574. B. Ph LAB III 35. Accent (phonetics)

35.  Accent (phonetics)

Accent is the phonetic prominence given to a particular syllable in a word, or to a particular word within a phrase. When this prominence is produced through greater dynamic force, typically signaled by a combination of amplitude (volume), syllable or vowel length, full articulation of the vowel, and a non-distinctive change in pitch, the result is called stress accent, dynamic accent, or simply stress; when it is produced through pitch alone, it is called pitch accent; and when it is produced through length alone it is called quantitative accent. English has stress accent.
A prominent syllable or word is said to be accented or tonic; the latter term does not imply that it carries phonemic tone. Other syllables or words are said to be unaccented or atonic. Syllables are frequently said to be in pretonic or post-tonic position; certain phonological rules apply specifically to such positions. For instance, in American English, /t/ and /d/ are flapped in post-tonic position.
Some languages combine stress accent and pitch accent, in that accented syllables are both dynamically prominent and may have more than one tone, while unstressed syllables do not carry tone. An example of this is Serbo-Croatian accent. Such systems are typically called accent or pitch accent, as the latter term is not well defined.

Phonetic realization

The ways stress manifests itself in the speech stream are highly language-dependent. In some languages, stressed syllables have a higher or lower pitch than non-stressed syllables – this is called pitch accent (or musical accent).

Other features that may characterize stressed syllables include dynamic accent (loudness), qualitative accent (differences in place or manner of articulation, typically a more peripheral articulation), and quantitative accent (syllable length, equivalent to agogic accent in music theory).

PROSODY: FORM AND FUNCTIONS

• suprasegmental features (also prosodic or nonsegmental features)

– usually not easily identified as discrete segments

– can extend over longer stretches of speech

– tend to be directly related to higher levels of linguistic organization, e.g., information structure

• prosody as a continuum of functions and effects:

– extralinguistic: functions of anatomy, habitual characteristics, e.g. phonation quality

and pitch range as determined by anatomy/tensions of the larynx or long-term articulatory settings (tongue root posture, articulation rate)

• no conscious control by speaker

• communicative information: identity of speaker/class of speakers

– paralinguistic: use of overall voice quality, pitch range, pitch movement and

articulation rate to indicate a general attitude (excitement, seriousness etc.) or

certain sentence parts (via tempo and pauses)

– linguistic: stress, intonation, tone, length used to contribute or determine discourse

organization, discourse meanings, or lexical distinctions

PITCH

• most salient determinant of prominence, i.e., stress

• perceived correlate of fundamental frequency (number of times per second the vocal folds complete a vibration cycle)

• control of pitch (deliberate lowering or raising):

– laryngeal adjustments (tensing or relaxing of larynx/cartillage muscles)

– control of subglottal pressure (responsible for ca. 5-10% of the total range of pitch change in normal speech in English)

• changes in pitch as little as 0.3-0.5% are perceivable in frequencies below 1000 Hz

• resolution is best up to 500 Hz, still good up to 3000 Hz, worse up to 5000 Hz• thresholds of frequency perception: 20-20000 Hz

DURATION

• related to larger context of time, timing, and speaking rate

• intrinsic duration of sounds: short/long vowels, nasals usually long, voiceless fricatives longer than voiced ones, stop releases very short etc.

• biomechanical constraints: /a/ in “bat” longer than /ɪ/ in “bit” due to longer jaw movement

• syllable duration as main aspect of rhythmic structure

– English: vowel longer when followed by voiced consonant

– stressed syllable/vowel longer than unstressed one

– syllable (and all segments) shorter in faster speech

– syllables lengthened in phrase-final position

• listeners able to distinguish minimum relative differences of 20 ms at frequencies between 500 and 1500 Hz

LOUDNESS

• perceptual correlate of intensity (magnitude of sound pressure variation)

• primarily controlled by subglottal pressure, influenced by natural sonority of segment types

• correlated with stress, but less salient and consistent than pitch and duration

• auditory system responds to differences in loudness logarithmically (decibel scale)

– relative scale: 0 dB corresponds to the sound pressure level of a reference sound (usually close to the limit of detectability at 1 KHz)

– doubling of loudness corresponds to a 10 dB rise

– countryside at night: 20 dB, whisper: 30 dB, quiet conversation: 50 dB, normal conversation: 70 dB, damage threshold: 120 Db

WORD ACCENT

• lexical stress: one syllable of a word is more prominent than the others (except for monosyllabic words of course)

• language typology of ways of realizing word accent:

– Tone Languages:

• every stressed syllable has significant contrastive pitch, thus words are distinguished

• Contour Tone Languages: shape of the pitch contour is relevant

– e.g., Thai: mid khaa “to be lodged in”

low khàa “aromatic root”

falling khâa “servant”

high kháa “to do business in”

rising khǎa “leg”

• Level Tone Languages: only pitch level is relevant – e.g.,

Yoruba low īgbà “climbing rope”

mid īgbā “two hundred”

high īgbá “calabash”

