STUDY SESSION 4: THE SEGMENTAL SOUNDS OF THE RECEIVED

PRONUNCIATION (RP)

Have you noticed that the words, sentences and, generally, the utterances you make are made up

of sounds combined to make meaning? These are different from other sounds which humans make

when they laugh, sneeze, cough, hiss or even hiccough. They are called speech sounds. In this study

session, we will look at these speech sounds in relation to the Received Pronunciation (RP) accent of

English. It is a topic you must pay adequate attention to as it will help you to distinguish between the

sounds of English and those of any other language you are familiar with, with a view to improving your

English pronunciation. You are enjoined to pay close attention to the session and participate in the

activities and questions provided.

Learning Outcome for Study Session 4

At the end of this study session, you should be able to:

4.1 Explain the term IPA (SAQ4.1).

4.2 Discuss the Received Pronunciation as an accent of the English Language (SAQ4.2)

4.3 Identify the basic differences between consonants and vowels (SAQ4.3)

4.4 Classify and describe given consonants based on set parameters (SAQ4.4)

Key Terms: Received Pronunciation, Vowel, Consonant, Place of Articulation, Manner

of Articulation, State of the Glottis

4.1: Accents and Languages

How many languages can you speak: one, two or three? Does every other person who speaks

these languages speak them the same way you do? In other words, do you pronounce words of

those languages alike? That is most unlikely and that is where the question of accent comes in.

An accent refers to a pronunciation variety- of a language. We all speak English but when you

hear an American, a Ghanaian, an Indian or even a Nigerian speak the language, you almost

always notice that their pronunciation of the language differs. This is because they speak with

different accents. In teaching English pronunciation in Nigeria, we use a particular accent – the

Received Pronunciation (RP) – as our model. RP is the standard accent of the English language

which, though spoken by a negligible population of the speakers of English, is considered the

most prestigious accent of the language. It is popularly referred to as Queen’s English, Oxford

English or BBC English and is the accent of English described in most British English-based

pronunciation texts. The accent is typically British.

In this study session, our discussion of the segmental sounds of English will be based on RP

vowels and consonants. Though they may include unfamiliar sounds, you are encouraged to

follow the descriptions and practise the pronunciation for a better performance in English

pronunciation. Because the sounds in question are totally different from the letters of the English

alphabet, we will also introduce you here to the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA).

The International Phonetic Alphabet is a standardized representation of the sounds of the spoken

language, which is totally different from letters of the written language. Devised by the
International Phonetic Association (also IPA), the alphabet is designed to represent only those

qualities of speech that are part of oral language and these are captured in symbols (both letters

and diacritics). To accommodate the ever-dynamic nature of language, the alphabet is

occasionally revised and is a reference point for the description of the sounds of all spoken

languages.

4.2 Introducing the Phoneme

Despite the fact that there is no limit to the number of sounds that the speech organs can produce,

individual languages select and actually make use of only a few of them which they consider

significant and which can keep meaning apart? These sounds are called phonemes. This simply

means that what constitutes the phoneme inventory of a particular language may be different

from that of another. In all languages, however, phonemes are enclosed in two slanted lines

(e.g. /s/) and this serves to clearly distinguish them from letters used in writing.

Phonemes are often broadly divided into vowels and consonants. These two classes of sounds

differ in a number of ways and these are enumerated below. In describing and distinguishing

between English consonants and vowels in this session, our attention will be principally focused

on the articulatory criteria.

4.3 Differences between Consonants and Vowels

i. The production of consonants involves some form of contact between the articulators.

Consequently, the places of articulation of consonants can be identified as the actual

positions where the contacts take place. Vowels do not involve any such contact and,

as such, do not have places of articulation.

 ii. The contact between organs in the vocal cavity obstructs the flow of air. As a result,

consonant articulation involves a narrowing or closure which could result in audible

friction. Vowels, on the other hand, are produced without any obstruction to the

airflow. Thus, there is no friction whatsoever.

iii. In the articulation of vowels, there is generally vibration in the vocal folds. This

simply means that all vowels are voiced. Consonants cannot lay claim to any uniform

phonation pattern. Thus, while some are voiced (i.e are produced with vibrating vocal

folds), others are voiceless (i.e. do not involve any form of vibration).

iv. All English vowels are produced in the oral cavity so they are all oral sounds.

