Descriptive Grammar Ultimate Reference Document Year One

Descriptive Grammar Year One: The Complete Collection “Somno non propter infirmorum.”  Contained within, you shall find:

Preface Semester I Introduction to phonology/phonetics Plosives Fricatives and affricates Sonorant consonants Vowels Semester II Distinctive features Phonological rules Variety in pronunciation Morphology Endnotes Disclaimers Index of contents Please use the bookmarks for easy navigation. For thy printing press: 3 – 54.

Disclaimer: by perusing this document you declare that you have read, understood and accepted all the disclaimers found at the end of this document. May your exam results ever be in your favor. You are reading the Third edition of this document, revised on the 5th of October 2015.

Preface “Dear reader, thank you for using this document to aid you in your quest to defeat the subject known to the commoners as 'Descriptive Grammar'. This document collects all the most recent versions of the reference documents (colloquially known as 'summaries') which were produced over the course of the year with the help of books, notes, tears and the revisions of a handful of excellent contributors who untiringly pointed out my stupidity. I sincerely hope that the wealth of information contained within will help you make it through every test, and then the final exam. However, if you have read the disclaimers I'm pretty sure you've already been disillusioned. Nevertheless, may luck be at your side. For if it is not, we will be seeing each other again soon. Studying might help though, you should try that. Like, for real.” Best wishes, Frank K. E-mail: [email protected]

The lunatic who put all this together.

SEMESTER I Part 1: Introduction to phonology This is a re-worked version of the Fifth edition, originally revised on 17th of November 2014. About this part: These are the very basics of phonetics and the phonology part of Descriptive Grammar. Study this part until your eyes roll out of your skull and the symbols haunt your dreams until you turn 50. It'll make your time in school much easier because you need this for every other test for at least the rest of the year. It also serves as an excellent introduction to the subject of Phonetics. In this part: • • • • • • • •

ORGANS OF SPEECH Functions PLACE OF ARTICULATION MANNER OF ARTICULATION Other terms IPA table Vowel chart Examples of the IPA symbols

ORGANS OF SPEECH PRODUCTION

From the hand-out: In the course of sound production, the stream of air produced by the lungs goes into the trachea, at the top of which the larynx is situated. Inside the larynx, whose protruding front is known as the Adam's apple, the vocal cords are found. When they vibrate, sounds which are produced are voiced. When they are apart the sounds are voiceless. The opening between the vocal cords is called the glottis. When the stream of air has passed through the larynx, it enters the cavity formed between the root of the tongue and the back wall of the throat. This cavity is known as the pharyngeal cavity. At the base of the tongue is the epiglottis. Thanks to it, food passes to the oesophagus and not to the larynx. At the top of the throat, there is a forking of the air passage: the air can pass out through the nasal cavity or through the oral cavity. This depends on the position of the soft palate, also known as the velum. There is a small movable appendage that is known as the uvula. Both the velum and the uvula are parts of the palate, also called the roof of the mouth. At the front of the mouth the bony structure form the hard palate. In the foremost part of it, just behind the upper teeth, there is a prominent ridge known as the alveolar ridge. The major speech organ in the mouth is the tongue. Phonetically speaking, its surface is usually divided into the tip, the blade, the front, and the back. Finally, speech sounds may be modified by the shape of the lips.

Functions Vocal cords: The state of the vocal cords determines the voicing value of a sound; when they vibrate sounds are voiced, when they are held apart, sounds are voiceless. The lips: Their shape determines if a vowel is rounded or unrounded. Also used to pronounce labial consonants. The teeth: Help pronounce dental consonants (such as [f] and [ð]) . The lungs: Provide the air required for any sounds. The oral cavity: Houses important articulators like the tongue and teeth. As well as other important parts like the uvula and the palate. The epiglottis: Prevents your food from falling down the wrong pipe and suffocating you. The diaphragm: Allows your lungs to breathe in air. The uvula: Extension of the soft palate. Not relevant for producing English sounds. The soft palate: Important role in allowing/preventing nasal sounds.

PLACE OF ARTICULATION Bilabial: Consonants articulated using both lips. These include: [b] [p] [m] and [w] Labio-dental: Consonants articulated using lower lip and upper teeth. These include: [f] and [v] Dental: Consonants articulated with the tongue against the upper teeth. These include: [θ] and [ð] Alveolar: Consonants articulated with the (tip of the) tongue against or close to the alveolar ridge. These include: [n] [t] [d] [s] [z] [r] and [l] Palatal: Consonants articulated with the tongue touching the middle of the hard palate (roof of the mouth). These include: [j] Palato-aveolar: Post-alveolar consonants that are also weakly palatalized. These include: [tʃ] [dʒ] [ʃ] and [ʒ] Retroflex: Consonants articulated with tip of the tongue raised and curled toward the anterior portion of the palate. These include: [r] (American English) Velar: Consonants articulated with the back of the tongue against the soft palate (roof of the mouth). These include: [k] [g] [ŋ] and [w] Uvular: Consonants made with the tongue against or near the uvula. Does not occur in English but you have to know it exists. Pharyngeal: Consonants made with the root of the tongue against the pharynx. Does not occur in English but you have to know it exists. Glottal: Consonants articulated with the glottis (opening of the vocal cords). These include: [h] and [ʔ]

MANNER OF ARTICULATION Plosive: Consonants in which the airflow stops. Includes: [p] [b] [t] [d] [k] and [g] Affricate: Consonants that begin as a stop, but are released as a fricative (see below) rather than directly into the following vowel. Includes: [tʃ] and [dʒ] Nasal: Consonants produced with a lowered velum (soft palate) which allows air to escape through the nose. Includes: [m] [n] and [ŋ] Fricative: Consonants produced by forcing air through a narrow channel, by placing two articulators close together. (For example, lower lip against the upper teeth, producing [f].) Includes: [f] [v] [θ] [ð] [s] [z] [ʃ] [ʒ] and [h] Approximant: Consonants that involve articulators (like your lips and tongue) approaching each other but not narrowly enough. These sounds are somewhere between fricatives and vowels. Includes: [j] and [w] Alveolar approximant: Combine 'alveolar' (place of articulation) with approximant. Includes: [r] Lateral approximant: Laterals are produced by guiding airstream along the sides of the tongue, while the tongue also prevents it from going through the middle of the mouth. Combine this with 'approximant' (explained above). Includes: [l] Glottal stop [ʔ]: A sort of pause produced by momentarily obstructing airflow. (the - in uh-oh!) OTHER TERMS Voiceless vs. voiced: Voiceless sounds are produced without the vocal cords vibrating. Voiced sounds are produced with the vocal cords vibrating. (e.g. “ssss” is voiceless, “zzzz” is voiced.) Lenis/Fortis: Sounds that are “weak”/”strong”. Compare with voiced/voiceless. (voiced = lenis). Obstruent: A collective name for all the consonants in the plosive, affricate and fricative groups. Sonorant: A collective name for all the consonants not classified as obstruent, and vowels. Aspiration: Aspiration is the strong burst of air that accompanies either the release or, in the case of pre-aspiration the closure of some obstruents. Indicated by a superscript h (e.g. ph ). Pulmonic: Applies if the lungs are the source of energy that set the air stream in motion to produce sounds. English only uses Pulmonic sounds (and most other languages do too). Note: When referring to types of consonants, place, manner of articulation and voicing are combined: [p] is a voiceless bilabial plosive.

IPA TABLE Manner

Voicing

Place of articulation

Voiced Voiceless Bilabial (+) (-) Nasal

+

Plosive Plosive

+

Fricative Fricative Affricate

Dental

Alveolar

p

t

k

b

d

g

f

θ

s

ʃ

v

ð

z

ʒ

+

h

dʒ -

(lateral)

Glottal

tʃ

+ +

Velar ŋ

-

Approximant

Palatal

n

+

Approximant

PalatoAlveolar

m

-

Affricate

LabioDental

ʍ w

ʍ r l

j

w ɫ

[Note: ɫ and ʍ will be discussed in a later summary. They are irrelevant for the time being. The glottal stop ʔ is not in the table because it doesn't have a manner.] Mastery of the above table will make every future topic easier to follow. Study it carefully. I have created a deck of flashcards to test your identification skills of all the symbols. If you are interested in such a thing, send me an e-mail.

VOWEL CHART The quadrilateral The symbols in the vowel chart are ordered based on the position of the tongue when making them. • • • •

Front, Central and Back refer to how far the tongue is from the teeth; Front is close to the teeth. Close, Mid and Open refer to how high the tongue is raised; Open means the tongue is lowered. Rounded/unrounded refers to the shape of the lips when making the sound. (Rounded/relaxed lips.) Tense vowels are 'longer', which is indicated by the colon symbol (ː).

The symbols are easily understood by seeing them in words. Examples are listed in a table on the next page. Two of these symbols have (relevant) special names, they are ə (schwa) and æ (ash). Some vowels which you will find in the tables on the next page are not included above. They are combinations of two vowels into one, which we call diphthongs. We ignore these for now, but will be discussed in detail in a later summary on vowels.

