Question 1 (Consolidate)
We saw in Section 10.4, how the voiceless plosives /p, t, k/ are aspirated in certain positions and contexts. Transcribe the following examples of monosyllabic words (using square brackets), indicating any aspiration with a superscript h:
| pop | prop | take | kept |
| clean | spot | trick | pet |
Answer
| | pop | [phɒp] | prop | [prɒp] | take | [theɪk] | kept | [khept] |
| | clean | [kliːn] | spot | [spɒt] | trick | [trɪk] | pet | [phet] |
When any of these consonants occur singly before a vowel, they are aspirated – as in [phɒp], [theɪk], [khept] and [phet]. In a consonant cluster or word-finally they are unaspirated.
Question 2 (Consolidate)
Here are some examples of disyllabic words, some of which show aspiration for /p, t, k/. Can you determine why it occurs in some contexts (as shown in the left-hand set) and not others?
| /p/ | oppose | [əphəʊz] | dopey | [dəʊpi] |
| /t/ | foretell | [fɔːthel] | critic | [krɪtɪk] |
| /k/ | placate | [pləkheɪt] | biker | [baɪkə] |
Answer/discussion
In the left-hand set of examples, the aspirated plosives all occur as the initial consonant (followed immediately by the vowel) of a stressed syllable. This is comparable to the aspiration of these plosives at the start of monosyllabic words. In the right-hand column, unaspirated [p, t, k] are initial consonants of their syllables, but the syllable isn’t stressed. These examples show us, then, that /p, t, k/ will only be aspirated when they are the single initial consonants of stressed syllables.
Question 3 (Explore)
Many allophonic variants are so subtle that we barely notice them (although we would probably notice if, for instance, someone started pronouncing word-initial /l/ as a dark l). The phoneme /k/ is a velar plosive [k], but it can also be articulated with the tongue against the hard palate [c]. Using monosyllabic words with initial /k-/, find two or three examples of each allophone, and use these to determine what causes the shift from velar to palatal articulation.
Answer/discussion
Examples of velar /k/ could include cot, cart, coop and kick. Palatal /k/ (represented by [c]) occurs when /k/ precedes a close front vowel, as in keep ([ciːp]) or the palatal approximant /j/ as in cute ([cjuːt]). Even in a narrow transcription, it would rarely be necessary to indicate this allophonic difference. Most speakers are unaware of the adjustment in tongue position since it’s entirely natural for this assimilation to occur to facilitate articulation.
