Exam 1 Study Questions

Question 1

Branch of Phonetics:

The study of a listener’s psychoacoustic response to speech sounds

Answer 1

Perceptual Phonetics

Question 2

Branch of Phonetics:

The study and transcription of speech sound disorders

Answer 2

Clinical Phonetics

Question 3

Branch of Phonetics:

The laboratory study of phonetics

Answer 3

Experimental Phonetics

Question 4

Branch of Phonetics:

The study of the function of the speech organs during the process of speaking

Answer 4

Physiological Phonetics

Question 5

Branch of Phonetics:

The study of sound changes in words through time

Answer 5

Historical Phonetics

Question 6

Branch of Phonetics:

The study of the frequency, intensity and duration of the various consonants and vowels

Answer 6

Acoustic Phonetics

Question 7

Phonetics vs. Phonology

Answer 7

Phonetics= the study of the production and perception of speech sounds
Phonology= the systematic organization of speech sounds in the production of language; the study of the linguistic rules that specify the manner in which phonemes are organized and combined into syllables, words, and sentences

Question 8

Why was the IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) developed? What does it represent?

Answer 8

Designed for consistency in the field of phonetic transcription; represents the perceived sounds of phonemes

Question 9

Voiced vs. Voiceless

Answer 9

Voiced= vocal folds vibrate, sound is produced (/z/)
Voiceless= no VF vibration, no sound, only air (/s/)

Question 10

How does IPA transcription practice differ from individual to individual?

Answer 10

Different dialects may pronounce the same sound differently

Question 11

Explain dialects

Answer 11

Cultural and regional variations of accent and language
None is inferior to another
Should never be considered a substandard form of language

Question 12

Define grapheme

Answer 12

the smallest unit of written language (essentially letters)

Question 13

Define primary stress

Answer 13

the syllable that carried the most emphasis/vocal force in a word; indicated in IPA by (‘) symbol (ex. ba’NA’na)

Question 14

Define morpheme

Answer 14

the smallest unit of language that carries meaning (can be individual words, prefixes, suffixes, etc)

Question 15

Free vs. Bound morpheme

Answer 15

Free morpheme= morpheme that can stand alone to function as a word
Bound morpheme= carries its own meaning, but must be attached to a free morpheme to function in a word
(Ex. “Books” - ‘book’=free, ‘s’=bound, indication plural)

Question 16

Define minimal pair

Answer 16

pairs of words that differ by only one phoneme

Ex. book & hook; cat & bat

Question 17

Define syllable

Answer 17

unit of pronunciation with only one vowel sound

Question 18

Open vs Closed syllable

Answer 18

Open syllable= contains only one vowel that comes at the end of the syllable (ex. the, she, go,)
Closed syllable= contains only one vowel which is followed by a consonant or consonant cluster (ex. cat, sock, got)

Question 19

Define nucleus

Answer 19

also called a peak, it is the most central part of a syllable; most commonly a vowel (ex. cAt)

Question 20

Define consonant cluster

Answer 20

sequence or group of consonants that do not contain a vowel (ex. in “splits,” /spl/ and /ts/)

Question 21

3 Types of phonetic transcription

Answer 21

1. Broad: basic transcription of phonemes
2. Narrow: a more detailed transcription involving specialized symbols (diacritics) to differentiate between small variations in the same phoneme (allophones)
3. Impressionistic: variation of narrow transcription used when nothing is known about the particular sound system being transcribed

Question 22

Define diacritics

Answer 22

a system of special symbols (such as accents and cedillas) that represent variations in pronunciation

Question 23

Define allophone

Answer 23

variant pronunciations in a letter or phoneme

ex. the first /l/ in “little” is light, while the second /l/ is heavier

Question 24

Define larynx

Answer 24

hallow, muscular organ that houses the vocal folds; sometimes called the “voice box” and is responsible for the Adam’s apple

Question 25

Define diaphragm

Answer 25

major muscle that separates the abdominal and thoracic cavities; main muscle used in respiration

Question 26

Define mandible

Answer 26

the lower jaw

Question 27

Define maxilla

Answer 27

the upper jaw

Question 28

Define labial

Answer 28

in reference to lips

Question 29

Define lingual

Answer 29

in reference to tongue

Question 30

Define dental

Answer 30

in reference to teeth

Question 31

Define vocal folds

Answer 31

elastic folds of muscle tissue located in the larynx; vibration of the vocal folds causes voiced sound

Question 32

Define Eustachian tubes

Answer 32

a narrow passage leading from the pharynx to the cavity of the middle ear; equalizes changes in pressure and allows drainage of mucus from the middle ear

Question 33

Define alveolar ridge

Answer 33

the gum ridge of the maxilla; upper gums

Question 34

Define velum

Answer 34

the soft palate; opens and closes to direct airflow between oral and nasal cavities

Question 35

Adduction vs. abduction

Answer 35

In reference to vocal folds: - adduct= vocal folds come together and close - abduct= vocal fold come apart and open

Question 36

Define velopharyngeal closure

Answer 36

when velum is raised and contacts back wall of pharynx, closing off nasopharynx from oropharynx

Question 37

Anatomical terms of orientation: | anterior vs posterior, superior vs inferior, prone vs supine

Answer 37

A vs P= front vs back S vs I= above vs below P vs S= face up vs face down

Question 38

Where does speech production begin?

Answer 38

in the lungs

Question 39

Name the 3 alphabet letters not represented in IPA

Answer 39

Q, X, and C

Question 40

What causes pitch?

Answer 40

the rate (frequency) at which the vocal folds vibrate

Question 41

Define articulation

Answer 41

The coming together of articulators to create various speech sounds. Articulators include the teeth/gums, lips, and tongue Sounds are named after the articulators used to produce them (ex. bilabial= both lips; labio-dental= tongue and teeth)

Question 42

Define phonation

Answer 42

the production of vocal sounds due to vocal fold vibration

Question 43

Define subglottal pressure

Answer 43

when airstream enters the larynx it exerts pressure on vocal folds from below

Question 44

Define Bernoulli effect

Answer 44

the rapid flow of air between vocal folds causes a drop in air pressure, resulting in vocal folds being stuck together; causes the vibrations that produce voiced sound

Question 45

Define fundamental frequency

Answer 45

the basic rate at which vocal folds will vibrate to produce sound; highest in children, higher in women than in men

Question 46

Define glottis

Answer 46

opening between the vocal folds; airway between mouth and trachea

Question 47

Define hyoid bone

Answer 47

the "floating bone;" provides an anchor for the dorsum (tongue)