EXAMPLES OF EACH SYMBOL

CONSONANTS

VOWELS

p

pet, map

ʌ

cup, luck

t

tea, getting

ɑː

arm, father

k

cat, back

æ

cat, black

b

bad, lab

ə

away, cinema

d

did, lady

e

g

give, flag

ɜː

turn, learn

f

find, if

ɪ

hit, sitting

v

voice, five

iː

see, heat

s

sun, miss

ɒ

hot, rock

z

zoo, lazy

ɔː

call, four

θ

think, both

ʊ

put, could

ð

this, mother

uː

blue, food

ʃ

she, crash

ʒ

pleasure, vision

tʃ

check, church

dʒ

just, large

m

man, lemon

n

no, ten

ŋ

sing, finger

l

leg, little

r

red, try

j

yes, yellow

w

wet, window

h

how, hello

met, bed r

SEMESTER I Part 2: Plosives This is a re-worked version of the Sixth edition, originally revised on the 28th of November 2014. About this part: An in-depth look at a group of sounds called plosives. This group is the most complicated group of consonants. There's a good reason this part went through six (seven) revisions. In this part: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Introducing your new best friends Voicing/devoicing Devoicing of approximants Fortis and Lenis Aspiration The S rule Gliding the aspiration away No audible plosion in final positions Glottal reinforcement (Glottalization) Homorganic Nasal release of plosives Lateral release Dentals Stop clusters Front/back vowels and plosives Affrication of plosives

Introducing your new best friends Plosives are a particular group of obstruents (also known as stops). An obstruent is a sound produced with a complete closure in the vocal tract which interrupts the airflow. Obstruents may be subdivided into oral obstruents (plosives and affricates), where there is no nasal airflow, and nasal obstruents (simply called nasals), where the soft palate is lowered and the airstream escapes via the nasal cavity. In this part we will only concern ourselves with plosives. There are three stages in the production of plosives: closure stage, hold stage, and release stage. [Note: A variety of similar names may be used to refer to the former two stages.] English has six plosive consonants: /p/, /t/, /k/, /b/, /d/, and /g/ Voicing/devoicing •

/p/, /t/, and /k/ are always voiceless. They are also aspirated under certain circumstances.

•

/b/, /d/ and /g/ are voiced. But only fully when standing in between two voiced sounds. For example: a goon, a boon, a dune. Otherwise, they are partially devoiced.

•

/d/ and /g/ are devoiced at the start or end of a word. For example: dog [dɒg], gun [gʌn].

Remember: voiced sounds use the vocal cords. When a voiced sound is pronounced, the vocal cords vibrate. This is not the case for voiceless sounds. To help you remember which sounds are voiced, and which are voiceless, here's a table: VL V

p b

d

t g

k m

f

n

ŋ

θ v

ð

ʃ

s ʒ

z

r

tʃ

h

l j w dʒ VL = Voiceless, V = Voiced

Devoicing of approximants If an aspirated stop such as [pʰ] in pay ['pʰeɪ], comes before an an approximant (/r/ or /l/), the approximant will be devoiced. This is obligatory. For example: pray ['preɪ] and cry ['kraɪ]. Fortis and Lenis The voiceless plosives (/p/, /t/ and /k/) are sometimes called fortis (strong) because they are produced with 'more force' than b, d and g. The voiced three are referred to as lenis (weak). Basically, fortis is the same as voiceless and lenis is the same as voiced. Bilabial

Alveolar

Velar

Fortis (voiceless)

p

t

k

Lenis (voiced)

b

d

g

Aspiration Aspiration is the strong burst of air that accompanies either the release or, in the case of pre-aspiration the closure of some obstruents (remember: plosives are part of the obstruents group). To feel the difference between aspirated and unaspirated sounds, you can put your hand in front of your mouth, and say pin [pʰɪn] and then bin [bɪn]. You should feel a puff of air with pin that you do not get with bin. Aspiration is indicated in the IPA by a superscript h. ( ʰ ) For example: pot, tot and cot. (Say them and be amazed!) Voiceless plosives are aspirated at the beginning of a word and stressed syllables, and unaspirated at the end of words/stressed syllable. Knowing that they are aspirated at the beginning of stressed syllables is especially important in words with multiple syllables, because some words do not have syllable stress at the start. They are strongly aspirated when at the start of the word and followed by a vowel. The S rule Voiceless plosives are never aspirated when following 's'. For example: spun, stun and skunk. (try it!) In the middle: distend Gliding the aspiration away Voiceless plosives lose their aspiration if they are followed by a glide (/j/ or /w/). This is optional. No audible plosion in final positions In final positions, the release of plosives may be delayed and therefore inaudible. This is optional. Glottal reinforcement (Glottalization) •

Voiceless stops (p, t, k) are preceded by glottal stops after a vowel and at the end of a word. This rule also applies to word-final voiceless affricates.

Examples: wants wɒnʔts, what [ˈwɒʔt], fiction [ˈfɪʔkʃən], milkman [ˈmɪlʔkmən] and opera [ˈɒʔprə] •

Voiceless alveolar stops (t) become glottal stops before a nasal in the same word. In other words, this rule captures the fact that /t/ and /d/ become [ʔ] in certain environments.

Examples: kitten [ˈkɪʔnn ], bitten [ˈbɪʔnn ] and eaten [ˈiʔnn ] •

Pre-glottalization is possible for voiceless plosives: ʔp or ʔt or ʔk. This is optional.

Homorganic When two or more sounds are made in the same place of articulation they are called homorganic. For example, p b (bilabial), and t n (alveolar) are homorganic pairs of sounds.

Nasal release of plosives Nasal release happens when a plosive is followed immediately by a homorganic nasal. Obviously, this also takes away aspiration from voiceless plosives. / pm /, / bm /, / tn /, / dn /, / kŋ /, and / gŋ / are the homorganic stop/nasal combinations in English. In IPA, this may be indicated by a superscript n. Examples: catnip [ˈkætⁿnɪp] (t = plosive, n = nasal) and sudden [sʌdn] (d = plosive, n = nasal). Be careful! Words like ribbon and dragon do not have nasal release because /bn/ and /gn/ are not homorganic. Lateral release When a plosive is followed by a lateral (usually word-finally), it is released as a lateral. This happens in words such as bottle, little, noodle and middle. What happens here is that the vowel somewhat disappears and only a 'pure' l sound is left. (Labio-)Dentals Alveolar consonants before dentals (/θ/ and /ð/), become dental themselves. The same thing happens for labio-dental sounds (/f/, /v/). This is obligatory for /t/ and /d/ (alveolar plosives). Also possible for the others(?) but optional. Stop clusters When a plosive occurs before another plosive (either forming a word-final cluster or between words) or before an affricate, the release stage is not made (and consequently not heard) because the closing stage for the second plosive or the affricate is made before the release stage of the first plosive. We call this incomplete release, unexploded or unreleased. Don't be fooled by spelling of words that have two identical plosives following each other, only one of them is pronounced. This also means that the if the first plosive is voiceless, is becomes unaspirated. Example: risked [rɪskt], just as the vocal tract is being configured for the release burst of the /k/, the tongue is also making closure for /t/, effectively cancelling out any sound of a released /k/. Other examples: act [ækt], apt [æpt] Front/back vowels and plosives In the world of plosives, there are two vowel groups that matter: front vowels, and back vowels. Front

i

iː

e

æ

-

Back

uː

ʊ

ɔː

ɒ

ɑː

Velar plosives are advanced by front vowels, and retracted by back vowels. Affrication of plosives When the plosive /t/ comes before a stressed vowel, it is affricated. Example: tea [ti:], time [taɪm] This does not happen for any of the other plosives. /tr/ and /dr/ are counted as (post-alveolar) affricates as well. (unsure if relevant.)

SEMESTER I Part 3: Fricatives and affricates This a re-worked version of the Second edition, originally revised on the 28th of November 2014. About this part: An in-depth look at the fricatives and affricates. This is the largest group of sounds discussed in a single part. Not as intimidating as plosives however! In this part: • • • • • • • • • • •

Fricatives and Affricates (table) Voicing Voicing rule exception Lengthening/Shortening of preceding vowels/sonorant consonants Length of voiceless vs voiced fricatives Optional glottalization /tr/ and /dr/ Phonotactics: constraints of ʒ and h Stridency A lonely soul in the fricative section: /h/ Comparing stops (plosives), fricatives and affricates

Fricatives and Affricates Fricatives voiceless

f

θ

s

ʃ

ð

z

ʒ

Fricatives

voiced

v

Affricate

voiceless

tʃ

h

Affricate voiced dʒ [Note: the terms voiced and voiceless can be interchanged with the terms lenis and fortis, respectively.] Voicing Voiced fricatives are only fully voiced in between two voiced sounds. Vowels are an easy example, because all of them are always voiced. In other cases, they are partially devoiced. Examples: ovary, oven [ʌvn]. Remember that only the pronunciation matters, English spelling is not very helpful. Voicing rules exception The rule stated above does not always apply to foreign words. For example: French words adapted into English like rouge and beige. The fricatives here are partially devoiced. Lengthening/shortening of vowels or sonorant consonants. Voiced fricatives lengthen the preceding vowel or sonorant consonants. On the other hand, voiceless fricatives shorten the preceding vowel or sonorant. Note: sonorants are all sounds that are not obstruents. Compare: • • •

lose [luːs] vs loose [luːz] rice [raɪs] vs rise [raɪz] price [praɪs] vs prize [praɪz]

The vowel sounds in the words on the right are longer, because they are followed by a voiced fricative. Length of voiceless vs voiced fricatives When a voiceless fricative occurs at the end of a word, it is longer than a voiced fricative would be. Compare: • safe ['seɪf] vs save ['seɪv] • lace ['leɪs] vs laze ['leɪz] Optional glottalization The (voiceless) affricate tʃ can be preceded by a glottal stop, if a stressed vowel precedes it in the pronunciation of a word. In transcription, this is indicated with a superscript glottal stop symbol (ʔ) Examples: • teacher ['ti:tʃə] → ['ti:ʔtʃə] • nature ['neɪtʃə] → ['neɪʔtʃə] • archer ['ɑːtʃə] → ['ɑːʔtʃə] [Note: stress is indicated by an apostrophe ( ' )]