– Pitch Accent Languages:

• specific pitch accent associated with certain syllables

– e.g., Swedish: Accent 1(fall): tan´ken (“the tank”); Accent 2 (rise-fall): tanˇken (“the thought”)

– Stress Accent Languages

 one syllable receives more stress/energy than the others in the word

TONE INVENTORY

• Pitch accents: H*, L*, L+H*, L*+H, H+!H*

• * indicates which target is associated with the accented syllable)

• H tones can be downstepped (!H)

• Phrasal tones

– Phrase accents (ip-boundary): H-, L-

– Boundary tones (IP-boundary): H%, L%

– Four possible combinations associated with specific discourse situations

• H-H%: strong final rise 􀁰 Yes/No-questions

• H-L%: high plateau 􀁰 calling contour/exclamation

• L-H%: late final rise 􀁰 continuation rise

   L-L%: final fall 􀁰 declaratives, wh-questions

573. B. Ph. LAB III 34. MINIMAL PAIRS

34.  MINIMAL PAIRS

Minimal pairs are words that vary by only a single sound, usually meaning sounds that students often get confused by, like the "th" and "t" in "thin" and "tin".

Vowel Sounds

Minimal Pairs /ɪ/ and /i:/ (sit and seat)  / Minimal Pairs /e/ and /ɪ/ (desk and disk)

Minimal Pairs /e/ and /eɪ/ (wet and wait) /Minimal Pairs /æ/ and /ʌ/ (bat and but)

Consonant Sounds

Minimal Pairs /b/ and /v/ (berry and very) / Minimal Pairs /b/ and /p/ (buy and pie)

Minimal Pairs /n/ and /ŋ/ (thin and thing) / Minimal Pairs /l/ and /r/ (alive and arrive)

Initial Consonant Sounds

Minimal Pairs initial /f/ and /p/ (fast and past) / Minimal Pairs initial /k/ and /g/ (came and game) / Minimal Pairs initial /t/ and /d/ (two and do)

In phonology, minimal pairs are pairs of words or phrases in a particular language, which differ in only one phonological element, such as a phoneme, toneme or chroneme and have distinct meanings. They are used to demonstrate that two phones constitute two separate phonemes in the language.

The minimal pair was an essential tool in the discovery process, arrived at by substitution or commutation tests. Modern phonology is much less interested in such issues, and the minimal pair is consequently considered to be of little theoretical importance.

Phonemic differentiation may vary between different dialects of a language, so that a particular minimal pair in one accent is a pair of homophones in another. This does not necessarily mean that one of the phonemes is absent in the homonym accent; merely that it is not contrastive in the same range of contexts.

P       P pa pack page paid pail paint pair pale palm Pam pan pane park part pat patch pate path Paul pave paw pawn pay pea peach peak peal pearl peas peat peck peel peep peg pen perm pest pestle pet pick pie pied pig pile pill pin pine Ping pink pip pipe pit pocket pod poke pole pong Pooh pool pop Pope pork port pose post pot pow power psalm pug pull pump pun punch punk purr purse putt

B       B babe back bag bait bale ball balloon ban band banks bap bard bare bark Bart bat batch bath bay beach bead beam bean beans bear bed bee beef beep beer bees beet beg beige bell belly Ben Bertie Bess best bet Bic big bight bile bill billy bin bird bite boar boast boat bog bold bone boo book boom boot borax bore born boughs bow bower bowl box boy brass buck bug bull bump bumper bun bunch bunk burst bus bust butt buy bye

T       T ta table tail talk tall tan tank tanks tape tart taw tax tea teach teal tease teat Ted teen tell ten Tess tie tight tin tine ting tit toad toast toe ton tong took toot tore tote tower toy Ts tuck tug two

D      D dale dame Dan dare dark dart date dawn day dead deal Dean debt deep deer dell den dent dial Dick die dig dill dime din dine dirty dock dole door dot Doug dough down doze Ds duck dull dumb dust dye

K      calf call calm camp can cap care cart case cat coach coal coast cob coffee cog coke cold come cone cook cool coot cop cord core cork corn cow cub curd curl K kale Kate keel keen keep keg Ken key keys Kia kick kid kill king kink kipper Kirsty kiss kit kite

G      gable gag gale gall game gap gape gate gauge gay Gertie get ghee ghost ghoul gig gill gimbal gird girl go goal goat gold gong goo gorse got gourd gown grass green guard guess guest guide gull gun Gus gust gusty guy

F       fable face fade fail faint fair fake fan farm fat fawn fax Faye fear fed feed feel fees fell fen fête Fi fig fight file fill fin fine fit fix foal foam fob foe fog fold folk fool fop fork fort forty fountain four fox Fred fun fur fuss phone photo

V       V van vane vast vat Vaughan veal veer veil vent verse vest vet vial Vic Vicks vie vim vine Viv vole vote vow Vs 

