Chapter 1: INTRODUCTION

1. Phonetics (Ngữ âm học)

 NGHIÊN CỨU VỀ TỪNG ÂM RIÊNG BIỆT: the study of sound in human language is
concerned with how sounds are produced, transmitted and perceived.
o Articulatory: cách hình thành các âm vị - production of sound
o Acoustic: nghiên cứu âm học, âm thanh – physical property
o Auditory: ngữ âm học thính giác – perception – how sound transcript + receive

2. Phonology (Âm vị học)

 The study of the sound system or how sounds function in relation to each other in a particular
language system.
 Eg: Allophones, Phonemes, Stress, Weak form,...
3. Articulator (bộ phận cấu âm)
4. Speech Production
 Production of speech: sự rung của thanh quản.
- The sound: the higher frequency of vocal fold vibration, the higher sthe pitch recieved by
listener.
- Eg: vowel cao hơn.
- Vocal fold càng dài càng rộng thì slower vibration.

Chapter 2: VOWELS
(12 monophthongs – 8 dipthongs)

1. Definition
 A sound produced without major constriction/obstruction in the vocal tract.
 No articulators touch or even come closer.
 English vowels are voiced and oral.
2. Classification
1.1. Tougue height
 Học thuộc bảng (The openess of the mouth)
 High vowel = Close vowel
 Low vowel = Open vowel
1.2. Tougue position: front, back, central: (học thuộc)
1.3. Lip rounding
1.4. Tenseness:
 Tense (long vowels + dipthongs)
 Lax (short vowels)
 The duration of a vowel is shortened as more syllable are added within the same word.
 Eg: Lead – leader – leadership
3. Dipthongs:
 Centring: kết thúc bằng “ơ”
 Closing: kết thúc bằng “i” hoặc “u”
 Nguyên âm đầu mạnh hơn.
4. Tripthongs
 Closing dipthongs + “ơ”.

Chapter 3: CONSONANT
(24 sounds)
1. Definition
 One particular articulator moves toward another or 2 articulators come to another.
 Obstructing the air stream so it can’t get out freely.
 Two types of articulators:
o Active: articulator that can move toward another (môi, lưỡi, vocal fold)
o Passive: đứng im (răng, lợi, ngạc, thanh quản, pharynx).

2. Classification
1.1. Place of articulation
 Where the obstruction occurs in the vocal tracts (chapter 4 - 5 consonants).

Place Articulators Sounds

Billabial Upper lip + Lower lip /p/,/b/,/m/
Labio-dental Lower lip + upper teeth /f/,/v/
Dental Teeth + Tounge /θ/, /ð/
Alveolar Alveolar ridge + tounge /t/,/d/,/n/,/l/,/s/,/z/
Post-alveolar The tip of the tounge + the ridge /ʃ/, /ʒ/
The front of the tounge + hard palate /tʃ/, /dʒ/, /r/ (special)
Palatal Hard palate + the front of the tounge /j/
Velar Soft palate + the back of the tounge /k/,/g/, /ŋ/
Glottal Lungs /h/
Labio-velar sound Lip + soft palate + tounge /w/
Retroflex* The back of alveolar ridge + tounge /r/ - cuối các từ (VD: car)
(AmE)

 Voicing = Stage of the glottis

o Voiced: The vocal cords are brought together and vibrate.
o Voiceless (9 voiceless sound): If the vocal cords are apart, do not vibrate, we hear only
noise and consonants are voiceless.
1.2. Manner of articulation: The way in which the air stream is obstructed.

Manner of
articulation

Close Open
Complete
approximati approximati
closure
on on

Lateral Central
Plosives Nasal Fricative Affricate approximan approximan
ts ts

a. Complete closure (Đóng hoàn toàn)

 Oral stop/Plosives (Có sự đóng đồng thời khoang miệng và khoang mũi: simultaneous oral &
nasal closure): the air behind the oral closure is compressed (bị nén lại) and when the active
articulator is removed suddenly from contact with the pasive one, the air escapes with an
explosion.
o 4 phase: Closing – Compression – Release – Post release
o 6 sounds: /p/, /t/, /k/, /b/, /d/, /g/
o Aspriation: a puff of air is released when there is a delay between the sound of explosion & the beginning
of voicing. It’s more stronger and energetic in voiceless plosive. Âm đứng đầu mang trong âm (people) –
bật âm mạnh nhất. (p, t, k)
 Nasal stop: produced by a stricture (đóng hoàn toàn khoang miệng) of complete oral closure.
There is no closure of nasal passage. Soft palate is lowered, and the air passes through nasal.
o 3 sounds: /m/, /n/, /ŋ/
b. Close approximation (Xấp xỉ đóng):
 Fricative - âm xát: the active articulators are brought close to the passive articulators, the
passage (đường) between them is very narrow. The air pass through it with audible friction (âm
xát) – hissing sound.
o Continuant sound.
o /f/, /v/, /s/, /z/, /ʃ/, /ʒ/, /θ/, /ð/, /h/
 Affricate – âm tắc xát: A sequence (chuỗi hành động) of the stop followed by homogarnic
fricative (những âm xát có cùng vị trí cấu âm)
o 2 sounds: /tʃ/, /dʒ/
 c. Open approximation (Xấp xỉ mở):
 Lateral approximants: Partial close. A contact of the articulators in the centre of the vocal tract
but the air may pass through the side. (lưỡi chạm khiến không khí bay sang 2 bên)
o 1 sound: /l/
 Central approximants: no obstruction from articulators, air release freely.
o 3 sounds: /j/, /w/, /r/
 Classification:
o Close, Complete: 2 articulators move toward another, narrow
o Open: 2 articulators come close together, but there isn’t any friction between 2
articulators.
 Classification:
o Complete closure (đóng cả mũi miệng): oral.
o Complete oral close (đóng miệng thôi): nasal.

