2.2 Centring diphthongs

The centring diphthongs glide towards the vowel /q/ which is a central vowel.

Iq the starting point is a little closer than /I/ (but not too close) and the glide moves in the direction of the central /q/. The lips have a slight movement from spread to open.

eq begins with the vowel /e/ (in the open-mid front position) and moves in the direction of the more open variety of /q/. Attention should be paid to the open-mid articulation of the first element.

Vq has a starting point slightly closer than /V/. The lips are very slightly rounded at the beginning of the glide, becoming neutral as the glide progresses. It is not used as much as others – many English speakers use /L/ instead of this diphthong in the majority of words that traditionally have this diphthong (e.g. sure - /SL/).

3. Self-check questions

1. What is a syllabic function? What consonants have it?

2. Why do we call these diphthongs centring?

3. Speak on the distribution of the sound /N/.

4. How does the position of our speech organs change while pronouncing /eq/?

5. Dwell on the pronunciation of letters “ng”.

6. Compare the tongue position for /g/ and /N/.

7. Why do you call these consonants nasal?

4. English rhythm practice

Listen to this poem. Practise reading it.

Well, he eats like a pig

Well, he eats like a pig,

he can’t get enough.

He works like a dog,

he looks real tough.

He smokes like a chimney,

four packs a day.

He sleeps like a log,

what more can I say?

He drinks like a fish,

scotch on the rocks.

When he gets real mad,

he hardly talks.

He cries like a baby

when he’s feeling sad.

He’s the dearest friend

I’ve ever had.

Unit 5 lateral consonant triphthongs

Lesson	Topic	Hours	References
	Lateral consonant [l]. Triphthongs.	6
25	Clear variant of [l]. Diphthong [eq].	2	O’Connor – p.53-57, Ship or Sheep – Units 23, 46
26	Dark variant of [l]. Triphthongs.	2	O’Connor – p.53-57, Ship or Sheep – Unit 47
27	Test on nasal and lateral consonants	2	Lab works 3, 5

1. Key words

lateral consonant

dark and clear [l]

triphthong

2. Theoretical background

2.1 Lateral consonant

Lateral /'lxtqrql/ consonant is the consonant /l/ for which the tongue tip blocks the centre of the mouth and the air goes over the sides of the tongue (laterally).

/l/

In English there is only one lateral consonant - /l/. It is formed laterally, that is instead of the air passing in its usual way down the centre of the mouth, it escapes round the closure in the centre along the sides of the tongue.

The soft palate is raised so that no air can go through the nose, it is all forced to go through the mouth. The tip and the sides of the blade of the tongue are in firm contact with the alveolar ridge, thus obstructing the centre of the mouth. The sides of the tongue are lowered, so the air passes along the sides of the tongue.

/l/ is voiced and it lengthens the preceding vowel. And at the same time it can be shortened by the following strong consonant or it can be made longer by the following weak consonant (e.g. /fLl/, /fLlt/, /fLlz/). Notice that when /l/ stands after /p, t, k/, it is produced with considerable friction.

/l/ is often syllabic (e.g. /'teI-bl/, /'x-pl/, /'trx-vl/, etc.).

There are two variants of the sound /l/ in English. When /l/ stands before vowels within a word or at a word boundary, we speak about clear /l/. This sound resembles an /I/ vowel, with the front of the tongue raised (e.g. /lJf/, /'letq/, /lHs/, /'fIl It/ etc.). The second variant is called dark /l/ and can be found before consonants and in final position in the word. In its pronunciation it is quite similar to a vowel /V/, with the back of the tongue raised (e.g. /pVl/, /bIl/, /kLld/, /belt/, etc.). Syllabic /l/ is usually dark.