S       C cell psalm sack sad sage sail saint sake sale saloon Sam same sank Sauce Saul saw  scene sea seal seas  seat seed seep Seine Seoul sieve sigh sign  sill silly sim sink Sioux sip sis six soak soap sob socks sole son sook sour sow sub suck Sue suit sun surf sword

Z       Z  Zach zap zeal zed zee Zen zest zinc zing zip zipper zit zone zoo zoom zoot Zs

ʃ          Cher chic choux Schick shack shade shag shake shale Shane shanks shape shark shave shawl she shea shear sheep sheet shield shin shine ship shirr shirred shirt shoal shoe shoes shook shop shorn shot show shower shun shy 

θ          thank thanks thatch thaw thick thief thigh thimble think third thirsty thirty thong thorax thorn three thug thumb Thumper

ð          than that thee their then these they this those though thy

h          hack hail hair hake half hall hand hare hark harm haste hat hate hawk hay he heap heart hearth heel height hello hen herd hi high hill hip hiss hit hock hoe hog hoist hold hole hook hoot hop  hope horde horn horse hose host hot hub hug hull hum hurl hush who

ʧ          cello chai chain chair chalk chap charm chart cheep cheese cheetah chess chest chew chick chief chill chilli chilly chin chink chip chive choc chock choke chook chop chose chum

ʤ          G  gaol gel George germ gin Gs J jab jack jacks jade Jag jail Jake Jan Jane jape jar jaw Jean jeans jeep jello jelly Jen jet jetty jig jive Joan  job jocks Joe jog John joist joke jot Js jug  juice jump junk just jut jute

M     Mac Maeve mail male mall man map mare mark marred mart mash mat match mate Maud Max May meal meet mellow Mem meter mic mice Mick Mig might mile milk mill mime mine Ming mink miss mite mitt mix moan moat mob mock mog moist Moke mole money moo moose

N      gnash gnat gnaw gnome knack knave knead knee kneel knees knight knit knob knocks knot nag nail name Nan nap nape naughty near neat neigh Nell nerd nest nestle net nice nick night nil Nile nimble nine nip no nod nook nope Norse nose note numb nun nurse nut

L       label lace lag lair lake lamb lamp lane lank lap lard lark lash last latch laugh law lawn lax lay lead leaf leak leap leech leek leeks leg lei Leigh Len less let lick lid light limb lime line link lip load locks lone look loose loot lop lord lose loss lot Lou louse low luck lug lull lunch lung lute lye Lynne lyre

R      rabbit rack rag Rah raid rail rain rake ramp rand rank ranks rap rare rash rat rate rave reach real reap red reef reek reel rest rig right rile rill ring rink roach road roast rock rocket rod roll Rome roo rook roos root rope rose

W     one wag wage walk wall wane ward warn wart watt wave Wayne ways weak wear wee weed week weep west whack whale what wheat wheel wheeze when whip whirl white why wick wife wig will win wind wine wink wipe woe wok woke wonder woo wool word worm worn worse worst wow Y

J        ewe U ute yabby yacht yak Yale yam yank yap yard yawl yawn yay ye year yell yellow yen yes yet yeti yoke yolk you yum yurt

Other types of minimal pair

In addition to the minimal pairs of vowels and consonants provided above, others may be found:

• Quantity

Many languages show contrasts between long and short vowels and consonants. A distinctive difference in length is attributed by some phonologists to a unit called a chroneme. Thus in Italian we find the following minimal pair based on long and short /l/:

• Tone

Minimal pairs for tone contrasts in tone languages can be established; some writers refer to this as a contrast involving a toneme. For example, the Kono language distinguishes high tone and low tone on syllables:

• Stress

Languages in which stress may occur in different positions within the word often have contrasts that can be shown in minimal pairs. Thus in Greek:

• Juncture

English speakers are able to hear the difference between, for example, 'great ape' and 'grey tape', though phonemically the two phrases are identical: /ɡreɪteɪp/. The difference between the two phrases, which constitute a minimal pair, is said to be one of juncture. At the word boundary, a "plus juncture" /+/ is posited which is said to be the conditioning factor that results in 'great ape' having an /eɪ/ diphthong shortened by pre-fortis clipping and a /t/ with little aspiration because it is not syllable-initial, whereas in 'grey tape' the /eɪ/ has its full length and the /t/ is aspirated. Only languages which have allophonic differences associated with grammatical boundaries have juncture as a phonological element: it is claimed that French does not have this, so that, for example, 'des petits trous' and 'des petites roues' (phonemically both /depətitʁu/) are phonetically identical.

Beyond minimal pairs

The principle of a simple binary opposition between the two members of a minimal pair may be extended to cover a minimal set where a number of words differ from each other in terms of one phone in a particular position in the word. For example, the vowels /a/, /e/, /i/, /o/, /u/ of Swahili are shown to be distinct by the following set of words: pata 'hinge', peta 'bend', pita 'pass', pota 'twist', puta 'thrash'. However, establishing such sets is not always straightforward and may require very complex study of multiple oppositions as expounded by, for example, Trubetzkoy; this subject-matter lies beyond the domain of an article on minimal pairs.