However, while some consonants are oral sounds, at least three others are

nasal sounds.

………… is the standard accent of English described in most English

pronunciation texts.

a. AP b. PA c. RP d. PR

C: RP is the standard accent of English described in most English pronunciation texts.

4.3: Classification and Description of Consonant Sounds

Consonants are speech sounds produced when at least two articulators come in contact with

each other, thereby, obstructing the flow of air from the larynx to either the lips or the nostrils.

Because of this peculiar feature, consonants are often described by paying attention to their place

of articulation, manner of articulation and the state of the glottis in the course of their production.
These three constitute the parameters for consonant description. These parameters will be fully

explored in subsequent sections as we classify and describe the twenty four English consonants.

a. Place of Articulation

Following this parameter, consonants are described based on where the contact takes

place. In other words, they are named based on the organs involved in their production.

This gives us about eight categories of sounds as follow:

i. Bilabial sounds

These are sounds produced with the two lips coming together. They include:

/p/ as in pot, top and supper

/b/ as in boy, mob and timber

/m/ as in man, sum and summer.

ii. Labio-dental sounds

These are consonants whose production involves some contact between the lower

lip and the upper front teeth. There are two sounds in this class:

/f/ as in fan, laugh and suffer

/v/ as in vow, love and survive.

iii. Dental sounds

These are produced when the upper front teeth and the tongue tip come in contact.

There are also two sounds in this class:

/ɵ/ as in thought, mouth and truthful

 /ð/ as in this, bathe and father.

When the articulation involves placing the tip of the tongue between the upper

and lower teeth, the inter-dental sounds [t̪ ] and [d̪ ] are produced.

iv. Alveolar Sounds

These are produced through a contact between the blade of the tongue and the

alveolar ridge. They include:l

/s/ as in see, purse and racing

/z/ as in zoo, size and praises.

/t/ as in today, gate and waiting

/d/ as in day, card and daddy

/n/ as in no, can and nanny

/l/ as in list, call and tally.

v. Palato-alveolar sounds

These are sounds produced when there is contact between the blade of the tongue

and the alveolar ridge while simultaneously the front of the tongue is raised

towards the palate. Sounds so produced are:

/ʃ/ as in shoe, cash and pressure

/ʒ/ as in measure and garage

/ʧ/ as in churn, matches and church

/ʤ/ as in join, lodge and prestige

 However, when the tongue is raised to a point between the alveolar ridge and the

palate but does not actually make a contact with any part of the roof of the mouth,

the post-alveolar sound /r/ is produced as in read and merry.

vi. Palatal sound

This sound is produced when the front of the tongue articulates with the hard

palate. There is only one sound in this category as follows:

/j/ as in youth and beyond.

vii. Velar sounds

These are sounds produced when the back of the tongue articulates with the soft

palate/velum. There are three sounds in this category and they are:

/k/ as in key, cake and maker

/g/ as in go, leg and baggage

/ŋ/ as in anger and sing

viii. Glottal sound

There is only one phoneme in this category and it is produced when the

obstruction in the vocal folds causes friction but not vibration. /h/ is the only

glottal sound in the English phoneme inventory and its distribution is illustrated

below:

/h/ as in height and behave

The glottal sound [ʔ] also exists as a variant of some English consonants but is not

recognized as one of the twenty four English consonant phonemes.

b. Manner of Articulation

Using this parameter, we describe and classify consonants based on the nature of the

obstruction to the airflow in the course of their production. Thus, we can identify seven

groups as follows:

i. Stops or Plosives

Stops are characterized by a total closure/ obstruction of air flow at some point in the

mouth. This is, then, followed by a sudden release of the trapped air as the articulators

part ways. Sounds in this category are /p/, /t/, /k/, /b/, /d/ and /g/. Using the first of the six

sounds as an illustration, you may observe that, to produce this sound:

(1) the two lips come together to form a total closure (closure phase),

(2) since this closure does not allow egressive air to leave the vocal cavity, air pressure

builds up behind the closure (hold phase),

(3) the two lips suddenly part, releasing the trapped air with a plosion – hence the name

‘plosive’ (release phase).

