PHONETICS&PHONOLOGY

• Vocal tract


  the air passage which are above the vocal cords and which are involved in the production of speech sounds (ends at the mouth and nostrils).
• nasal cavity


  the air passage within and behind the nose
• oral cavity


  the air passage within the mouth and the throat
• pharynx


  a tube which begins just above the larynx. It is about 7cm long in women and 8cm long in men.
• soft palate (velum)


  allows air to pass through the nose and through the mouth; can be touched by the tounge.
• hard palate


  'roof of the mouth
• alveolar ridge


  between the top front teeth and the hard palate; rougher surface, covered with little ridges.
• Articulator


  a part of the mouth, nose, or throat which is used in producing speech, e.g. the tongue, lips, alveolar ridge, etc
• larynx


  a casing of cartilage and muscles in the upper part of the windpipe (also called the trachea) which contains the vocal cords.
• The vocal cords/ the vocal folds

  folds of tough, flexible tissue in the larynx extending from back to front.
• The glottis


  the space between the vocal cords.
• tounge


  important articulator, can be moved into many different places and different shapes
• teeth


  at the front of the mouth, immediately behind the lips.
• Vowel


  a speech sound in which the airstream from the lungs is not blocked in any way in the mouth or throat, and which is usually pronounced with vibration of the vocal cords.
• Vowels are vocoids


  sounds in forming which the air issues in a continuous stream from the larynx to the lips, there is no obstruction and no narrowing that could cause audible friction.
• cardinal vowel


  a vowel sound produced when the tongue is in an extreme position, either front or back, high or low.
• Consonants are generally contoids


  sounds that do obstruct or interfere with the egressive pulmonic airflow at some place in the vocal tract.
• rounded


  where the corners of the lips are brought towards each other and the lips pushed forwards.
• Spread


  with the corners of the lips moved away from each other, as for a smile [i]
• neutral


  where the lips are not noticeably rounded or spread.