Articulation of English vowels & diphthongs

Articulation of English vowels and diphthongs

by Sofía Romanelli

articulation of english vowels

High/ Close

Mid

Low/ Open

Front

Center

Back

Vowel quality

Unrounded

Rounded

Tense

Long vowels are TENSE, as they are produced with MORE muscular tension at the root of the tongue.

Lax

Short vowels are LAX, as they are produced with LESS muscular tension at the root of the tongue.

Vowel quantity

Long

Long vowels are circled in RED.

Short

Short vowels are NOT circled in red.

ORAL

Vowels and diphthongs are oral sounds, as the soft palate is raised, blocking the nasal cavity. Thus, the air is released through the ORAL cavity, producing ORAL sounds. This also applies to ORAL consonants (see Articulation of English consonants)

VOICED

Vowels and diphthongs are VOICED, as the vocal cords/folds come closely together and they vibrate as these sounds are produced.

PFC

Longman Pronunciation Dictionary ("Clipping")

TONGUE HEIGHT

PART OF TONGUE RAISED

LIP POSITION

DURATION

TENSENESS/ LAXNESS

How high or low the tongue is in relation to the roof of the mouth.

Which part of the tongue (front, center or back) is raised the highest.

Rounded vowels are: long u, upsilon, long o and short o. In the articulation of these sounds, lips are protruded.

Temporal duration of the vowel

Muscular effort at the root of the tongue needed in the articulation of a vowel

In the YouTube video, the terms used to describe the quality of vowels are: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7jQ8FELbIo

In the production of vowels, and diphthongs, there is NO OBSTRUCTION of the airflow in the vocal tract. The tongue does not make contact with other articulators in the vocal tract.

It is a high, front, long, tense and unrounded vowel. It is high because the tongue is high in relation to the roof of the mouth and front because the front part of the tongue is raised the highest. It is a tense vowel as long vowels are articulated with more muscular tension. It is unrounded as the lips are not protruded in its articulation. According to its phonological distribution, it can occur in all three possible word positions: word-initial, east; word-medial, dean; and word-final position, sea. It is also oral and voiced. It is oral because the air escapes through the oral cavity (i.e. the soft palate is raised, blocking the nasal cavity). It is voiced as the vocal folds vibrate in its articulation. Finally, in relation to the spelling-to-sound rules of this vowel, it is representerd by the following letter or combination of letters:

English sounds are pulmonic egressive since lung air is used and the air is pushed out from our lungs in their production. This is the most common way to produce speech sounds.

Close

Spelling-to-sound rules

Note that the same letter or combination of letters can be pronounced differently, that is, with different vowel sounds. Study these examples:

Spelling-to-sound rules

Note that the same letter or combination of letters can be pronounced differently, that is, with different vowel sounds. Study these examples:

Spelling-to-sound rules

Note that the same letter or combination of letters can be pronounced differently, that is, with different vowel sounds. Study these examples:

Spelling-to-sound rules

Note that the same letter or combination of letters can be pronounced differently, that is, with different vowel sounds. Study these examples:

articulation of english diphthongs

A type of vowel sound that is made up of a combination of two vowel sounds but within the same syllable. The first element of the diphthong glides into the second element.

ORAL

Vowels and diphthongs are oral sounds, as the soft palate is raised, blocking the nasal cavity. Thus, the air is released through the ORAL cavity, producing ORAL sounds. This also applies to ORAL consonants (see Articulation of English consonants)

VOICED

Vowels and diphthongs are VOICED, as the vocal cords/folds come closely together and they vibrate as these sounds are produced.

PFC

Longman Pronunciation Dictionary ("Clipping")

CENTRINGDIPHTHONGS

CLOSING DIPHTHONGS

WIDE VS. NARROW DIPHTHONGS

FALLING VS. RISING DIPHTHONGS

Note that Kang, Thomson & Murphy’s (2018) classification of diththongs distinguishes between two types of closing diphthongs: those gliding towards the close front vowel short i are called "fronting" diphthongs, while those gliding towards the close back vowel Upsilon are called "backing".

They glide towards the central vowel schwa, that's why they are called "centring".

They glide towards a closing vowel (short i and Upsilon), that's why they are called "closing".

Most English diphthongs are falling. This means that the first element of the diphthong is more prominent and longer than the second one. When the second element is more prominent and longer than the first one, diphthongs are said to be rising. This is ONLY the case of

According to the distance the tongue travels, diphthongs may be: Wide (long glide, long movent): Narrow (short glide, short movement): (all the others)

It is a centring, falling and narrow diphthong. It is centring because it ends in the central vowel schwa. It is a falling diphthong as the first element is more prominent than the second one. It is said to be narrow because the glide from the first element to the second one is short. It is also oral and voiced. It is oral because the air escapes through the oral cavity (i.e. the soft palate is raised, blocking the nasal cavity). It is voiced as the vocal folds víbrate in its articulation. According to its phonological distribution, it can occur in the three possible word positions: in initial, mid and final position as in ear, deer and tier. Finally, as regards the spelling-to-sound rules of this diphthong, it occurs in the combination of these letters:

English sounds are pulmonic egressive since lung air is used and the air is pushed out from our lungs in their production. This is the most common way to produce speech sounds.

articulation of english diphthongs

A glide from one vowel to another

Spelling-to-sound rules:

articulation of english diphthongs

A glide from one vowel to another

articulation of english diphthongs

A glide from one vowel to another