English Fundamentals 2024: IPA & Phonetics

• Fundamentals of English are being reviewed for 2024.

The IPA

• IPA stands for International Phonetic Alphabet
• Monophthongs are single vowel sounds
• Diphthongs are a combination of two vowel sounds within the same syllable

Phonemic Chart

• Voiced sounds vibrate the vocal cords, while unvoiced sounds do not

Vowel Classification

• Vowels are classified by frontness and backness, highness and lowness, and roundedness
• Schwa /ə/ is found in unstressed syllables
• One-syllable words are stressed and have full vowel sounds, except for "the" and "what"

Places of Articulation

• Bilabial sounds use both lips like /p/, /b/, /m/, and /w/
• Labiodental sounds involve the lips and teeth like /f/ and /v/
• Interdental sounds are produced with the tongue between the teeth like /ð/ and /θ/
• Alveolar sounds are made with the tongue near the alveolar ridge like /t/, /d/, /s/, /z/, /n/, and /l/
• Palatal sounds are produced with the tongue near the palate like /j/
• Palato-alveolar sounds are made between the palate and alveolar ridge like /ʃ/, /ʒ/, /tʃ/, and /dʒ/
• Velar sounds are produced with the tongue near the velum like /k/, /g/, and /ŋ/
• Glottal sounds come from the glottis like /h/

Manner of Articulation

• Plosives involve a complete closure of the vocal tract: /p/, /b/, /t/, /d/, /k/, /g/
• Fricatives involve a narrow constriction, creating friction: /f/, /v/, /θ/, /ð/, /s/, /z/, /ʃ/, /ʒ/, /h/
• Affricates begin as plosives and end as fricatives: /tʃ/, /dʒ/
• Nasal sounds are produced with air flowing through the nose: /m/, /n/, /ŋ/
• Approximants are sounds where articulators come close but don't cause friction: /w/, /r/, /j/, /l/
• Lateral sounds are produced with air flowing along the sides of the tongue: /l/
• Glide sounds involve a smooth transition: /w/, /j/

Special Sounds

• Glottal stop occurs in words like "button" and "kitten"
• Alveolar tap occurs in words like "butter" and "stutter"

Simple Tenses

• Simple present expresses general truths, habitual actions, scientific facts or regular occurrences

Simple Past

• The simple past describes an action completed at a specific time in the past, often with time expressions like "last night" or "yesterday"

Simple Future

• Simple future describes an action that will happen in the future, often using "will/shall + base form" and time expressions like "tomorrow" or "next year"

Progressive Tenses

• Present continuous describes an action ongoing now, using "is/are/am + -ing v."

Past Continuous

• Past continuous describes an action ongoing in the past but interrupted, using "was/were + -ing v."

Future Continuous

• Future continuous describes an action that will be ongoing in the future, using "will/shall + be + -ing v."

Perfect Tenses

• Perfect tenses describe completed actions

Present Perfect

• Present perfect describes an action that began in the past and is still true, using "has/have + pp."

Past Perfect

• Past perfect indicates an action completed before another past action, using "had + pp."

Future Perfect

• Future perfect describes an action completed before some point in the future, using "will/shall + have + pp."

Perfect Continuous Tenses

• Perfect continuous tenses describe actions that started in the past and continue to the present

Present Perfect Continuous

• Present perfect continuous describes an action started in the past and continuing at the present, using "has/have + been + -ing"

Past Perfect Continuous

• Past perfect continuous describes an action started, continued, and ended at some time in the past, using "had + been + -ing"

Future Perfect Continuous

• Future perfect continuous looks back to the past from a point in the future, emphasizing the duration of an activity, using "will/shall + have been + -ing"

Verbals

• Verbals are words that function as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs
• Gerunds (-ing forms) function as nouns, e.g., "Hiking is a tiring hobby"

Infinitives

• Infinitives (to + verb) can function as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs, offering flexibility in sentence structure

Participles

• Participles are verb-derived words used as adjectives (-ed or -ing)

Sentence Patterns

• Sentences follow specific patterns like S-IV (Subject-Intransitive Verb), S-LV-(S)C (Subject-Linking Verb-Subject Complement), S-TV-DO (Subject-Transitive Verb-Direct Object)

Sentence Patterns with Indirect Objects

• S-TV-IO-DO (Subject-Transitive Verb-Indirect Object-Direct Object), S-TV-DO-IO (Subject-Transitive Verb-Direct Object-Indirect Object), S-TV-DO-OC (Subject-Transitive Verb-Direct Object-Object Complement), S-TV-DO-OP (Subject-Transitive Verb-Direct Object-Object Phrase)

Types of Sentences

Compound Sentences

• Compound sentences consist of two independent clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction (FANBOYS: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so)

Complex Sentences

• Complex sentences contain one independent clause (IC) and one dependent clause (DC), linked by a subordinating conjunction (although, whereas, because, etc.)

Compound-Complex Sentences

• Compound-complex sentences have one dependent clause, two independent clauses, one subordinating conjunction and one coordinating conjunction

Demonstratives

• Demonstrative pronouns replace nouns

Demonstrative Adjectives

• Demonstrative adjectives describe the position of something

Relative Pronouns

• Relative pronouns relate subordinate clauses

Markedness

• Marked words not follow the usual pattern or rule

Moods

• Indicative mood states a fact or actuality
• Imperative mood makes a request or command and use active or passive voice but only present tense
• Subjunctive mood expresses statements contrary to fact, wishes, suggestions, proposals, doubt, and possibility