

exercise

for yourself multiple times these are

examples of

20 vowel sounds

now let's look at this chart

this chart doesn't have all 20 vowels

in them in it but it has

many of them and it is

it it's like this picture

imagine this whole thing in our mouth

and thus you will see then it then then

when they say front center and back will

make sense

so these vowels like e

is front wall the vowels here

are central vowel and vowels here

like

back wall similarly according to the

tongue height they are close

mid and open so

so basically this picture gives you

distribution

of vowel sounds and sort of

their places in the vocal tract

in the oral cavity now we need to look

at

certain aspects of consonant sounds

before we

look at specific details of consonants

of english so

we understand certain things like

there are there are places

in our vocal tract which are responsible

for different sounds

like velum

alveolar is

teeth and lips

so when we have sounds from velum

they are called velar sounds sounds from

palette they are called palatal sounds

sounds from

alveolares are called retroflex sounds

sounds from teeth

are called dental sounds and sounds from

lips are called bilabial sounds

we have we have looked at some of the

examples of these

as like example of velar sound chair

as an example of palatal sound

as an example of retroflex sound

as an example of dental sound and

pa as an example of labial sound

and then we looked at the distinction

between

oral sounds and nasal sounds

at this point

i i want to specifically point it to you

that there is this entire

range of retroflex sounds

are not available in english

and we will we are going to discuss the

implications

of this and the

the way some of these sounds are

produced

in english this much of

fixing will help us

improve speaking to a great extent

so before we go to that let's look at

let's look at one specific thing so as

we know

on this vertical axis

we we can describe sounds

of natural language according to the

places from where

they originate or places of

articulations

now if we know so so let me let me

describe the following to you

if we know ka is a villar sound

and kha is a velar sound too

ga is a velar sound as well and so

is

but these four sounds have their own

distinctive identity how

do we describe the differences between

these sounds

if we pay attention to two specific

features

they are going to help us understand the

differences between these sounds

quite clearly

and these differences are so

what's the what's what's the difference

between ka and ka

we see when we speak

we have little additional flow

of air and this sound says

you can you can put your palm right in

front of you

in front of your mouth and when you

when you say the two sounds

one after the other you can see

additional flow of

air as part of blow on your palm

that is called aspiration and as i

as i want to underline it again

the idea of description here is not that

you don't know

these sounds the idea is to pay

attention

to the distinction to the differences

between these sounds

and there is nothing embarrassing about

it

to do these tests without laboratory

for yourself so that you get the

differences once for all

and then you can evaluate the

differences between

sounds of the language that you

primarily speak

and the sounds that you are going to be

specifically careful about

when we want to improve speaking of

english

so this additional flow of air this

additional

flow of air in the form of small little

blow is called aspiration so if we

make the difference between these two

sounds in terms of

additional flow of air we see no

aspiration

with ka which is here indicated as

minus aspiration and this one

with additional flow is called plus

aspiration

so this is this this much should be

good enough to give us the distinction

between these two sounds

now how do we make the distinction

between ka and

ga there is yet another

difference between the two and this is

quite specific

and it is little more difficult to

notice

than the distinction between ka

had additional blow additional flow of

air

which can be realized externally

now let's go back to this picture again

and here in within the

this glottis you see within this

vocal fold folds we have this is vocal

fold

and this has

vocal cords in them for

some sounds this code vibrates

little more than usual and that

vibration is technically understood

as voicing so the difference between

ka and ga is when we say

ka we don't have vocal cords

within the vocal folds vibrating

additionally

whereas cur has little bit

more vibration

which which is realized as resonance

so sometimes if you put your hand in in

this

area of this this this is the area where

we have

vocal fold and vocal cord uh

and if we put our palm on this

and then we say

and one after the other

then we hear we we feel that resonance

on the palm for some it may not be

clear but and again

you can do this experiment to yourself

and and realize it if it doesn't

uh if it doesn't become apparent

you just need to understand it in the

following way

in in this particular way to understand

the distinction between

these two and thus we get the difference

between

ka and ga so ka

is no no vibration

so minus voice and ga has vibration

so it has class voice so on this

axis if you see and if we put

these two features together then we can

give distinctive identity to these

sounds

like is no aspiration no voicing

is no aspiration aspiration

little bit of additional flow of air and

no voicing

is no aspiration but voicing

that is vibration and this sound gha

is has both aspiration and

vibration thus we see

the distinction between all these

four oral sounds

from one specific place of articulation

that is velum these sounds are velar

sounds

and if we look at these features then we

get their

identity and thus these 20

20 sounds 20 oral sounds

get specific identity so if you say

no aspiration and no voicing but from

lips that can only be power

so labial non-aspirated non-voiced

sound it's only one that is

power and as as we know

these are nasal sounds

there are certain specific things that

we need to know about nasal sounds

which we will discuss at a separate

point so

now we understand these sounds

all these 20 or 24 20 oral and 5

nasal that is 25 sounds

are parts of our languages

