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Questions and Answers
What is the main focus of phonetics?
What is the main focus of phonetics?
Which branch of phonetics studies the physical production of speech sounds by the human vocal apparatus?
Which branch of phonetics studies the physical production of speech sounds by the human vocal apparatus?
What is the term for the smallest units of sound in a language that distinguish meaning?
What is the term for the smallest units of sound in a language that distinguish meaning?
What is the purpose of the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)?
What is the purpose of the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)?
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What is the term for variations of phonemes that do not change the meaning of a word?
What is the term for variations of phonemes that do not change the meaning of a word?
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What is the term for the physical characteristics of speech sounds, such as place and manner of articulation?
What is the term for the physical characteristics of speech sounds, such as place and manner of articulation?
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Study Notes
Definition of Phonetics
- Study of the physical properties of speech sounds
- Examines the production, transmission, and perception of speech sounds
- Focuses on the physical characteristics of speech sounds, rather than their linguistic function
Branches of Phonetics
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Articulatory Phonetics: studies the physical production of speech sounds by the human vocal apparatus
- Examines the position and movement of articulators (lips, tongue, teeth, etc.)
- Describes the shape and movement of the vocal tract
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Acoustic Phonetics: studies the physical properties of speech sounds as acoustic signals
- Examines the frequency, amplitude, and duration of speech sounds
- Analyzes the acoustic characteristics of speech sounds using instruments such as spectrograms
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Auditory Phonetics: studies the perception of speech sounds by the human auditory system
- Examines how listeners perceive and process speech sounds
- Investigates the psychological and neural mechanisms of speech perception
Key Concepts in Phonetics
- Phones: the individual speech sounds of a language
- Phonemes: the smallest units of sound in a language that distinguish meaning
- Allophones: variations of phonemes that do not change the meaning of a word
- Syllable: a unit of speech sound organization consisting of a vowel sound and optional consonant sounds
- Articulatory features: the physical characteristics of speech sounds, such as place and manner of articulation
Transcription Systems
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International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA): a standardized system for transcribing speech sounds
- Uses unique symbols to represent each phone
- Allows for precise representation of speech sounds across languages
- Other transcription systems: such as the Americanist phonetic notation system, used in some linguistic traditions
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Description
Test your knowledge of phonetics, the study of speech sounds, including articulatory, acoustic, and auditory phonetics, phonemes, allophones, syllables, and transcription systems like IPA.
