How many pure vowel sounds (monophthongs) are there in English?
A5
B10
C12
D15
Answer:
C. 12
Read Explanation:
English Vowel Sounds: An Overview
- The English language, particularly in its widely recognized accents like Received Pronunciation (RP) or General American (GA), possesses a complex system of vowel sounds.
- Sounds in English are generally categorized into vowels and consonants. Vowels are produced with a relatively open vocal tract, allowing air to flow freely, whereas consonants involve some obstruction of the airflow.
Pure Vowel Sounds (Monophthongs)
- A pure vowel sound, also known as a monophthong, is a single, unchanging vowel sound produced without any noticeable change in the tongue or lip position during its articulation. It remains consistent from start to finish.
- In standard British English (Received Pronunciation - RP), there are typically 12 pure vowel sounds (monophthongs).
- These 12 monophthongs can be broadly classified based on tongue position (front, central, back) and jaw height (high, mid, low), and also by their duration (long or short).
- Examples of long vowels (5): /iː/ (as in 'feet'), /ɜː/ (as in 'bird'), /ɑː/ (as in 'father'), /ɔː/ (as in 'door'), /uː/ (as in 'blue'). These are often marked with a colon (ː) in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) to indicate length.
- Examples of short vowels (7): /ɪ/ (as in 'kit'), /e/ (as in 'dress'), /æ/ (as in 'trap'), /ʌ/ (as in 'strut'), /ɒ/ (as in 'lot'), /ʊ/ (as in 'put'), /ə/ (as in 'about' - the schwa sound). The schwa /ə/ is the most common vowel sound in English.
Distinction with Diphthongs
- Apart from the 12 monophthongs, English also has diphthongs. A diphthong is a vowel sound that involves a glide from one vowel quality to another within the same syllable.
- In RP, there are typically 8 diphthongs (e.g., /eɪ/ as in 'face', /aɪ/ as in 'my', /oʊ/ as in 'goat', /aʊ/ as in 'mouth', /ɔɪ/ as in 'boy', /ɪə/ as in 'near', /eə/ as in 'hair', /ʊə/ as in 'tour').
Key Facts for Competitive Exams
- The International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) is the standard system used by linguists and phoneticians to represent speech sounds. Knowing the IPA symbols for English vowels and consonants is crucial for competitive exams focused on phonetics and phonology.
- In Received Pronunciation (RP), the total number of vowel sounds (monophthongs + diphthongs) is 20 (12 monophthongs + 8 diphthongs).
- The total number of consonant sounds in English RP is typically 24.
- Therefore, the total number of phonemes (distinct sound units) in English RP is 44 (20 vowels + 24 consonants).
- Variations exist across different accents. For example, General American (GA) pronunciation may have a slightly different number or quality of vowel sounds compared to RP (e.g., the lack of /ɒ/ and the presence of /ɜr/ as a rhotic vowel).
- Understanding the difference between sounds and letters is fundamental. The English alphabet has 5 vowel letters (A, E, I, O, U), but these represent a much larger number of vowel sounds.