Segmentals of Speech and IPA Basics

Vocabulary flashcards covering key terms, IPA symbols, and sound classifications from the lecture notes.

Phonetic Segment

A portion of speech with relatively constant phonetic features.

Segmentals of Speech

Individual speech sounds (vowels and consonants) that can be analyzed separately.

International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)

A standardized system of symbols representing each distinctive sound (phoneme) in human languages.

Aim of the IPA

To assign a unique symbol to every sound that distinguishes one word from another.

Vowel

A syllabic speech sound produced without constriction in the vocal tract; varies in quality, loudness, and quantity.

Consonant

A speech sound made by partial or complete closure in the vocal tract, obstructing airflow.

Voiced Consonant

A consonant produced with vibration of the vocal cords, e.g., /z/ or /b/.

Voiceless Consonant

A consonant produced without vocal-cord vibration, e.g., /s/ or /p/.

Diphthong

A gliding vowel sound that combines two adjacent vowel qualities within the same syllable (e.g., /a͡ɪ/ in "tide").

æ

Short "a" vowel as in "cat" /kæt/ and "bat" /bæt/.

ɑː

Long "a" vowel as in "park" /pɑːrk/ and "car" /kɑːr/.

ɛ

Short "e" vowel as in "bed" /bɛd/ and "head" /hɛd/.

iː

Long "ee" vowel as in "see" /siː/ and "tree" /triː/.

ɪ

Short "i" vowel as in "fit" /fɪt/ and "bit" /bɪt/.

ʊ

Short "u" vowel as in "foot" /fʊt/ and "look" /lʊk/.

oʊ

"Ow" diphthong as in "boat" /boʊt/ and "home" /hoʊm/.

ɔɪ

"Oy" diphthong as in "toy" /tɔɪ/ and "voice" /vɔɪs/.

uː

Long "oo" vowel as in "moon" /muːn/ and "food" /fuːd/.

ʌ

Short "u" vowel as in "sun" /sʌn/ and "cup" /kʌp/.

/z/

Voiced alveolar fricative; example word "zone" /zoʊn/.

/s/

Voiceless alveolar fricative; example word "sell" /sɛl/.

b

Voiced bilabial stop as in "big" /bɪg/.

p

Voiceless bilabial stop as in "pan" /pæn/.

d͡ʒ

Voiced postalveolar affricate ("j" sound) as in "jelly" /d͡ʒɛli/.

t͡ʃ

Voiceless postalveolar affricate ("ch" sound) as in "cheap" /t͡ʃiːp/.

ʃ

Voiceless postalveolar fricative ("sh" sound) as in "ship" /ʃɪp/