Articulation of Vowel and Consonant Sounds in English
Summary
TLDRThis 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
- π£οΈ 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.
- π€ English has 20 distinct vowel sounds, each represented with phonetic symbols, which are essential for fluent speech.
- π Vowel sounds can be categorized by their position in the mouth (front, central, back) and tongue height (close, mid, open).
- π A chart can visually represent the distribution of vowel sounds in the oral cavity, aiding in understanding their production.
- π Consonant sounds are produced at various points in the vocal tract, including the velum, alveolar, teeth, and lips, each producing different types of sounds.
- π 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.
- π¬οΈ 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.
- π― Regular practice can help non-native speakers of English to accurately produce sounds that are not present in their native languages.
- π The term 'Indian English' refers to the variety of English spoken in India, influenced by the native languages' sound patterns.
- π 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
π€ 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.'
π£οΈ 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.
π¨ 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.
π 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.
π§ 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.
π 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.'
π 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.
Mindmap
Keywords
π‘Vowels
π‘Consonants
π‘Aspiration
π‘Voicing
π‘Retroflex sounds
π‘Alveolar sounds
π‘Phonetic symbols
π‘Indian English
π‘Labiodental sounds
π‘Articulation
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
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