These three stages, with a possibility of a fourth – the post-release phase – in certain

plosives in specific positions, clearly distinguish the stops/plosives from other consonants.

ii. Fricatives

Fricatives are characterized by close approximation of two articulators with the airstream

escaping through a small passage with friction or a hissing sound. Unlike the stops, the

closure is not total since, though the articulators move very close to each other, the air

passage is not totally closed or blocked. Air has to force its way through, resulting in

audible friction. There are nine sounds in this group. They are /f/, /s/, /ʃ/, /ɵ/, /h/, /v/,
 /z/, /ʒ/ and /ð/. We can identify two main stages in the articulation of each of these

sounds:

(1) Partial closure created by the coming together of the organs (partial because a space,

albeit narrow, is created between the articulators), and

(2) Gradual (not sudden) release of the egressive air.

These account for the possibility of prolonging/sustaining a sound like /s/ for as long as

one’s breath can go.

iii. Affricates

The production of affricates begins with total closure (as is the case in plosives) and ends

in gradual release (just like fricatives). This implies that they combine the articulatory

features of the two groups already discussed above. This is reflected in the symbols that

represent them. There are only two consonants in this group: /ʤ/ and /ʧ/.

iv. Nasals

These are sounds produced when the egressive air is released through the nasal cavity.

Like stops, their articulation begins with complete closure, then, the lowering of the soft

palate or velum obstructs the passage of the air through the mouth. Consequently, air

escapes through the nose. There are only three sounds in this category: /m/, /n/ and /ŋ/.

v. Approximants

Approximants are those sounds which are articulated with a narrowing of some organs in

the mouth in such a way that the articulators do not get sufficiently close to each other to

produce audible friction. They include /r/, /w/ and /ј/. /w/, for instance, was listed among
 the bilabial sounds but, unlike the rest of the sounds in that group, the two lips do not

meet while it is produced. They are only narrowed. /w/ and /ј/ constitute a sub-group of

approximants known as glides or semi vowels.

vi. The Lateral

The lateral is produced when the closure occasioned by the contact between the centre of

the tongue and the alveolar ridge necessitates the passage of the air along the sides of the

mouth. /l/ is the only lateral in English. /l/ and /r/, however, together make up the group

of sounds called liquids.

c. State of the Glottis

This third and last parameter for consonant description is clearly based on phonation. The

classification here depends on whether or not the vocal folds vibrate in the process of

producing the consonant in question. In our discussion of the organs of speech, you were

told that the glottis plays an important role in modifying the airstream from the lungs to

acquire the quality of a speech sound. The impact of the glottis is mostly felt in the

phonation or voicing aspect of speech production.

i. Voiceless Consonants

When the glottis is held open and the air passes through it without any obstruction, the

resultant sound is said to be voiceless. Voiceless English consonants include /p, t, k, s, f,

ʃ, ɵ, h and ʧ/.

ii. Voiced Consonants

 When the vocal folds are brought sufficiently close together, they vibrate when subjected

to air pressure from the lungs; thus, voiced sounds are produced. Voiced English

consonants include /b, d, g, z, v, ʒ, ð, ʤ, m, n, ŋ, l, r, w and ј/.

You can practically feel the vocal folds vibration in these sounds if you put your fingertips

against your larynx while producing them. Another way is by stopping your ears while

contrasting the sounds [ssssszzzzzfffffvvvvvʃʃʃʃʒʒʒʒ]. Here, you will easily hear the buzzing of

the vibrations in [z, v and ʒ]. It has, however, been argued that since, as noted earlier, the

phonation state of a sound can be affected by the nature of the sounds around it in connected

speech, voicing may not be a permanent feature. It is, therefore, suggested that the force of

articulation be used to distinguish these sounds. Consequently, while the voiceless consonants,

since they involve more muscular effort, are labelled ‘fortis’, the voiced consonants, which of

course involve less muscular effort, are labelled ‘lenis’.

