The Nasal Sounds
As it happens in Spanish, English has three voiced nasal consonants. The most important difference is that the velar N in Spanish is not a phoneme, but an allophonic difference for the alveolar N. In other words, each nasal sound is an independent phoneme in English.
How are nasal sounds produced? Nasals are produced with a complete closure of the oral cavity. The velum leads and allows the airstream release through the nasal cavity.
There are three members in this group:
1. the voiced bilabial nasal or /m/,
2. the voiced alveolar nasal or /n/, and
3. the voiced velar nasal or /ŋ/.
These sounds cannot be classified as having sister sounds. And that is because none of them have a voiceless counterpart. We can state that nasal phonemes are always voiced in English.
In terms of sound production difficult, it can be said that the velar N is the one that has more trouble for Spanish speakers to use as an independent phoneme. Emphasis needs to be given to the contrastive difference between the alveolar and the velar N.
Alveolar Nasal
On the other hand, the bilabial nasal can have some pronunciation problems when found in final position. There is a tendency of Spanish speakers to pronounce /m/-sounds in final position as if they were /n/-sounds or /ŋ/-sounds.
| Sound | Spanish | English |
| /m/ | voiced bilabial | voiced bilabial |
| /n/ | voiced alveolar | voiced alveolar |
| /ŋ/ | voiced velar | voiced velar |
| /ɲ/ | voiced palatal | |
Transcription by Thematic Units 7:
Appliances and Electronics
| Device | Transcription |
| 1. microwave | /’maykrǝweyv/ |
| 2. refrigerator | |
| 3. mixer | |
| 4. coffee maker | |
| 5. blender | |
| 6. rice cooker | |
| 7. stove | |
| 8. mobile pone | |
| 9. mp3 player | |
| 10. laptop | |
| 11. scanner | |
| 12. toaster | |
Get a copy of the exercise here!
See the answers over here!
Download the answers here, but after you have done the exercise!
Vowel Lengthening Exercise
Classify the following words as “lengthened” or “unlengthened.” Transcribe them, and place them in the corresponding box.
| Lengthened | Unlengthened |
| town/thaw:n/ | cattle/’khæțl/ |
when epic wagon farms gold
young would change John home
flood empire state tore river
tried ruined never sawmill Swiss
piece that size just year
head whispers cattle town
Vowel Lengthening
The concept of vowel lengthening refers to making vowel sounds longer that they actually are. This phonological phenomenon takes place in English as a way to prevent ambiguity in speech. That is, vowel lengthening is a mechanism the language has to clarify meaning for native speakers, who are not aware of what they are actually pronouncing.
The EFL or ESL language learner must learn how to use this lengthening of the vowels in English to help his/her listeners understand the real meaning of what it is said. He/she must learn how to use it to make him/her understood correctly and to avoid misunderstandings. That is why ambiguity needs to be gotten rid of in speaking and listening.
Vowel lengthening is not an optional rule in the language; it is mandatory! This mechanism is not noticed by the native speaker who learned it as part of his language background through constant exposure to the language since birth. The native speaker does not think of this because it is used by him or her mechanically and without being sure of what is actually happening, phonologically speaking, while having a conversation or reading.
Although this is an unconscious phonological process, it is the EFL/ESL student’s task to learn it consciously. Practicing vowel lengthening, over and over again, will make you reduce your accent in English much more. Not applying this mechanism will mar one’s pronunciation in the foreign language. Needless to mention, what the consequences will be if the vowel lengthening rule is not applied on a transcription exercise, or while giving a speech in a language class at the university level.
Vowel Lengthening Rules
To start with, the lengthening of the vowels only takes place in one-syllable words. Words containing two or more syllables will not be affected by this phenomenon. And this phonological mechanism is intrinsically related to the use of voicing in English.
1. Apply vowel lengthening when the one-syllable word ends in a voiced consonant:
a. eyes /ay:z/
b. red /rƐ:d/
c. pain /phey:n/
d. stand /stæ:nd/
e. air /Ɛ:ǝr/
2. Do not apply vowel lengthening when the one-syllable word ends in a voiceless consonant:
a. back /bæk/
b. both /bowϴ/
c. fists /fɪsts/
d. stuck /stʌk/
e. trapped /thræpt/
Written Quiz #3
Here you have our Written Quiz 3, exclusively for transcriptions. Make sure you read the instructions carefully.
The quiz consists of a task divided into two different exercises, one related to the other: You will have to transcribe the words in the recording, but you will also have to write a "meaningful" sentence with the word. That is, you must write a sentence that shows that you understand the word’s meaning and use.
Please, don't write long sentences, and make sure your quiz fits a maximum of two pages. Check your grammar carefully, and type your answers. Because you don't have the corresponding program to use phonetic fonts, handwrite your transcriptions.
Audio material for the quiz:
http://www.divshare.com/download/12692334-32b
http://www.mediafire.com/?ag48qo31c78mox7
Download the quiz from any of these two links:
http://www.divshare.com/download/12699546-8bc
http://www.mediafire.com/?0m4xykgf9ugxhzx
An extra hint for this quiz is to use an Oxford or Cambridge dictionary or a Web-link such as www.dictionary.com. The drawback of using sources like this is that, at times, they don't use phonological transcriptions like the ones we use at the university. Make sure to make proper changes to make the words fit our course standards.
Good luck!
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