? ], Belt [be? t], silk [s? ? k] illustrate the distribution of the sound either at the end of the word (syllable) or before a consonant.phoneme is spelt either l or ll in words like link or call, for instance. In many words, however, before plosive sounds like [k] or [d] - cf. chalk, could; or before nasals like [m] or [n] - cf. calm, Lincoln; the labio-dental fricatives [f] and [v] - cf. calf, calves; the lateral sound is not pronounced. . The rhotic [r]. The class includes several variants which are pretty different both in rticulatory terms and in auditory effect. The RP [<] is a frictionless continuant, articulated very much like a fricative, but friction does not accompany the production of the sound. The tip of the tongue slightly touches the back of the alveolar ridge, while the body of the tongue is low in the mouth. flapped is used by many speakers of English, especially when it occurs at the beginning of unstressed syllables. The tongue rapidly touches the alveolar ridge with a tap.rolled [r] is common in northern dialects and in Scotland. It is produced by a quick succession of flaps, the tongue repeatedly and rapidly touching the alveolar ridge and vibrating against it. This sound is not characteristic for RP. The letter r or double rr reproduces the sound graphically: right, barren In postvocalic word-or syllable-final position the sound is not pronounced in standard English - cf. car, party. If the word is, however, followed by a vowel, [r] is reinserted: the car is mine. The same insertion takes place when an affix is ??attached to a base ending in a (normally) silent [r]: hear [h? c] / hearing [h? cr? ? ]; Moor [m? c] / Moorish [m? cr? ]. This type of [r] is called linking r .. The English Stops
. The oral plosives. In terms of their place of articulation they are bilabial, alveolar and velar .. [p] is a voiceless, bilabial, fortis plosive. Its variants include an aspirated plosive if the consonant is followed by a stressed vowel and occurs in syllable-initial position. Being a bilabial stop, [p] is produced by completely blocking the airstream at the level of the lips and by suddenly releasing the air with an explosion. Except for the aspirated variant, the phoneme is pretty similar to its Turkish counterpart. It is distributed in initial, medial and final position: pane, appear, lip. It is spelt p: plane or pp5: opposite and only exceptionally gh in hiccough. The letter p is silent when followed by another obstruent or a nasal in word-initial position: psalm, pterodactyl, pneumatic. [B] is the voiced, lenis counterpart of [p]. Voicing and force of articulation are the features that contrast the two phonemes, [b] being like [p] a bilabial sound. It is distributed in all three basic positions; initial, medial and final: bet, above, cab. It is spelt b: about or bb: abbot. The letter is silent in final position after m: limb, crumb, dumb and in front of t in words of Latin origin where the sound has long been lost: debt, doubt, subtle. The variants of [b] include partially devoiced allophones in initial position: big, blow, bring and laterally or nasally released allophones when [b] is followed by the lateral l: bless or by a nasal consonant: ribbon. It is not audibly released in final position: rib .. [t] is a voiceless, apico-alveolar, fortis plosive. Like [p], it has an aspirated variant that occurs before stressed vowels when the phoneme is distributed in sylla...