/tr/ and /dr/ When these combinations are uttered, they count as affricates. Affricates are combinations of plosive + fricative, therefore /r/ counts as a fricative in this context. Phonotactics: constraints of ʒ and h These two sounds never occur at the end of an English word. Except when the word is of foreign origin, like rouge [ruʒ] and beige [beɪʒ] . Stridency Also known as strident, sibilant or hissing sounds. This includes: / tʃ /, / dʒ /, /s/, /z/, / ʃ / and / ʒ /. A lonely soul in the fricative section: /h/ /h/ does not have any homorganic counterpart because it is the only glottal sound. It's also classified as a fricative. Don't forget that it's included! Comparing stops (plosives), fricatives and affricates 1. Stops, fricatives and affricates influence vowel length in similar ways: vowels before voiceless stops , fricatives and affricates are shorter than before voiced stops, fricatives or affricates. 2. Fortis/lenis distinction is relevant in both cases. 3. Final stops, fricatives and affricates classified as voiced are not actually voiced throughout the articulation unless the adjacent sounds are also voiced. 4. All of them involve an obstruction of the airstream. Because of that, we refer to them as obstruents. Differences: •

Affricates start as plosives, then end as fricatives. From this we can (correctly) conclude that they are a combination of plosives and fricatives. Only the homorganic combinations / tʃ / and / dʒ / are considered 'real' affricates because they are the only ones that can occur at the start and end of a word.

•

Fricatives differ from plosives in that the airflow is never stopped. Instead, it is forced through a narrow passage.

•

Both differ from (voiceless) plosives in that they are never aspirated.

SEMESTER I Part 4: Sonorant consonants This a re-worked version of the Third edition, originally revised on the 11th of December 2014. About this part: An in-depth look into the consonants not yet discussed by the previous summaries, known as sonorant consonants. A wide variety of sounds is discussed in this part. In this part: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

NASALS Devoicing Optional allophone (Labio-)Dental release Post-alveolar release Advancement/retraction Shortened nasal Place restrictions Syllabic nasals LATERALS Devoicing Embrace the darkness Dental release Post-alveolar release Syllabic laterals Shortened lateral R-SOUNDS Retroflex Devoicing Tap/Flap Restricted distribution /r/ as a fricative Dental release Linking (intrusive /r/) SEMI-VOWELS (GLIDES) Devoicing Voiceless variant of /w/

NASALS English has three nasal stops, /m/, /n/ and /ŋ/. All of them are voiced, and their places of articulation are bilabial, alveolar and velar, respectively. Devoicing Nasals are always voiced, unless they are preceded by /s/. This is optional. For example: smoking ['sməʊkɪŋ] Note: they are partially devoiced, unless when standing in between two voiced sounds. Optional allophone When /m/ or /n/ precede a labio-dental fricative (/f/ or /v/), then they are optionally released as /ɱ/. This is called a free variant, because it is an optional allophone. For example: comfort ['kʌɱfət] or conference ['kɒɱfərəns] (Labio-)Dental release All alveolar sounds before a dental sound (θ or ð), are released as dental sounds themselves. /n/ is alveolar, therefore the rule applies to this sound. For example: ninth ['naɪnθ] and tenth ['tenθ] A similar rule applies to /m/, which will be released as a labio-dental sound if it stands before /f/. For example: pamphlet ['pæmflət] and nymph ['nɪmf] [Note: I'm unsure if this has anything to do with the allophone ɱ.] Post-alveolar release All alveolar sounds before post-alveolar sounds (affricates), have a post-alveolar release. In this case, the combinations /tr/ and /dr/ are also considered affricates. For example: country ['kʌntrɪ] Advancement/Retraction The velar nasal (ŋ) is advanced by front vowels (ɪ, iː, e and æ). Is is also retracted by back vowels. (uː, ʊ, ɔː, ɒ and ɑː) For example (advancement): singing ['sɪŋɪŋ] (retraction): strongly ['sʧɹɔŋli] Shortened nasal Not to be confused with a retracted nasal. When a nasal is followed by a voiceless obstruent, it is shortened. For example: monk ['mʌnk] and bank ['bæŋk] Place restrictions The velar nasal (ŋ) cannot occur at the start of a word. And in British English, it can only be preceded by /ɒ/. (For American English it is restricted to ɪ ɛ æ ʌ and ɒ ).

Syllabic nasals When a nasal stands at the end of a word, it can be syllabic. This rule does not apply to the velar nasal (ŋ). For example: prison ['prɪznn ] and prism ['prɪzmn] This also works for nasals that follow obstruents (plosives, fricatives or affricates). For example: button [ˈbʌʔnn ] However, this only occurs in narrow transcription. In broad transcription a vowel (usually schwa (ə) is inserted in between the sounds). Dictionaries generally apply broad transcription. For example: prison ['prɪzən] and prism ['prɪzəm] LATERALS English has only one lateral, and one variant of that lateral that predictably occurs. The English lateral is / l /, a voiced alveolar lateral approximant. Sometimes this sound is also referred to as 'light/clear l'. It has a velar variant: / ɫ / called 'dark l', which is referred to as voiced velar lateral approximant. What happens in the pronunciation of dark l, is that the back of the tongue touches the velum (soft palate). Some books also claim the velum is lowered. Lateral approximants are also part of a group referred to as liquids. Devoicing Normally, laterals are voiced. However, if a lateral is preceded by an aspirated plosive (p/t/k), it is partially devoiced. This is obligatory. The process is called progressive assimilation of voice. For example: maple ['meɪpl], tattle ['tætl] and tackle ['tækl] Embrace the darkness In British English, / l / is usually not velarized when it is before a vowel or a palatal glide (/j/). It is velarized when word final or before a consonant. Very often it occurs in words that have the sequence -le or -el in them. For example: syllable ['sɪləbɫ] and soldier ['səʊɫdʒə] Notice that in a sentence it is important to look at the next word as well, since this may change the environment. For example: Don't kill dogs vs. Don't kill it. / l / does not become / ɫ / in Don't kill it, because / l / is surrounded by vowels. On the other hand, it does become velarized in Don't kill dogs, since / l / occurs before a consonant. Dental release All alveolar sounds before a dental sound (θ or ð), are released as dental sounds themselves. / l / is alveolar, therefore the rule applies to this sound. For example: Wealthy ['welθɪ], Healthy ['helθɪ] Post-alveolar release All alveolar sounds before post-alveolar sounds (affricates), have a post-alveolar release. In this case, the combinations /tr/ and /dr/ are also considered affricates. For example: poultry ['pəʊltrɪ]

Syllabic laterals When a lateral stands at the end of a word, follows a obstruent, and is unstressed, it will be be syllabic. For example: couple [ˈkhʌpɫn] Shortened lateral When a lateral is followed by a voiceless obstruent, it is shortened. For example: melt ['melt] R-SOUNDS The major sound in this category is /r/. I probably did not have to point that out. /r/ is a voiced alveolar approximant. In the workbook it is referred to as a frictionless continuant, and it is also part of a group called liquids. Finally, /r/ is sometimes also a retroflex sound (e.g. in American English). Retroflex The term retroflex has to do with the shape of the tongue when making an r-sound. As such, it is referred to as a place of articulation. When making a retroflex /r/, the tip of the tongue is raised and curled toward the anterior portion of the palate. This occurs mostly in American English. The shape of the tongue when making a retroflex /r/:

Devoicing If /r/ is preceded by an aspirated plosive (p/t/k), then it is partially devoiced. This is obligatory. The process is called progressive assimilation of voice. For example: pray ['preɪ], tray ['treɪ], cry ['kraɪ] Tap/Flap In American (and Canadian) English, the alveolar plosives (/t/ and /d/) can be substituted by a rapid voiced alveolar stop called a tap (or flap). The symbol for this sound is [ɾ]. For example: fat ['fæt] → ['fæɾ] and fad [fæd] → ['fæɾ] Taps also occur after dental fricatives (θ or ð). Where /r/ is replaced by a tap. For example: three ['θri:] → ['θɾi:] Restricted distribution In British English (RP), /r/ only occurs before a vowel. And never at the end. There are no such restrictions for American English. /r/ as a fricative The sound /r/ can form an affricate with an alveolar plosive (/t/ or /d/). In such a case, /r/ becomes a fricative. For example: /tr/ or /dr/

Dental release All alveolar sounds before a dental sound (θ or ð), are released as dental sounds themselves. /r/ is alveolar, therefore the rule applies to this sound. However, because of the restrictions to /r/ in RP, this never occurs. (It does occur in GA.) Linking/intrusive /r/ A hiatus between two vowels is not allowed, and to alleviate this, an /r/ may be placed in between. This means that when there are two words, the first words end with a vowel sound, and the last word starts with a vowel sound, then /r/ is placed in between. This is obligatory. For example: for all [fɔː ɔːl] → [fɔːrɔːl], for us [fɔː ʌs] → [fɔːrʌs] There's also intrusive /r/, which optional (often unintentional?). SEMI-VOWELS (GLIDES) English has two sounds that are classified as semi-vowels: /j/ and /w/. They are sometimes also referred to as glides. /j/ is a voiced palatal approximant. /w/ is referred to as a voiced labio-velar (a combination of bilabial and velar) semi-vowel. Devoicing If /j/ or /w/ is preceded by an aspirated plosive (p/t/k), then it is partially devoiced (obligatory). The process is called progressive assimilation of voice. For example: computer [kəm'pju:tə], twilight ['twaɪlaɪt] Voiceless variant of /w/ Sometimes, in words that start with 'wh', some speakers of English may pronounce a voiceless variant of /w/. The symbol of this variant is /ʍ/, also referred to as /hw/. This is optional and usage is declining. For example: whip ['wɪp] → ['hwɪp], wheat ['wi:t] → ['hwi:t] and white ['waɪt] → ['hwaɪt]

SEMESTER I Part 5: Vowels This is a re-worked version of the First edition, originally created and revised on the 25th of January 2015.