Using a combination of the three parameters discussed above, we can describe the consonants of

English to reflect the basic articulatory labels as demonstrated below. Note that the slants on both

sides of each symbol is an orthographic convention devised to distinguish the phonemes from the

letters of the alphabet.

/p/ - fortis bilabial stop (as in pot, spot, stop, happy, hiccough)

/b/ - lenis bilabial stop (as in bad, robust, sob, rubber, number)

/t/ - fortis alveolar stop (as in top, stop, cot, Thomas and kitten)

/d/ - lenis alveolar stop (as in den, dead, golden, friend, daddy)

/k/ - fortis velar stop (as in cough, kitchen, character, queue)

/g/ - lenis velar stop (as in goat, ghost, haggard, gaggle, rag)

/f/ - fortis labio-dental fricative (as in off, fan, cough, chauffeur)

/v/ - lenis labio-dental fricative (as in van, of, cave, victory, love)

/s/ - fortis alveolar fricative (as in see, cease, silence, centre)

/z/ - lenis alveolar fricative (as in zoo, rise, rays, maize, tease)

/ɵ/ - fortis dental fricative (as in thing, mouth, healthy, thigh)

/ð/ - lenis dental fricative (as in this, mother, clothe, worthy)

/ʃ/ - fortis palato-alveolar fricative (as in shoe, chauffeur, social, issue)

/ ʒ / - lenis palato-alveolar fricative (genre, seizure, garage, casual)

/h/ - fortis glottal fricative (as in he, behave, heaven, offhand)

/ʧ/ - fortis palato-alveolar affricate (as in church, touch, chew, catch)

/ʤ/ - lenis palato-alveolar affricate (as in edge, judge, George, joy)

/m/ - lenis bilabial nasal (as in man, hammer, mansion)

/n/ - lenis alveolar nasal (as in new, manner, sun, sunny)

/ŋ/ - lenis velar nasal (as in song, singing, nothingness)

/l/ - lenis alveolar lateral (as in letter, swallow, little, lofty)

/r/ - lenis post-alveolar approximant (as in right, marry, rarity, reaction)

/w/ - lenis bilabial glide (as in twist, sweater, dwindle, war)

/ј/ - lenis palatal glide (as in youth, stew, few, yam, suitor)

These descriptions can be presented in a chart as follows:

 TABLE 4.1: The English Consonant Chart

PLACE OF ARTICULATION

LABIALS DENTALS PALATALS VELAR

BI LA DEN ALV PAL PAL VE GLO

LA BIO TAL EOL AT AT LA TTA

MANNER OF BI - AR O- AL R L
ARTICULATION AL DE AL

NT VE

AL OL

AR

Plosives (Stops) p b t d k g

Fricatives f v ɵ ð s z ʃ ʒ h

Affricates ʧ ʤ

Nasals m n ŋ

Lateral l

Trill [r]

Approximants w j
 List the twenty four consonants of English and group
them based on their places and manners of articulation.
Also, classify them into lenis and fortis consonants.

Summary of Study Session 4

In Study Session 4, you have learnt that:

- The International Phonetic Alphabet is a set of symbols which captures sounds used in

speech as against the regular alphabet which captures letters used in spelling/writing.

- Received Pronunciation is the most prestigious accent of the English Language and is the

accent described in most English pronunciation texts and taught in schools. It is, also,

known as Queen’s English, BBC English or Oxford English.

- Speech sounds are broadly classified into consonants and vowels and they differ a great

deal. The differences can be found in the presence or absence of places and manners of

articulation; voicing distinctions and nasality.

- There are three basic parameters for consonant description. They are: place of articulation,

manner of articulation and state of the glottis but the third parameter can be modified to

focus on the force of articulation. This gives us the distinction between fortis and lenis

consonants.