Chapter 4: OBSTRUENTS & SONORANTS

1. Obstruents (âm ồn): oral stop/plosives, fricatives, affricates
 Fortis & Lenis disctinction only applies in English
1.1. Fortis: p, t, k, f, s, tʃ, ʃ, θ

 Aspriration:
 English voiced obstruents are fully voiced when they occur between voiced sounds (nasal,
approximants, & vowels)
 Eg: rabbit /ˈræbɪt/
 English voiced obstruents are partially voiced or fully devoiced when they are preceded or
followed by a pause or a voiceless consonant.
 Eg: this boy / ||ð̥ɪs b̥ɔɪ
 (p, t, k): khi đứng sau s – bị unaspirated. Speak.
 When appriximants are preceded by an unaspirated plosive (khi đứng sau p, t, k thì bị
devoicing). Play. P là aspirated, l là âm voiced – khiến l devoice, p vẫn bthg. Trường hợp khác
thì như bình thường. in short, p, t, k trước l, j, w, r thì l, w, j, r bị devoiced.
 Prefortis clipping: vowels standing before fortis consonants tend to be shorter than
those standing before lenis consonants. (khi 1 vowel đứng trc f thì bị làm ngắn lại,
hiện tượng shortening vowel). Khi viết phiên âm, vowel dài thì ghi 1 chấm thôi,
còn ngắn sẵn rồi thì thêm dấu “á” ở trên, nguyên âm đôi thì đánh cái đầu. Pat – bat
thì a trong pat sẽ ngắn hơn trong bat.
1.2. Lenis – âm vang: (b, d, g, v, z, dʒ, ʒ, ð)

o Devoicing
English obstruents are fully voiced when they occur between voice sound (sonorants). Âm nào
giữa 2 này thì fully voiced. Rabbit.
 Voiced obstruents are partially voiced/ devoiced when they are preceeded or followed by a
pause or a voiceless consonant. (kh có j ở trc nên “o” – pause) The (kh có j ở trc nên “o” –
pause) boy.
2 quy tắc này dành cho fortis vì lenis devoicing sẵn r.
1. Sonorants (âm vang): nasals, approximants, vowels.
Mũi hóa và răng hóa.
 Nasalize: only vowels: khi vowel trc nasal stop. (dấu ngã). Kể cả nguyên âm đôi cũng ngã cả.
(lãin).
 Dentalization: consonant mà alveolar sound đứng trước dental thì bị dentalize (hình chữ nhật kh
có cạnh đáy).

Chapter 5: PHONEMES – ALLOPHONES

Phonemes: âm vị: smallest unit of sound in a language that can cause a difference in meaning
between 2 words = vowels + consonants.
 Tính chất: are abstract units that represent sound. They are not sound themselves.
 Allophones: sự thể hiện của 1 âm vị/ âm thanh. Nondistincttive varients of a phoneme. Thay 1
allophone này bằng cái khác thì kh thay đổi nghĩa. Actual sound.
Ví dụ phoneme p: có thể p bật hơi, p bình thường nhưng không thay đổi.
Butter: đọc là bắt tờ hay bắt đờ cũng như nhau.
 Flap T: The tip of the tougue rapidly flaps against the alveolar ridge. (phiên âm thành “r”)
3 quy tắc sử dụng:
No flap t in stressed. Vd, attack.
Flap t between 2 vowels in âm tiết không stressed. Beautiful, city.
Flap t between “r” và vowel: dirty, party …
 Glottal stop: giống dấu “?”: the sound made by closer in the larynx (có sự đóng lại ở thanh
quản).
No in âm tiết stressed hoặc sau voiceless consonents. Ví dụ: quy tắc 8.
Cuối 1 từ.
Between 2 vowels in unstressed. Better.
 Allophone:
o Complementary destribution: one allophone occurs, the other cannot. Talk, stop
o Free variation: can present at the same time.
o Light L(lưỡi chạm alveolar ridge): before vowels
o Dark L: back lưỡi dâng lên trước consonant: Before a consonant or a pause.
Phoneme: gạch chép
Allophone: ngoặc vuông.
 Minimal pairs: pair of word with 1 phonemic difference. Beg – big khác nhau e, i.
2. Phonemic thì chỉ phiên âm bình thường thôi, phonetics thì phải có hiện tượng đi kèm.
 3. Syllable: a unit of spoken message that is larger than the single sound and usually smaller than
the word. (english syllable structure)
 Consist of a central which has little on no obstruction to air flow, before and after that central
there will be greater obstruction to air flow and/or less loud sound.
o Onset
o Rhyme:
 Nucleus (vowels/ syllabic consonant): bắt buộc
 Cods: optional
syllabic consonant: phải ký hiệu “|”: l, r, m, n.
Chapter 6: SYLLABLE STRUCTURES
Chapter 7: WEAK FORMS
 Chapter 8: INTONATION
Attitudinal function:
- Prosodic features: width of pitch range, key, loudness, speed, voice quality
Accentual function
Grammar function
Discourse function: