Understanding Nasal and Fricative Sounds in Phonetics
Understanding Nasal and Fricative Sounds
/m/ Voiced, Nasal, Bilabial
The air coming from the lungs passes through the larynx. At this moment, the vocal folds are closed. The pressure of the air causes them to open, allowing air to pass through. As the air pressure decreases, the vocal folds close again, returning to the initial closed position. This process results in continuous vibration of the vocal folds.
As the air exits, it encounters an obstacle in the oral cavity because the soft palate (velum) is lowered, preventing air from escaping through the mouth. Instead, air escapes through the nose/nasal cavity. Simultaneously, the upper and lower lips are closed, producing a bilabial sound.
/n/ Voiced, Nasal, Alveolar
The air coming from the lungs passes through the larynx. At this moment, the vocal folds are closed. The pressure of the air causes them to open, allowing air to pass through. As the air pressure decreases, the vocal folds close again, returning to the initial closed position. This process results in continuous vibration of the vocal folds.
As the air exits, it encounters an obstacle in the oral cavity because the soft palate (velum) is lowered, preventing air from escaping through the mouth. Instead, air escapes through the nose/nasal cavity. Simultaneously, the tip of the tongue and the alveolar ridge (the area behind the upper front teeth) are closed, producing an alveolar sound.
/N/ Voiced, Nasal, Velar
The air coming from the lungs passes through the larynx. At this moment, the vocal folds are closed. The pressure of the air causes them to open, allowing air to pass through. As the air pressure decreases, the vocal folds close again, returning to the initial closed position. This process results in continuous vibration of the vocal folds.
The air continues its way up, and the nasal sound is articulated at the back part of the palate, between the back of the tongue and the soft palate/velum, where these two articulators close. This complete blockage in the oral cavity forces the air to escape through the nose/nasal cavity.
/f/ Voiceless, Fricative, Labiodental
The air coming from the lungs passes through the larynx. At this moment, the glottis (the opening between vocal folds) is wide open, allowing air to pass freely without vibration of the vocal folds.
The air continues to the oral cavity, where the upper front teeth touch the lower lip. At this point, the vocal tract is narrowed, causing friction on the airstream, resulting in turbulence. The resulting sound is a hissing sound.
/v/ Voiced, Fricative, Labiodental
The air coming from the lungs passes through the larynx. At this moment, the vocal folds are closed. The pressure of the air causes them to open, allowing air to pass through. As the air pressure decreases, the vocal folds close again, returning to the initial closed position. This process results in continuous vibration of the vocal folds.
The air continues to the oral cavity, where the upper front teeth touch the lower lip. At this point, the vocal tract is narrowed, causing friction on the airstream, resulting in turbulence. The resulting sound is a hissing sound.
/T/ Voiceless, Fricative, Dental
The air coming from the lungs passes through the larynx. At this moment, the glottis (the opening between vocal folds) is wide open, allowing air to pass freely without vibration of the vocal folds.
The air continues to the oral cavity, where the tip of the tongue gets very close to the back of the gap between the upper and lower teeth. The vocal tract is narrowed, and the air escapes through the gaps left. The result is a hissing sound caused by the friction produced by the teeth on the airstream.