Unit IV: The Articulatory Mechanism

The Articulatory mechanism: Speech Sounds

Voicing: the vibration of the vocal cords

Contralateral: signals cross from left-to-right

Ipsilateral: Sounds coming from one side being processed in the same hemisphere

Articulation: how speech sounds are formed

Place of articulation:

1. Interdental (tongue between teeth)

   1. /b/, /p/, /m/, /w/

2. Labiodental (lower lip to upper teeth)

   1. /v/, /f/

3. Interdental (tongue between teeth)

   1. /th/ (this, think)

4. Alveolar (tongue to alveolar ridge)

   1. /d/, /t/, /s/, /z/, /n/, /l/

5. Palatal (tongue to hard palate

   1. /sh/, /zh/ (pleasure, jog, yellow)

6. Velar (tongue to velum)

   1. /g/, /k/, /ng/ (thing)

Description of consonants:

• Place

  • Where a sound is formed

• Voicing

  • Whether or not the vocal folds are vibrating (voiced or voiceless)

• Manner

  • How the sound is formed

Structures:

• Lips

• Teeth

• Tongue

• Roof of mouth

• Hard palate

• Alveolar ridge

• Velum (soft palate)

Manner of articulation:

• All consonants require constriction (narrowing) of the airway

  • Vowels do not

• Manner of articulation = the type of constriction