About this part: An in-depth look at the vowels, which were introduced in the first part. Vowels are quite different from consonants. They are also an integral part of the study of phonetics/phonology. Study it carefully. It will prove helpful in the future as well. In this part: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

(Re-)Introducing: the quadrilateral Front and back vowels High-mid-low vowels Rounded vowels Tense and lax vowels Phonotactics: the sequence rules Schwa Vowels and linking Assimilation Dissimilation Epenthesis (insertion) Deletion Metathesis (reordering) Vowel Length Nasalised vowels DIPHTHONGS All diphthongs Closing (rising) diphthongs Rising and falling diphthongs Phonotactic constraints Triphthongs Monophthongization of triphthongs

(Re-)Introducing: the quadrilateral In the chart below you can see the glorious vowels of RP English. You should remember it from the first document. The horizontal lines stand for (left to right) front—middle—back, the vertical lines for High-mid-low (top to bottom). The vowels on the right side (back vowels) of the chart are rounded vowels. The only exception is ɑː. Rounded means that the lips make a round shape when pronouncing them.

It is important to know the features of all of these vowels. Knowing them by heart will make your life a lot easier on the test and in the future. To make this easier, I set up some tables below: Front and back vowels: Front I

iː

e

æ

Back uː ʊ ɔː ɒ Remember: front vowels advance, back vowels retract. Mid vowels are not very important. High-mid-low vowels: High I

iː

ʊ

uː

Mid

ʌ

e

ə

ɜː

Low

æ

ɑː

ɒ

ɔː

Rounded vowels:

ʊ

uː

ɔː

ɒ

Tense and lax vowels:

ɔː

ɜː

diphthongs

Lax I ʊ æ ɒ Also known as long/short or checked/unchecked.

e

ə

Tense

iː

uː

ɑː

ɑː

ʌ

Phonotactics: the sequence rules 1.

Lax vowels never occur in open stressed syllables. (Open syllables end with a vowel.) This prevents combinations such as [kæ] or [dʌ].

2.

Tense vowels never occur before a voiced velar nasal (ŋ). This prevents combinations such as [kiːŋ] or [kæŋ].

Schwa 1.

Schwa (ə) is never stressed.

2.

Can sometimes be deleted, but never in final position. For example: perhaps [pə'hæps] → [p'hæps] and tomorrow [tə'mɒrəʊ] → [t'mɒrəʊ]

3.

Has three variants: the lowest occurs in utterance final position, the highest near velars.

Vowels and linking If the first word in a sequence end with a vowel, and the subsequent word starts with a vowel, they may be linked with either [r], [j] or [w]. 1.

After a tense non-high vowel, [r] may be inserted. For example: far away [fɑː əweɪ] → [fɑːr əweɪ]

2.

After a tense high vowel, either [j] (in the case of front-high) or [w] (back-high) may be inserted. For example: see it [siː ɪt] → [siːj ɪt] and drew a picture [druː əpɪkʃə] → [druːw əpɪkʃər]

Assimilation There are three kinds of assimilation: 1. Assimilation of manner (progressive A → B) 2. Assimilation of voice (voiced after voiced, voiceless after voiceless) 3. Assimilation of place (regressive A ←B) Dissimilation [fɪfθs] (fifths) contains three fricatives in a row. This is too hard to pronounce. So it turns into [f ɪfts], which replaces the middle fricative with a plosive instead. This is called dissimilation. Another example: sixths [sɪksθs] → sixth [sɪksθ]

Epenthesis (insertion) Processes of insertion (also called epenthesis) cause a segment not present at the phonemic level to be added. In other words, an unwanted sound gets added to a word. Common in English is the insertion of a voiceless stop between a nasal stop and voiceless fricative. For example: strength ['streŋθ] →['streŋkθ] and hamster ['hæmstə] → ['hæmpstə] Deletion Elimination of a sound. An example in English is called h-dropping (or h-deletion). For example: I sat on his horse [ɑɪ sæt ɒn hɪz hɔːs] → [ɑɪ sæt ɒn ɪz ɔːs] Metathesis (reordering) Basically, one sound is swapped for another. This is likely to happen if the first vowel is unstressed. For example: prescribe [prəˈskraɪb] → [pərˈskraɪb] Vowel length 1.

Vowels are longest in open syllables, shorter in syllables closed by a voiced consonant and shortest when in syllables closed by a voiceless consonant.

2.

Vowels are longer in stressed syllables.

3.

Vowels get shorter as syllables are added to a word.

Nasalised vowels A vowel that stands before a nasal becomes nasalised. For example: Seem: ['si:m] Soon: ['su:n] Sang: ['sæŋ]

DIPHTHONGS All diphthongs: ɑɪ ɑʊ

əʊ

Closing (rising) diphthongs: ɑɪ ɑʊ

eə

eɪ

ɔɪ

ɪə

ɔɪ

əʊ

ʊə

eɪ

Centring ɪə

ʊə

eə

Rising and falling diphthongs All diphthongs in English are inherently falling. However, if ɪə or ʊə appear in an unstressed syllable they are rising. Phonotactic constraints Diphthongs cannot occur before the velar nasal (ŋ). Triphthongs Occur when schwa is added after a diphthong (that doesn't already end with schwa). For example: tower ['tɑʊə] and employer [ɪm'plɔɪə] Monophthongization of triphthongs (yeah, really) In the case of triphthongs, the quality of the middle sound is lost, so it's likely to disappear in speech. For example: tower ['tɑʊə] → ['tɑə] and tire: ['tɑɪə] → ['tɑə] Examples of diphthongs in words ɑɪ

five, eye

ɑʊ

now, out

əʊ/ɔʊr

go, home

eər

where, air

eɪ

say, eight

ɪər

near, here

ɔɪ

boy, join

ʊə

r

pure, tourist

[Note: Superscript r indicates that Americans pronounce r after this diphthong. Also, əʊ is RP, ɔʊ is GA .]

~ End of semester I ~

SEMESTER II Part 1: The Matrix (Distinctive features) This is the Sixth edition, revised on the 20th of June 2015. About this part: Play time is over, kids. Every sound we can produce as humans is unique some way, and in this part we are going to learn the features that every single sound has, how it compares to similar sounds (and forms natural categories) and how it sets itself apart from all others anyway. Semester II really steps up the level, and it starts off with a bang immediately. In this part: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Introduction CATEGORIES Major class features Laryngeal Place Dorsal Manner DETAILS Coronal Anterior Round and labial Dorsal Continuant RULES The major groups and their main features Distinctive versus redundant The basic rules Major class features Laryngeal Place Dorsal Manner Matrices

Introduction In the first semester, we made distinctions between the different sounds by looking at the manner and place of articulation, and sometimes whether a sound was voiced or voiceless. Now, we are going to take it a step further. Each sound in any language can be defined by using a set of features. All of these features can be applied to any of the sounds, or groups of sounds. This is because the system is binary. What this means, it that the features are either: 1. [+ Present] 2. [- Absent] Every sound has a specific set of such features that make them unique. By comparing these features, we can find out the similarities and differences. The similarities allow us to group sounds together into natural classes. The differences help us find and understand phonetic processes, meaning the change some sounds may undergo in certain combinations and the rules behind them. You should also know that the syllabic peak occurs if /ɪ/, /ə/ or /ʊ/ precedes a syllabic consonant. CATEGORIES First, let's look at the categories and their names. Details are provided on page 3 Major class features These represent the five main classes: obstruents, nasals/liquids, glides, vowels and glottals. • • •

Consonantal Syllabic Sonorant

Laryngeal • • •

Voice [SG] Spread glottis (aspiration) [CG] Constricted glottis (glottalization)

Place • • • • •

Labial (participation of the lips) Round (rounding of the lips) Anterior (sounds produced in front of the alveo-palatal region) Coronal (sounds made with the tip or the blade of the tongue raised) Strident (hissing sounds)

Dorsal • • • • •

High Low Back Tense Reduced

Manner • • • •

Nasal Lateral Continuant [DR] Delayed release DETAILS

Coronal sounds use the tip or blade of the tongue This includes all palatal, palato-alveolar, alveolar and dental sounds. The others [-] are: /p/, /b/, /f/, /v/, /m/ (labials) and /k/, /g/, /ŋ/ and /w/ (velars). Anterior sounds occur in the “front” of the mouth The areas included are labial, labio-dental, dental and alveolar This includes aspirated versions (e.g. th). Round and labial If a sound is [+ round], it must also be [+ labial]. However, if a sound is [+ labial] it can still be [- round]. This makes sense, since the lips are required for lip rounding, but the lips are not always round. Dorsal features These mostly apply to vowels, with the exception of two: high and back. All velar sounds (k, g, ŋ, w) are [+ high] and [+ back]. All other consonants are [- high], [- back]. No other combinations exist. But could you please notice that j is a semi-vowel, and happens to be an exception: /j/ = [+ high], [- back] For the vowels, the features are rather intuitive: • • •

High vowels are [+ high], [- low]. Mid vowels are [- high], [- low]. Low vowels are [- high], [+ low].