most of them are spoken in india

but not all these sounds are available

in english like i mentioned the

retroflex sounds

that is the sounds which come from

alveolar reason when the

tongue folds backward and tip of the

tongue

unfolds and hit this alveolar ridge

this sound is not available in english

so when we go to the english consonant

chart

and try to look at their

places of different places of

articulations

and we and we try to understand their

the the way they are produced that is

their manners of articulations

then we get this idea that pa and

pa are labial sounds and they are

both stop but one is

non-voiced the other is voiced ma

is a nasal sound

now here is where here here are the

rest of it you can you can figure out i

want

you to look at carefully is this one

specifically we don't have

retroflex sounds in english

english and are alveolar sounds

so let's go back to this picture one

more time

how do we produce english alveolar

sounds

tip of the tongue without getting

folded and without this folding and

unfolding

gently touches the alveolar edge

and we get to

so it's it's not retroflex it's a

straight

simple alveolar sound

without retroflexes flexion

for many of us

it becomes tough because a close

a set of sounds that are very close to

our languages

are retroflex sound so when we speak

english

we tend to bring retroflex sounds in our

english

whereas retroflex sounds are not

available

in english and this creates a big

difference

in the way we speak and the way

others speak it happens

it's not a problem it happens to us

because most of our languages have

retroflex sounds in them

if you are a speaker of individual

language like tamil telugu

malayalam or kannada they are full of

retroflex sounds

at the same time if you are speakers of

indo-aryan

languages like hindi punjabi bhojpuri

magahi

orea bangla and numerous of them

these languages too have a lot of

retroflex sounds please take a note here

not as many retroflex sounds as we have

in dravidian languages

but indoor languages do have

retroflex sounds so at this point

everybody is in the same bracket and

because of availability of retroflex

sounds in our languages

we tend to speak english in a particular

way

which is sometimes called or most of the

time called indian

english because one particular feature

of

indian languages gets in our english

at times people do not like the term

indian english but trust me there is

nothing offensive about it

indian variety of english that is the

kind of english

spoken in different parts of india is

named as

indian english just as english spoken in

america

is called american english or english

spoken in britain

is called british english or english

spoken in australia

or africa are called african english or

australian english just as

just like these varieties we have

indian variety of english that most of

us speak

and these are the reasons why our

variety

has a specific distinction of india in

and this is called indian-ness in our

english

one more time there is nothing

bad or offensive about it i want

you to understand this in a

very clear fashion that

this happens to us because we speak our

own languages

because the vocal tract that we are

discussing here

matures before 12 years of age

and if we learn a language

after 12 years then we

can still learn we can practice

sounds of a new language but

we will because our vocal tract has

already

matured according to the sound patterns

of our native languages it doesn't

change

and therefore we speak the way we speak

and thus there is scientific foundation

for how and why anyone speaks

the way they do and this is the reason

why we need to understand it to sound

very confident about how we speak

having said that it is also possible

with regular

regular practice to imbibe

other sounds certain special sounds

of other languages like non-retroflex

variety of tear and

which are alveolar sounds and

the purpose as i mentioned in the

beginning the purpose of this

description

is for us to know the distinction

between

our ta that is retroflex our ta that is

retroflex

and english stuff once we know this it's

easier for us

to work on it and make it sound alveolar

when we speak english and may keep it

the way

when we keep it retroflex when we speak

either tamil or hindi or punjabi

same way i'll give you one more example

please look at this

these are two specific sounds in english

which are very rarely available in

our variety of languages

for example hindi the

pa sound in hindi which was

here which is aspirated

non-voiced bilabial per

as in pal pool

is different from labiodental

fur of english as in father

french fat

friend all these words

at the initial position have got

a sound fur which is labiodental

where we have upper teeth and lower lip

coming together and thus we get libya

labiodental sounds and this creates the

distinction

between pa and pha

so so the the idea is when you go

through

the two separate charts of consonant

sounds that i have

described here with you you can clearly

see the difference between certain

specific sounds

of english and the way we speak

certain sounds which may not be

available any in english

to come to conclusion

these are the 24 vowel 24 consonant

sounds of english

and these 24 words

have got 24 consonantal sounds

in them which you can practice

for yourself

when we and and it is important and

imperative for us who

are trying to improve

who are trying to make it sound

better it is imperative for us

to do this practice to understand

the differences between different sounds

and to be familiar with 24 consonant

sounds of english

and 20 vowel sounds of

english vis-a-vis the vowel sounds

and consonant sounds that we have in our

languages

while doing so you will also get to

underline it for yourself

that lot of such consonant and vowel

sounds

are common as well so do this maths

you will come up with a very small set

of sounds and

working on those sounds make us

uh very very it becomes important

it becomes clearer to us that if we work

on these sounds

we can sound the way we want to

in english with this we stop here

we expect you to do this practice

and then we come up with this exercise

as well

and bring the questions to us which

manner which may

which may arise out of this and then we

will address them

thank you so much