Phonetics
A Coursebook

A problem-based introduction to phonetics, featuring over three hundred integrated exercises to help you discover and practice the subject as you read.

Rachael-Anne Knight (Author)

9780521732444, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 26 January 2012

314 pages, 115 b/w illus.
24.6 x 17.5 x 1.5 cm, 0.63 kg

'Engagingly written, this accessible introduction to articulatory phonetics tests the reader's understanding at every stage with a structured series of questions and exercises. The 20 well-balanced units cover basic theory and the essentials of English phonetics, including intonation. Any student new to phonetics will find this a valuable learning aid.' Jill House, University College London

A problem-based introduction to phonetics, with over three hundred exercises integrated into the text to help the student discover and practice the subject interactively. It assumes no previous knowledge of the subject and highlights and explains new terms and concepts when they are first introduced. Graded review questions and exercises at the end of every unit help the student monitor their own progress and further practice new skills, and there is frequent cross-referencing for the student to see how the subject fits together and how later concepts build on earlier ones. The book highlights the differences between speech and writing in Unit One and covers all the essential topics of a phonetics course.

1. The difference between speech and writing
2. Consonant voicing
3. Consonant place of articulation
4. Consonant manner of articulation
5. The IPA chart and mid-sagittal sections for consonants
6. Vowels
7. Airstream mechanisms
8. Syllables and stress
9. Allophonic variations of voice
10. Allophonic variations of place
11. Allophonic variations of manner
12. Allophonic variations of vowels
13. Allophonic transcription and parametric diagrams
14. Speech sound variation
15. Weak forms and elision
16. Liaison
17. Assimilation
18. Broad transcription
19. Intonation
20. Functions of intonation.

Subject Areas: Phonetics, phonology [CFH]