LLCM30ES English Phonetics 2007-2008 Revision questions Introduction 1. Accents and dialects? 2. What does RP stand for? What is it? What about GA? 3. Give at least 3 differences between French and English? 4. Correct the following statements if necessary and explain why: in a given (regional) accent, there is always only one 'correct' pronunciation for a given word (give an example); RP is spoken by a great majority of Brits; GA is spoken by the majority of Americans (from the US); phonetics deals exclusively with vowels and consonants. 5. Give at least 3 tools used in phonetics. The Speech Chain 6. Conditions (participants and ...)? 7. Then 3 other conditions represented by 3 French verbs? 8. The 7 stages? 9. The 3 main branches of phonetics? What do they deal with? Organs of speech 10. The organs of speech can be grouped into 3 categories that correspond with 3 functions in speech production. What are these 3 functions? 11. Give at least one organ from each of the 3 categories. 12. What is the glottis? 13. Difference between the hard palate and the soft palate? 14. What is the function of the velum in speech production? 15. What are the functions of the vocal folds in speech? 16. Correct the following statements if necessary and explain why: the vocal folds become shorter and shorter when you raise pitch; the vocal folds are put close together when you breathe in. Consonants 17. Vowels and consonants? 18. The 3 main properties of consonants? 19. The consonants of English: voice, place, manner? 20. When you pronounce /f/ /s/ /v/ /z/, what happens at the following 3 levels: initiation, phonation, and articulation? 21. How can we feel (and hear) the vibration of your vocal folds? (2 ways) 22. Affricates: the two components (phases)? 23. Which word(s) contain(s) an aspirated /p/: caps, space, pig? 24. Difference between the word-initial consonant of French 'bac' and that of English 'back'? 25. Difference between the word-initial consonant of French 'passeport' and that of English 'passport'? 26. Difference between the word-final consonant of French 'mode' and that of English 'mode'? 27. Difference between the word-final consonant of French 'phase' and that of English 'phase'? 28. In which of the following words is the vowel pronounced longer, if all the other conditions are equal: ‘face’ and ‘phase’? 29. In which of the following words is the vowel pronounced longer, if all the other conditions are equal: ‘(letter) H’ and ‘age’? 30. Correct the following statement if necessary and explain why: the vowel in /bit/is always longer than that in /bd/. 31. Transcribe the following words i) phonemically (broad transcription, in slashes / /), and then ii) phonetically (narrow, detailed transcription, in square brackets [ ]). Think of aspiration, devoicing, vowel length, velarised l: back, pack, speed, feel, rise, built, build, crab, class, cute, twin.

32. Difference between the word-final consonant of French 'l'âme' and that of English 'lamb'? 33. Explain the two different pronunciations of the word 'pack' (see the figure).

34. What is []? Example in English (esp. London accent)? Coarticulation 35. Which word(s) contain(s) a vowel that can be nasalized: cat, can, safe, tent, camp, kid, king? Explain why. 36. In the following diagram, what portion represents the nasalized portion of the vowel?

37. Correct the following statement if necessary and explain why: a given consonant, for example /s/, is pronounced always in the same manner, regardless of the following vowel. Assimilation 38. Progressive assimilation and regressive assimilation? 39. Give an example of assimilation of place. 40. Give an example of assimilation of manner (yod coalescence, th). 41. Is assimilation of voicing frequent in English? In French? Vowels (review) 42. Articulatory characteristics of vowels? 43. Who is the 'father' of the Cardinal Vowels? 44. 3 axes of classification of vowels? 45. You pronounce the vowel /i/ in French, as in 'lit'. Then you round your lips. What vowel do you obtain? Give a French word containing this vowel. 46. Give three English words ending in //. If it is not possible, explain why. Transcription - From sound - From spelling