Continuant Sounds with this feature can be produced without delay endlessly (until air runs out). In more technical terms, the feature defines presence or absence of a closure of the speech organs. If contact occurs, air flow is obstructed and continuous airflow is then prevented. These include all vowels and /f/, /v/, /s/, /z/, /θ/, /ð/, /ʃ/, /ʒ/, /r/, /j/, /w/, /h/. Nasals are not continuant, because your mouth is closed.

RULES The major groups and their main features The five main groups all have three universal properties. Obstruents [+ consonantal] [- sonorant] [- syllabic]

Nasals/Liquids [+ consonantal] [+ sonorant] [- syllabic]

Glides [- consonantal] [+ sonorant] [- syllabic]

Vowels [- consonantal] [+ sonorant] [+ syllabic]

Glottals [- consonantal] [- sonorant] [- syllabic]

(Liquids = l and r; Glides = j and w; Glottals = h and ʔ.) Distinctive versus redundant Due to the sheer amount of features that we can assign to a sound, it would be a time-consuming and messy task to list all of the features for every single sound. On the test, you will be asked to list only some of the features. Because some features only ever apply to very particular sounds or groups of sounds, we leave them out. These features, when not applicable, are called redundant. For example: the voiced feature is redundant in the case of nasals and vowels, because those are always voiced anyway. On the other hand, the features that do matter are called distinctive features. The basic rules: “If a non-major feature always/never occurs in the group your sound(s) belong to, you do not write it down.” Note: the groups implied are Obstruents, Nasals/Liquids, Glides, Vowels and Glottals. And also: “Only use as many features as you need to distinguish the sounds from others. Never use more than absolutely necessary.” In order to pass the test, it is important that you know all features for all sounds by heart. This can easily be achieved by remembering a list of rules. You could also learn the entire matrix (and take into account which features are redundant and when) if you're up for a challenge. You can find these rules on the next page. They are sorted by the type of the feature. I highly recommend writing them down by hand, it'll be much easier to memorize then. Write them a few times every day and you'll never forget them. The list may look long at first glance, but don't worry, because many of these are obvious.

Major class features • All consonants are [+ consonantal]. ◦ /j/ and /w/ are semi-vowels, and thus [- consonantal]. • Only nasals, liquids, glides and vowels are [+ sonorant]. • All consonants are [- syllabic], including /j/ and /w/. • You should remember the features of all major groups (consonantal, sonorant, syllabic). ◦ [Obstruents + - - ] [Nasals/Liquids + + - ] [Glides - + - ] [Vowels - + + ] [Glottals - - - ] Laryngeal features • Voice is only relevant in plosives, fricatives and affricates. ◦ Voiced sounds are [+ voice]. • CG is a unique feature of the glottal stop (ʔ). ◦ It also occurs in glottalized sounds. • SG is a unique feature of the glottal fricative (h). ◦ It also occurs in aspirated sounds. Place features • The labial feature only occurs in bilabial, labio-dental and labio-velar sounds (p, b, m, f, v, w). • Roundness is a unique feature of /w/ and the rounded vowels (ʊ, uː, ɒ, ɔː). • [+ round] sounds are also [+ labial] (but not the other way around!). • Palatal, palato-alveolar, alveolar and dental sounds are the only [+ coronal sounds]. • Patalal, palato-alveolar and velar sounds are all [- anterior]. ◦ This means all alveolar sounds (n, t, d, s, z, r and l) are [+ coronal] and [+ anterior] • All affricates (t ʃ and d ʒ) and hissing fricatives (s, z, ʃ, ʒ) are [+ strident]. ◦ Stridency is only relevant to fricatives. Dorsal features • Only relevant to glides (j, w), velars (k, g, ŋ and w) and vowels. • The High and Back features are the only ones that occur in consonants (velars, glides). • The palatal glide (j) and high vowels (I, iː, ʊ, uː) are [+ high]. • Only velar sounds (k, g, ŋ and w), ʊ and uː are [+ high] and [+ back]. • Only front vowels (I, iː, e, æ) are [- back]. • The only [+ low] sounds are /æ/ and /ɑː/. • Long vowels (a.k.a. tense vowels; iː, uː, ɑː, ɔː, ɜː) are [+ tense]. • Only schwa (ə) is [+ reduced]. Apart from this feature, it is identical to /ʌ/. Manner features • Only nasals (m, n ŋ) are [+ nasal]. • Only laterals (l) are [+ lateral]. • Only vowels, fricatives, glides (j, w) and r are [+ continuant]. • Delayed release is a unique feature of affricates (tʃ, dʒ).

On the next page you can find two matrices with all the features for every sound.

MATRICES CONSONANTS r

j

w ʍ h

ʔ

consonant + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

-

-

h

p p

*

b

t

t

h

d

h

k k

g

f

v

s

z

θ

ð

ʃ

ʒ tʃ dʒ m n

ŋ

l

-

-

-

sonorant

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

+ + + + + + + +

-

-

syllabic

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

voice

-

-

+

-

-

+

-

-

+

-

+

-

+

-

+

-

+

-

+ + + + + + + +

-

-

-

CG

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

+

SG

-

+

-

-

+

-

-

+

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

+

-

labial

+ + +

-

-

-

-

-

-

+ +

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

+

-

-

-

-

-

+ +

-

-

round

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

+ +

-

-

coronal

-

-

-

+ + +

-

-

-

-

-

+ + + + + + + +

-

+

-

+ + +

-

-

-

-

anterior

+ + + + + +

-

-

-

+ + + + + +

-

+ +

-

+ +

-

-

-

-

-

strident

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

+ +

-

-

+ + + +

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

high

-

-

-

-

-

-

+ + +

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

+

-

-

+ + +

-

-

back

-

-

-

-

-

-

+ + +

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

+

-

-

-

+ +

-

-

nasal

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

+ + +

-

-

-

-

-

-

continuant -

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

+ + + + + + + +

-

-

-

-

-

-

+ + + + +

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

lateral

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

+

-

-

-

-

-

-

DR

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

+ +

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

iː

ɪ

e

æ

VOWELS ʌ ə ɜː

consonantal

-

-

-

-

-

-

sonorant

+

+

+

+

+

syllabic

+

+

+

+

voice

+

+

+

round

-

-

high

+

low

ɑː

ɒ

ɔː

ʊ

uː

-

-

-

-

-

-

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

-

-

-

-

-

-

+

+

+

+

+

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

+

+

-

-

-

+

-

-

-

+

-

-

-

-

back

-

-

-

-

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

tense

+

-

-

-

-

-

+

+

-

+

-

+

reduced

-

-

-

-

-

+

-

-

-

-

-

-

continuant

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

Semester II Part 2: Phonological rules This is the Eighth edition, revised on the 11th of June 2015. About this part: Allophones and other phonological rules are predictable. In this part, we're going to look at how linguists represent the rules in formulas. By the end of this part you need to be able to recognize these drawings by name, and you also need to be able to draw them yourself. In this part: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Introduction Other symbols Additional terms FORMALIZED RULES Liquid/Glide devoicing Schwa deletion Glide insertion Vowel lengthening Vowel (schwa) epenthesis Linking /r/ Epenthesis Aspiration Glottalization Syllabicity j dropping

Introduction Allophones occur based on a particular set of rules, which makes them predictable. We formalize these rules by writing them down in a weird way. The only way to figure these rules out (as students) is to learn them by heart. Rules take a form similar to this: A → B / X ___ Y A is the sound undergoing change. B is the change that is undergoes. X and Y represent the environment in which this happens. These may be absent. ___ (focus bar) indicates the position of A within an environment (word/sentence). In plain English, we can read this as A becomes B between X and Y. Other symbols α = a variable value that can be either + or β = same function as α; used when there's a second variable. σ = syllable. Ø = nothing. # = final position. O = onset (precedes rhyme). R = rhyme (nucleus + coda). N = nucleus (essential vowel sequence in a syllable). C = coda (segments following nucleus). V = vowel. Additional terms Accidental gaps Onset combinations that are allowed, but simply do not occur because there are no words starting with that onset (yet). Maybe be filled in by a newly invented or loaned words. Systematic gaps Onset sequences that are not allowed, but do occur in English because they came from foreign languages. Because these sequences are “impossible” they are pronounced differently. For example: psychology (silent p).

Formalized rules are found on the next page.

FORMALIZED RULES Liquid/Glide devoicing “Liquids and glides become voiceless after syllable-initial voiceless stops.”

Schwa deletion “Schwa can be deleted in an open syllable when followed by a stressed syllable.”

Glide insertion “Tense high [- back] vowels are followed by j [- back]; Tense high [+ back] vowels are followed by w [+ back].”

Vowel lengthening “Vowels are long when followed by a voiced obstruent consonant in the same syllable.”

Vowel (schwa) epenthesis “A vowel (schwa) may be inserted when an impermissible sequence occurs.”

Note: this occurs often in loaned words, to overcome systematic gaps. The insertion of schwa breaks the impossible sequence of consonants and makes the word pronounceable. The formal representation above uses an impermissible sequence with /l/ + consonant at the end of a word as an example. Linking /r/ “The /r/ sound may be inserted in between two words when the first ends with a non-high vowel, and the second starts with a vowel.”

Epenthesis (insertion) The rule that you may pronounce 't' between 'n' and 's' like in the word France etc.

Aspiration “Voiceless plosives become aspirated if place before a stressed vowel.”

Glottalization “Voiceless plosives may become glottalized if they occur at the end of a word.”

