You must have heard the word Phonetics in your English language classes. This concept might have even sounded a bit complicated and confusing to you. Not to worry! We will help you understand this concept without difficulty.
Phonetics is simply the study of human sounds. How we speak, how someone listens to us, and how they understand the information we are sharing, all this comes under Phonetics.
The main kind of phonetics, articulatory phonetics, analyzes the discourse organs and cycles by which people produce sounds; the attention is on the speaker of the language. The second kind of phonetics, acoustic phonetics, centers around the sound that is created when an individual talks; the point of acoustic phonetics is to comprehend the acoustic properties of discourse, and how that discourse is seen by the audience’s ears.
Let us delve into the three types of Phonetics with relatable examples.
1. Articulatory Phonetics (Production)
Articulatory Phonetics is the study of the organs of speech. As the title suggests, this type focuses majorly on the production of sound. Here, one studies the use of different speech organs in producing all types of speech sounds by the speaker. For example, the use of your tongue and lips in producing the words like moon, stars, flower, pen, and all other words.
2. Acoustic Phonetics (Transmission)
Acoustic Phonetics focuses on the study of transmission of sounds from the speaker to the listener. That is when the speaker says something, how the sound waves travel from the speaker’s speech organs to the listener’s ears. The study of this process of transmission comes under Acoustic Phonetics. For example, when your mom calls for you from another room. The sound waves travel from another room to yours.
3. Auditory Phonetics (Perception)
This is the widest of all types of phonetics. This category covers the most important aspect, perception. After the speaker conveys the information and the listener hears it, her/his brain functions to process the information. In simple words, auditory phonetics focuses on the listener’s understanding and processing of the information shared with them. Like, when your teacher explains a topic in class and you are able to understand it after listening to them. This example comes under Auditory Phonetics.
Spot of Articulation and Voicing
In articulatory phonetics, language specialists take a gander at the spot of explanation of different sounds; the spot of enunciation alludes to where the ousted air obstructed, hence making specific sounds. For instance, the teeth are a position of explanation; when an individual places his tongue against his teeth to make a specific consonant sound, this is alluded to as a “dental stop.” Articulatory phonetics likewise alludes to voicing; sounds that don’t utilize the vocal harmonies are voiceless, while sounds that utilization the vocal harmonies are voiced. For instance, when an individual structures a “t,” he isn’t utilizing his vocal harmonies, so this is alluded to as a “voiceless dental stop.” But when he utilizes his vocal harmonies to make commotion while framing a “d,” this is known as a “voiced dental stop.”
Phonetic Representation
Most etymologies utilize the International Phonetic Alphabet to address all the hints of human language. The IPA has a specific composed image to address each solid, and each variety of sound, that happens in dialects across the globe. The IPA is a helpful apparatus for etymologists and understudies of language, on the grounds that a language specialist who realizes the IPA can peruse the record of any language and have the option to imitate the words effectively, regardless of whether they are from a language he has never learned or heard.
Do you wish to know more about Phonetics and their use? Explore our worksheets at English Bix.