Phonology Quiz
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Questions and Answers

Which of the following is a primary focus of phonology?

  • The historical development of sound changes.
  • The study of sounds as mental objects in a specific language. (correct)
  • The physical production of speech sounds.
  • The social context in which language is used.

What is the role of meaning in basic phonological analysis?

  • Meaning is the independent arbiter to determine if a sound exists in a language. (correct)
  • Meaning is irrelevant in determining the phonology of a language.
  • Meaning is used to determine the social acceptability of a sound.
  • Meaning is not used to differentiate similar sounds.

If replacing one sound with another in a word changes the meaning, what are those sounds considered?

  • Separate phonemes. (correct)
  • Free variants.
  • Complementary variants.
  • Allophones of the same phoneme.

If replacing one sound with another in a word does not change the word's meaning, what are the two sounds considered?

<p>Allophones of one phoneme. (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is the term for different phonetic sounds that represent one mental sound?

<p>Allophones. (C)</p> Signup and view all the answers

Which pair of words demonstrates that $s$ is a phoneme in English?

<p>[spik] and [pik] (A)</p> Signup and view all the answers

In the words [bɛtə] and [bɛɾə], what does the sound change from [t] to [ɾ] illustrate?

<p>Allophonic variation of one phoneme. (D)</p> Signup and view all the answers

What do phonological rules primarily account for?

<p>The distribution of sounds in different contexts. (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is the primary difference between [ATR] harmony in Twi and Dagbani?

<p>Twi harmony is bidirectional, unlike Dagbani. (D)</p> Signup and view all the answers

In Twi, how many rules are needed to account for [ATR] harmony due to its bidirectional nature?

<p>Two rules. (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

What does the symbol 'Ø' represent in phonological rules?

<p>An empty segment or nothing. (D)</p> Signup and view all the answers

What phonological process involves a rule of the form /segment/ → Ø / environment?

<p>Deletion (C)</p> Signup and view all the answers

What term describes phonological processes where underlying forms are modified to derive surface forms?

<p>Derivational phonology. (A)</p> Signup and view all the answers

In the rule [+syllabic] → [αATR] / ___ C0 [αATR], what does C0 represent?

<p>Zero or more consonants. (D)</p> Signup and view all the answers

Which symbol is commonly used by some phonologists to mark a word boundary?

<h1>(D)</h1> Signup and view all the answers

What do the symbols [ and ] typically indicate when used with a subscript (e.g., ]word)?

<p>Boundaries of a unit. (D)</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is the primary factor determining the state of water (solid, liquid, gas) according to the analogy used in the text?

<p>The temperature of the surrounding environment. (C)</p> Signup and view all the answers

In the analogy, what is considered the 'default' state of water?

<p>Liquid (water) because it is the most commonly observed state. (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

Why are different states of water (ice, water, vapour) considered to be the same thing?

<p>They all have the same molecular structure despite physical state. (A)</p> Signup and view all the answers

What principle regarding allophones is illustrated by the water analogy?

<p>Allophones of the same phoneme occur in different, non-overlapping environments. (C)</p> Signup and view all the answers

How is the default realisation of a sound chosen when writing a phonological rule, according to the text?

<p>By determining which realisation appears in the widest/most frequent environment. (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

Using the water example, where would you expect to find ice as a realisation of the 'water' concept/phoneme?

<p>In a very low temperature environment. (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following is a key characteristic of allophones, based on the content?

<p>Their distribution is predictable based on the environment. (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

When illustrating rule writing using 'water', the text shows us that...

<p>the different realisations of water cannot occur in the same environment. (D)</p> Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following is an example of a plain [t] sound, as described in the text?

<p>[stɛm] (D)</p> Signup and view all the answers

In North American dialects, the [t] in 'atom' is realized as what type of sound?

<p>Flapped [t] (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is the process by which a sound becomes more like its neighboring sound?

<p>Assimilation (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

What happens to Sound A when it undergoes assimilation?

<p>It adopts a new feature from a neighboring sound. (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

Which types of features can a sound assimilate to?

<p>Virtually every feature. (D)</p> Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following feature categories are involved in the description of sounds like /p/, /t/ and /g/?

<p>Place, manner, and voicing features. (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is the general rule for alveolar consonant assimilation?

<p>They assimilate when preceding a non-alveolar segment. (C)</p> Signup and view all the answers

In the word 'bottle', what sound does the [t] sometimes become in North American dialects?