Syllabicity “Nasals and liquids may become syllabic at the end of a word if preceded by an obstruent consonant.”

j dropping “j may be dropped when preceded by an alveolar consonant”

SEMESTER II Part 3: Variety in pronunciation This is the First edition, created and revised on 26 March 2015. About this part: This part is about differences in pronunciation, stress types/changes and rhythm. Not a particularly important topic however. This summary never really saw wide-spread distribution and never went past the first revision. It wasn't even featured in any tests! In this part: • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Phonetic differences Systematic differences Realizational differences Phonotactic-distributional differences Lexical differences (incidental/distributional) Supra-segmental elements Secondary stress Tertiary stress Stress placement Complex words Affixed Compound Stress shift Rhythm

Phonetic differences There are many different accents of English. There are four 'kinds' of differences: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Systematic (Systemic/Phonological) Realizational (Phonetic) Phonotactic-distributional Lexical (-incidental/-distributional)

Systematic differences “A difference in the amount of phonemes (sounds) used.” For example: RP has more phonemes than GA. RP

GA

ɪə

ɪr

ʊə

ʊr

eə

er

As you can see in the table above, GA does not have centring diphthongs. Realizational differences “A difference in the pronunciation of a phoneme.” An obvious example here would be the different renderings of the phoneme /r/ in RP and GA. In RP it is an alveolar approximant, while in GA it is retroflex. Another example is the use of the velarized (dark) lateral (ɫ) which always occurs in GA, only under certain circumstances in RP and never in Irish English. Phonotactic-distributional differences “A difference in the rules that govern in what environment certain sounds can occur.” Once again, we can use /r/ as a difference between RP and GA. In RP, /r/ may only occur before a vowel, and is never allowed at the end of a word. In GA on the other hand, it is always allowed anywhere. Lexical differences (incidental/distributional) “Unpredictable difference in the pronunciation of words.” Similar to the third rule. The difference is that it only affects certain words. There is also no good explanation for why these differences exist for some words, but not for others. For example: when ɑː is used in RP, the GA version may replace it with æ instead. But not always. RP

GA

dɑːns

dæns

ˈfɑːðə

ˈfɑːðə

Supra-segmental elements “Certain elements that seem more prominent in word.” Prominence is decided by four attributes: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Duration (length) Quality Loudness Pitch

So, prominence is defined by word stress. There are four types of word stress: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Primary stress (always present) Secondary stress Tertiary stress No stress (ɪ and ə)

The only words in English that can possibly feature all four, are loan words from other languages. For example: Aluminium [ˌæləˈmɪnɪəm] Note: This is Dr. Barzycka's transcription. My dictionary disagrees with it. Secondary stress Big words that have too many syllables have more than just one stress. We mark this extra (secondary) stress with a subscript apostrophe which is placed before the first phoneme in transcription. For example: Dipsomaniac [ˌdɪpsəʊˈmeɪnɪæk] Tertiary stress When schwa (or ɪ) occurs in a word, there shouldn't be any stress there. For this reason these sounds may also be omitted in the pronunciation. However, some words do not allow this deletion. For example: Poetic [pəʊˈetɪk], Potato [pəˈteɪtəʊ] and Tomato [təˈmɑːtəʊ] Compare with: Pathetic [pəˈθetɪk] From the examples we can conclude that this occurs in diphthongs that include schwa (ə). Stress placement “The place of stress in English is (somewhat) predictable, maybe, sometimes.” In order to predict the stress pattern of a simple word (one without affixes) you must know two things: 1. Grammatical category (noun, verb etc.) 2. Number of syllables and phonological structure. You should also consider which of the two types of syllable it is: 1. Light (one consonant/non-tense vowel) 2. Heavy (tense vowel/consonant cluster) Note: there are a lot of specific rules, but they are not reliable. I'm assuming it's irrelevant for our test since we glossed over it during the class. Please confirm!

Complex words There are two kinds of complex words: 1. Affixed words 2. Compound words Affixed “In an affixed word, the stress probably comes after the prefix and is often changed by the suffix.” In an affixed word, the prefix does nothing to change the stress. The suffix however, can fall into one of three categories: 1. Takes over primary stress. 2. Does nothing. 3. Changes stress pattern in the stem, without taking primary stress. Suffix category 1 includes: • -ain ascertain • -ee refugee • -eer musketeer • -ese Chinese • -ette cigarette • -esque grotesque

[ˌæsəˈteɪn] [ˌrɛfjuːˈʤiː] [ˌmʌskɪˈtɪə] [ˌʧaɪˈniːz] [ˌsɪgəˈret] [grəʊˈtesk] Note: Those are all suffixes in category 1.

Suffix category 2 includes: • -able understandable • -ment government • -ny funny • … etc.

[ˌʌndəˈstændəbl] [ˈgʌvnmənt] [ˈfʌni]

Note: No need to learn them all, they don't do anything anyway. Suffix category 3 includes: • -eous advantage → advantageous [ədˈvɑːntɪʤ] → [ˌædvənˈteɪʤəs] • -graphy photo → photography [ˈfəʊtəʊ] → [fəˈtɒgrəfi] • -ial proverb → proverbial [ˈprɒvəb] → [prəˈvɜːbjəl] • -ic drama → dramatic [ˈdrɑːmə] → [drəˈmætɪk] • -ion perfect → perfection [ˈpɜːfɪkt] → [pəˈfɛkʃən] • -ious injure → injurious [ˈɪnʤə] → [ɪnˈʤʊərɪəs] • -ty tranquil → tranquility [ˈtræŋkwɪl] → [træŋˈkwɪlɪti] • -ive reflex → reflexive [ˈriːflɛks] → [rɪˈfleksɪv] Note: could you please notice how the stress moves?

Compound “We can determine the stress pattern of compound words by pretending that it is predictable.” Compound words are words that are made up of two words. For example: There are two types of compound words (that's a lie – deal with it) in which: 1. The first part of the compound is a noun. For example: jazz-band, teacup and suitcase. 2. The first part of the compound is not a noun. (adjectival) For example: goodhearted, lukewarm and second-hand In case of type 1, the stress is always on the first element. In case of type 2. the stress is usually on the second element. Stress shift The stress of a complex word may shift depending on its position if one of the following applies: • • • • • •

It is an adjectival compound. For example: good afternoon! vs. afternoon tea. It contains the -ese suffix. For example: The restaurant is Chinese vs. Chinese take-away. It is a number. For example: numbers 13 – 19 shift stress to the 2nd syllable. Unless you are counting. It is a word with late stress (so a longish word). For example: absolutely vs. absolutely. (Many exceptions exist for this rule.) It is a place name. For example: Berlin/Berlin, Belfast/Belfast The word has multiple grammatical categories without changing spelling. (Weak forms.) For example: record (verb) vs. record (noun).

Rhythm Function words are rarely stressed in sentences. They are reduced to schwa in connected speech. This vowel reduction is necessary to keep the rhythm of the sentence. For this reason, the following sentences take an equal amount of time to say: “A nice ripe pear.” “A lovely juicy melon.” “A delicious and mouth-watering pineapple.” We can measure the 'length' of a sentence by looking at its stress pattern: “1Walk 2down the 3path to the 4end of the can5al.” This sentence is 5 'feet' long.

SEMESTER II Part 4: Morphology This is the Second edition, revised on the 4th of June 2015. About this part: Stepping away from phonology completely, the final part of the year condenses a massive topic into a single summary. This part may seem a bit chaotic. Morphology examines change in the construction of words. In this part: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

BASICS Introduction Free forms Morphemes Free and bound morphemes Allomorphs Word structure Root, stem and base Bound morphemes as the root MORPHOLOGICAL PROCESSES Affixation Clitics Internal change Suppletion Reduplication Compounding DERIVATION Constraints on derivation WORD FORMATION (Less common types) Conversion (zero derivation / functional shift) Clipping Blends Backformation Acronyms Commonization Onomatopoeia Diminuvization Coining INFLECTION VERSUS DERIVATION MORPHEME IDENTIFICATION Morphological rules Putting it all together SEMANTIC CLASSES

BASICS Introduction The system of categories and rules involved in word formation and interpretation makes up a language's morphology. Our unconscious knowledge of morphology allows us to create more words from the words already in our mental “dictionary” (lexicon), by adding affixes for example. Free forms A free form is an element that can occur in isolation or whose position with respect to neighbouring categories is not completely fixed. For example: “dogs” is a free form since it can occur independently in various positions. The suffix -s on the other hand, is not a free form since it must be attached to another word. Morphemes Words are created by combining smaller elements known as morphemes. If you remember the linguistics class, you know that morphemes are the smallest units of language that carry information or meaning. Words can be made up of multiple morphemes, but a word may also consist of just a single morpheme. For example: house (one morpheme), and houses (house + -s). A word that consist of a single morpheme is called a simple word. Words that are constructed using multiple morphemes are called complex words. Morphemes can be further divided into categories:

Free and bound morphemes If a morpheme can be a word by itself, it's called a free morpheme. If a morpheme must be attached to another element, it's called a bound morpheme. For example: dog is a free morpheme, -s is a bound morpheme. Allomorphs Morphemes can sometimes change while still fulfilling the same function, we call them allomorphs. For example: a and an serve the same function but occur in different situations. Could you please notice that these differences are governed by rules. Word structure In linguistics, it's common practice to give everything a name if at all possible. The parts of words are no exception. When dealing with complex words, we can surgically take them apart and name each little piece like we do with body parts. Then, we can construct tree structures.