Self-Assessment Questions (SAQs) for Study Session 4

Now that you have completed this study session, you should assess how much you have learnt by

attempting the following questions. You can write your answers in a note book so as to be able to

discuss them extensively with your tutor at the next interactive session.
SAQ4.1: The term IPA stands for two different things. State and explain each in two sentences.

SAQ4.2: What is an accent and which is the most prestigious accent of the English Language?

SAQ4.3: Using at least three points, identify and explain the basic differences between

consonants and vowels.

SAQ4.4: Below is a list of English consonants. In a table labelled as below, classify them based

on the indicated parameters. /m, s, b, f, n, p, k, r, v, d, g, z, t, h, l, w,j/

Fortis Lenis Fricatives Nasals Bilabials

REFERENCES

Adetugbo, A. (1997). English Phonetics: A Course Text. Lagos: University of Lagos Press.

Awonusi, S. (1999). Coping with English Pronunciation. Lagos: O.O.P.

Cruttenden, A. (2014). Gimson’s Pronunciation of English. (8th Edn.) New York: Routledge.

Dale, Paulette and Lillian Poms (2004). English Pronunciation Made Simple (2nd Edn.). London:

Pearson ESL.

Ladefoged, P. (2006). A Course in Phonetics (5th Edn.). USA: Wadsworth.

Roach, P. (2000). English Phonetics and Phonology (2nd Edn.). Cambridge: Cambridge

University Press.
Yadugiri, M.A. (2013). The Pronunciation of English. New Delhi: Viva Books

Suggestions for further reading

Clark, J., Yallop, C. and Fletcher, J. (2007). An Introduction to Phonetics and Phonology (3rd

Edn.). Australia: Blackwell.

Pennington, M.C. (1996). Phonology in English Language Teaching: An International

Approach. London: Longman.

Yule, G. (2010). The Study of Language ( 4th Edn.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
 STUDY SESSION 5: OBSTRUENTS AND SONORANTS

5.0

In the last study session, among other things, we were able to broadly classify speech sounds

into consonants and vowels. We also clearly differentiated between these two sound groups. In

this study session, we will look at another broad categorization of sounds which overlaps with

that presented earlier. That is the distinction between obstruents and sonorants. This

classification is said to overlap with the first because even within the consonant group, we will

be making a distinction between obstruent consonants and sonorant consonants. You are advised

to pay maximum attention to these distinctions to avoid confusion. A number of in-text questions

and answers have also been provided to further educate you.

Learning Outcome for Study Session 5

At the end of this study session, you should be able to:

5.1: Explain the terms ‘obstruents’ and ‘sonorants’ (SAQ5.1)

5.2: Explain the different sound classes that make up the class of obstruents (SAQ5.2)
5.3: Identify consonant classes that are classified as sonorants and their peculiarities (SAQ5.3)

5.4: Explain the concept of cardinal vowels (SAQ5.4).

Key Terms: Obstruents, Sonorants, Plosives, Affricates, Fricatives, Nasals, Liquids,

Glides, Cardinal Vowels

5.1: Obstruents and Sonorants

In classifying sounds sometimes, the focus may not really be on the consonant-vowel distinction.

It could be on the degree of obstruction to the airflow as the sounds are produced. This gives us

the distinction between sonorants and obstruents. A sonorant is a speech sound (consonant or

vowel) in which air flows smoothly through the vocal tract, without audible turbulence. Note that

the emphasis is on what happens to the egressive air beyond the larynx. As a matter of fact, all

sonorants are voiced sounds; which means that the vocal folds vibrate when they are being

produced. An obstruent, on the other hand, is a consonant produced with an obstruction to the

airflow above the larynx. This distinction is considered necessary because while some

consonants involve audible turbulence in the form of a plosion, friction or hiss, others are just

music-like and sonorous.

5.2: Obstruents: plosives and affricates

The class of obstruents, as stated above, is made up of consonants whose articulation involves

some form of obstruction to the airflow. Among the consonants in this group are the plosives and

affricates. In our description and classification of consonants in Study Session four above, these

were treated under manners of articulation.

