describe the four vowel phonemes with the help of vowel of trapezium

PHONEMES

These are the different sounds within a language. Although there are slight differences in how individuals articulate sounds, we can still describe reasonably accurately how each sound is produced. One sound rather than another can change the meaning of the word. It is this principle which gives us the total number of phonemes in a particular language. (Fremkin, 2007)

VOWELS

Sounds that you make when you speak without closing your mouth.( Macmillan English Dictionary, 2004) or a speech sound that is produced by comparatively open configuration of the vocal tract, with vibration of the vocal cords but without audible friction and is a unit of the sound system of a language that forms the nucleus of a syllable. A letter representing a vowel sound, such as a, e, i, o, u

There are twenty vowel phonemes in English. English speaker generally use 12 pure vowel and 8 diphthongs

Vowels are also classified according to the following:-

1. Monophthongs
2. Diphthongs

1. According to Monophthongs:-

Front vowel: /i: , ɪ,e, æ/

Central vowels: /ə ,ʌ, ɜː/

Back vowels: / ʊ, u:, ɔː ɒ, ɑː/

2. According to Diphthongs:

Closing diphthongs: /eɪ, aɪ, ɔɪ, aʊ, əʊ/

Centering diphthongs: /ɪə, eə, ʊə/

All diphthongs and Monophthongs that have (:) in their symbols are phonetically long, Monophthongs without (:) are phonetically short.

CRITERIA FOR DESCRIBING THE ENGLISH VOWEL PHONEMES

Tongue height: is described by using to criteria i.e. Height (how high is tongue) and the part of tongue involved in production of the sounds. In English the tongue may either be high i.e. when the speaker produces e.g. [i: ,u:] in [bi:t, bu:t] beat boot intermediate e.g. [e, ↄ:] in [bet, b ↄ:t] bet bought or low e.g. [ æ, a:] in [bæ:t, ba:t] bat, Bart.

Tongue position: is the frontness/backness of the tongue. When consider the position of the tongue along the horizontal axis we can identify three classes of vowels: front vowels – uttered with the front part of the tongue highest, central vowels it is rather the central part of the tongue that is highest, modifying the shape of the articulator and back vowels – the rear part of the tongue is involved in articulation.

Length: there are two types of [i:] sound in English placed into different positions. However for the purpose of description, what is relevant s not the difference of position but that of the perceived length of the vowel i.e. /i:/ is long vowel and /ɪ/ is short.

Rounding: vowel may also different from each with the respect rounding. For example compare [i] in [tʃ i:z] cheese with [u:] in [tʃu:z] choose when [u] is pronounced lips are rounded but when [i:] the conners of the mouth much further apart.

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE FOLLOWING ENGLISH VOWEL PHONEMES /i:/, / ʊ/,/a:/,/ ɜː/

The front vowels:

/i:/ the front of the tongue is slightly behind and below the close front position. Lips are spread, the tongue is tensed and the side of the tongue touches the upper molar (is nearby close, unrounded, phonemically long front vowel.)

Spellings: e: even, these,

ee: meet, queen

ea: meat, zeal

ie: thief, siege

i: machine, magazine

ey: key

ae: mediaeval, aesthetic

oe: oecumenical, Oedipus

eo: people, feoff

/ ʊ/ the part of tongue just behind is raised, just about half close. The lips are rounded but loosely (not tight). The tongue is relatively relaxed. (Phonemically short vowel, half-close, rounded, centralized back).

Spellings: u: pull, full

o: wolf, woman

oo: book, look

ou: should, would

/a:/ a phonemically long, open, unrounded, centralized back vowel .

Spellings: a: staff, giraffe,

au: aunt, draught

er: clerk, sergeant

ear: heart, hearth, hearken

oir: reservoir, boudoir

The central vowels

/ ɜː/ a phonemically long, unrounded, central vowel, somewhat, closer than half-opened.

Spellings: er: fern, kernel

          ir: fair, bird

          ur: fur, burn

          yr: myrrh, myrtle

or: work, word

our: journey, scourage

ear: earn, earth

eur: connoisseur, entrepreneur

REFERENCE:

Fremkin, V. (2007) An introduction to language.USA Michili Rosemberg

Jean, O. (1994). Reading, language, and literacy: instruction for the twenty-first century. Hillsdale, Lawrence Erlbaum.

Macmillan English Dictionary For Advanced Learners, (2004).Michael Rundell.London

English Phonetics, Vowel sounds(accessed 16 may 2015) http://englishphonetics.wikispaces.com/Vowel+sounds