Complex words are constructed by taking a root, and attaching affixes to the root. For example, teacher can be represented in a tree like so:

N = noun V = verb Af = Affix Root, stem and base All of these indicate parts that affixes in some way. The root is the most basic form of the word. The stem is the form we have left-over when we remove inflectional affixes (e.g. stem of wheelchairs is wheelchair), and the base is any form to which affixes (of any kind) can be added. For example: In the word blackened, an affix is attached to a root (black) that already has an affix (-en). So, the base for -ed is blacken. Bound morphemes as the root Sometimes something strange happens (which is not unusual for English) and a word is formed which has a bound morpheme as a root. Some examples:

• •

Affix

Base

Base

Affix

Un In

kempt ept

Horr Venge

ify ance

[Unkempt, Horrify] [Inept, Vengeance]

MORPHOLOGICAL PROCESSES Affixation When an affix is attached to a base, we call it affixation. In English there are two main types of affixes: prefixes and suffixes. The former attaches itself in front of the base, the latter at the end of the base. There's many more types, such as the infix, which occurs in the middle of a base. Clitics Short unstressed forms that are pronounced together with another element as if the two were a single unit. A good example of this can be found in English, where certain verb forms have reduced variants ('m for am, 's for is, and 're for are) that cannot stand alone since they no longer constitute a syllable. When these elements attach to a word, we call it cliticization. For example: I'm, it's and you're. Like affixes, we can further distinguish between clitics: there are enclitics, which attach to the end of a word, and proclitics, which come before a word. Proclitics do not occur in English.

Internal change A process that substitutes one nonmorphemic segment for another to mark a grammatical contrast. For example: • • •

Sing → sung Ring → rang Foot → feet

In the first two examples, the tense of the words change because their vowels change. This process is referred to as ablaut. This term can be contrasted with ublaut, which is a more complicated process responsible for the unusual plurals (such as feet, foot) which has to do with pronunciation and affixes in the past. Suppletion A process that replaces a morph by an entirely different morph in order to indicate a grammatical contrast. For example: the verb to be: be, was, were Partial suppletion Some linguists are indecisive about words such as seek/sought and wreak/wrought so they call these instances partial suppletion. Sort of like a middle-ground between suppletion and internal change. Stress and tone placement Sometimes, a base can undergo a change in the placement of stress or tone to reflect a change in its category. In English, for example, there are pairs of words, such as those list below, in which the verb has stress on the final syllable while the corresponding noun is stressed on the first syllable. Noun ˈɪmpɔːt ˈkɒntest

→ →

Verb ɪm'pɔːt kɒn'test

(import) (contest)

Reduplication When all or part of the base is repeated to mark a difference in grammar, we call it reduplication. When the full base if repeated twice we call it full reduplication. If only a part of the base, we call it partial reduplication. Pretty straightforward. This process does not occur in English for grammar reasons, but young children may speak like this: “da da!”. Compounding A process that combines different grammatical categories into one large word. For example: blue + bird → bluebird, book + case → bookcase and over + lord → overlord. The words involved in this process typically are able to occur independently as well. There is a difference between endocentric and exocentric compounding: Compounds whose meaning is denoted by the right part of the word (e.g. dog food = food) are endocentric. This is the most common case. Compounds whose meaning is not denoted by its parts (e.g. redneck is not a type of neck) are exocentric.

DERIVATION This process changes the grammatical category or meaning of a root by adding an affix. For example: sell (verb) → seller (noun) and island (place) → islander (person). These words may then become separate entries in the speaker's mental lexicon. Take, for example, the word comparable, which is understood as 'similar', rather than 'able to be compared'. Many affixes and prefixes change the grammatical category of verbs, nouns, adjectives or adverbs consistently. For example: • • • •

-able turns a verb into and adjective (e.g. fix → fixable) -er turns a noun into a verb (e.g. teach → teacher) -ate turn an adjective into a verb (e.g. active → activate) -ly turns an adjective into an adverb (e.g. quiet → quietly) For a larger list, please refer to O'Grady page 154.

Such derivations can become rather complex, since it can happen more than once. This means a word can have a multi-layered structure that we can represent in beautiful tree structures such as the one below.

In order to find out how we take the word apart properly, we should look at the affix and to what kind of words they freely attach. For example: -un freely attaches to adjectives, but not so much to nouns: Good

Bad

Unhealthy

Unhealth

Unhurt

Uninjury

Constraints on derivation Derivation does not usually apply freely to all members of a given category. For example: -ant can combine only with bases of Latin origin such as defend. This is why it cannot occur with bases such as fight and teach, which are of native English origin.

Sometimes, a derivational affix is able to attach only to bases with particular phonological properties. For example: -en combines with adjectives to create verbs with a causative meaning ('cause to become X'). However, here are many adjectives with which -en cannot combine, such as blue and slow. The suffix -en is subject to a phonological constraint. In particular, it can only combine with a monosyllabic base that ends in an obstruent. Hence it can be added to white [waɪt], but not to abstract [ˈæbstrækt], which has two syllables, or to blue [bluː], because it doesn't end in an obstruent. WORD FORMATION Less common types Conversion (zero derivation / functional shift) When a word changes into a new grammatical category, without adding an affix, it is called conversion. For example: contest (noun or verb depending on stress), butter (to butter bread), empty (empty a box). Clipping A process that shortens words that have multiple syllables (polysyllabic words) by removing a syllable (or multiple) and thus making a new word. For example: Rob (from Robert), burger (from hamburger) and lab (from laboratory). Blends As you should know from vocabulary class, blends (also known as Portmanteau words) are combinations of two existing words to create a new one. By dropping pieces of both words and then sticking them together we create something new. For example: smoke + fog = smog, motor + hotel = motel and Oxford + Cambridge = Oxbridge. Backformation A process that creates a new word by removing a real (or supposed) affix from a word. In some instances this happens to words that seem to have an affix, but actually do not. (This has some historical reasons which you don't have to know.) For example: resurrect (from resurrection) and donate (from donation). Acronyms These are formed by taking the first letters of words, and pronouncing them as a new word. For example: NASA (National American Space Agency), UNICEF etc. Initialism Similar to acronym, but not pronounced like a word would be. For example: HIV and WWF. Commonization When regular nouns get turned into proper nouns. For example: sandwich (from Lord Sandwich) Onomatopoeia Representing sounds (for example the ones animals make) with a word. For example: meow, sizzle, buzz, moo.

Diminutivization The process of turning a word into its diminutive form. For example: handkerchief → hankie Coining The invention of new words. INFLECTION VERSUS DERIVATION When a word is affixed it can either receive a derivational or an inflectional affix. The differences are rather subtle, but we can distinguish the two by keeping a few rules in mind: 1. Inflection never changes the grammatical category, but derivation often does (not always). The same idea applies to meaning. For example: Book → Books ( -s is an inflectional suffix.) 2. Derivational affixes are attached to bases before inflectional affixes, when both occur in a word. For example: Neighbour → Neighbour-hood → Neighbour-hood-s. 3. Generally speaking, inflectional affixes are not bound to particular grammatical categories. Derivational versus Inflectional examples. Rider Colder Silver Actor

(derivational) (inflectional) (none) (derivational)

Tresses Melodies Bess's Guess

(derivational) (derivational) (inflectional) (none)

Running Founding Handling Fling

(derivational) (inflectional) (derivational) (none)

Fables Lens Witches

(inflectional) (none) (inflectional) verb + derivational morpheme→ noun

Government Speaker Contemplation

(govern + ment) (speaker + er) (contemplate + ion) noun + personal morpheme → adjective

Childish Colo(u)rful

(child + ish) (colo(u)r + ful)

Calmest Lovelier Sillier

(Calm + -er) (Lovely + -er) (Silly + -er)

adjective + inflectional (-er) → adjective

verb + derivational morpheme (re-) → verb Retake Relive Review

(re- + take) (re- + live) (re- + view) MORPHEME IDENTIFICATION

On the test you will be asked to identify the features of morphs/ morphemes. For example: “Small” • Small → SMALL + (Positive) • Smaller → SMALL + (Comparative) • Smallest → SMALL + (Superlative) “Break” • Break → BREAK + (Present) • Broke → BREAK + (Past) • Broken → BREAK + (Past participle) [= past perfect] Other features include number (singular/plural), person (1st, 2nd, 3rd), possessive ('s) and so on as well as the 5 types from morphological rules (Agglutinative, Fusional, Null, Zero and Combination). Some morphemes only appear in one written/spoken form but they can serve multiple different grammatical functions, such as some irregular verbs: “Put” • Put → PUT + (Present) • Put → PUT + (Past) • Put → PUT + (Past participle) Morphemes often have more than one of these features. We list all features that are relevant. Some more complex examples: We Them Her Him Its Us

{1st person + plural + nom} {3rd person + plural + obj} {3rd person + singular + obj + feminine} {3rd person + singular + obj + masculine} {3rd person + singular + obj + neuter} {1st person + plural + obj}

Notice how cases are marked in these words. Case is most fully expressed in the personal and interrogative/relative pronouns, which distinguish nominative case (the function of subject), genitive case (the function of possessor), and objective case (the function of object). – nominative: I, we, you, he, she, it, they, who; – genitive: my/mine, our/ours, his, her/hers, its, their/theirs, whose; and – objective: me, us, you, him, her, it, them, whom.

Morphological rules 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Agglutinative Fusional Null Zero Combination

(to glue words together; cat, cats) (modify each other; tooth and teeth) (morpheme is never realized) (realized as zero derivation in some words; cut, cut, cut) (agglutinative + fusional, often possessive; men's)

Putting it all together On the test, the questions about this will be something along the lines of: “Analyze the words below in terms of constituent morphemes and recognize morphological realization rules.”

