Pure vowels
How are pure vowels characterized in English? A brief description. Before learning about their features, we have to get to know to them. */i:/ the fleece / ɪ / the kit /e/ the dress /æ/ the trap /ɜ:/ the nurse /ə/ the shwa / ʌ / the strut / ɑ :/ the palm / ɒ / the lot / ɔ :/ the thought / ʊ / the foot /u:/ the goose * Key words devised by Professor J.C. Wells and widely used as a standard set. Phonetically. Vowels are produced by a stricture of open approximation. This means that The air goes out unimpeded centrally over the tongue without contact of the articulators. Because of this, they are no easy to describe in terms of articulation and they are learned auditorily by listening and imitation. In all cases we assume that the soft palate is raised, the vocal cords vibrating and the tongue tip behind the lower teeth. To know in what ways vowels differ from each other, we have to consider the shape and position of the tongue and...