There are six plosives in English - /p,t,k,b,d,g/. These are produced in three different locations in

the oral cavity as follows:

- /p/ and /b/ are bilabial sounds in which there is an obvious obstruction of the airflow on the lips

as the upper and lower lips come together.

-. /t/ and /d/ are alveolar sounds. Thus, the obstruction occurs in the alveolar region as the blade

of the tongue articulates with the alveolar region.

- /k/ and/g/ are velar sounds as an obstruction is created following the contact between the back

of the tongue and the velum.

Affricates are also classified among obstruents as they also involve total closure/obstruction, the

only difference being that the air is gradually released. These are /ʧ/ and /ʤ/; each of which

begins with a closure in the alveolar and palatal regions and ends in a gradual release. The two

sound classes are united by the presence of total/complete closure.

5.3: Obstruents: Fricatives

Another class of sounds within the obstruent group is the class of fricatives. Fricatives, like other

obstruents, are articulated with some form of obstruction to the airflow. However, the closure

that creates the obstruction in fricatives is not total. What is involved is a close approximation of

the articulators, which drastically reduces the space between them, thus, causing the egressive air

to force its way through them thereby producing audible freedom. Below is a list of English

fricatives and the obstruction points:

/f/ and /v/ are labio-dental fricatives. Consequently, the obstruction is created between the upper

teeth and the lower lip as they form a partial closure.

/s/ and /z/ are alveolar fricatives. The obstruction is created between the blade of the tongue and

the alveolar ridge as they are held close to each other.

/ɵ/ and /ð/are dental fricatives. As a result, the obstruction is created between the tip of the

tongue and the upper teeth as they come close to each other.

/ʃ/ and /ʒ/ are palato-alveolar fricatives. The obstruction occurs in the alveolar and palatal regions

involving the blade and front of the tongue respectively.

/h/ is a glottal fricative. The sound is peculiar since it is the only fricative articulated in the

glottis. It does not really involve any two organs coming together. Instead, it is produced

when there is friction in the vocal folds but without vibration. Hence, it is voiceless. This

voicelessness is a good reason for its classification among obstruents since all sonorants are

voiced.

Which of the following is NOT a common feature of all the obstruents in English?

a. obstruction b. voicing c. audible turbulence d. none of the above

b: voicing is NOT a common feature of all the obstruents in English.

5.4: Sonorants: nasals, liquids and glides

Sonorants, as explained earlier, do not involve enough obstruction to produce audible friction.

No matter the mode of articulation, there always remains adequate space for the free passage of

air. Consequently, they are often described as music-like or sonorous sounds. They include

nasals, liquids, and glides (from the traditional class of consonants) and vowels.
The nasals /m,n,ŋ/ are classified as sonorants because there is no restriction to the outward flow

of air through the nasal cavity when they are produced. Though articulators may come together

e,g. the two lips as in /m/; the blade of the tongue and the alveolar ridge as in /n/, the back of the

tongue and the velum as in /ŋ/, these contacts in the oral cavity do not affect the outward flow of

air in the nasal cavity.

The liquid /l/ and /r/ are also classified among sonorants because:

- in the articulation of /l/, although the blade of the tongue articulates with the alveolar ridge, the

egressive air still flows, without any hindrance, through the sides of the tongue (as it assumes a

convex shape);

- in the articulation of /r/, there is no contact at all though the tip of the tongue is raised towards

the boundary between the alveolar and the palate. The absence of contact thus suggests a free

flow of air.

The glides /w/ and /j/, along with the liquid /r/ make up the class of approximant. Like /r/, the

two glides do not involve any contact between articulators. While in /w/, the two lips tend to

move close to each other without necessarily making any contact, in /j/, the front of the

tongue is raised towards the palate without also making any contact. This absence of contact,

which translates to absence of obstruction, is the reason glides or semi-vowels are classified

among sonorants.

List all the twenty-four consonants of English.

Separate them into sonorants and obstruents.