Elder, must, topmost, our and men's Elder {OLD} + {Comparative}

Fusional

Must {MUST} + {Present} + {Past}

Null Zero

Topmost {TOP} + {Superlative}

Agglutinative

Our {1st person} + {Possessive} + {Plural}

Fusional

Men's {MAN} + {Plural} + {Possessive}

Combination

SEMANTIC CLASSES Time preafter-

prearrange, presuppose, preheat afterthought, afterglow, aftershock

Number trimulti-

tricycle, triannual, triconsonantal multinational, multilingual, multimillionaire

Place ininter-

infield, in-patient, ingrown interconnect, interbreed, interlace

Degree superover-

supersensitive, supersaturated, superheat overanxious, overconfident, overdue

Privation (expresses the reverse of an action, or the absence of a quality). aamoral, apolitical, asymmetric ununlock, untie, unfold Negation unanti-

unafraid, unsafe, unwise antisocial, antitrust, antiwar

Size micromini-

microcosm, microchip, microfilm miniskirt, minivan, minimall

~ End of semester II ~

Endnotes You have reached the end of the summary. On the next pages you will find the index that contains all topics and their respective page numbers. Below, common issues/questions are answered. Regarding e-mails When perusing this summary please keep in mind that this project will be a work in progress until I leave school. The version numbers are listed on each title page for reference. Please use these numbers when e-mailing about corrections and so forth. Sharing Please share this document (not the separate summaries – those are no longer maintained!) with anyone interested in them. Ensure your version is the latest one if you can. Requests to be added to the mailing list (always get the new revisions as soon as they're available!) can be sent through e-mail by anyone not already on the list. Being on the mailing list means you receive new versions when they are made. Concise history of the project This project was started because I had no idea how to properly study for the first test (basics of phonetics), which lead to me failing the test. To prevent further failures I set out to make sense of this subject by collecting all the information and making a summary out of it. After a day or two of tedious work the very first edition was ready for use (or so I thought). It was then sent to others for testing and review. The summaries, as they became known, have since become a semi-collaborative effort and have helped many students pass their tests. The project still continues, and will until I'm out of school. Thanks My thanks go out to the people who have contributed to the project by providing notes, reviewing or buying Frugo. It's also very satisfying to see that these documents helped people to pass the tests, so thanks to everyone using the summaries for putting their trust in these terrific documents. The future In the upcoming semesters new summaries will be produced for the new material as it comes up. The old summaries will also still be maintained as long as there are people who can find some use in them. Don't you have anything else to do? Clearly not.

Disclaimers All disclaimers as they are found in the separate documents. * Semester 1-1 “I collected all the fancy definitions and added a brief explanation to every single one of them. Also included are the relevant symbols for each definition. Additionally, there's the vowel chart including a short description of how it works, a table with example words that can be used to learn and understand the symbols, and a reference picture for the speech organs.” * Semester 1-2 “I tried to supply some extra notes on terminology where possible. However, if you want to pass the upcoming test I highly recommend that you review the materials for the first test. You will need to know the basics by heart for all the upcoming material. It'll make your life much easier! I might be able to help if something is unclear, but please remember I do not have a Ph.D.” Semester 1-3 “These documents are created by a student, in an attempt to make the subject of descriptive grammar a little easier to navigate and master. That being said, please remember that I struggle as much with this subject as you (probably) do. This information comes from my notes in class, solutions to exercises and (mostly) books. If you find these documents useful, then please consider buying me a candy bar so that the sugar may fuel my brain and allow me to create more of these, or if you are lazy I accept cash too. I spend my entire weekend on this stuff, rather than enjoying life. [sad music playing] Thank you.” Semester 1-4 “This document is created and edited by a student who's making an attempt to win descriptive grammar by making these documents. Information contained within is based on shoddy notes and books written by people who actually have a PhD. None of this is guaranteed to be reliable, use at your own risk. But if you make it through the test using this document please consider buying me something as a thank-you. I managed to get a passing grade for the first time on the last test, so maybe I actually know what I'm doing. But don't count on it.” Semester 1-5 “This document is made by a half-competent student who made this with the help of the workbook, notes and books written by smart people. Though these are good sources, the compiler is likely to make erors and miss things due to his own overwhelming ignorance. Your use of this document shows either confidence in his ability, or desperation. Either way you accept that using this document to study from is at your own risk. However, some people have managed to make it through tests using this document. Maybe that puts you a little at ease. I sure hope so. If something is wrong or missing, please e-mail me. I'll carve your name in a tree somewhere as a thank-you! (not really.)” Semester 2-1 “This summary is produced by an incompetent student, in an attempt to make the subject of descriptive grammar passable. If you are familiar with my work from the first semester, you should know not to trust me. But there might still be some value in this summary, study it well and you should be able to pass. Please contact me if you find any mistakes or missing content. Yes. I like candy bars, Frugo and money. You know what to do.”

Semester 2-2 “The information contained within is based on books written by experts and notes taken by students who are more competent at note-taking and definitely present more often in class than the compiler of this knowledge. The information within this summary may (and probably will) change (often) as new facts present themselves and mistakes are pointed out. Use at your own risk. If it helps, totally buy me a Frugo though.” Semester 2-3 “Information contained within this summary is taken from carelessly scribbled down notes and occasionally from books written by professionals. The compiler is an incompetent student who should not be trusted to write a summary, so use of this document is at your own risk. I only take responsibility if you succeed. If you find on of the 300 mistakes/have complaints please send an e- mail.” Semester 2-4 “I have no idea what I'm doing. Because you are reading this summary you probably do not either. But rest assured: this summary is based on the work by professional linguists and students who do know what they're doing. Nevertheless, be aware that the compiler of this knowledge is still highly incompetent. Use at your own risk. I am only responsible if you pass the test, not if you don't.” * Disclaimers were not introduced yet, but this note was on the title page instead.

Index of contents 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

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Title page Contents Disclaimer Preface Portrait Part 1-1: Introduction to phonology ORGANS OF SPEECH Functions PLACE OF ARTICULATION MANNER OF ARTICULATION OTHER TERMS IPA TABLE VOWEL CHART EXAMPLES OF EACH SYMBOL Semester 1-2: Plosives Introducing your new best friends Voicing/devoicing Devoicing of approximants Fortis and lenis Aspiration The S rule Fliding the aspiration away No audible plosion in final positions Glottal reinforcement (Glottalization) Homorganic Nasal release of plosives Lateral release (Labio-dentals) Stop clusters Front/back vowels and plosives Affrication of plosives Semester 1-3: Fricatives and affricates Fricatives and affricates [table] Voicing Voicing rules exception Lengthening/shortening of vowels or sonorant consonants Length of voiceless vs voiced fricatives Optional glottalization /tr/ and /dr/ Phonotactics: constraints of ʒ and h Stridency A lonely sooul in the fricative section: /h/ Comparing stops (plosives), fricatives and affricates Semester 1-4: Sonorant consonants NASALS Devoicing Optional allophone

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(Labio-)Dental release Post-alveolar release Advancement/Retraction Shortened nasal Place restrictions Syllabic nasals LATERALS Devoicing Embrace the darkness Dental release Post-alveolar release Syllabic laterals Shortened lateral R SOUNDS Retroflex Devoicing Tap/Flap Restricted distribution /r/ as a fricative Dental release Linking/intrusive /r/ SEMI-VOWELS (GLIDES) Devoicing Voiceless variant of /w/ Semester 1-5: Vowels (Re-)Introducing: the quadrilateral Front and back vowels High-mid-low vowels Rounded vowels Tense and lax vowels Phonotactics: the sequence rules Schwa Vowels and linking Assimilation Epenthesis (insertion) Deletion Metathesis (reordering) Vowel length Nasalised vowels DIPHTHONGS All diphthongs Closing (rising) diphthongs Centring Rising and falling diphthongs Phonotactic constraints Triphthongs Monophthongization of triphthongs Semester 2-1: The Matrix (Distinctive Features) Introduction

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CATEGORIES Major class features Laryngeal Place Dorsal Manner DETAILS Coronal Anterior Round and labial Dorsal Continuant RULES The major groups and their main features Distinctive versus redundant The basic rules Major class features Laryngeal features Place features Dorsal features Manner features Matrices Semester 2-2: Phonological rules Introduction Other symbols Additional terms FORMALIZED RULES Liquid/Glide devoicing Schwa deletion Glide insertion Vowel lengthening Vowel (schwa) epenthesis Linking /r/ Epenthesis Aspiration Glottalization Syllabicity j dropping Semester 2-3: Variety in pronunciation Phonetic differences Systematic differences Realizational differences Phonotactic-distributional differences Lexical differences (incidental/distributional) Supra-segmental elements Secondary stress Tertiary stress Stress placement Complex words

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Affixed Compound Stress shift Rhythm Semester 2-4: Morphology BASICS Introduction Free forms Morphemes Free and bound morphemes Allomorphs Word structure Root, stem and base Bound morphemes as the root MORPHOLOGICAL PROCESSES Affixation Clitics Internal change Suppletion Reduplication Compounding DERIVATION Constraints on derivation WORD FORMATION (Less common types) Conversion (zero derivation / functional shift) Clipping Blends Backformation Acronyms Commonization Onomatopoeia Diminuvization Coining INFLECTION VERSUS DERIVATION MORPHEME IDENTIFICATION Morphological rules Putting it all together SEMANTIC CLASSES Endnotes Disclaimers Index of contents (yes.)