(10) Phonological Rules

- phonological rules = describe the variations of the sounds in terms of simple statements about regular sound patterns

- not prescriptive x but: descriptive rules

Allophones of English Consonants

(a) [− voiced, + stop] > [+ aspirated] when syllable initial

= voiceless stops /p, t, k/ > aspirated when syllable initial (‘pip’ [p^hɪp], ‘test’ [t^hεst], ‘kick’ [k^hɪk])

(a’) [ə] > [^h] after syllable initial [− voiced, + stop] and before [− voiced, + stop]

= unstressed vowels > voiceless after syllable initial voiceless stop and before another voiceless stop (‘potato, catastrophe’)

(b) [+ voiced, + obstruent] > partially voiced when syllable final except when followed by a voiced sound

= voiced obstruents /b, d, g, v, ð, z, ʒ/ > partially voiced when at the end of an utterance or before a voiceless sound (/v/ in ‘prove this’; /d/ in ‘add two’)

(b’) [+ voiced, + stop] > partially voiced when syllable initial except when preceded by a voiced sound

= voiced stops /b, d, g,/ partially voiced when syllable initial after a voiceless sound

(c) [+ consonantal] > longer at the end of a phrase

= syllable final consonants > longer than syllable initial ones (‘bib, did, don x nod’)

(d) [+ approximant] > [− voiced] after [+ aspirated, + stop]

= approximants /w, ɹ, j, l/ > devoiced after voiceless aspirated /p, t, k/ (‘play’ [pl̥ eɪ], ‘twin’ [tw̥ ɪn], ‘cue’ [kj̥ u])

(d’) [– voiced, + stop] > [– aspirated] after /s/ at the beginning of a syllable

= voiceless stops /p, t, k/ > not aspirated after syllable initial /s/ (‘spew, stew, skew’)

(e) [− voiced] > longer at the end of a syllable

= (‘back x bag’, ‘cap x cab’)

(f) [+ stop] > unexploded before [+ stop]

= (‘apt’ [æp^┐t], ‘act’ [æk^┐t])

(g) [− voiced, + stop] > [+ glottal stop] + [− voiced, + stop] after a vowel and at the end of a syllable

= voiceless stops /p, t, k/ > reinforced by a glottal stop when syllable final after a vowel (‘tip’ [tɪʔp], ‘pit’ [pɪʔt], ‘kick’ [kɪʔk])

h) [− voiced, + alveolar, + stop] > [+ glottal stop] before an alveolar nasal in the same word

= the voiceless alveolar stop /t/ > replaced by a glottal stop before the alveolar nasal /n/ (‘beaten’ [biʔn])

(i) [+ nasal] > [+ syllabic] at the end of a word and immediately after [+ obstruent]

= nasals /m, n, ŋ/ > syllabic when word final after an obstruent (‘leaden’ ['lεdn̩ ], ‘chasm’ ['kæzṃ)

(j) [+ lateral] > [+ syllabic] at the end of a word and immediately after a consonant

= lateral /l/ > syllabic when word final after a consonant x but: not after /r/ for GA (‘paddle’ ['pædl̩ ], ‘whistle’ ['wɪsl̩ ], ‘kennel’ ['kεnl̩ ] x GA: ‘snarl’ [snɑɹl])

(j’) GA: [+ liquid] > [+ syllabic] at the end of a word and immediately after a consonant

= liquids = the cover term for /l, ɹ/ > syllabic when word final after a consonant (‘razor’ ['reɪzɹ ̩ ], ‘hammer’ ['hæmɹ ̩ ], ‘tailor’ ['teɪlɹ ̩ ])

(k) GA: [− voice, + alveolar, + stop] > [+ voiced, + tap] when the single consonant btw two vowels with the 2^nd one unstressed

= the voiceless alveolar stop /t/ > replaced by a tap when btw two vowels with the 2^nd one unstressed (‘fatty’ ['fæɾi], ‘data’ ['dæɾə])

(k’) GA: [+ alveolar, + stop] > [+ voiced, + tap] when the single consonant btw two vowels with the 2^nd one unstressed

= alveolar stops /d, t, n/ > replaced by a tap when btw two vowels with the 2^nd one unstressed (‘daddy’ ['dæɾi], ‘many’ ['mεɾ ͂ i]: [~] = indicates nasalisation when placed above a symbol x velarisation when in the middle of a symbol)

(l) [+ alveolar] > [+ dental] before [+ dental]

= the alveolar consonants /d, t, n, l/ > dentalised before dental consonants (‘eighth’ [eɪt̪θ], ‘width’ [wɪd̪θ], ‘tenth’ [tεn̪θ], ‘wealth’ [wεl̪θ])

(m) [+ alveolar, + stop] > zero (i.e. omitted) btw two consonants

= the alveolar stops /d, t/ > no audible release btw two consonants (‘most people, sand paper’)

(n) [+ consonant] > shortened before identical [+ consonant]

= (‘big game, top post’)

(o) zero > [− voice, + stop] after a nasal and before a voiceless fricative followed by an unstressed vowel

= the adding of a short voiceless stop [p], [t], [k] btw a nasal and a voiceless fricative before an unstressed vowel (‘something’ ['sʌmpθɪŋ], ‘youngster’ ['jʌŋkstə]): epenthesis = the insertion of a sound into the middle of a word

(p) [+ lateral] > velarized after a vowel and before another consonant or the end of a word

= (‘life’ [laɪf] x ‘file’ [faɪł], ‘clap’ [klæp] x ‘talc’ [tæłk])

Allophones of English Vowels

- [+ vowel] > shorter before voiceless sounds in the same syllable (‘cap x cab’)

- [+ vowel] > longer in open syllables (‘sea x seed’, ‘sigh x side’)

- [+ vowel] > longer in stressed syllables (‘be'low x 'billow’)

- [+ vowel] > [+ nasal] before [+ nasal] (‘ban’ [bæ͂ n])

- [+ front, + vowel] > [+ retracted] before syllable final /l/

= front vowels > as if diphthongs with an unrounded form of [ʊ] as the last element before syllable final /l/ (‘peel’ [p^hiʊł], ‘pail’ [p^heʊł], ‘pal’ [p^hæʊł])