<p>a glottal stop [Ê”] (C)</p> Signup and view all the answers

In the provided data, which word demonstrates a process of vowel harmony?

<p>h.ɔbɛkʊ (C)</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is the primary trigger for vowel harmony in the word 'mʊrʊkɔtʊw'?

<p>The first vowel (D)</p> Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following words from the provided examples does NOT involve a high vowel harmony pattern?

<p>mʊrʊkɔtʊw (D)</p> Signup and view all the answers

Based on the data, how is vowel harmony achieved?

<p>Through the spreading of a vowel feature (D)</p> Signup and view all the answers

In comparing the harmony patterns observed, what is a key difference between examples (3) and (4)?

<p>The class of vowels involved (D)</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is the correct surface form of the underlying form /bɔn/, after applying vowel nasalisation and nasal deletion in the correct order?

<p>[bɔ̃] (A)</p> Signup and view all the answers

In the context of rule application, what does 'feeding' refer to?

<p>A rule creating the required environment for another rule to apply. (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following best describes the interaction between vowel nasalisation and nasal deletion in French?

<p>Vowel nasalisation feeds nasal deletion. (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

What does the concept of 'bleeding' in rule application refer to?

<p>A rule destroying an environment needed by another rule. (D)</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is the crucial factor in determining how two or more rules were applied during the derivation of surface forms?

<p>Both the underlying representation (UR) and the surface form. (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

If nasal deletion applied before vowel nasalisation to the underlying /bɔn/, what would the incorrect surface form be?

<p>[bɔñ] (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

Given the rule: [+syl] → [+nas]/__+nas]σ , what does this rule describe?

<p>Vowel nasalisation. (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is the environment needed for nasal deletion to occur?

<p>A nasal vowel. (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

Flashcards

Allophones

The different ways a phoneme can be pronounced based on its surrounding sounds.

Phonetic Environment

The environment in which a sound occurs, including surrounding sounds and factors like stress or syllable position.

Phonological Rule

A rule describing the variations of a phoneme, specifying the conditions under which each allophone occurs.

Default Realisation

The most common pronunciation of a phoneme, occurring in the widest range of environments.

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Distribution Analysis

The process of analyzing distribution and environments of sounds to determine their relationships as phonemes or allophones.

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Complementary Distribution

When two sounds are allophones of the same phoneme, they won't appear in the same phonetic environment. If one sound is present, the other one won't be.

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Default Realisation Selection

Choosing the default realization of a phoneme by identifying the allophone with the widest distribution and most frequent occurrences.

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Rule Writing

The process of writing a phonological rule to capture the relationship between allophones and their phonetic environments.

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Assimilation

A change in a sound's features due to the influence of a neighboring sound.

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Place of Articulation

The location where a sound is produced in the mouth, such as alveolar, labial, or velar.

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Manner of Articulation

The way a sound is produced, such as stop, fricative, or nasal.

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Voicing Features

Whether a sound is voiced or voiceless, like the difference between /b/ and /p/.

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Place of Articulation Assimilation

When a sound changes its place of articulation to match a neighboring sound.

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Assimilation of Alveolar Consonants

A type of assimilation where an alveolar consonant (/t/, /d/, /n/) becomes like a non-alveolar sound after it.

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Realizations of /t/

The sound /t/ has different pronunciations depending on the surrounding sounds.

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Voicing Assimilation

A sound changes its voicing feature to match a neighboring sound. For example, /b/ may become /p/ before a voiceless consonant.

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What is Phonology?

Phonology is the study of how sounds are organised in the mind, how they are distributed in words, how they change and the principles behind these changes, and how they are combined to form meaningful units.

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Harmony

Phonological rule where a feature of a segment spreads to other segments in the word. This can happen bidirectionally (both left to right and right to left) or unidirectionally.

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What is a phoneme?

A phoneme is a basic sound unit that can change the meaning of a word when it's replaced by another sound. For example, replacing the /t/ in "time" with /d/ results in "dime", a different word.

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What is an allophone?

An allophone is a variation of a phoneme that doesn't change the meaning of a word. For example, the /t/ sound in "time" can be pronounced with a slight flap (like a /ɾ/) in some contexts, but the meaning remains the same.

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Insertion/Epenthesis

A type of phonological rule where a segment is inserted into the word. This often happens to make the word easier to pronounce.

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Deletion

A type of phonological rule where a segment is deleted from the word.

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What is distribution of sounds?

The distribution of sounds in a language refers to where a sound can and cannot occur in a word. For example, in English, the sound /Å‹/ (like the 'ng' in 'sing') only occurs at the end of a syllable.

