2 Chapter 2 – Consonants
CONSONANTS
Consonant sounds are different from vowel sounds in one fundamental way. Consonants are pronounced with more constriction in the vocal tract than vowels. As air flows through the vocal tract, the tongue, lips, and other parts of the the vocal tract block the air to create friction or even to stop the airflow completely and then release it.
By the end of this chapter, the user will be able to…
- recognize more IPA symbols
- describe individual consonants
- produce individual consonants
- pronounce the -ed ending in three ways
- pronounce the -s ending in three ways
- link words together
Describing Consonants – Voicing, Place and Manner of Articulation
To organize the consonant sounds, we need to consider three key aspects of pronunciation: voicing, place of articulation, and manner of articulation. For a introduction, please watch this video by the linguist Evan Ashworth. The video uses the phrase Articulatory Phonetics, which means how speech sounds are pronounced.
Voicing
Let’s begin with Voicing, which simply refers to vibration. Consonants that are produced with vibration are called voiced consonants. Voiceless consonants lack this vibration. Vibration occurs in the vocal folds also called vocal cords, which are in the throat.
Consider the difference between the sounds [f] and [v]. Lightly place your fingers on your throat and pronounce and hold the [f] sound for five seconds. Without moving your fingers, now pronounce the [v] sound for five seconds. Do you notice the vibration? This vibration can be important to distinguishing words such as fast and vast. This vibration is also important in grammar such as the singular and plural in words like knife – knives, wolf – wolves, and leaf – leaves.
The list below contains voiceless and voiced consonants. Some phonetic symbols are needed because English spelling does not always distinguish voiceless and voiced consonants. For example, English has a voiceless “th” as in the word think. There is also a voiced “th,” which is the first sound in the word, those.
Voiceless and Voiced Consonants
Place of Articulation: Where Consonants are Produced
Consonants are produced in different places in the vocal tract. This image from madbeppo.com shows the vocal tract. We can use it to locate where consonants are produced. Knowing where consonants are produced makes them easier to pronounce.
The Vocal Tract
For example, three sounds that are produced with the upper and lower lips together are [p], [b], and [m]. Since they are produced with both lips, they are called bilabial.
Place of Articulation and Voicing for Consonants
The vocabulary describing the place of articulation is technical but easy to understand when looking at the vocal tract. Let’s consider sounds made with the teeth. These are called dental sounds. One category of dental sounds is called labiodental. These sounds are made with the teeth and the bottom lip to make the [f] and [v] sound. Interdental sounds are ma