Correction of 1st Year First Term Exam - Phonetics_13!01!2016

Mohammed Kheider University of Biskra Faculty of Letters and Languages Department of Foreign Languages Branch of English First Year LMD

Correction Of First Term Examination In Phonetics Task One: Defining the terms briefly

(4 points)

1. International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) is a system of phonetic notation devised by linguists to accurately represent language sounds (phones or phonemes). It is intended as a standard alphabet for phonemic and phonetic representation of all spoken languages. 2. Received Pronunciation (RP) is the standard accent used in Great Braitain, historically deriving from the prestige speech of the Court and the public schools, BBC journalists and the Royal Family. It is used in most British pronunciation dictionaries. 3. Minimal Pairs are a pair of words differing by only one phonetic segment used to compare phonemes. ‘bean and bin’ and ‘bun and ban’ are examples of minimal pairs. 4. Vocal Cords are two folds of tissue located in the larynx that vibrate when air passes over them, producing the sound waves associated with talking and singing. Task Two: In the process of speech production

(3 points)

1. Psychological stage: the idea of speech first mooted in the mind then the nervous system transmits the message to the organs of speech and these in turn articulate speech. 2. Physiological stage: the movement of the organs of speech will create disturbances in the air. These varying air pressures constitute speech. 3. Acoustic stage: the transmission of message between the speaker and the listener as sound waves. Task Three: Giving four minimal pairs opposing /iː/ and /æ/ 1. Peak or peek

Pack

2. Litre

Latter

3. Bean or been

Ban

4. Feet or feat

Fat

(4 points)

(1 point for each correct pairs)

Task Four: Deciding whether the statements are true or false

(6 pts)

1. The glottis is the part of the larynx between the vocal cords and the cartilages.

TRUE

2. Acoustic phonetics describes how speech organs articulate the human speech sounds.

FALSE

Articulatory phonetics describes how speech organs articulate the human speech sounds.

OR

Acoustic phonetics describes the physical properties of speech sounds, as transmitted between mouth and ear of the speaker and the listener. 3. Orthography is the process of writing down spoken language as a written text using the IPA symbols.

FALSE

Orthography is the process of writing down spoken language as a written text using the traditional alphabet.

OR Phonetic transcription is the process of writing down spoken language as a written text using the IPA symbols.

4. Suprasegmental phonology is based on the segmentation of language into individual speech sounds provided by phonetics.

FALSE

Suprasegmental phonology is concerned with those features of pronunciation that cannot be segmented because they extend over more than one segment or sound.

OR

Segmental phonology is based on the segmentation of language into individual speech sounds provided by phonetics. 5. Phonetics and linguistics are two separate disciplines which study language.

FALSE

Phonetics is a branch of linguistics which studies human speech sounds scientifically. 6. Phonology is a branch of phonetics concerned with the description of speech.

FALSE

Phonology is a branch of linguistics concerned with the systematic organization of sounds in languages.

7. Nasal sounds are articulated when the soft palate is lowered.

TRUE

Task Five: Using the features below identify the following English vowels: 1. Vowel height

2. Tongue advancement

3. Vowel length

(3 points)

4. Lip-rounding

a. / iː / Close or High

Front

Long

Spread

b. / ɪ / Close or High

Front

Long

Loosely spread

c. / e / Mid

Front

Short

Loosely spread and wider apart