Phonology: Individual Sounds

Consonant sounds can either be plosive sounds or fricative sounds.

Plosive sounds are when you hold the air and then release it when you speak, plosive sounds are:

p k ʈʃ t d dʒ b g

d3 is the j sound in words like January

ʈʃ is the ch sound in words like cheese

Fricative sounds are sounds that make a hissing sound, they are:

s v ʒ Θ f ð z ʃ

ʒ is the s sound in words like vision

ð is the th sound in words like this

ʃ is the sh sound in words like shout

Θ is the th sound in words like thought

Sounds made from the back of the mouth:

Plosive: p b k g

Fricative: s z ʒ ʃ

Sounds made from closer to the front and the front of the mouth

Plosive: ʈʃ d3 k g

Fricative:  Θ ð f v

Vowel sounds

Monophtongs are vowel sounds where the tongue stays in one position to say them, they are:

i: is the ee sound in sheep

I is the i sound in words like ship

ʊ is the oo sound in words like good

u: is the oo sound in words like boot

e is the e sound in words like bed

ə is a schwa which is a weak sound, it is the e sound in words like teacher

ɜ: is the i sound in words like third

ɔ: is the oo sound in words like floor

æ is the a sound in words like bat

ʌ is the u sound in words like up

ɑ: is the a sound in words like bar

ɒ is the o sound in words like on

Diphthongs are vowel sounds which combine two sounds so it starts off as one sound and turns into another towards the end, these are:

ɪə as in here

eɪ as in wait

ʊə as in tour

ɔɪ as in toy

əʊ as in flow

eə as in air

aɪ as in fly

aʊ as in ow