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Why is meaning important in phonology?

Meaning is crucial in phonology, because it helps us determine whether two sounds are different phonemes or just different variations of the same phoneme. The presence or absence of a phoneme can change the meaning of a word, and sound replacements that change meaning indicate distinct phonemes.

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Boundary Rule

A phonological rule that applies at the boundary of a unit, such as at the beginning or end of a word, syllable, phrase, or clause.

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Vowel Nasalization

A phonological rule where a vowel is nasalized when it occurs before a nasal consonant.

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What are phonological rules?

Phonological rules describe how sounds change in different contexts. These rules can explain why certain sounds are pronounced differently in certain situations.

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How do we study sounds in phonology?

In phonology, we study sounds as mental objects, meaning we are interested in how sounds are represented in the mind and how they function within a language system.

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Bidirectional Harmony

A phonological rule where the trigger of the rule has multiple targets to its right and left. This rule applies to both left-to-right and right-to-left directions.

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Derivational Phonology

An approach in phonology where rules are applied to underlying forms to derive the surface forms.

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What is the role of meaning in phonology?

Meaning is the independent arbiter in phonology, meaning that if a sound change alters the meaning of a word, it's a distinct phoneme. If a sound change doesn't affect meaning, it's an allophone.

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Nasal Deletion

A phonological rule that deletes a nasal consonant when it is followed by another nasal consonant.

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Rule Ordering

The order in which phonological rules are applied can significantly affect the final pronunciation of a word.

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Feeding

When the application of one rule creates the necessary environment for another rule to apply.

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Vowel Nasalization Feeds Nasal Deletion

Vowel nasalization in French creates the environment for nasal deletion to apply.

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Bleeding

When the application of one rule eliminates the environment for another rule to apply.

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Phonological Rule Interaction

Understanding the interaction between phonological rules helps us understand how the underlying form of a word is transformed into its actual pronunciation.

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Underlying Form (UR)

The underlying form of a word is the representation of the word before any phonological rules have been applied.

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Trigger and Target of Harmony

In harmony, a trigger sound influences a target sound to change its features, resulting in a more similar sound.

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Harmony Rule

A rule that describes the patterns of harmony by specifying the conditions under which a sound changes based on its environment.

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Similarities in Harmony Patterns

Harmony patterns are similar when they involve the same type of sound changes, like when a sound's place of articulation is influenced by its neighboring sound.

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Differences in Harmony Patterns

Harmony patterns differ when they apply different sound changes, even if the triggers and targets are similar. For example, one pattern might involve voicing assimilation, while another might focus on place of articulation.

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Study Notes

Phonological Processes: Assimilation

  • Assimilation is a process where a sound becomes more like a neighboring sound.
  • The sound that changes is called the target, and the sound that causes the change is the trigger.
  • Assimilation can be progressive (target comes after the trigger) or regressive (target precedes the trigger).
  • The domain of assimilation can vary, sometimes limited to the same syllable, sometimes encompassing the whole word or phrase.
  • Types of assimilation include dentalisation, labialisation, velarisation, palatalisation, labialisation, and nasal place assimilation.
  • Examples presented involved English, potentially representing patterns in various languages.

Phonological Processes: Harmony

  • Harmony is a type of assimilation where non-adjacent sounds share a feature.
  • It is a process where non-adjacent sounds within a domain share a common feature.
  • This feature is called the harmonic feature.
  • Unlike assimilation, harmony does not require adjacent sounds.
  • The type of harmony, such as root-controlled or dominant-recessive, sometimes depends on morphology.
  • Example languages and data (like Kera and Dagbani vowel harmony) were referenced to illustrate this.
  • Harmony often affects both vowels and consonants, though vowel harmony is more frequent.

Phonological Processes: Distinctiveness vs. Redundancy

  • Some segmental features are distinctive, others are redundant.
  • Distinctive features contribute toward meaning, while redundant features do not.
  • Redundant features are predictable (e.g. human legs are expected), while distinctive features aren't.
  • Features are language-specific, though some tendencies (like nasality feature in certain language categories) are universal.
  • Minimal pairs were cited as an example of distinctive features in language.

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Related Documents

LNGS 401 Lecture Notes 1 & 2 (November 2024) PDF

Description

Test your knowledge of phonology concepts with this quiz. It covers primary focuses, sound changes, and phonological rules in languages such as English and Twi. Perfect for students looking to deepen their understanding of this essential aspect of linguistics.

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